Master Ansible: Automation & DevOps with Real Projects

Install ansible on linux or unix via package manager, pip, or compiled binaries; Windows cannot be the controller. Use a cloud linux machine with a $100 coupon for hands-on setup.

Explore installing Ansible with pip and leverage Python virtual environments to run multiple Ansible versions on one controller, enabling version-specific testing against existing inventories.

Create a cloud machine on DigitalOcean to install the Ansible engine, select an Ubuntu image, pick a $10 per month droplet, and access via SSH or browser console.

Install ansible using a Python virtual environment by creating and activating a virtual environment, installing dependencies and ansible via pip, then verifying the installation inside the virtual environment.

Configure Ansible after installation by creating an ansible.cfg or using the ANSIBLE_CONFIG environment variable, and define a hosts inventory in the project directory inside the virtual environment.

Set up aws nodes by connecting the ansible control node with clients, configure security group inbound rules, generate and upload public keys, and launch ec2 instances with key-based authentication.

Connect AWS nodes with the Ansible engine by updating the inventory with public IP or public DNS. Test connectivity using ping and confirm Python is available on endpoints for communication.

Set up a Google Cloud node as the Ansible plane, configure the default firewall to allow SSH on port 22, and launch a micro Ubuntu VM in the chosen project.

Connect Google Cloud nodes with the Ansible engine to manage multi-cloud resources—from AWS to GCP and beyond—using a Python virtual environment, host files, and a single installation.

Learn how to structure Ansible directories and inventories to manage development, performance, and staging environments, using environment-specific host files and mappings to execute targeted operations.

Create a multi-group inventory file in Ansible, define web_app, backend, and db groups, and run tasks against specific groups using the host file and ping.

Learn to set up DigitalOcean droplets and manage them with Ansible, including creating droplets, configuring SSH keys, updating the inventory, and handling host key verification prompts.

Learn to disable host key verification in Ansible to prevent prompts on dynamic servers, by setting host_key_checking=false in ansible.cfg, or via env var or command line.

Master Ansible ad-hoc commands by running one-line tasks on targeted inventory groups with modules such as the shell module, using -m and -e options to pass arguments.

See how Ansible executes tasks on remote clients without agents by copying a Python file to each host from the inventory, running it, and cleaning up.

Copy files from the engine to multiple clients using the Ansible copy module in a single command, with source, destination, and checksum verification to update only when changes occur.

Learn to manage files and directories on Ansible clients using the file module: create or delete files and directories, set permissions, and compare behaviors with the copy module.

Install packages on Ansible clients using the Ansible Engine by leveraging the package module to manage installs, updates, and removals across Linux and Unix hosts with proper privileges.

Explore Ansible modules, including the setup module, which runs on remote nodes to gather host facts; learn to list, document, and filter module output in playbooks and the CLI.

Discover how Ansible facts reveal client and infrastructure details using the setup module to gather facts in playbooks, with default and custom fact options.

Create custom facts using Ansible's setup module to gather user defined data on managed nodes; store scripts in the facts directory, ensure executability, and expose environment specific information.

Learn to generate dynamic inventory with AWS using Ansible plugins, replacing static IP inventories, and manage hosts and groups at runtime.

Enable default dynamic inventory plugins, install boto3 and boto, and export AWS credentials to run a YAML AWS dynamic inventory that lists running instances with Ansible.

Configure dynamic inventory for Google cloud using the gcp plugin, creating a compute-engine service account key and inventory file with project id and authentication to list running instances.

Master dynamic inventory with Digital Ocean in Ansible by installing the community.digitalocean collection, configuring a digital_ocean_credential.yaml with your API token, and creating digital_ocean_inventory.yaml for automatic host discovery.

Explore Ansible playbooks, compare them with ad hoc commands, and learn to orchestrate multi-task configurations using tasks, plays, inventory, variables, and templates.

Join a hands-on demo of Ansible playbooks, from dynamic inventory setup and ping tests to running multi-task playbooks with gathering facts, become user, and server installation—demonstrating reliable automation.

Learn to write effective Ansible playbooks, execute YAML files directly, and verify syntax with --syntax-check, then perform dry runs and configure remote_user and dynamic inventory.

Learn how to use the debug module to log messages, print variables, and debug expressions in playbooks. Control output with verbosity and inspect host IP and inventory data.

Defining and using custom variables in an Ansible playbook with examples in Visual Studio Code, including string, integer, boolean, and float values, and accessing them via debug tasks.

Learn how to use data collection in Ansible to store multiple values with sequence and map structures. Access these collections in playbooks and debug tasks.

Learn how to use register to capture module output and set_fact to store values in Ansible playbooks, then extract and debug shell version data.

learn to perform arithmetic operations on variables in an ansible playbook using jinja syntax, define a and b, and display results with the debug module on localhost.

Practice on arithmetic operators in an Ansible playbook by defining and reading variables, using prompts for runtime input, and handling type casting to perform correct arithmetic rather than string concatenation.

Explore how to apply filters and methods to variables in an Ansible playbook, using pipes for filters and dot notation for Python methods, with examples of lowercase and uppercase transformations.

Explore how the Ansible pause module controls execution flow with timeouts, prompts, and the eco option; learn practical uses for maintenance windows, user input, and inter-task delays through live demos.

Learn to pass runtime variables to an Ansible playbook via the command line using -e/--extra-vars, with inline key=value, JSON, or YAML inputs, overriding defaults.

Understand the difference between ansible_hostname and inventory_hostname, how the setup module gathers remote facts, and how inventory references define host names in playbooks.

Learn how to manage environment variables in Ansible using the environment directive at play and task levels, with practical examples, overrides, and shell command usage.

Execute ansible tasks across remote inventory groups and run selective tasks on the local machine using the local connection plugin or delegate_to.

Compare the Ansible command and shell modules: command avoids the shell for simple, secure, idempotent execution, while shell runs via /bin/sh, allowing pipes and redirection for complex tasks.

Use the ansible_date_time variable and the strf time filter to format date, time, and timestamps for timestamped backups and log file naming.

Explore how to run Ansible playbooks in dry run using check mode and diff mode to preview changes, catch a compile time error, and verify deployments before applying on hosts.

Learn Ansible comparison operators for decisions by comparing numeric and string variables with equals, not equal, greater than, less than, greater than or equal to, less than or equal to.

Master Ansible membership and test operators by exploring in and not in membership checks, plus is defined, is undefined, and common data validations on variables, strings, numbers, and paths.

Explore how logical operators such as and and or combine conditions in an Ansible playbook. See true and false outcomes with truth tables and basic examples.

Explore how to implement conditional statements in Ansible playbooks using when and expressions to control task execution, with true or false outcomes, featuring comparison, membership tests, and logical operators.