Ansible

What is Ansible?

Ansible is an open-source automation platform developed by Red Hat that simplifies IT infrastructure management, application deployment, and configuration management. Created by Michael DeHaan and released in 2012, Ansible has become one of the most popular automation tools due to its agentless architecture, human-readable YAML syntax, and straightforward learning curve. The platform enables teams to automate complex IT workflows while maintaining clarity and reproducibility.

What distinguishes Ansible from other automation tools is its agentless design. Rather than requiring software installation on managed nodes, Ansible communicates via SSH (or WinRM for Windows), using the existing Python interpreter on target systems. This approach eliminates agent management overhead and simplifies adoption. The YAML-based playbooks are readable by non-programmers, making automation accessible to broader teams.

Ansible serves IT teams across infrastructure, DevOps, and platform engineering who need to manage configurations, deploy applications, and orchestrate complex workflows across servers, network devices, and cloud platforms. The platform integrates with all major cloud providers, container platforms, and infrastructure components. As part of Red Hat’s portfolio, Ansible benefits from enterprise support options while maintaining its open-source community foundation.

Key Features

• Agentless Architecture: No software installation required on managed nodes; Ansible connects via SSH using existing system Python.
• YAML Playbooks: Human-readable automation scripts that serve as documentation while defining desired system states.
• Idempotent Operations: Tasks safely run multiple times, only making changes when necessary to achieve desired state.
• Extensive Module Library: Thousands of modules for managing systems, applications, cloud resources, and network devices.
• Inventory Management: Flexible inventory systems for organizing hosts in groups with variables for environment-specific configuration.
• Roles and Collections: Reusable content packages enable sharing and composing automation across projects.
• Ansible Galaxy: Community repository of pre-built roles and collections for common automation tasks.
• Vault Encryption: Secure sensitive data like passwords and keys with encrypted vault files.
• Jinja2 Templating: Dynamic configuration file generation using powerful templating engine.
• Tower/AWX: Web-based interface and API for enterprise automation management and scheduling.

Recent Updates and Improvements

Ansible continues active development with focus on content organization, execution environments, and cloud integration.

• Ansible Core Separation: Cleaner separation between Ansible core engine and community collections for flexible installation.
• Execution Environments: Containerized automation environments ensure consistent execution across different systems.
• Content Collections: Modular packaging of modules, plugins, and roles improves content distribution and versioning.
• Ansible Navigator: New command-line interface providing better playbook development and debugging experience.
• Automation Hub: Curated collection repository for certified and supported automation content.
• Performance Improvements: Faster execution, reduced memory usage, and improved parallelization.
• Cloud Module Updates: Enhanced AWS, Azure, and GCP modules with current service support.
• Network Automation: Improved modules for Cisco, Juniper, Arista, and other network platforms.

System Requirements

Control Node (where Ansible runs)

• Operating System: Linux, macOS, or WSL on Windows
• Python: 3.9 or later
• RAM: 2 GB minimum (4 GB recommended)
• Network: SSH access to managed nodes

Managed Nodes (targets)

• Linux/Unix: Python 2.7 or 3.5+ with SSH access
• Windows: PowerShell 3.0+, WinRM configured
• Network Devices: SSH or platform-specific protocols
• No Ansible installation required

Container/Cloud

• Docker for execution environments
• Cloud provider credentials for cloud automation
• Kubernetes for AWX deployment

How to Install Ansible

Linux Installation

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt update
sudo apt install ansible

# Or using pip (recommended for latest version)
pip install ansible

# RHEL/CentOS/Fedora
sudo dnf install ansible

# Verify installation
ansible --version

macOS Installation

# Using pip (recommended)
pip3 install ansible

# Using Homebrew
brew install ansible

# Verify installation
ansible --version

Windows (via WSL)

# Install WSL with Ubuntu
wsl --install

# In WSL Ubuntu
sudo apt update
sudo apt install ansible

# Or using pip
pip install ansible

# Verify
ansible --version

Basic Usage Examples

# Inventory file (inventory.yml)
all:
  hosts:
    webserver:
      ansible_host: 192.168.1.10
    database:
      ansible_host: 192.168.1.20
  vars:
    ansible_user: admin

# Ad-hoc command - ping all hosts
ansible all -i inventory.yml -m ping

# Ad-hoc command - install package
ansible webserver -i inventory.yml -m apt \
  -a "name=nginx state=present" --become

# Simple playbook (webserver.yml)
---
- name: Configure web server
  hosts: webserver
  become: yes
  tasks:
    - name: Install nginx
      apt:
        name: nginx
        state: present
    
    - name: Start nginx service
      service:
        name: nginx
        state: started
        enabled: yes
    
    - name: Copy configuration
      template:
        src: nginx.conf.j2
        dest: /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
      notify: Restart nginx
  
  handlers:
    - name: Restart nginx
      service:
        name: nginx
        state: restarted

# Run playbook
ansible-playbook -i inventory.yml webserver.yml

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Agentless: No software to install or maintain on managed nodes simplifies adoption and reduces overhead.
• Readable Syntax: YAML playbooks serve as documentation and are accessible to non-programmers.
• Low Learning Curve: Straightforward concepts enable quick productivity compared to other automation tools.
• Extensive Modules: Thousands of modules cover systems, cloud platforms, containers, and network devices.
• Idempotent: Safe to run repeatedly, only making changes when needed to achieve desired state.
• Community: Active community with extensive documentation, roles, and collections on Ansible Galaxy.
• Enterprise Support: Red Hat backing provides commercial support and enterprise features through Ansible Automation Platform.

Cons

• Performance at Scale: SSH-based communication can be slower than agent-based tools for very large inventories.
• Windows Support: While improved, Windows automation remains less native than Unix/Linux.
• State Management: Lacks built-in state tracking; idempotency depends on proper module usage.
• Debugging: Complex playbook debugging can be challenging without proper tooling.
• Python Dependency: Managed nodes require Python, which may not be available on all systems.

Ansible vs Alternatives

Who Should Use Ansible?

Ansible is ideal for:

• System Administrators: Teams managing server configurations who need straightforward, readable automation.
• DevOps Engineers: Those automating deployment pipelines and infrastructure configuration.
• Mixed Environments: Organizations managing Linux, Windows, network devices, and cloud resources.
• Getting Started: Teams new to automation who benefit from Ansible’s gentle learning curve.
• Lightweight Needs: Projects where agent installation overhead is undesirable or impractical.
• Red Hat Shops: Organizations using Red Hat products who benefit from integrated ecosystem.

Ansible may not be ideal for:

• Massive Scale: Very large environments (10,000+ nodes) may benefit from agent-based architectures.
• Infrastructure Provisioning: For cloud resource creation, Terraform offers superior state management.
• Continuous Enforcement: Environments requiring constant compliance checking may prefer agent-based tools.
• Windows-Heavy: Organizations primarily managing Windows may find native Windows tools more suitable.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does Ansible compare to Terraform?

Ansible and Terraform serve complementary purposes. Terraform excels at provisioning cloud infrastructure with state management, ensuring resources match declared configurations. Ansible excels at configuring existing systems, deploying applications, and orchestrating workflows. Many teams use both: Terraform provisions infrastructure, then Ansible configures what runs on it. Ansible can provision cloud resources, but Terraform’s state management is superior for that purpose.

Is Ansible agentless?

Yes, Ansible requires no software installation on managed nodes. It connects via SSH (Linux/Unix) or WinRM (Windows) using the existing Python interpreter on target systems. This eliminates agent deployment, updates, and resource consumption on managed nodes. The control node where Ansible runs requires Python and necessary modules, but managed nodes need only SSH access and Python.

What is Ansible Galaxy?

Ansible Galaxy is the community repository for sharing Ansible content. It hosts thousands of roles and collections created by the community for common automation tasks. Rather than writing automation from scratch, teams can leverage Galaxy content for tasks like installing Docker, configuring web servers, or managing cloud resources. Collections bundle related modules, roles, and plugins for easier distribution and versioning.

What is the difference between Ansible and Ansible Automation Platform?

Ansible is the free, open-source automation engine. Ansible Automation Platform (formerly Ansible Tower) is Red Hat’s enterprise product providing web interface, RBAC, job scheduling, credentials management, logging, and API access. AWX is the open-source upstream project for Automation Platform. Organizations needing enterprise features, support, or certified content typically choose Automation Platform.

How do I organize Ansible projects?

Best practices include: use roles to organize reusable content, maintain inventory per environment (dev, staging, prod), use group_vars and host_vars for variable organization, store playbooks in version control, use Ansible Vault for secrets, and document your automation. Collections provide modern packaging for distributing content. The ansible-galaxy init command creates role directory structures following conventions.

Final Verdict

Ansible has earned its position as a leading automation platform through accessible design and practical functionality. The agentless architecture removes adoption friction, while YAML playbooks provide readable automation that serves as documentation. For configuration management and application deployment, Ansible offers a gentle learning curve without sacrificing capability.

The platform excels for teams automating system configurations, deploying applications, and orchestrating IT workflows. The extensive module library covers virtually any automation target, from Linux servers to cloud APIs to network devices. Red Hat’s stewardship ensures continued development and enterprise support options while maintaining the open-source community foundation.

Ansible earns strong recommendation for configuration management, application deployment, and IT automation tasks. Teams new to automation particularly benefit from the approachable syntax and gentle learning curve. For cloud infrastructure provisioning, consider pairing Ansible with Terraform. For organizations requiring constant configuration enforcement at massive scale, evaluate agent-based alternatives. Within its focus areas, Ansible provides automation that’s accessible, readable, and effective for teams of all skill levels.