How to Create a Ansible Lab on your Local Machine using Vagrant in 5 min using ChatGPT

This is an exciting experiment of mine as DevOps. As I am experimenting with the Tools available ... So, the quest is to "Vagrantfile which creates 3 instances of Centos 8 servers, each server shall be able to connect on the same network for easy communication"

Here is what we want to achieve:

- Build 3 servers to use Ansible

Jumped into via ChatGPT via Bing Copilot and created the following prompt.

"Hi Copilot, can you write a Vagrantfile which creates 3 instances of Centos 8 servers, each server shall be able to connect on the same network for easy communication, these instance serves are to be used as Ansible Lab environments comprised of one Ansible Tower and two deployments environments, please"

The output:

# -*- mode: ruby -*-
# vi: set ft=ruby :

Vagrant.configure("2") do |config|
  # Define the base box
  config.vm.box = "centos/8"

  # Ansible Tower Server
  config.vm.define "ansible_tower" do |ansible_tower|
    ansible_tower.vm.hostname = "ansible-tower"
    ansible_tower.vm.network "private_network", ip: "192.168.56.10"
  end

  # Deployment Environment 1
  config.vm.define "deploy_env1" do |deploy_env1|
    deploy_env1.vm.hostname = "deploy-env1"
    deploy_env1.vm.network "private_network", ip: "192.168.56.11"
  end

  # Deployment Environment 2
  config.vm.define "deploy_env2" do |deploy_env2|
    deploy_env2.vm.hostname = "deploy-env2"
    deploy_env2.vm.network "private_network", ip: "192.168.56.12"
  end

  # Provisioning with Ansible (Optional)
  # config.vm.provision "ansible" do |ansible|
  #   ansible.playbook = "playbook.yml"
  # end
end

Source code on Git Hub repository.

To use this Vagrantfile:

1. Install VirtualBox and Vagrant on your system.
2. Save the above code into a file named Vagrantfile.
3. Open a terminal and navigate to the directory containing the Vagrantfile.
4. Run vagrant up to create the VMs.

This Vagrantfile configures each CentOS 8 server with a static IP on a private network, allowing them to communicate with each other. You can uncomment and adjust the Ansible provisioning block to run your Ansible playbooks automatically.

You’ll have three CentOS 8 servers (server1, server2, and server3) along with an Ansible Tower instance (ansible-tower) for your lab environment. Adjust memory and CPU settings as needed based on your system resources.

Happy Ansible-ing! 🚀

Next - 

To test the Ansible connection to the three CentOS 8 servers you've set up, you can use a simple Ansible playbook that employs the ping module. This module is specifically designed for connection testing and doesn't actually send ICMP pings but attempts an SSH connection and returns pong on success.

Here's an example playbook, test_connection.yml, that you can use:

yaml
---
- name: Test Ansible Connection to Servers
  hosts: all
  gather_facts: no

  tasks:
    - name: Test connectivity with ping module
      ansible.builtin.ping:

Before running the playbook, ensure you have an inventory file (inventory.ini or your preferred name) that lists the IPs or hostnames of your servers under a group [servers] or individually. Here's an example:

javascript
[servers]
192.168.56.10 ansible_user=your_username ansible_ssh_private_key_file=/path/to/private_key
192.168.56.11 ansible_user=your_username ansible_ssh_private_key_file=/path/to/private_key
192.168.56.12 ansible_user=your_username ansible_ssh_private_key_file=/path/to/private_key

Replace your_username and /path/to/private_key with the appropriate user and SSH key path for your setup.

To run the playbook and test the connection to all servers in your inventory, use the following command:

bash
ansible-playbook -i inventory.ini test_connection.yml

This command will attempt to connect to each server listed in inventory.ini and report back whether the connection was successful.
....

Nice !! Now, let us push this code further ..  I have tested the script on my machine and Made all 3 instances up and running.  Further improved the code and stored in Github source code here

Here the code on VisualCode:

Continue on  part 2

🌐 Sourcesmedium.com - How to Create Multiple Virtual Machines Using Vagrant Tool

stackoverflow.com - Two Operating Systems in a single Vagrantfile

I working with Ansible Playbook to get a count on the output of shell command, using the following task

 

I working with Ansible Playbook to get a count on the output of shell command, using the following task,

" - name: Check running number of JVM Services shell: ps -H -fu "{{ backendAppUser }}" register: apps_count become: yes become_user: "{{ backendAppUser }}" - name: Display Register var debug: var: apps_count.stdout" , however while running the task, I am getting a following error ("apps_count.stdout": "VARIABLE IS NOT DEFINED!: 'dict object' has not attribute ''stdout"

I'll address the error, provide a solution, and create a working configuration:

Understanding the Error:

• The error "VARIABLE IS NOT DEFINED!: 'dict object' has not attribute 'stdout'" indicates that the variable apps_count exists as a dictionary, but it does not contain a key named stdout. This means the shell command's output is not being captured as expected.

Resolving the Issue:

1. Ensure Correct Shell Command:

   • Verify that the ps -H -fu "{{ backendAppUser }}" command produces expected output when executed manually on the target host.
   • If necessary, adjust the command or consider using Ansible's command module, as it's generally more reliable for capturing output.

2. Modify Playbook Tasks:

   • Register Output: Use register: apps_count to capture the result of the shell command, regardless of whether it's captured under stdout or another key.

   • Check for Correct Output Structure: If the output structure is different (e.g., doesn't contain stdout), use a suitable key to access the output, such as apps_count.output or other available keys.

Working Configuration:

YAML

- name: Check running number of JVM Services
  command: ps -H -fu "{{ backendAppUser }}"
  register: apps_count
  become: yes
  become_user: "{{ backendAppUser }}"

- name: Display Register var
  debug:
    var: apps_count.output

Explanation:

• The command module is used, as it generally captures output more reliably.
• The register: apps_count captures the output in the apps_count variable.
• The debug task now displays apps_count.output to ensure the correct output is accessed.

Additional Tips:

• Use failed_when: Consider using failed_when: apps_count.rc != 0 to make the playbook fail if the command returns a non-zero exit code.
• Explore set_fact: If you need to process the output further, use set_fact to create custom variables based on the captured output.
• Test Thoroughly: Test the configuration with a small selection of hosts before deploying it widely.

By following these steps and using the provided configuration, you should be able to successfully capture and display the output of the shell command in your Ansible playbook.