Advanced Ansible Training Overview
This live, online or in-person Advanced Ansible training teaches more advanced Ansible skills, including using Ansible Tower, configuring a network device managed node, and implementing Ansible best practices.
Location and Pricing
Accelebrate offers instructor-led enterprise training for groups of 3 or more online or at your site. Most Accelebrate classes can be flexibly scheduled for your group, including delivery in half-day segments across a week or set of weeks. To receive a customized proposal and price quote for private corporate training on-site or online, please contact us.
In addition, some courses are available as live, instructor-led training from one of our partners.
Objectives
- Perform advanced configuration for an Ansible control node and managed node(s)
- Add the usage of conditionals, loops, filters, and loopbacks to playbooks
- Control ad-hoc and playbook output with callback plugins
- Create and implement dynamic inventory definitions
- Implement reusable roles, capabilities, and dependencies
- Program and use the features of the Ansible Tower
- Develop best practices for all Ansible components
Prerequisites
It is assumed that participants are working systems administrators/developers/testers with some working knowledge of Ansible Core basic/intermediate features and an understanding of fundamental system utilities/commands on Linux systems. It is also assumed that participants have attended the Intermediate Ansible Configuration and Administration course.
Outline
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Review of Control Code and Managed Node Required Configuration
- Ansible components review
- Running Ansible in escalated privilege mode
- SSH key setup
- Ansible common account creation, setup, and features
- Required components for a Linux and networking device-managed node
Advanced Control Node Setup and Configuration
- Ansible Core installation methods: rpm, pip, and Tower (changes)
- Ansible command and module documentation
- Inventory (hosts) file contents (Linux/Unix and network device nodes)
- Dynamic inventory (hosts) file contents and usage
- Ansible configuration file (locations and parameter definitions)
- Special use configuration parameter definitions
- Fact caching using jsonfile and redis
- Creating and using local system facts
- Understanding the hostvars dictionary (usage)
- All methods of variable creation and usage
Ansible Playbooks
- Using the FQCN (fully qualified collection path) for module access
- Playbook: loops, conditionals, tags, notifications, plugins, filters, and lookups
- Controls: output formatting and inclusion with callbacks
- Advanced Jinja 2 template usage
- Using “inner” and “outer” playbooks
- The meta module
Ansible Modules
- Including external tasks in a playbook
- Controls over node and task scheduling
- Configuration parameters that control rolling updates
- Using Ansible (playbook) debugging capabilities
- Writing a customized module (and embedded documentation)
- Asynchronous task scheduling
- Block control - rescue always
Roles in Ansible
- Overview of a role (review)
- Creating a role (review)
- Using (a) role(s) (review)
- Packaging up a role (review)
- Ansible Galaxy - capabilities and usage with roles (review)
- Git repo (role) repository (creation) on a non-control node
- Local access of a Git repo role repository
- Remote access of a Git repo role repository
- Importing role definitions (on a control node)
- Role dependencies definitions and usage
Collections in Ansible
- Overview of collections
- Creating a collection (structure)
- Using roles in a collection
- Packaging up a collection (tar file and Git repository)
- Installing a collection (from a tar file and Git repository)
- Putting and using playbooks in a collection
- Putting and using modules in a collection
Network Device Managed Nodes
- Requirements for a network device-managed node
- Inventory and access control information on the control node
- Required setup of a network device-managed node
- Module usage for a network device-managed node
Ansible Tower (AWX can be substituted in place of the Ansible Tower)
- Features of the Ansible Tower (review)
- Preparation and installation of the Ansible Tower (review)
- Components (files and services) of the Ansible Tower (review)
- Starting and stopping the Ansible Tower (review}
- Logging into the Ansible Tower (review)
- Using AWX-manage
- Ansible Tower smart inventory
- Defining manual and Git (SCM) projects
- Creating job templates for an existing project
- Watching and chaining (multi-) playbooks (workflows)
- Using roles in the Ansible Tower
- Interfacing with the Ansible Tower API
- Installing and using the tower-CLI/AWS utility
- Ansible Core tower_ modules (to the Ansible Tower)
- Backing up and restoring Ansible tower objects
- Backing up and restoring the Ansible Tower database
- Updating the Ansible Tower
- Introduction to Ansible Tower clusters
- Ansible Tower virtual environment (setup and usage)
Conclusion
Training Materials
All Advanced Ansible training attendees receive comprehensive courseware.
Software Requirements
Attendees will not need to install any software on their computers for this class. The class will be conducted in a remote environment that Accelebrate will provide; students will only need a local computer with a web browser and a stable Internet connection. Any recent version of Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome will work well.
