BeginnerModernization34 min
Ansible and playbooks
Automate servers and z/OS the same way: what Ansible is, inventories and modules, writing and running playbooks, why running them twice is safe, and IBM's z/OS collection.
What you will be able to do
- Explain how Ansible works without an agent, and what a control node and managed nodes are
- Write an inventory and run modules from the command line
- Write, check and run a playbook, and read its results
- Explain idempotence, roles and Vault, and what Ansible needs to automate z/OS
Lessons
- What Ansible is and how it worksAnsible is a free, open-source automation tool, backed by Red Hat. From one control node it connects to the machines it manages over SSH, with no agent to install on them, runs…
- Inventory, modules and ad-hoc commandsThe inventory lists the machines Ansible manages, sorted into groups. Modules are the units of work, such as copy, file, package or service.
- Writing and running a playbookA playbook is a YAML file of plays. Each play picks a group of hosts and lists tasks, and each task calls one module with its arguments.
- Run it twice: idempotence, roles and VaultWell-written Ansible tasks are idempotent: running them a second time changes nothing, because the system is already in the described state.
- Ansible for z/OSIBM's certified Ansible collection for z/OS, ibm.ibm_zos_core, lets the same playbooks manage datasets, submit jobs, copy files and issue operator commands on z/OS.
Track your progress and earn a certificate.
Free account, 30 quiz questions for this subject.