Ansible: From Basics to Guru

Ansible: From Basics to Guru

by Sander van Vugt
Released April 2022
Publisher(s): Pearson
ISBN: 0137894945

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Video description

13+ Hours of Video Instruction

13+ hours of video instruction teaching you how to get started with Ansible for managing Linux, Windows, Containers, Network Devices, and Cloud.

Ansible is the leading solution for configuration management. It lets you automate assets in an environment—including Linux, Windows, Cloud, Network Devices and more—and works as an application-deployment tool enabling infrastructure as code.

Ansible Complete Video Course: From Basics to Guru will teach Ansible from the ground up, so whether you’re a novice or an experienced developer, administrator or user, this title will help you get the most out of your Ansible solutions and playbooks and manage your heterogeneous environment. This course consists of all the major and popular topics and concepts that are relevant to Ansible. It begins with the basics of Ansible and how to get started. It will then explore how to develop flexible playbooks before jumping managed infrastructure, ad-hocs commands, Ansible Tower, conditionals, plugins, and managing containers among various other important topics.

Every lesson contains multiple practical examples that show how Ansible is used in the real world. At the end of each lesson, you will find an exercise that was built so you can practice your skills; each exercise also comes with a video explanation. Ansible Complete Video Course: From Basics to Guru is also a deep-dive into the topics covered in the Red Hat Ansible best practices exam (EX447).

Topics include
  • Getting Started with Ansible
  • Developing Flexible Playbooks
  • Advanced Ansible Management
  • Managing Heterogenous Environment with Ansible

Supplemental files for this course are located at https://github.com/sandervanvugt/ansibleinthreeweeks.

About the Instructor

Sander van Vugt has many years of experience working with, writing about, and teaching Linux and Open-Source topics. He is the author of the best-selling Red Hat RHCSA and RHCE Cert Guides as well as a number of other titles on Kubernetes (including CKAD and CKA), Ansible, Containers, Bash, Microservices and more. Sander also works as a Linux and DevOps instructor, teaching onsite and online classes for customers around the world.

Skill Level
  • Beginner to Intermediate
Learn How To
  • Manage IT infrastructure with Ansible by following examples
  • Get started with Ansible in just a few hours
  • Get a feel for Ansible before focusing on Ansible Certification exams
  • Perform advanced tasks with Ansible
Who Should Take This Course
  • Developers and administrators who want to use Ansible to manage different assets in their IT environment.
  • IT users and professionals that want to get experience with simple programming languages.
Course Requirements
  • A minimum of 3 virtual machines, running Red Hat Enterprise Linux or Rocky Linux
  • One virtual machine running the latest Ubuntu LTS
  • Optionally, the following can be added
    • One virtual machine running Windows
    • Administrator Access to AWS
    • Administrator Access to Azure
    • A Cisco network device
    • A virtual machine running VMware ESXi
About Pearson Video Training

Pearson publishes expert-led video tutorials covering a wide selection of technology topics designed to teach you the skills you need to succeed. These professional and personal technology videos feature world-leading author instructors published by your trusted technology brands: Addison-Wesley, Cisco Press, Pearson IT Certification, Sams, and Que. Topics include: IT Certification, Network Security, Cisco Technology, Programming, Web Development, Mobile Development, and more. Learn more about Pearson Video training at http://www.informit.com/video.

Table of contents

  1. Introduction
    1. Ansible: Introduction
  2. Module 1: Getting Started
    1. Module introduction
  3. Lesson 1: Preparing your Managed Infrastructure
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 1.1 Understanding Ansible
    3. 1.2 Setting up the Ansible Control Node
    4. 1.3 Understanding Requirements for Managing Assets with Ansible
    5. 1.4 Configuring Inventory
    6. 1.5 Understanding Ad-hoc Commands
    7. 1.6 Understanding the Course Lab Environment
    8. 1.7 Configuring Linux Managed Hosts with Ad-hoc Commands
    9. 1.8 Setting up Privilege Escalation
    10. 1.9 Understanding ansible.cfg and Working with Settings
    11. 1.10 Setting up Windows as a Managed Host
    12. Lesson 1 Lab Setting up an Ansible Managed Environment
    13. Lesson 1 Lab Solution Setting up an Ansible Managed Environment
  4. Lesson 2: Using Ad-hoc Commands
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 2.1 Ad-hoc Commands versus Playbooks
    3. 2.2 Exploring Essential Ansible Modules
    4. 2.3 Using Module Documentation
    5. 2.4 Using Ansible in an Idempotent way
    6. Lesson 2 Lab Using Ad-hoc Commands
    7. Lesson 2 Lab Solution Using Ad-hoc Commands
  5. Lesson 3: Using Ansible Playbook
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 3.1 Understanding Playbook Structure
    3. 3.2 Writing and Running your First Playbook
    4. 3.3 Understanding Task Execution and Errors
    5. Lesson 3 Lab Using a Playbook to Automate Web Server Setup
    6. Lesson 3 Lab Solution Using a Playbook to Automate Web Server Setup
  6. Lesson 4: Using Ansible Tower
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 4.1 Understanding Ansible Tower, Automation Platform and AWX
    3. 4.2 Installing Ansible Tower
    4. 4.3 Understanding Ansible Tower Main Components
    5. 4.4 Setting up Ansible Tower to Manage Assets
    6. 4.5 Configuring Ansible Tower to Manage Windows
    7. Lesson 4 Lab Setting up Ansible Tower to Manage Assets in Ansible
    8. Lesson 4 Lab Solution Setting up Ansible Tower to Manage Assets in Ansible
  7. Module 2: Developing Flexible Playbooks
    1. Module introduction
  8. Lesson 5: Working with Variables
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 5.1 Separating Code from Site-Specific Configuration
    3. 5.2 Using Variables in a Playbook
    4. 5.3 Understanding Where to Define your Variables
    5. 5.4 Using Ansible Facts
    6. 5.5 Understanding Different Notations for Facts and Variables
    7. 5.6 Speeding up Fact Collection
    8. 5.7 Using Multi-valued Variables
    9. 5.8 Using Magic Variables
    10. 5.9 Using Register
    11. 5.10 Using Vault to Store Sensitive Information
    12. Lesson 5 Lab Making Playbooks Flexible with Variables
    13. Lesson 5 Lab Solution Making Playbooks Flexible with Variables
  9. Lesson 6: Using Conditionals
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 6.1 Conditionals Overview
    3. 6.2 Using Handlers for Conditional Task Execution
    4. 6.3 Using when to Run Tasks Based on Specific Conditions
    5. 6.4 Using register to Work with Task Results
    6. 6.5 Using Blocks
    7. 6.6 Using loop to Process a List of Items
    8. 6.7 Managing Failure with the fail Module
    9. 6.8 Using the assert Module
    10. Lesson 6 Lab Using when to Make the command Module Idempotent
    11. Lesson 6 Lab Solution Using when to Make the command Module Idempotent
  10. Lesson 7: Managing Files
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 7.1 Manipulating Files
    3. 7.2 Changing File Contents
    4. 7.3 Using the find Module
    5. 7.4 Using Templates
    6. Lesson 7 Lab Working with Files
    7. Lesson 7 Lab Solution Working with Files
  11. Lesson 8: Using Roles and Collections
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 8.1 Understanding Collections
    3. 8.2 Understanding Roles
    4. 8.3 Working with Galaxy
    5. 8.4 Using Collections
    6. 8.5 Using Collections from Automation Hub
    7. 8.6 Creating your own Roles
    8. Lesson 8 Lab Working with Roles and Collections
    9. Lesson 8 Lab Solution Working with Roles and Collections
  12. Module 3: Advanced Ansible Management
    1. Module introduction
  13. Lesson 9: Ansible Best Practices and Optimization
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 9.1 Using Includes and Imports
    3. 9.2 Configuring Security
    4. 9.3 Using Tags
    5. 9.4 Using Delegation
    6. 9.5 Managing Parallelism
    7. 9.6 Efficiently Copying Files
    8. 9.7 Optimizing SSH
    9. 9.8 Case Study: Optimizing Ansible
    10. Lesson 9 Lab Optimizing Ansible
    11. Lesson 9 Lab Solution Optimizing Ansible
  14. Lesson 10: Using Filters
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 10.1 Understanding Filters and Variable Types
    3. 10.2 Using Filters to Change Variables
    4. 10.3 Using Filters to Work with Network Addresses
    5. 10.4 Using Filters in Loops
    6. Lesson 10 Lab Using Filters
    7. Lesson 10 Lab Solution Using Filters
  15. Lesson 11: Using Plugins
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 11.1 Understanding Plugins and Filters
    3. 11.2 Exploring Lookup Plugins
    4. 11.3 Using Common Lookup Plugins
    5. 11.4 Using the fileglob Lookup Plugin
    6. 11.5 Using Callback and Timer Plugins
    7. 11.6 Using Plugin-Based Inventory
    8. 11.7 Configuring Fact Caching
    9. 11.8 Creating Random Passwords
    10. Lesson 11 Lab Configuring Fact Caching
    11. Lesson 11 Lab Solution Configuring Fact Caching
  16. Lesson 12: Advanced Ansible Tower Usage
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 12.1 Managing Users and Teams
    3. 12.2 Creating Job Template Surveys
    4. 12.3 Configuring Notifications
    5. 12.4 Using Workflow
    6. 12.5 Scheduling Jobs
    7. 12.6 Importing Static Inventories
    8. 12.7 Creating and Updating Dynamic Inventories
    9. 12.8 Using Smart Inventories
    10. 12.9 Using Vault in Tower
    11. 12.10 Using the Tower API
    12. 12.11 Backing up Tower
    13. Lesson 12 Lab Advanced Ansible Tower Usage
    14. Lesson 12 Lab Solution Advanced Ansible Tower Usage
  17. Module 4: Managing Heterogeneous Environment with Ansible
    1. Module introduction
  18. Lesson 13: Managing Windows with Ansible
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 13.1 Understanding Requirements for Managing Windows
    3. 13.2 Using Playbooks to Manage Windows
    4. Lesson 13 Lab Managing Windows with Ansible
    5. Lesson 13 Lab Solution Managing Windows with Ansible
  19. Lesson 14: Managing Azure with Ansible
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 14.1 Understanding Requirements for Managing Azure
    3. 14.2 Using Playbooks to Manage Azure
    4. Lesson 14 Lab Managing Azure
    5. Lesson 14 Lab Solution Managing Azure
  20. Lesson 15: Managing Containers
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 15.1 Understanding Requirements for Managing Docker
    3. 15.2 Using Playbooks to Manage Docker
    4. 15.3 Managing Podman Containers
    5. Lesson 15 Lab Managing Containers
    6. Lesson 15 Lab Solution Managing Containers
  21. Lesson 16: Managing AWS with Ansible
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 16.1 Understanding Requirements for Managing AWS
    3. 16.2 Using Playbooks to Manage AWS
    4. 16.3 Configuring Dynamic Inventory
    5. Lesson 16 Lab Managing AWS with Ansible
    6. Lesson 16 Lab Solution Managing AWS with Ansible
  22. Lesson 17: Managing Network Devices with Ansible
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 17.1 Understanding Network Device Management
    3. 17.2 Setting Up Cisco SMB Devices
    4. 17.3 Configuring Cisco SMB Devices with Ansible
    5. 17.4 Using Generic Modules for Network Device Management
    6. Lesson 17 Lab Automating Switch Setup with Ansible
    7. Lesson 17 Lab Solution Automating Switch Setup with Ansible
  23. Lesson 18: Managing Virtual Machines with Ansible
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 18.1 Managing KVM Virtual Machines
    3. 18.2 Understanding vSphere Management
    4. 18.3 Managing ESXi
    5. Lesson 18 Lab Managing a KVM Based Virtual Classroom with Ansible
    6. Lesson 18 Lab Solution Managing a KVM Based Virtual Classroom with Ansible
  24. Lesson 19: Managing Kubernetes with Ansible
    1. Learning objectives
    2. 19.1 Understanding Requirements for Managing Kubernetes
    3. 19.2 Preparing the Kubernetes Setup
    4. 19.3 Writing a Playbook to Create a Kubernetes Cluster
    5. 19.4 Running the Playbook to Create a Kubernetes Cluster
    6. 19.5 Managing Kubernetes Resources
    7. Lesson 19 Lab Automating Kubernetes Application Deployment with Ansible
    8. Lesson 19 Lab Solution Automating Kubernetes Application Deployment with Ansible
  25. Summary
    1. Ansible: Summary

Product information

  • Title: Ansible: From Basics to Guru
  • Author(s): Sander van Vugt
  • Release date: April 2022
  • Publisher(s): Pearson
  • ISBN: 0137894945