[mdlug] ansible

[Jeffrey Marraccini]

> Date: Wed, 23 Mar 2016 14:37:09 -0400
> From: carl at carltm.com
> To: mdlug at mdlug.org
> Subject: [mdlug] ansible
> 
> Is anyone using ansible?  I've been reading up on it
> and it sounds easier to use than puppet or chef.

At home.  At work, the team preferred Salt (SaltStack).  Salt scaled better on some really large computer clusters.  There are quite a few similarities between the two, but personally I have more fun with Ansible :-)

> One thing I like is that it doesn't require a service
> to be running and there's no client software to maintain.

Absolutely.  Ansible Vault is also quite nice to keep credentials locked up, especially as the environment grows more complex.

> Now I just need to figure out who to write playbooks.
> Anyone have any suggestions for tutorials for ansible?

There are huge amounts of examples available and that is how I got started myself.  I would recommend walking through:

http://docs.ansible.com/ansible/intro_getting_started.html

also, check out Michael W. Lucas' past presentations on Ansible.  Last year (2015) there were some Ansible MeetUps in the SE Michigan area but I have not seen much activity of late, and due to work travel, I have not been able to help with any presentations myself :-(

Please note:  I primarily use BSD at home, but at work, we are a Linux shop.  Ansible serves both very well.

I believe you will really enjoy it, Carl!