In the previous post, we mastered the structure rules of YAML syntax. Today, we are applying that foundational knowledge to the Ansible Playbook. Writing an Ansible playbook for Cisco ACI automation is an incredibly rewarding step, but it is also where many engineers overcomplicate things.
In this guide, we will demystify the anatomy of a playbook file. We will look at play headers, connection variables, and task blocks so you can structure your automation scripts with absolute confidence.
Summary
| Playbook Section | Purpose |
|---|---|
name: | The playbook name used to include descriptive text indicating the play’s function. |
hosts: | Group name from the inventory file. |
connection: local | Tells Ansible to run the modules locally on your automation workstation rather than SSH into the target device (APIC). |
gather_facts: no | A default task to collect system information about targets (APIC). Such as model, version, RAM, CPU, etc |
tasks: | A list of tasks that have an Ansible module each, which is used to apply a change (present/absent) or pull info (query) from the target device (APIC). |
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Additional Resources:
Ansible playbooks – Ansible community documentation
YAML Essentials: Cisco ACI Automation with Ansible
Cisco ACI Automation With Ansible: CSV-to-ACI Ansible loops
Automating ACI with Ansible Using aci_rest Module (Lab Demo)
