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title: Ansible Tutorial 2: Modules & Your First Playbook tags: - ansible - tutorial - modules - getting started

Ansible Tutorial 2: Modules & Your First Playbook

This tutorial covers the basics of using Ansible modules, the difference between built-in and community modules, and how to find and use modules for your network devices.

What is a Module?

A module is a reusable, single-purpose unit of work in Ansible (e.g., install a package, run a command, configure a device).

Using Modules

Modules are used in playbooks as tasks.

Example: 

- name: Ping all devices
  hosts: all
  gather_facts: no
  tasks:
    - name: Ping
      ansible.builtin.ping:

Built-in vs. Community Modules

  • Built-in modules: Included with Ansible (e.g., ansible.builtin.ping, ansible.builtin.copy, cisco.ios.ios_command)
  • Community modules: Provided by the community, often via Ansible Galaxy collections (e.g., cisco.ios.ios_config)
  • Ansible Module Index
  • Use ansible-doc -l to list available modules
  • Use ansible-doc <module_name> for documentation

Vendor Modules

Always try to use vendor-specific modules (e.g., cisco.ios.ios_command for Cisco, arista.eos.eos_command for Arista) for best results.

Your First Playbook with a Vendor Module

---
- name: Get running config from Cisco router
  hosts: routers
  gather_facts: no
  connection: network_cli
  tasks:
    - name: Get running config
      cisco.ios.ios_command:
        commands:
          - show running-config
      register: config
    - debug:
        var: config.stdout_lines

Continue to Tutorial 3: Variables, Modules, and Network Fact Gathering