DevOps Challenge #2 - Ansible automation magic

This task requires you to use Ansible and YAML to write playbooks

Hey there, cloud wranglers! 🤠 So you've been playing with AWS and Terraform, but have you explored the wonders of Ansible yet? If not, here's your chance! In this article, we're going to set up an Apache web server on an Ubuntu machine, all automated with Ansible. Trust me, it's as cool as it sounds!

Here is the task:

## Ansible Exercise 1: Configure a Web Server

### Objective

Your task is to write an Ansible playbook that automates the following tasks on a remote Ubuntu server:

- **Step 1**: Update the package manager cache.
  
- **Step 2**: Install the Apache web server package (`apache2`).

- **Step 3**: Enable and start the Apache service.

- **Step 4**: Deploy a simple `index.html` file to the document root `/var/www/html/`. The HTML should display "Hello, Ansible!"

### Requirements

- The playbook should be idempotent, meaning it can be run multiple times without changing the outcome.

- The target hosts should be defined in your Ansible inventory

What You'll Need

• A machine running Ubuntu (either a VM or a real server—it's all good)

• Ansible installed on your control node

• SSH access to your Ubuntu machine

• A little bit of know-how with YAML and the command line

Automate Your Web Server Setup with Ansible: A Hands-on Exercise

Introduction

Hey there, cloud wranglers! 🤠 So you've been playing with AWS and Terraform, but have you explored the wonders of Ansible yet? If not, here's your chance! In this article, we're going to set up an Apache web server on an Ubuntu machine, all automated with Ansible. Trust me, it's as cool as it sounds!

What You'll Need

• A machine running Ubuntu (either a VM or a real server—it's all good)

• Ansible installed on your control node

• SSH access to your Ubuntu machine

• A little bit of know-how with YAML and command line

Exercise 1: Your Very Own Web Server

Objective

Alright, champ, your mission, should you choose to accept it, involves a few key steps:

• Update the Ubuntu server's package manager.

• Install Apache web server.

• Make sure the Apache service is up and running.

• Deploy a simple "Hello, Ansible!" webpage.

Steps

Step 1: Set Up Inventory

First, make sure you have the target Ubuntu host's IP address in your Ansible inventory. The inventory file often lives in /etc/ansible/hosts.

[webserver]
192.168.1.2 ansible_ssh_user=ubuntu

Step 2: Write the Playbook

Open your favourite text editor (yeah, you can use Vim if you're old-school like that), and create a new file called web_server_setup.yml.

Here's the playbook to achieve our mission:

---
- hosts: webserver
  tasks:
    - name: Update package manager cache
      apt:
        update_cache: yes

    - name: Install Apache web server
      apt:
        name: apache2

    - name: Enable and start Apache service
      systemd:
        name: apache2
        enabled: yes
        state: started

    - name: Deploy index.html
      copy:
        content: "<h1>Hello, Ansible!</h1>"
        dest: /var/www/html/index.html

Step 3: Run the Playbook

Navigate to /home/ubuntu/tech-vault-ansible and execute:

ansible-playbook web_server_setup.yml

Conclusion

Boom, you did it! You should now have a running Apache web server, and if you visit the server's IP address in a web browser, you should see a lovely "Hello, Ansible!" greeting. You've just stepped into the world of automating server setups with Ansible, and trust me, it's a skill that'll make you feel like a wizard. 🧙‍♂️