# \[1.9.4\] Using yum to install groups - 'state: latest' does not work but 'state: present' works

**URL:** <https://forum.ansible.com/t/1-9-4-using-yum-to-install-groups-state-latest-does-not-work-but-state-present-works/20068>\
**Category:** Ansible Project\
**Created:** [December 23, 2015, 11:39am UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/1-9-4-using-yum-to-install-groups-state-latest-does-not-work-but-state-present-works/20068 "2015-12-23T11:39:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Asfand\_Yar\_Qazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/76d3ee/32.png) [@Asfand\_Yar\_Qazi](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Asfand_Yar_Qazi)\
**Post date:** [December 23, 2015, 11:39am UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/1-9-4-using-yum-to-install-groups-state-latest-does-not-work-but-state-present-works/20068/1 "2015-12-23T11:39:35Z")

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Hello,

I thought I would quickly discuss this here before reporting a bug as I could not find an existing bug report:

I tried a task like this:

- name: “Install Development tools package”  
yum: {name: “@Development tools”, state: latest}

And it did not install the group, it simply reported as unchanged.

When I switched to state: installed, it worked:

- name: “Install Development tools package”  
yum: {name: “@Development tools”, state: installed}

I am using Ansible 1.9.4

Is this bug known? I cannot find a bug report for it.

Thanks

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**Author:** ![Toshio\_Kuratomi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/41988e/32.png) [@Toshio\_Kuratomi](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Toshio_Kuratomi)\
**Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 2:42pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/1-9-4-using-yum-to-install-groups-state-latest-does-not-work-but-state-present-works/20068/2 "2015-12-24T14:42:12Z")

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I’m not sitting at my computer to check but this sounds like it might be a known limitation of the yum module listed as the last note in the docs: [http://docs.ansible.com/ansible/yum\_module.html#notes](http://docs.ansible.com/ansible/yum_module.html#notes)

Yum has two kinds of groups (package groups listed in the spec file when building the package and environment groups listed in a separate xml file when building the yum repository.) Sometimes yum will treat these two interchangably. other times it requires you to specify them using slightly different syntax: “@group” vs “@^group”. Unfortunately, the interface ansible is using requires the separate syntax so you have to decide if you are dealing with an environment group or a package group and change your group name appropriately.

-Toshio

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**Author:** ![Asfand\_Yar\_Qazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/76d3ee/32.png) [@Asfand\_Yar\_Qazi](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Asfand_Yar_Qazi)\
**Post date:** [December 26, 2015, 9:48am UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/1-9-4-using-yum-to-install-groups-state-latest-does-not-work-but-state-present-works/20068/3 "2015-12-26T09:48:56Z")

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I was just following the Ansible yum module's example, as they  
specified '@Development tools', is that wrong then?

Thanks  
Regards,  
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Asfand Yar Qazi