Create multiple VMware guests with a Playbook?

Mark_Matthews · March 10, 2016, 5:00pm

Hi

Is it at all possible to create multiple VMware VM’s using an Ansible playbook? Giving each VM a unique name (server1, server2, server3, server4)?

I can see anyway of doing this using the following playbooks, as it keeps failing?

---
 - hosts: 127.0.0.1
   connection: local
   user: root
   sudo: false
   gather_facts: false
   serial: 1
   vars:
     vcenter_hostname: UK.server.local
     esxhost: xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
     datastore: UK1
     network: Web
     vmcluster: UKCLUSTER
     guest_name: server1, server2, server3, server4 
     folder: Utilities
     notes: Created by Ansible

   tasks:
    - name: Create VM from template
      vsphere_guest:
        vcenter_hostname: "{{ vcenter_hostname }}"
        username: "{{ username }}"
        password: "{{ password }}"
        guest: "{{ guest_name }}"
        vm_extra_config:
          notes: "{{ notes }}"
          folder: "{{ folder }}"
        from_template: yes
        template_src: "{{ vmtemplate }}"
        cluster: "{{ vmcluster  }}"
        resource_pool: "/Resources"
        
        esxi:
          datacenter: UK
          hostname: "{{ esxhost }}"

Any ideas or suggestions would be really appreciated.

Cheers

j.r.hawkesworth · March 11, 2016, 10:58am

Hi Mark,

I’ve not tried this myself with this specific module, but I think you should be able to use one of the with_ mechanisms in your playbook to create multiple vms.
Have a look at http://docs.ansible.com/ansible/playbooks_loops.html#looping-over-hashes

Hope this helps,

Jon

Mark_Matthews · March 11, 2016, 1:23pm

Hi Jon

Thanks so much for the response.

I was looking at that and have ried a few things without success.

Are you able to see if im on the right track here?
I have create a file called ‘hostnames’ which is located in a sub directory (files) where the playbook is, and have included the vm names in that file:

---
serverlist:
  - server1
  - server2

I have then added the ‘with_items’ and variable ‘serverlist’. But i think I may be getting a bit confused through?
Im I completely off track here?

Playbook:

---
 - hosts: 127.0.0.1
   connection: local
   user: root
   sudo: false
   gather_facts: false
   serial: 1
   vars:
     vcenter_hostname: UK.server.local
     esxhost: xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
     datastore: UK1
     network: Web
     vmcluster: UKCLUSTER
     serverlist: files/hostnames 
     folder: Utilities
     notes: Created by Ansible

   tasks:
    - name: Create VM from template
      vsphere_guest:
        vcenter_hostname: "{{ vcenter_hostname }}"
        username: "{{ username }}"
        password: "{{ password }}"
        guest: "{{ list }}"
        vm_extra_config:
          notes: "{{ notes }}"
          folder: "{{ folder }}"
        from_template: yes
        template_src: "{{ vmtemplate }}"
        cluster: "{{ vmcluster  }}"
        resource_pool: "/Resources"
       with_items: "{{ serverlist }}
        
        esxi:
          datacenter: UK
          hostname: "{{ esxhost }}"

Cheers
Mark

j.r.hawkesworth · March 14, 2016, 8:52am

Hi Mark,

I think you are getting pretty close.

I can see a couple of issues in your playbook which might unstick you…

First the with_items needs to go right at the end of all of the parameters for the vsphere guest module - at the moment you have the exsi parameter after the with_items.

Also there’s a missing double quote at the end of the with items line:

with_items: "{{ serverlist }}

should probably be:

with_items: "{{ serverlist }}"

The other thing is actually getting your file containing the serverlist variable loaded into Ansible. There’s at least a couple of ways of doing this - either do an include_vars: file_containing_vars.yml at the top of your playbook, or you can pass in the contents of a yaml file on the command line using -e @/path/to/yaml/file.yml. Not sure what is going to suit your usage best

Hope this is enough to get you unstuck.

Jon

Mark_Matthews · April 5, 2016, 11:14am

Hi Jon

I am still really battling with this…

I have changed the playbook to the following:

Playbook:

Nigel_Metheringham · April 5, 2016, 1:01pm

I’m not very familiar with that module, but the iterator on a loop (which is effectively what you have with the with_items stanza) is “item" and not “list”

So try changing the guest part to:-

guest: “{{ item }”

Nigel.

Mark_Matthews · April 5, 2016, 2:57pm

Hi Nigel / Jon

I changed the following as suggessted:

guest: “{{ item }}”

What is happening now is when I run the playbook it is creating one VM in vSphere called “files/hostnames”??

So its as if the playbook is looking at, with_items: “{{ serverlist }}”, and then seeing the variable, serverlist: files/hostnames, and then creating a VM with that name. Its not looking into the ‘hostnames’ file and creating the multiple VM’s in that file??

Any ideas?

Cheers
Mark

Mark_Matthews · April 5, 2016, 3:07pm

I dont even know if im on the right track here?

Can you guys think of a way that may be easier to do this?

Jon mentioned using looping…but I have looked at this and have no idea how I could apply that to this situation.

j.r.hawkesworth · April 5, 2016, 3:14pm

Hi Mark,

Quickest way to get going is probably to pass the serverlist file in to ansible using extra vars

ansible-playbook your_playbook -e @/full/path/to/your/serverlist

If you don’t want to use the -e (extra vars) functionality, then I think you need to use include_vars, - see http://docs.ansible.com/ansible/include_vars_module.html

rather than naming the file you want to load in the vars: section of your playbook - vars is just for variables you want to declare within the playbook itself.

Jon

Mark_Matthews · April 5, 2016, 3:16pm

Hi guys

Just to let you know, I just worked it out.

I removed the following variable "serverlist: files/hostnames "

And then changed the with_items to the following:

with_items:

ans_testserver01
ans_testserver02

The playbook now creates both VMs (ans_testserver01 and ans_testserver02) when it is run.

I dont know if that is the correct way of doing it, but it seems to be working for me.

Mark_Matthews · April 5, 2016, 3:18pm

Hi Jon

I will definitely try using your option for extra vars, and see if I can get that to work.

Thanks so much for all your help and assistance with this guys!!

Cheers

j.r.hawkesworth · April 5, 2016, 3:21pm

Mark,

Something like this:

`

j.r.hawkesworth · April 5, 2016, 3:27pm

Looks like we have crossed messages.

Ansible is pretty flexible, if that suits your need then that’s good enough.

If you use a role you can do away with the include_vars but putting your serverlist var in a vars/main.yml under your role. Roles are nice as they can magically load lots of stuff like variables - see http://docs.ansible.com/ansible/playbooks_roles.html#roles

You might find you want to pass in the list of servers with the -e trick too, just depends on how much re-usability you need from your playbook - see http://docs.ansible.com/ansible/playbooks_variables.html#passing-variables-on-the-command-line

HTH

Jon

Chun-Hung_Huang · June 21, 2016, 12:57pm

Hi Mark Matthews and ALL

I meet the same problem with create Create multiple VMware guests with a Playbook.
Could your share / show your playbook with me?

Or help me to fix my playbook?

My playbook is
`

name: Testing vsphere_guest module in VMware
hosts: localhost
connection: local
vars_prompt:
name: “vcenter_hostname”
prompt: “Enter vcenter hostname”
private: no
default: “vcsa”
name: “vcenter_user”
prompt: “Enter vCenter username”
private: no
default: root
name: “vcenter_pass”
prompt: “Enter vcenter password”
private: yes
name: “esxi_hostname”
prompt: “Enter esxi hostname”
private: no
tasks:
name: Testing gater facts from vSphere
vsphere_guest:
vcenter_hostname: “{{ vcenter_hostname }}”
validate_certs: no
username: “{{ vcenter_user }}”
password: “{{ vcenter_pass }}”
guest: “{{ item }}”
from_template: yes
template_src: openSUSELeap42.1_Template
esxi:
datacenter: Lab
hostname: “{{ esxi_hostname }}”
with_items:
server01
server02
`

Error message is

fatal: [localhost]: FAILED! => {“failed”: true, “msg”: “‘item’ is undefined”}

item is undefined.
But I already have with_items ??

Thanks

Max

Mark Matthews於 2016年4月5日星期二 UTC+8下午11時16分15秒寫道：

tannerjc · June 21, 2016, 7:07pm

Your with_items line is indented too far. It should align with the first letter of the word “name”.

Chun-Hung_Huang · June 22, 2016, 1:30am

Hi James

Thanks
It works now

Very thanks for your help

Max

James Tanner於 2016年6月22日星期三 UTC+8上午3時07分49秒寫道：

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