# hosts: all and ansible-playbook --limit seems needlessly dangerous

**URL:** <https://forum.ansible.com/t/hosts-all-and-ansible-playbook-limit-seems-needlessly-dangerous/33932>\
**Category:** Ansible Project\
**Tags:** awx\
**Created:** [September 30, 2020, 4:33pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/hosts-all-and-ansible-playbook-limit-seems-needlessly-dangerous/33932 "2020-09-30T16:33:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Denis\_Lemire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed655f/32.png) [@Denis\_Lemire](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Denis_Lemire)\
**Post date:** [September 30, 2020, 4:33pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/hosts-all-and-ansible-playbook-limit-seems-needlessly-dangerous/33932/1 "2020-09-30T16:33:54Z")

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I opened an issue at Github but was directed here:  
[https://github.com/ansible/ansible/issues/72027](https://github.com/ansible/ansible/issues/72027)

This may have already been discussed at length but it’s always bothered me that a playbook would need an explicit hosts: all and then later be limited via the command line with --limit…

It feels like hosts: none and a command line argument to specify target host or inventory groups would be far safer.

If one habitually specifies a playbook with hosts: all for use with AWX/Tower, that playbook being used manually is one missing --limit argument away from disaster.

Is there a rational for this design that I’m just ignorant to?