# regex in command **URL:** \ **Category:** Ansible Project\ **Tags:** vmware\ **Created:** [October 14, 2017, 6:57am UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/regex-in-command/25748 "2017-10-14T06:57:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Victor1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/6de8d8/32.png) [@Victor1](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Victor1)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 6:57am UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/regex-in-command/25748/1 "2017-10-14T06:57:27Z")
Hi All , I have to search for a pattern string in the various log files located in some directory on the host. how we can use regex kind of a thing with command module or may be some other useful ansible way i am not aware about. here is my code which complains about vm\*.log. ```auto - name: Check whether vmware log file contains TDR command: grep 'TDR_DUMP' '{{guest_vm_path}}/{{item}}/vm*.log' with_items: - '{{guest_list}}' - '{{guest_name_poweredon}}' ignore_errors: True register: output - debug: var: output - debug: msg="No TDR signature found" when: output["results"][0].rc == 1 and output["results"][1].rc == 1 and output["results"][2].rc == 1 - debug: msg="Found the TDR signature" when: output["results"][0].rc == 0 or output["results"][1].rc == 0 or output["results"][2].rc == 0 - debug: var: output.stdout_lines when: output["results"][0].rc == 0 or output["results"][1].rc == 0 or output["results"][2].rc == 0 OutPUT: ok: [x.x.x.x] => { "output": { "changed": true, "failed": true, "msg": "One or more items failed", "results": [ { "_ansible_item_result": true, "_ansible_no_log": false, "_ansible_parsed": true, "changed": true, "cmd": [ "grep", "TDR_DUMP", "/vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vm*.log" ], "delta": "0:00:00.015495", "end": "2017-10-14 04:35:30.309261", "failed": true, "invocation": { "module_args": { "_raw_params": "grep 'TDR_DUMP' '/vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vm*.log'", "_uses_shell": false, "chdir": null, "creates": null, "executable": null, "removes": null, "warn": true } }, "item": "test1", "rc": 2, "start": "2017-10-14 04:35:30.293766", "stderr": "grep: /vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vm*.log: No such file or directory", "stderr_lines": [ "grep: /vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vm*.log: No such file or directory" ], "stdout": "", "stdout_lines": [] }, { "_ansible_item_result": true, ``` ---
**Author:** ![Kai\_Stian\_Olstad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e19adc/32.png) [@Kai\_Stian\_Olstad](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Kai_Stian_Olstad)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 2:34pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/regex-in-command/25748/2 "2017-10-14T14:34:50Z")
command module is not running a shell so shell expansion like vm\*.log will not work, you need to use the shell module. You could also do this with the find module. ---
**Author:** ![Victor1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/6de8d8/32.png) [@Victor1](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Victor1)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 4:50pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/regex-in-command/25748/3 "2017-10-14T16:50:58Z")
I tried Shell module too like below but it actually serach for vm\*.log file instead of all the vm.log files. ```auto - name: Check whether vmware log file contains TDR shell: grep 'TDR_DUMP' '{{guest_vm_path}}/{{item}}/vmware*.log' with_items: - '{{guest_list}}' - '{{guest_name_poweredon}}' ignore_errors: True register: output TASK [ESX_TDR_DUMP : debug] ******************************************************************************************************************* ok: [xxxxx] => { "output": { "changed": true, "failed": true, "msg": "One or more items failed", "results": [ { "_ansible_item_result": true, "_ansible_no_log": false, "_ansible_parsed": true, "changed": true, "cmd": "grep 'TDR_DUMP' '/vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vmware*.log'", "delta": "0:00:00.021120", "end": "2017-10-14 07:45:12.942906", "failed": true, "invocation": { "module_args": { "_raw_params": "grep 'TDR_DUMP' '/vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vmware*.log'", "_uses_shell": true, "chdir": null, "creates": null, "executable": null, "removes": null, "warn": true } }, "item": "test1", "rc": 2, "start": "2017-10-14 07:45:12.921786", "stderr": "grep: /vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vmware*.log: No such file or directory", "stderr_lines": [ "grep: /vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test1/vmware*.log: No such file or directory" ], "stdout": "", "stdout_lines": [] }, { "_ansible_item_result": true, "_ansible_no_log": false, "_ansible_parsed": true, "changed": true, "cmd": "grep 'TDR_DUMP' '/vmfs/volumes/mag27_datastore/test2/vmware*.log'", "delta": "0:00:01.024557", "end": "2017-10-14 07:45:14.937439", "failed": true, "invocation": { -VM ``` ---
**Author:** ![Kai\_Stian\_Olstad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e19adc/32.png) [@Kai\_Stian\_Olstad](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Kai_Stian_Olstad)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2017, 5:05pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/regex-in-command/25748/4 "2017-10-14T17:05:14Z")
Not an Ansible issue, but you are using single quotes around the file names. Single qoutes mean \_don't do\_ expansion, aka send it unchanged to the command, so you need to loose them or replace them with double quotes.