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How to Automate Linux Server Management with Ansible | Step-by-Step Demo Using GitHub Project
Jul 29, 2025
Master Linux automation using Ansible in this complete step-by-step guide! 🚀
In this video, you will learn how to automate Linux server management tasks such as package installation, user creation, firewall setup, and much more using Ansible playbooks.
🔧 This demo is based on the GitHub project:
👉 https://github.com/pradeepantil/linuxautomation
We will walk you through:
* Ansible installation & inventory setup
* Writing reusable and modular playbooks
* Automating tasks on Ubuntu and RHEL systems
* Common post-provisioning tasks on Linux servers
* Running playbooks using ansible-playbook commands
* Best practices for Ansible automation
💡 Whether you're a DevOps engineer, Linux admin, or beginner learning automation, this tutorial is for you!
📌 Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:45 Why Ansible
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0:00
Are you tired of manually managing your
0:02
Linux servers? Do you wish there was a
0:04
way to automate repetitive task, ensure
0:06
consistency and save countless hours? If
0:09
so, you have come to the right place.
0:11
Welcome to our comprehensive guide on
0:13
how to automate Linux server management
0:15
with Enible. Hey everyone, today we are
0:18
deep dive into the world of Enible, a
0:21
powerful open-source automation tool
0:23
that is a gamecher for system
0:25
administrators, DevOps engineers, and
0:27
anyone managing Linux servers.
0:30
Whether you are a beginner just starting
0:31
your automation journey or an
0:33
intermediate user looking to streamline
0:35
your workflows, this video is packed
0:37
with practical insights and step-by-step
0:40
demonstration. Before we jump into the
0:42
how, let's quickly understand the why.
0:45
Why choose Enible over other automation
0:47
tools. The first reason is its
0:50
simplicity. Enible is agentless, meaning
0:52
you don't need to install any special
0:54
software on the manage nodes. It
0:56
communicates over the standard SSH
0:58
making setup incredibly easy. Second
1:01
reason is readability. Playbooks are
1:04
written in YML format a human readable
1:06
data format. This means if you are new
1:08
to automation, you can quickly
1:10
understand what a playbook is doing.
1:12
Third reason is powerful and flexibility
1:15
from configuration management and
1:17
application deployment to the
1:18
orchestration and provisioning. Ensible
1:21
can handle a vast array of task across
1:24
various Linux distributions like Ubuntu
1:26
and RH. Itemp importance. This is a
1:28
fancy word. You can run your playbooks
1:31
multiple times. They will always bring
1:33
your system to the desired state without
1:36
unattended side effects. If a task is
1:39
already done, Enible won't redo it. To
1:42
follow along, you need few things. A
1:44
control node. This is where you will
1:46
install Enible. Run all your playbooks.
1:50
It's a Linux machine. It can be a RHL or
1:52
Ubuntu. Target servers. At least one
1:55
Ubuntu and one RHL server that you want
1:57
to manage. SSH access. Ensure your
2:00
control node can SSH to your target
2:02
servers using SSH keys for passwordless
2:05
authentication. Basic Linux knowledge.
2:08
Familiarity with the basic Linux
2:10
commands and conserve to understand the
2:12
task we will automate. For the sake of
2:14
time, I have already created the YML
2:17
files, anible.cfz, CFC and the inventory
2:19
file. I have uploaded them to my public
2:22
GitHub repository which I will link in
2:25
the video description for your
2:26
reference. All right, let's clone that
2:29
repository first on your controller
2:30
knowledge. This is my public GitHub
2:32
repository with the name Linux
2:34
automation where I have placed all the
2:36
YML files along with the inventory and
2:38
the enable. CFC.
2:41
Let's clone it using SSH.
2:44
I have only taken the SSH session of my
2:47
controller knowledge. Then the command
2:50
get clone.
2:56
It will create a folder with the name
2:58
Linux automation. Go to that folder and
3:01
do ls.
3:02
You will see all the EML files.
3:05
Next run the nible command. Nible space
3:09
version.
3:13
output confirms that we are running the
3:15
nible version of 216.3.
3:19
It is referring this nible.cfg file.
3:22
This cfg file is nothing but the one
3:24
that I have just clone it via the
3:26
repository. One important thing when you
3:29
clone this repo on your controller node.
3:31
Make sure you run the nible command from
3:33
this Linux automation directory only.
3:35
Otherwise, it will try to refer the
3:37
nible. CFC file from/ct cc folder. Now
3:41
set up the inventory file. As you can
3:44
see inventory file is already there in
3:46
my public repository. Let me get this
3:49
file first.
3:51
Here Ubuntu server and ARL servers are
3:54
our groups. Anible host specify the IP
3:58
address and the host name. Anible user
4:01
and anible private key file defines the
4:05
SSH user and key for connecting these
4:08
servers. Remember to replace these IPs,
4:12
your SSH user and key with your actual
4:14
server details and SSS key path. Let's
4:17
verify the connectivity from my
4:19
controller node towards this manage
4:21
nodes. For that we can run the command
4:24
anible
4:26
all-enodule
4:28
and then ping. It will perform the ping
4:30
pong test. All means it will try to ping
4:34
all the host mentioned in the inventory
4:36
infi. The centure output confirms that
4:40
controller node is able to make a
4:42
connectivity or is able to ping this
4:44
manage host Ubuntu server - 1 and RL -
4:49
server - 1. Now verify the NC.tfc file
4:53
as well. Just view this file once.
4:57
So under the default section I specify
4:59
the inventory. This is the path of my
5:01
inventory file. The remote user this
5:04
user will be used while connecting to
5:06
the manage host. Here in my case it's
5:08
Linux tech key and host key checking is
5:11
false. So it won't verify the host key
5:13
verifications. Under privilege
5:15
acceleration section I have mentioned
5:16
become is equals to true become method
5:19
is sudo and become user is root and
5:21
become ask is equal to false. While
5:24
becoming a root user using sudo it won't
5:26
prompt for the password. Exit the file
5:28
now. All right, we have already covered
5:31
how we we have set up our inventory
5:33
file. So we are using two Linux
5:36
distributions here. One is RHL, another
5:38
one is Ubuntu. We have defined under the
5:40
groups. In this video tutorial, I will
5:43
be covering basic server management task
5:45
like system upgrades. I will try to
5:47
install the system updates on R as well
5:50
as on Ubuntu system. I will try to
5:52
create a non root user with pseudo
5:55
privileges. I'll configure the NTP
5:57
configuration. We'll install the
5:58
necessary packages. Set up the host name
6:01
and time zone. And in the last I will
6:04
install a monitoring agent like node
6:07
exporter. Let's quickly see how the
6:09
ensible playbook structure will look
6:11
like. If you see we have key components
6:13
like name. Name will describe the title
6:16
for your playbook. Here host means
6:17
target server to run against become
6:19
means
6:21
that user anible user will become a root
6:24
user using sudo. Wars defines the
6:26
variables that we are going to use in
6:28
the playbook. Task actions to perform
6:31
and handlers trigger by notify
6:32
directives. So these are the sample OS
6:35
specific task that I will be doing it in
6:38
this demo. Let's quickly jump to our
6:41
first task. Installing all the upgrades.
6:44
Keeping your servers updated is crucial
6:46
for security and performances. Let's
6:49
create a playbook that will install all
6:51
the available upgrades on the Ubuntu as
6:54
well as Archel servers.
6:59
I have already created this
7:00
upgrade_playbook.l
7:02
file
7:07
host all means it will be implemented on
7:09
all the host become yes means it will
7:13
become a root user using sudu. In this
7:17
playbook, we have used when condition.
7:20
This allows us to apply the distribution
7:23
specific task within a single playbook.
7:25
For Ubuntu, we use apt module and for RL
7:28
and we use Y modules.
7:32
This is the syntax for when conditions
7:35
and we are using apt on Ubuntu and we
7:39
are using DNF or Yum on RO sent to us.
7:44
In order to run this playbook, it is
7:46
always recommended you first do a dry
7:48
run. For that, you can run the command
7:51
enable
7:52
playbook followed by the playbook name.
7:54
In our case, it's upgrade_playbook.
7:58
ML - check.
8:02
This will do a syntax validation
8:05
connectivity check.
8:08
Now we are good to run this playbook.
8:10
Run the command nible hyphen playbook
8:14
followed by the playbook name and remove
8:16
hyphen check this time and hit enter.
8:23
As we are installing all the available
8:24
updates. So it may take 5 to 10 minutes
8:27
depending upon the internet speed on
8:30
your manage host because it will be
8:32
downloading all the updates from the
8:34
internet repositories.
8:37
Output confirms that playbook has been
8:39
executed successfully. Let's validate
8:42
whether all the updates have been
8:44
installed on the manage host or not
8:46
using the anible adop commands.
8:57
Let's run first on Ubuntu.
9:07
upgrade
9:10
it's Ubuntu servers
9:16
all the updates have been installed now
9:19
verify on the RL server as well
9:22
change the group name
9:25
RL servers update the command
9:29
sudo
9:31
dnf update
9:39
on R2 server also all the updates have
9:41
been installed moving to the next task
9:44
creating a nonroot user with sudo
9:46
privileges for that I have a playbook
9:51
user_playbook
9:55
in this playbook
9:57
I am running this all the task on all
10:00
the host first I need to define assign a
10:03
username and its password under this
10:06
was variables here I'm using user
10:10
command or user module in fact to create
10:14
the user so based on the Linux
10:16
distribution let's say if it is Ubuntu
10:19
then we are adding that user to a sudo
10:22
group if it is RHL then add that user to
10:26
a V group based on the distributions and
10:30
we are using when conditions to identify
10:33
what is the Linux distribution.
10:37
All right. And in the last we are making
10:40
sure that this users are part of a V
10:44
group or sudo group depending upon the
10:47
Linux distribution. Let's try to run
10:49
this playbook. For that run the command
10:52
enible
10:54
playbook
10:55
user_playbook.y.
10:59
If you want to debug a playbook then you
11:04
can use hyphen v option. So this will
11:06
execute the playbook. It will give us
11:09
the output in more verbose mode.
11:16
Sorry it it will fail because we have
11:19
not defined a valid username. We need to
11:21
update the variable. Let's
11:25
modify the playbook first.
11:30
Let's say username is
11:34
sysops
11:37
password could be
11:44
save this file and
11:48
rerun it.
11:53
If you see the output, it has created a
11:55
home directory for the user sysops under
11:59
/home/sisops.
12:01
Username is sysops. Password is whatever
12:04
we have specified in the playbook.
12:08
Now validate whether this user is
12:10
available on both the manage host. For
12:13
that you can again run the nible
12:16
command.
12:20
We'll use all here
12:25
model name is cell
12:27
and command is
12:31
id
12:33
sysops
12:36
output confirms that on Ubuntu server
12:40
sysops user is there whose ID is this
12:43
one and it's a part of sudo group and on
12:47
rl server this ID is there and it is a
12:51
part of wheel group. It means user is
12:54
created successfully on both the nodes.
12:56
Moving to the third task where we will
12:58
configure the NTP sync. Accurate time
13:01
synchronization is vital for logging
13:03
security in many applications. Let's
13:06
configure this NTP sync.
13:11
So we already have this NTP_playbook.l
13:15
file. As the name suggest it is going to
13:18
install NTP package if it is not there
13:20
and will start its NTP service. So based
13:23
on the Linux distributions if it isu it
13:26
will install NTP and NTP date package.
13:29
If it is RHL or CentOS it will install
13:32
Crony and it will start and enable the
13:34
Crony services. Now execute this
13:38
playbook. Run the command nible
13:42
playbook
13:44
ntp. Hit enter.
13:50
Playbook has been executed successfully.
13:52
If you have see carefully, it has
13:53
executed only on the Ubuntu server
13:55
because on RL servers chrony is a part
13:59
of default OS installation. So chrony
14:01
was already installed during the
14:03
installation. Now we can verify the
14:05
service status.
14:07
Run the enable edio command again.
14:12
for Ubuntu servers.
14:16
It will be
14:22
this confirms that NTP is installed and
14:25
the service is up and running on the
14:26
Ubuntu servers. Now verify it on RL
14:30
servers.
14:31
Change the group.
14:34
Now it's RH servers command
14:38
would be in place of NTP we have chron.
14:46
This confirms that NTP client that is
14:49
chrony is up and running on RL servers.
14:53
Now moving to the next task. In this
14:55
task, we will install some commonly used
14:58
essential packages like whim, get, curl,
15:01
wget, net- tools, unjtop.
15:06
So for this task, I have a playbook with
15:09
the name packages_playbook.l.
15:12
Playbook will be executed on all the
15:13
host. We have defined a variable. One
15:17
variable is for Ubuntu that is common
15:19
packages Ubuntu. Another variable is for
15:22
RHL on Ubuntu. I want to install these
15:26
essential packages. On RHL I would like
15:28
to install these packages.
15:31
And then I define the task and I'm
15:33
installing these packages using the app
15:35
command on Ubuntu Linux distribution.
15:38
And on RHL I am using Y. You can use Y
15:42
or or ODNF. Now run this playbook to
15:45
install these essential packages.
15:54
Output confirms that playbook has been
15:56
executed successfully on the server RHL
16:00
server - 1 and Ubuntu server - 1. In the
16:03
next task, I will set the host name and
16:06
time zone. Proper host name and time
16:08
zone settings are important for server
16:10
identification and accurate time
16:12
keeping. In order to set the host name
16:15
on the manage host, I will be using the
16:17
inventory host name
16:21
system_config playbook file. This is the
16:25
playbook that I will use to configure
16:27
the host name and time zone. If you see
16:31
this,
16:33
it will be executed on all the host. I
16:35
have defined a variable with the name
16:38
desired time zone. Here I have specified
16:40
which time zone I would like to set on
16:42
my manage host. I'm using a host name
16:45
command in order to set the host name
16:47
and I'm picking the name of the I mean
16:50
host name from the inventory. Running a
16:52
time zone command in order to set this
16:55
time zone.
16:57
Now try to execute this playbook.
17:06
playbook has been executed on both the
17:09
manage host. We use inventory host name
17:12
to dynamically set the host name to the
17:14
name defined in our inventory file. So
17:17
if I show you the inventory file.
17:21
So this would be the host name for this
17:25
host and RHL - server-1 will be the host
17:30
name for this host.
17:33
Now we can verify it using the nible
17:37
adobo command.
17:42
This is the host name. Now similarly
17:45
verify it on Ubuntu servers.
17:52
This confirms that host name has been
17:54
set up properly. In the next step, we
17:56
will install Prometheus node exporter.
17:59
It's a popular agent for collecting the
18:01
system matrices. So monitoring is a key
18:04
to maintaining a healthy servers. In
18:07
order to install this node exporter, we
18:10
have a playbook with the name
18:12
node_exporter_playbook.
18:18
Using this playbook, we will install
18:20
this Prometheus node exporter on all the
18:23
host. We have defined that we will be
18:26
installing this node exposure.
18:30
We have uh multiple architecture. One is
18:33
AMD, another one is ARM. So depending
18:36
upon the architecture we are downloading
18:40
the tar file and then we are creating a
18:44
group
18:45
creating a node
18:48
downloading the tar file and then we are
18:52
installing the binary into a directory
18:57
and then we are creating a systemd
19:00
service for the node exporter. We are
19:02
using this uh ginger template node
19:05
exporter.service.j2.
19:08
It is already there in my repository and
19:10
then we are starting the service
19:19
and the last we are starting the
19:22
services. Let's try to run this
19:25
playbook.
19:33
Output confirms that node exporter
19:36
playbook has been executed on both the
19:38
host. Let's verify the service of node
19:41
exporter on both the host using the
19:44
nible edio command.
19:52
So this command will run systemct ctl
19:54
status node exporter on both the nodes.
20:00
Great output confirms that Prometheus
20:02
node exporter service is active up and
20:05
running on both the nodes. Validate the
20:08
installation of this node exporter will
20:10
try to get the matrices of these post
20:14
using the curl command.
20:22
Great. I can get the matrices of the uh
20:24
my manage host. Now verified with the
20:27
second host as well.
20:30
Okay, I'm able to get the matrices of
20:33
both the host. If you have noticed, I
20:36
have used separate playbooks for each of
20:38
the task. But it's not the recommended
20:41
way in order to perform the server
20:43
setup. So it always recommended to merge
20:46
all the task into a single playbook or a
20:49
comprehensive playbook for the complete
20:51
server setup. So I have merged all of
20:54
these task into a main comprehensive
20:57
playbook
20:59
that is main_playbook.
21:02
Mml file. If you see the content of this
21:05
playbook, I have included all the task
21:08
whatever I have done till this point. So
21:12
all the tasks are mentioned here. If you
21:15
would like to set up a server and you
21:16
would like to execute all these task in
21:19
one book, it's better to run this main
21:22
playbook EML file. Let's try to run this
21:25
playbook as well. Run the command nible
21:28
playbook
21:32
main playbook.
21:35
Hit enter.
21:45
All right, the output confirms that our
21:48
main playbook file has been executed
21:51
successfully on both the nodes. And
21:53
there you have it, a comprehensive guide
21:55
to automating Linux server management
21:57
with anible. We have covered everything
21:59
from setting up your inventory to
22:01
perform common tasks like system
22:03
upgrades, user creation, NTP sync,
22:06
package installation, host name
22:08
configurations and even deploying a
22:09
monitoring agent like Prometheus product
22:11
exposure. We have also show you how to
22:14
consolidate your task into a single
22:16
powerful playbook. Ensible is incredibly
22:19
versatile tool that can drastically
22:21
improve your efficiency and consistency
22:23
in managing infrastructure. Start small,
22:26
experiment with these playbooks,
22:28
gradually expand your automation
22:30
efforts.
22:32
If you found this video helpful, please
22:34
give it a thumbs up, share it with your
22:36
friends, subscribe to our channel for
22:38
more content on DevOps, system
22:40
administration, and automation. Let us
22:42
know in the comments what other anvil
22:44
topics you would like us to cover.
22:46
Thanks for watching. See you in the next
22:48
one. But
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