1. ansible

Run a single task (module) against hosts in your inventory. For quick, ad-hoc commands.

General Syntax

ansible <host-pattern> -m <module_name> -a "<module arguments>" [options]
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

Common Examples and All Key Combinations

Example	Description
ansible all -m ping	Ping all hosts using the ‘ping’ module.
ansible webservers -m shell -a "uptime"	Run ‘uptime’ shell command on ‘webservers’ group.
ansible dbservers -m command -a "df -h"	Run ‘df -h’ using command module (no shell features) on ‘dbservers’.
ansible localhost -m setup	Gather facts on localhost.
ansible all -m user -a "name=john state=present"	Create user ‘john’ on all hosts.
ansible all -m copy -a "src=foo.conf dest=/etc/foo.conf"	Copy file to all hosts.
ansible all -m yum -a "name=httpd state=latest"	Install latest httpd via yum on all hosts.
ansible all -m service -a "name=httpd state=restarted"	Restart httpd service on all hosts.
ansible all -m file -a "path=/tmp/testfile state=touch"	Create empty file on all hosts.
ansible all -m get_url -a "url=https://example.com/file.tar.gz dest=/tmp/file.tar.gz"	Download file from URL.
ansible all -m debug -a "msg='Hello World'"	Print debug message on all hosts.
ansible all -a "uname -a"	Run shell command directly (shell module by default if -m is omitted).
ansible all -b -m apt -a "name=nginx state=present"	Install nginx with privilege escalation (sudo).
ansible all -u admin -m ping	Run ping module as user ‘admin’.
ansible all --list-hosts	List hosts targeted by pattern.
ansible all --limit dbservers -m ping	Limit run to only dbservers.
ansible all --check -m yum -a "name=git state=present"	Dry run (check mode).
ansible all -m command -a "ls -l /tmp" -v	Run command with verbose output.
ansible all -m raw -a "uptime"	Run raw command (no Python required on remote).

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2. ansible-playbook

Run complex multi-step playbooks written in YAML.

General Syntax

ansible-playbook <playbook.yml> [options]
Code language: CSS (css)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-playbook site.yml	Run ‘site.yml’ playbook.
ansible-playbook -i inventory.yml site.yml	Specify a custom inventory.
ansible-playbook -l webservers site.yml	Limit run to webservers group.
ansible-playbook -u deployer site.yml	Run playbook as ‘deployer’ user.
ansible-playbook -b site.yml	Run with privilege escalation (sudo/become).
ansible-playbook -k site.yml	Ask for SSH password.
ansible-playbook -K site.yml	Ask for privilege escalation password.
ansible-playbook --check site.yml	Dry run; don’t change anything.
ansible-playbook --diff site.yml	Show diff when files change.
ansible-playbook --start-at-task="Install packages" site.yml	Start at named task.
ansible-playbook -e var=value site.yml	Set extra variable.
ansible-playbook -e @vars.yml site.yml	Load extra vars from YAML file.
ansible-playbook --tags "setup,install" site.yml	Run only tasks with these tags.
ansible-playbook --skip-tags "test" site.yml	Skip tasks with these tags.
ansible-playbook --step site.yml	Step through each task interactively.
ansible-playbook -v site.yml	Verbose mode (single -v, -vv, -vvv for more).
ansible-playbook --syntax-check site.yml	Check playbook syntax only.
ansible-playbook --list-hosts site.yml	Show which hosts would be affected.
ansible-playbook --list-tasks site.yml	List all tasks.
ansible-playbook --list-tags site.yml	List all tags.
ansible-playbook --flush-cache site.yml	Flush fact cache before run.
ansible-playbook --forks 20 site.yml	Set number of parallel processes.

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3. ansible-galaxy

Install, manage, and create roles and collections.

General Syntax

ansible-galaxy <subcommand> [options]
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-galaxy install geerlingguy.nginx	Install a role from Ansible Galaxy.
ansible-galaxy install -r requirements.yml	Install multiple roles from requirements file.
ansible-galaxy list	List installed roles.
ansible-galaxy remove geerlingguy.nginx	Remove an installed role.
ansible-galaxy init myrole	Scaffold a new role called myrole.
ansible-galaxy collection install community.general	Install a collection from Galaxy.
ansible-galaxy collection install -r collections/requirements.yml	Install collections from requirements.
ansible-galaxy collection list	List installed collections.
ansible-galaxy collection init my_namespace.my_collection	Scaffold a new collection.
ansible-galaxy role search nginx	Search roles by keyword.
ansible-galaxy collection search kubernetes	Search collections by keyword.
ansible-galaxy role info geerlingguy.nginx	Show details for a role.
ansible-galaxy collection info community.general	Show details for a collection.

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4. ansible-vault

Encrypt, decrypt, edit, and manage secrets.

General Syntax

ansible-vault <command> [options] <file>
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-vault create secrets.yml	Create a new encrypted file.
ansible-vault edit secrets.yml	Edit encrypted file in-place.
ansible-vault view secrets.yml	View contents of an encrypted file.
ansible-vault encrypt file.yml	Encrypt a plaintext file.
ansible-vault decrypt secrets.yml	Decrypt file to plaintext.
ansible-vault rekey secrets.yml	Change the password on the encrypted file.
ansible-vault encrypt_string 'supersecret' --name 'my_secret'	Output an encrypted string for use in playbooks.
ansible-vault encrypt --vault-password-file ~/.vault_pass.txt secrets.yml	Encrypt with a password file.
ansible-vault decrypt --vault-password-file ~/.vault_pass.txt secrets.yml	Decrypt with a password file.
ansible-playbook --ask-vault-pass site.yml	Prompt for vault password when running a playbook.
ansible-playbook --vault-password-file ~/.vault_pass.txt site.yml	Use password file for vault.

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5. ansible-doc

Display documentation and examples for modules and plugins.

General Syntax

ansible-doc <module_name> [options]
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-doc ping	Show documentation for ping module.
ansible-doc -l	List all available modules.
ansible-doc -s file	Show minimal argument spec for file module.
ansible-doc -M ./library custom_module	Show doc for module in custom library dir.
ansible-doc -t lookup file	Show lookup plugin documentation.
ansible-doc --playbook-dir=./roles/	Specify playbook directory context.
ansible-doc --json	Output module docs in JSON format.

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6. ansible-inventory

Manage, validate, and display inventory.

General Syntax

ansible-inventory [options]
Code language: CSS (css)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-inventory --list	List all hosts and groups in JSON.
ansible-inventory --graph	Show inventory as a graph.
ansible-inventory --host <hostname>	Show variables for a specific host.
ansible-inventory -i hosts.ini --list	List inventory from a specific file.
ansible-inventory -i inventory.yml --graph	Graph from YAML inventory.
ansible-inventory -i aws_ec2.yaml --list	Use dynamic inventory.
ansible-inventory --yaml	Output inventory as YAML.
ansible-inventory --vars	Include vars in output.
ansible-inventory --export	Export inventory for external use.
ansible-inventory --help	Show all options.

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7. ansible-pull

Run playbooks in “pull” mode (nodes pull playbooks instead of being pushed).

General Syntax

ansible-pull -U <repo_url> [playbook.yml] [options]
Code language: CSS (css)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git	Pull and run playbook from git repo.
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git playbook.yml	Pull and run specific playbook.
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git -i localhost,	Specify inventory (e.g., localhost only).
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git -d /tmp/checkout	Specify checkout directory.
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git -C dev	Checkout a specific branch.
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git -e "var=value"	Pass extra variables.
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git --accept-host-key	Auto-accept git SSH keys.
ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git -v	Verbose mode.

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8. ansible-config

View and manage Ansible config settings.

General Syntax

ansible-config <subcommand> [options]
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-config view	Show current config settings.
ansible-config list	List all config options and their defaults.
ansible-config dump	Dump config settings (shows source of each).
ansible-config init --disabled > ansible.cfg	Generate a commented ansible.cfg template.

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9. ansible-console

An interactive shell for running Ansible ad-hoc commands.

General Syntax

ansible-console [host-pattern] [options]
Code language: CSS (css)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-console	Start interactive console (all hosts).
ansible-console webservers	Limit to webservers group.
ansible-console --inventory inventory.yml	Use a custom inventory.
ansible-console --become	Run with privilege escalation.

Once inside the console:

• > ping
• > shell uname -a
• > apt name=git state=present
• > exit

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10. ansible-connection

Internal, used to manage connection plugins (rarely used directly).

General Syntax

ansible-connection <subcommand> [options]
Code language: HTML, XML (xml)

All Example Combinations

Example	Description
ansible-connection -h	Show help and available subcommands.
ansible-connection password	Show password subcommand (used by connection plugins).

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BONUS: Module Examples (Most Common Patterns)

1. Command module

- name: List directory
  ansible.builtin.command:
    cmd: ls -l /tmp
Code language: PHP (php)

2. Shell module

- name: Run shell with pipe
  ansible.builtin.shell: "cat /etc/passwd | grep root"
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

3. Copy module

- name: Copy config file
  ansible.builtin.copy:
    src: ./nginx.conf
    dest: /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

4. Template module

- name: Deploy config from template
  ansible.builtin.template:
    src: ./app.conf.j2
    dest: /etc/myapp/app.conf
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

5. File module

- name: Set permissions
  ansible.builtin.file:
    path: /opt/foo
    state: directory
    mode: '0755'
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

6. Service module

- name: Ensure nginx is running
  ansible.builtin.service:
    name: nginx
    state: started
Code language: CSS (css)

7. User module

- name: Add user
  ansible.builtin.user:
    name: deploy
    groups: sudo
    state: present
Code language: CSS (css)

8. Package modules (apt/yum/dnf)

- name: Install nginx (Debian)
  ansible.builtin.apt:
    name: nginx
    state: latest

- name: Install nginx (RHEL)
  ansible.builtin.yum:
    name: nginx
    state: latest
Code language: CSS (css)

9. Git module

- name: Clone a repo
  ansible.builtin.git:
    repo: 'https://github.com/example/project.git'
    dest: /opt/app
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

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Summary Table

Tool/Module	Example Syntax/Usage
ansible	ansible all -m ping
ansible-playbook	ansible-playbook -i hosts site.yml
ansible-galaxy	ansible-galaxy install geerlingguy.nginx
ansible-vault	ansible-vault encrypt secrets.yml
ansible-doc	ansible-doc file
ansible-inventory	ansible-inventory --list
ansible-pull	ansible-pull -U https://github.com/example/repo.git
ansible-config	ansible-config view
ansible-console	ansible-console webservers
ansible-connection	ansible-connection -h
Common modules	command, shell, copy, template, file, service, user, apt, yum, git, etc.

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