Ansible Yum Install RPM: Master Package Management

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

Ansible is a powerful tool for automating your infrastructure configuration management. You can manage the Infrastructure with Terraform and configure it with the Ansible.

One of the main use cases is package management. You can easily manage the software installation for RHEL or CentOS with the Yum package manager.

In this blog, we will explore Ansible Yum Install RPM and how to use the yum module to install RPM packages efficiently and effectively. Ansible Yum Install RPM.

Introduction to Ansible Yum Module

What Is the Yum Module in Ansible?

The Yum module in Ansible is designed especially to manage the system that uses Yum-based package management such as RHEL, CentOS, and Fedora to simplify the package management.

You can use the yum module to easily install, update, and remove the package with the Ansible. This module provides automation that can be used across multiple servers at once saving time and reducing human error.

Benefits of Using the Yum Module:

• Automates the installation of RPM packages.
• Ensures idempotence, meaning packages are only installed if they are missing.
• Simplifies server setups with repeatable common playbooks.

Why Use Ansible for Installing RPM Packages?

Ansible together with RPM brings the simplification yet powerful automation to your package management process. Whether you’re managing a few systems or thousands, Ansible can streamline the process.

Key Advantages:

Automating Package Management: Install RPMs across multiple systems without logging into each one manually. Manage all the systems remotely and Ansible yum Install RPM packages

Simplifying Server Setups: You can configure complex server environments in a simple and repeatable manner by using the Ansible playbook.

Understanding the Basics Ansible Yum Install RPM

What Is an RPM Package?

An RPM is a free open-source package management system used by the operating system to manage the various software installation.

The name RPM mainly comes from the extension .rpm for the package. RPM contains compiled software and metadata that allows the package manager to install, update, or remove it easily.

RPM is used for CentOS, Fedora, and RHEL, offering a structured method for software management, which can be handled using Ansible Yum Install RPM.

Using the Yum Module to Install RPMs

Yum is the default package manager for RHEL and CentOS.

It handles the installation and management of RPMs, resolving dependencies, and pulling packages from repositories.

If you want to learn Ansible Yum Install RPM but for the localinstall you should check the blog:

Master Ansible yum localinstall: Ultimate Guide

Step-by-Step Guide For Ansible Yum Install RPM

Basic Playbook for Installing a Single RPM Package

Below is a simple Ansible playbook to install an RPM package:

---
- name: Install a single RPM package
  hosts: all
  become: yes
  tasks:
    - name: Install an RPM package using Yum module
      yum:
        name: httpd
        state: present

Let’s understand the playbook:

• hosts: all: This specifies that the playbook will run on all defined hosts.
• become: yes: Ensures that the playbook runs with root privileges.
• state: present: This ensures that the package is installed, but will not attempt to reinstall it if it’s already present.

Installing Multiple RPM Packages with Ansible

If you need to install multiple RPM packages, you can modify your playbook like this:

---
- name: Install multiple RPM packages
  hosts: all
  become: yes
  tasks:
    - name: Install a list of RPM packages
      yum:
        name:
          - httpd
          - git
          - vim
        state: present

Idempotence and Error Handling:

How does the Ansible Yum install RPM deal with duplication or error during the installation?

• Ansible ensures that packages are only installed if they are missing.
• You can use ignore_errors: yes in tasks to prevent playbook failure in case of package conflicts or other issues.

Best Practices for RPM Installation in Ansible

Ensuring Package Availability

To avoid installation failures, it’s important to ensure the availability of the RPM packages in your repositories.

If a package is not available in default repositories, you may need to add external repositories using the yum_repository module:

---
- name: Add external repository
  hosts: all
  become: yes
  tasks:
    - name: Add EPEL repository
      yum_repository:
        name: epel
        description: EPEL YUM repo
        baseurl: https://download.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/7/x86_64/
        enabled: yes

Verifying RPM Installation Status

After installing an RPM package, it’s necessary to verify that the installation was successful.

You can include tasks to check the installation status:

---
- name: Verify the RPM package is installed
  hosts: all
  tasks:
    - name: Check if httpd is installed
      command: rpm -qa | grep httpd
      register: result
    - debug:
        var: result.stdout

Troubleshooting RPM Installation Issues with Ansible

Common Errors When Installing RPMs

While using the Yum module, some common issues can arise, such as:

Dependency errors: Missing dependencies can stop the installation process. To resolve this, you can enable Yum’s automatic dependency resolution.

Missing repositories: If a package isn’t available in your repositories, you’ll need to add the appropriate repository.

Using Debugging Techniques in Ansible

When troubleshooting RPM installation failures, you can use Ansible’s debug and failed_when modules to verbose errors and handle failures gracefully:

---
- name: Debug failed task
  hosts: all
  tasks:
    - name: Install httpd
      yum:
        name: httpd
        state: present
      failed_when: result.rc != 0
      register: result
    - debug:
        var: result

Conclusion

In this blog, we learn how to automate the installation of the RPM package using Ansible’s built-in Yum module. Ansible simplifies the management of the software installation and ensures consistency across your infrastructure management.

Follow the best practice and troubleshooting guide to streamline your installation process and handle the issue effectively.

Additionally, learn how to use the Ansible yum localinstall command to automate the installation of the local RPM package directly from your filesystem for offline deployment.

Master Ansible yum localinstall: Ultimate Guide