Nowadays, Time Is the Most Valuable Resource
If you manage virtual machines or servers manually, you know how much time and effort it takes. The good news is that there are ways to automate almost everything in your IT infrastructure.
π Specific Benefit: With Proxmox and Ansible, you can automate server installations, updates, and configurations.
π Practical Content: Youβll see real-world examples and usage scenarios.
π Measurable Value: Save up to 80% of the time spent on routine tasks, allowing you to focus on strategic work.
π§ What Is Proxmox?
Proxmox VE (Virtual Environment) is an open-source virtualization platform based on Debian Linux. It combines the KVM hypervisor and LXC containers with a web interface and a powerful REST API.
Key Advantages of Proxmox:
β
Free and open-source
π§ Manage VMs and containers
π Cluster and High Availability (HA) support
π Web-based interface for easy management
π€ What Is Ansible?
Ansible is an agentless automation tool that uses SSH to access remote machines and execute tasks.
Advantages of Ansible:
𧩠Simple YAML syntax (playbooks)
π§ͺ Idempotent (always produces the same result)
π« No additional software needed on client machines
π Huge library of modules
𧩠Why Combine Proxmox and Ansible?
By integrating Proxmox for virtualization and Ansible for automation, you get a powerful platform for managing entire IT environments with minimal effort.
This combination provides:
Fast VM provisioning
Bulk system updates
Consistent server configurations
Automated backups and monitoring
π οΈ Scenario 1: Automatically Create VMs in Proxmox
Problem:
Manually creating a VM is time-consuming and requires multiple clicks in the web interface.
Solution:
With Ansible, you can create an LXC container in Proxmox using a single playbook.
Example Playbook:
---
- name: Create LXC Container in Proxmox
hosts: localhost
connection: local
gather_facts: no
vars:
proxmox_api_host: "{{ proxmox_host | default('proxmox.example.com') }}"
proxmox_api_user: "{{ proxmox_user | default('root@pam') }}"
proxmox_node: "{{ target_node | default('pve') }}"
ct_id: "{{ vmid | default(200) }}"
ct_hostname: "{{ hostname | default('test-lxc') }}"
ct_cores: "{{ cores | default(2) }}"
ct_memory: "{{ memory | default(1024) }}"
ct_disk_size: "{{ disk_size | default(8) }}"
ct_storage: "{{ storage | default('local-lvm') }}"
ct_template: "{{ ostemplate | default('local:vztmpl/ubuntu-20.04-standard_20.04-1_amd64.tar.gz') }}"
ct_password: "{{ root_password | default('changeme123') }}"
tasks:
- name: Create LXC Container
community.general.proxmox:
api_user: "{{ proxmox_api_user }}"
api_password: "{{ proxmox_password }}"
api_host: "{{ proxmox_api_host }}"
node: "{{ proxmox_node }}"
vmid: "{{ ct_id }}"
hostname: "{{ ct_hostname }}"
cores: "{{ ct_cores }}"
memory: "{{ ct_memory }}"
swap: "{{ ct_memory // 2 }}"
disk: "{{ ct_disk_size }}"
storage: "{{ ct_storage }}"
ostemplate: "{{ ct_template }}"
password: "{{ ct_password }}"
# Network config
netif:
net0: "name=eth0,bridge=vmbr0,ip=dhcp,type=veth"
# Features
features:
- nesting=1 # Allows Docker
# Auto-start
onboot: yes
# Unprivileged container (more secure)
unprivileged: yes
state: present
register: lxc_creation
- name: Start Container
community.general.proxmox:
api_user: "{{ proxmox_api_user }}"
api_password: "{{ proxmox_password }}"
api_host: "{{ proxmox_api_host }}"
vmid: "{{ ct_id }}"
state: started
when: lxc_creation is succeeded
- name: Show Container Info
debug:
msg: |
LXC container created successfully!
ID: {{ ct_id }}
Hostname: {{ ct_hostname }}
Node: {{ proxmox_node }}
Resources: {{ ct_cores }} cores, {{ ct_memory }}MB RAM
How to Use Enhanced Playbooks:
# For a VM with variables
ansible-playbook proxmox-vm.yml -e "proxmox_password=your_password vmid=111 vm_name=web-server"
# For LXC with variables
ansible-playbook proxmox-lxc.yml -e "proxmox_password=your_password vmid=201 hostname=app-container"
# Or use a vars file
ansible-playbook proxmox-vm.yml --extra-vars "@vars.yml"
π οΈ Scenario 2: Configure a New Web Server
Problem:
Manually installing a LAMP/LEMP stack is time-consuming and error-prone.
Solution:
An Ansible playbook that automates the process.
Example Playbook:
---
- name: Install and Configure LAMP Stack
hosts: web
become: yes
vars:
mysql_root_password: "your_secure_password_here"
tasks:
- name: Update packages
apt:
update_cache: yes
- name: Install Apache
apt:
name: apache2
state: present
- name: Install PHP and required modules
apt:
name:
- php
- php-mysql
- php-cli
- php-curl
- php-gd
- php-mbstring
- php-xml
- libapache2-mod-php
state: present
- name: Install MariaDB
apt:
name:
- mariadb-server
- mariadb-client
- python3-pymysql
state: present
- name: Start and enable Apache
systemd:
name: apache2
state: started
enabled: yes
- name: Start and enable MariaDB
systemd:
name: mariadb
state: started
enabled: yes
- name: Set MySQL root password
mysql_user:
name: root
password: "{{ mysql_root_password }}"
login_unix_socket: /var/run/mysqld/mysqld.sock
- name: Remove anonymous MySQL users
mysql_user:
name: ''
host_all: yes
state: absent
login_user: root
login_password: "{{ mysql_root_password }}"
- name: Remove test database
mysql_db:
name: test
state: absent
login_user: root
login_password: "{{ mysql_root_password }}"
- name: Create basic PHP info file
copy:
content: "<?php phpinfo(); ?>"
dest: /var/www/html/info.php
mode: '0644'
- name: Enable Apache rewrite module
apache2_module:
name: rewrite
state: present
notify: restart apache
- name: Configure firewall for HTTP/HTTPS
ufw:
rule: allow
port: "{{ item }}"
loop:
- '80'
- '443'
handlers:
- name: restart apache
systemd:
name: apache2
state: restarted
π οΈ Scenario 3: Mass Update All Servers
Problem:
Updating 10+ servers one by one is exhausting and risky.
Solution:
With Ansible, you can update all machines with a single command.
Example Playbook:
# Strategy for production updates
# 1. Update staging first
- name: Update staging servers
hosts: staging
become: yes
tasks:
- include: update-tasks.yml
# 2. Update production in small batches
- name: Update production (group 1)
hosts: production[0:2] # First 3 servers
become: yes
serial: 1
tasks:
- include: update-tasks.yml
- name: Wait and verify
pause:
minutes: 5
prompt: "Check if everything works before continuing"
- name: Update production (group 2)
hosts: production[3:] # Remaining servers
become: yes
serial: "20%"
tasks:
- include: update-tasks.yml
How to Use the Playbook:
# Safe update (recommended)
ansible-playbook update-servers.yml
# Only security updates
ansible-playbook update-servers.yml -e "upgrade_type=security"
# Full update (be careful!)
ansible-playbook update-servers.yml -e "upgrade_type=full"
# With auto-reboot (risky!)
ansible-playbook update-servers.yml -e "auto_reboot=true"
# On smaller server batches
ansible-playbook update-servers.yml -e "batch_size=1"
# Only specific servers
ansible-playbook update-servers.yml -l "webservers"
π Useful Tips for Beginners
1οΈβ£ Start with a local Proxmox server β Install Proxmox on an old PC for practice.
2οΈβ£ Use Ansible Vault β Encrypt passwords and tokens with ansible-vault.
3οΈβ£ Test before execution β Use --check for a dry run before applying changes.
4οΈβ£ Group servers in an inventory file β Organize by function (e.g., [web], [db]).
π Key Takeaways & Recommendations
The Proxmox + Ansible combo provides:
π₯ Flexibility β Full control over your virtual environment
βοΈ Speed β Tasks that take hours are done in minutes
π§ Simplicity β Easy-to-understand YAML files
π§ͺ Conclusion
Whether you're a sysadmin, DevOps engineer, or enthusiast, automation is the future. With Proxmox and Ansible, you can build a stable, easy-to-manage infrastructure with minimal effort but maximum impact.
π Start today with small steps and experience the power of automation from your first playbook!
Let me know if you'd like any refinements! π
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