How to Install Ansible AWX on a Kubernetes Cluster

Ansible AWX is an open-source project that provides a web-based user interface, REST API, and task engine built on top of Ansible. It allows you to manage and automate your IT infrastructure more efficiently. Deploying AWX on a Kubernetes cluster leverages Kubernetes' scalability and resilience, making your automation platform robust and highly available. This guide will walk you through installing Ansible AWX on a Kubernetes cluster, providing step-by-step instructions and insights to simplify the process.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Prerequisites
3. Setting Up the Environment
4. Installing the AWX Operator
5. Deploying AWX
6. Accessing the AWX Web Interface
7. Managing AWX
8. Troubleshooting Common Issues
9. Conclusion

1. Introduction

Ansible AWX provides a powerful and flexible automation platform, allowing you to manage configurations, deployments, and more across your infrastructure. By deploying AWX on Kubernetes, you can take advantage of Kubernetes' orchestration capabilities, ensuring your automation platform is scalable and resilient.

2. Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following:

• A running Kubernetes cluster.
• kubectl installed and configured to interact with your cluster.
• Basic knowledge of Kubernetes and Ansible concepts.

3. Setting Up the Environment

Ensure your Kubernetes environment is ready for deploying the AWX operator and AWX instance.

3.1 Update Your System

Start by updating your system to ensure all packages are up-to-date:

sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade -y

3.2 Install Required Tools

Ensure kubectl and helm are installed on your local machine. You can install them using the following commands:

# Install kubectl curl -LO "https://dl.k8s.io/release/$(curl -L -s https://dl.k8s.io/release/stable.txt)/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl" chmod +x kubectl sudo mv kubectl /usr/local/bin/ # Install Helm curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/helm/helm/main/scripts/get-helm-3 | bash

4. Installing the AWX Operator

The AWX Operator is the preferred method for deploying and managing AWX on Kubernetes.

4.1 Add the AWX Operator Repository

Add the AWX Operator repository using Helm:

helm repo add awx-operator https://ansible.github.io/awx-operator/ helm repo update

4.2 Install the AWX Operator

Install the AWX Operator in your Kubernetes cluster:

kubectl create namespace awx helm install awx-operator awx-operator/awx-operator --namespace awx

Verify the installation by checking the status of the AWX Operator pods:

kubectl get pods -n awx

You should see the AWX Operator pods running.

5. Deploying AWX

With the AWX Operator installed, you can now deploy an AWX instance.

5.1 Create an AWX Custom Resource

Create a custom resource (CR) file named awx-instance.yaml:

apiVersion: awx.ansible.com/v1beta1 kind: AWX metadata:  name: awx  namespace: awx spec:  service_type: nodeport  ingress_type: none  hostname: awx.example.com

Apply the custom resource to create the AWX instance:

kubectl apply -f awx-instance.yaml

5.2 Verify AWX Deployment

Check the status of the AWX pods:

kubectl get pods -n awx

You should see pods for the AWX application running.

6. Accessing the AWX Web Interface

6.1 Retrieve the AWX NodePort

To access the AWX web interface, retrieve the NodePort assigned to the AWX service:

kubectl get svc -n awx

Look for the awx-service and note the NodePort value.

6.2 Access the AWX Interface

Open a web browser and navigate to http://<node-ip>:<node-port>, replacing <node-ip> with your Kubernetes node IP address and <node-port> with the NodePort value obtained earlier.

6.3 Log In to AWX

The default credentials for AWX are:

• Username: admin
• Password: password

Change the default password upon first login for security purposes.

7. Managing AWX

Once logged into the AWX web interface, you can start managing your automation tasks.

7.1 Creating an Organization

Organizations in AWX allow you to group resources logically. To create an organization:

1. Navigate to Organizations.
2. Click Add.
3. Fill in the necessary details and save.

7.2 Adding an Inventory

Inventories are lists of hosts you can manage with Ansible. To add an inventory:

1. Navigate to Inventories.
2. Click Add.
3. Enter the inventory details and save.

7.3 Creating a Project

Projects are where you store your Ansible playbooks. To create a project:

1. Navigate to Projects.
2. Click Add.
3. Enter the project details, including the SCM type and repository URL, and save.

7.4 Running a Job Template

Job templates define how playbooks are run. To create and run a job template:

1. Navigate to Templates.
2. Click Add and select Job Template.
3. Fill in the job template details, including the inventory, project, and playbook, and save.
4. Launch the job template to execute the playbook.

8. Troubleshooting Common Issues

Here are some common issues you might encounter and their solutions:

8.1 AWX Operator Pod Not Running

Check the logs of the AWX Operator pod for errors:

kubectl logs <awx-operator-pod-name> -n awx

Ensure that your Kubernetes cluster meets the resource requirements.

8.2 AWX Service Not Accessible

Ensure that the AWX service NodePort is correctly configured and accessible. Check your firewall settings and ensure the port is open.

8.3 Authentication Issues

If you cannot log in with the default credentials, reset the admin password using a Kubernetes job or through the AWX Operator.

9. Conclusion

By following this guide, you have successfully installed Ansible AWX on a Kubernetes cluster, enabling you to leverage its powerful automation capabilities with the scalability and resilience of Kubernetes. This setup enhances your ability to manage and automate IT infrastructure efficiently. For further reading and advanced configurations, refer to the official AWX documentation and the Kubernetes documentation.

References:

• AWX Documentation
• Kubernetes Documentation
• Helm Documentation

By following these steps, you’ve set up Ansible AWX on your Kubernetes cluster, enabling robust and scalable automation for your IT infrastructure. This guide provides a comprehensive foundation for deploying and managing AWX, ensuring you can take full advantage of its capabilities.