Ansible Modules & Task Execution Flashcards

What keyword is used to conditionally execute a task based on a variable or fact?

Answer: when

The 'when' keyword accepts a Jinja2 expression and skips the task if the expression evaluates to false.

Which task keyword allows you to loop over a list of items?

Answer: loop

The 'loop' keyword (introduced in Ansible 2.5) is the modern replacement for with_items and iterates tasks over a list.

What does the 'register' keyword do in an Ansible task?

Answer: Saves the task's output/return values into a variable for later use

The register keyword captures a task's result (stdout, rc, changed status, etc.) into a named variable accessible in subsequent tasks.

How do you reference the current loop item's value inside a task that uses 'loop'?

Answer: {{ item }}

Inside a loop, the current iteration's value is always available as the special variable {{ item }}.

What does setting 'ignore_errors: yes' on a task do?

Answer: Allows the playbook to continue even if the task fails

ignore_errors: yes tells Ansible to record the failure but continue executing subsequent tasks instead of stopping the play.

What is the purpose of 'failed_when' in a task?

Answer: Define a custom condition under which the task is considered failed

failed_when overrides Ansible's default failure detection with a custom Jinja2 expression, letting you define exactly what constitutes failure.