Ansible Advanced Patterns Training
This 3-day advanced training builds on Ansible fundamentals to cover complex playbook patterns, Jinja2 templating mastery, custom module development, dynamic inventory, robust error handling, performance optimization, testing strategies, and CI/CD integration. Participants will leave able to build enterprise-grade automation that is testable, performant, and maintainable.
Take your Ansible skills to expert level with this 3-day advanced course. Dive deep into custom module development, plugin authoring, collection building, performance tuning, and complex automation patterns used in large-scale production environments.
Training Details
| Duration | 3 days (24 hours) |
| Level | Advanced |
| Delivery | In-person, Live online, Hybrid |
| Certification | Red Hat Certified Specialist in Developing Automation (EX374) |
Who Is This For?
- Experienced Ansible users building custom automation
- Automation architects designing enterprise-grade solutions
- Developers creating custom Ansible modules and plugins
- Teams maintaining large Ansible codebases
Learning Outcomes
After completing this training, participants will be able to:
- Develop custom Ansible modules in Python
- Write callback, filter, and lookup plugins
- Build and publish Ansible collections
- Optimize playbook performance for large-scale environments
- Implement complex automation patterns (delegation, serial, throttling)
- Test automation code with Molecule and ansible-lint
Detailed Agenda
Day 1: Custom Module and Plugin Development
Module 1: Custom Module Development
- Module architecture and AnsibleModule class
- Argument specification and validation
- Return values and check mode support
- Hands-on: Write a custom module with full argument spec
Module 2: Plugin Development
- Plugin types — callback, filter, lookup, inventory, connection
- Filter plugins for data transformation
- Lookup plugins for external data sources
- Hands-on: Build custom filter and lookup plugins
Module 3: Collections Development
- Collection structure and galaxy.yml
- Packaging modules, plugins, and roles
- Versioning, changelogs, and publishing
- Hands-on: Build and publish a complete Ansible collection
Day 2: Performance and Scale
Module 4: Performance Optimization
- Profiling playbook execution with callback plugins
- SSH pipelining and connection tuning
- Fact caching strategies
- Hands-on: Benchmark and optimize slow playbooks
Module 5: Large-Scale Patterns
- Serial execution and rolling updates
- Delegation and cross-host orchestration
- Async tasks and polling
- Hands-on: Implement zero-downtime rolling deployments
Module 6: Advanced Inventory Patterns
- Composed and constructed inventories
- Custom inventory plugins
- Inventory variable merging strategies
- Hands-on: Build a custom dynamic inventory plugin
Day 3: Testing and Enterprise Patterns
Module 7: Testing Automation Code
- Linting with ansible-lint and custom rules
- Unit testing modules with pytest
- Integration testing with Molecule
- Hands-on: Set up Molecule for role testing
Module 8: Advanced Playbook Patterns
- Complex variable management with include_vars
- Dynamic includes vs static imports
- Encryption with Ansible Vault — multi-vault strategies
- Hands-on: Implement multi-environment secret management
Module 9: Enterprise Automation Architecture
- Repository structures for large organizations
- Shared roles and collections governance
- CI/CD pipelines for Ansible code
- Hands-on: Design and implement an enterprise automation repository
Prerequisites
- 6+ months hands-on Ansible experience
- Comfortable writing playbooks and roles
- Basic Python programming knowledge
- Understanding of Ansible inventory and variable precedence
Delivery Formats
| Format | Description |
|---|---|
| In-Person | On-site at your company's location, hands-on with direct interaction |
| Live Online | Interactive virtual sessions with screen sharing and real-time labs |
| Hybrid | Combination of on-site and remote sessions, flexible scheduling |
All formats include hands-on labs, course materials, and post-training support.
Ready to get started?
Request a training quote for your team — in-person, live-online, or hybrid.