The command module takes the command name followed by a list of space-delimited arguments.
The given command will be executed on all selected nodes. It will not be processed through the shell, so variables like $HOME
and operations like "<"
, ">"
, "|"
, and "&"
will not work (use the shell module if you need these features).
parameter | required | default | choices | comments |
---|---|---|---|---|
chdir |
no | cd into this directory before running the command | ||
creates |
no | a filename or (since 2.0) glob pattern, when it already exists, this step will not be run. | ||
executable |
no | change the shell used to execute the command. Should be an absolute path to the executable. | ||
free_form |
yes | the command module takes a free form command to run. There is no parameter actually named 'free form'. See the examples! | ||
removes |
no | a filename or (since 2.0) glob pattern, when it does not exist, this step will not be run. | ||
warn (added in 1.8) |
no | True | if command warnings are on in ansible.cfg, do not warn about this particular line if set to no/false. |
# Example from Ansible Playbooks. - command: /sbin/shutdown -t now # Run the command if the specified file does not exist. - command: /usr/bin/make_database.sh arg1 arg2 creates=/path/to/database # You can also use the 'args' form to provide the options. This command # will change the working directory to somedir/ and will only run when # /path/to/database doesn't exist. - command: /usr/bin/make_database.sh arg1 arg2 args: chdir: somedir/ creates: /path/to/database
Note
If you want to run a command through the shell (say you are using <
, >
, |
, etc), you actually want the shell module instead. The command module is much more secure as it’s not affected by the user’s environment.
Note
creates
, removes
, and chdir
can be specified after the command. For instance, if you only want to run a command if a certain file does not exist, use this.
For more information on what this means please read Core Modules
For help in developing on modules, should you be so inclined, please read Community Information & Contributing, Helping Testing PRs and Developing Modules.