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# Using Ansible and Windows

When using Ansible to manage Windows, many of the syntax and rules that apply for Unix/Linux hosts also apply to Windows, but there are still some differences when it comes to components like path separators and OS-specific tasks. This document covers details specific to using Ansible for Windows.

Topics

- Use Cases

  - Installing Software

  - Installing Updates

  - Set Up Users and Groups

    - Local

    - Domain

  - Running Commands

    - Choosing Command or Shell

    - Argument Rules

  - Creating and Running a Scheduled Task

- Path Formatting for Windows

  - YAML Style

  - Legacy key=value Style

- Limitations

- Developing Windows Modules

## Use Cases

Ansible can be used to orchestrate a multitude of tasks on Windows servers. Below are some examples and info about common tasks.

### Installing Software

There are three main ways that Ansible can be used to install software:

- Using the `win_chocolatey` module. This sources the program data from the default public Chocolatey repository. Internal repositories can be used instead by setting the `source` option.

- Using the `win_package` module. This installs software using an MSI or .exe installer from a local/network path or URL.

- Using the `win_command` or `win_shell` module to run an installer manually.

The `win_chocolatey` module is recommended since it has the most complete logic for checking to see if a package has already been installed and is up-to-date.

Below are some examples of using all three options to install 7-Zip:

    # Install/uninstall with chocolatey
    - name: Ensure 7-Zip is installed via Chocolatey
      win_chocolatey:
        name: 7zip
        state: present

    - name: Ensure 7-Zip is not installed via Chocolatey
      win_chocolatey:
        name: 7zip
        state: absent

    # Install/uninstall with win_package
    - name: Download the 7-Zip package
      win_get_url:
        url: https://www.7-zip.org/a/7z1701-x64.msi
        dest: C:\temp\7z.msi

    - name: Ensure 7-Zip is installed via win_package
      win_package:
        path: C:\temp\7z.msi
        state: present

    - name: Ensure 7-Zip is not installed via win_package
      win_package:
        path: C:\temp\7z.msi
        state: absent

    # Install/uninstall with win_command
    - name: Download the 7-Zip package
      win_get_url:
        url: https://www.7-zip.org/a/7z1701-x64.msi
        dest: C:\temp\7z.msi

    - name: Check if 7-Zip is already installed
      win_reg_stat:
        name: HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{23170F69-40C1-2702-1701-000001000000}
      register: 7zip_installed

    - name: Ensure 7-Zip is installed via win_command
      win_command: C:\Windows\System32\msiexec.exe /i C:\temp\7z.msi /qn /norestart
      when: 7zip_installed.exists == false

    - name: Ensure 7-Zip is uninstalled via win_command
      win_command: C:\Windows\System32\msiexec.exe /x {23170F69-40C1-2702-1701-000001000000} /qn /norestart
      when: 7zip_installed.exists == true

Some installers like Microsoft Office or SQL Server require credential delegation or access to components restricted by WinRM. The best method to bypass these issues is to use `become` with the task. With `become`, Ansible will run the installer as if it were run interactively on the host.

Note

Many installers do not properly pass back error information over WinRM. In these cases, if the install has been verified to work locally the recommended method is to use become.

Note

Some installers restart the WinRM or HTTP services, or cause them to become temporarily unavailable, making Ansible assume the system is unreachable.

### Installing Updates

The `win_updates` and `win_hotfix` modules can be used to install updates or hotfixes on a host. The module `win_updates` is used to install multiple updates by category, while `win_hotfix` can be used to install a single update or hotfix file that has been downloaded locally.

Note

The `win_hotfix` module has a requirement that the DISM PowerShell cmdlets are present. These cmdlets were only added by default on Windows Server 2012 and newer and must be installed on older Windows hosts.

The following example shows how `win_updates` can be used:

    - name: Install all critical and security updates
      win_updates:
        category_names:
        - CriticalUpdates
        - SecurityUpdates
        state: installed
      register: update_result

    - name: Reboot host if required
      win_reboot:
      when: update_result.reboot_required

The following example show how `win_hotfix` can be used to install a single update or hotfix:

    - name: Download KB3172729 for Server 2012 R2
      win_get_url:
        url: http://download.windowsupdate.com/d/msdownload/update/software/secu/2016/07/windows8.1-kb3172729-x64_e8003822a7ef4705cbb65623b72fd3cec73fe222.msu
        dest: C:\temp\KB3172729.msu

    - name: Install hotfix
      win_hotfix:
        hotfix_kb: KB3172729
        source: C:\temp\KB3172729.msu
        state: present
      register: hotfix_result

    - name: Reboot host if required
      win_reboot:
      when: hotfix_result.reboot_required

### Set Up Users and Groups

Ansible can be used to create Windows users and groups both locally and on a domain.

#### Local

The modules `win_user`, `win_group` and `win_group_membership` manage Windows users, groups and group memberships locally.

The following is an example of creating local accounts and groups that can access a folder on the same host:

    - name: Create local group to contain new users
      win_group:
        name: LocalGroup
        description: Allow access to C:\Development folder

    - name: Create local user
      win_user:
        name: '{{ item.name }}'
        password: '{{ item.password }}'
        groups: LocalGroup
        update_password: no
        password_never_expires: yes
      loop:
      - name: User1
        password: Password1
      - name: User2
        password: Password2

    - name: Create Development folder
      win_file:
        path: C:\Development
        state: directory

    - name: Set ACL of Development folder
      win_acl:
        path: C:\Development
        rights: FullControl
        state: present
        type: allow
        user: LocalGroup

    - name: Remove parent inheritance of Development folder
      win_acl_inheritance:
        path: C:\Development
        reorganize: yes
        state: absent

#### Domain

The modules `win_domain_user` and `win_domain_group` manages users and groups in a domain. The below is an example of ensuring a batch of domain users are created:

    - name: Ensure each account is created
      win_domain_user:
        name: '{{ item.name }}'
        upn: '{{ item.name }}@MY.DOMAIN.COM'
        password: '{{ item.password }}'
        password_never_expires: no
        groups:
        - Test User
        - Application
        company: Ansible
        update_password: on_create
      loop:
      - name: Test User
        password: Password
      - name: Admin User
        password: SuperSecretPass01
      - name: Dev User
        password: '@fvr3IbFBujSRh!3hBg%wgFucD8^x8W5'

### Running Commands

In cases where there is no appropriate module available for a task, a command or script can be run using the `win_shell`, `win_command`, `raw`, and `script` modules.

The `raw` module simply executes a Powershell command remotely. Since `raw` has none of the wrappers that Ansible typically uses, `become`, `async` and environment variables do not work.

The `script` module executes a script from the Ansible controller on one or more Windows hosts. Like `raw`, `script` currently does not support `become`, `async`, or environment variables.

The `win_command` module is used to execute a command which is either an executable or batch file, while the `win_shell` module is used to execute commands within a shell.

#### Choosing Command or Shell

The `win_shell` and `win_command` modules can both be used to execute a command or commands. The `win_shell` module is run within a shell-like process like `PowerShell` or `cmd`, so it has access to shell operators like `<`, `>`, `|`, `;`, `&&`, and `||`. Multi-lined commands can also be run in `win_shell`.

The `win_command` module simply runs a process outside of a shell. It can still run a shell command like `mkdir` or `New-Item` by passing the shell commands to a shell executable like `cmd.exe` or `PowerShell.exe`.

Here are some examples of using `win_command` and `win_shell`:

    - name: Run a command under PowerShell
      win_shell: Get-Service -Name service | Stop-Service

    - name: Run a command under cmd
      win_shell: mkdir C:\temp
      args:
        executable: cmd.exe

    - name: Run a multiple shell commands
      win_shell: |
        New-Item -Path C:\temp -ItemType Directory
        Remove-Item -Path C:\temp -Force -Recurse
        $path_info = Get-Item -Path C:\temp
        $path_info.FullName

    - name: Run an executable using win_command
      win_command: whoami.exe

    - name: Run a cmd command
      win_command: cmd.exe /c mkdir C:\temp

    - name: Run a vbs script
      win_command: cscript.exe script.vbs

Note

Some commands like `mkdir`, `del`, and `copy` only exist in the CMD shell. To run them with `win_command` they must be prefixed with `cmd.exe /c`.

#### Argument Rules

When running a command through `win_command`, the standard Windows argument rules apply:

- Each argument is delimited by a white space, which can either be a space or a tab.

- An argument can be surrounded by double quotes `"`. Anything inside these quotes is interpreted as a single argument even if it contains whitespace.

- A double quote preceded by a backslash `\` is interpreted as just a double quote `"` and not as an argument delimiter.

- Backslashes are interpreted literally unless it immediately precedes double quotes; for example `\` == `\` and `\"` == `"`

- If an even number of backslashes is followed by a double quote, one backslash is used in the argument for every pair, and the double quote is used as a string delimiter for the argument.

- If an odd number of backslashes is followed by a double quote, one backslash is used in the argument for every pair, and the double quote is escaped and made a literal double quote in the argument.

With those rules in mind, here are some examples of quoting:

    - win_command: C:\temp\executable.exe argument1 "argument 2" "C:\path\with space" "double \"quoted\""

    argv[0] = C:\temp\executable.exe
    argv[1] = argument1
    argv[2] = argument 2
    argv[3] = C:\path\with space
    argv[4] = double "quoted"

    - win_command: '"C:\Program Files\Program\program.exe" "escaped \\\" backslash" unquoted-end-backslash\'

    argv[0] = C:\Program Files\Program\program.exe
    argv[1] = escaped \" backslash
    argv[2] = unquoted-end-backslash\

    # Due to YAML and Ansible parsing '\"' must be written as '{% raw %}\\{% endraw %}"'
    - win_command: C:\temp\executable.exe C:\no\space\path "arg with end \ before end quote{% raw %}\\{% endraw %}"

    argv[0] = C:\temp\executable.exe
    argv[1] = C:\no\space\path
    argv[2] = arg with end \ before end quote\"

For more information, see escaping arguments.

### Creating and Running a Scheduled Task

WinRM has some restrictions in place that cause errors when running certain commands. One way to bypass these restrictions is to run a command through a scheduled task. A scheduled task is a Windows component that provides the ability to run an executable on a schedule and under a different account.

Ansible version 2.5 added modules that make it easier to work with scheduled tasks in Windows. The following is an example of running a script as a scheduled task that deletes itself after running:

    - name: Create scheduled task to run a process
      win_scheduled_task:
        name: adhoc-task
        username: SYSTEM
        actions:
        - path: PowerShell.exe
          arguments: |
            Start-Sleep -Seconds 30  # This isn't required, just here as a demonstration
            New-Item -Path C:\temp\test -ItemType Directory
        # Remove this action if the task shouldn't be deleted on completion
        - path: cmd.exe
          arguments: /c schtasks.exe /Delete /TN "adhoc-task" /F
        triggers:
        - type: registration

    - name: Wait for the scheduled task to complete
      win_scheduled_task_stat:
        name: adhoc-task
      register: task_stat
      until: (task_stat.state is defined and task_stat.state.status != "TASK_STATE_RUNNING") or (task_stat.task_exists == False)
      retries: 12
      delay: 10

Note

The modules used in the above example were updated/added in Ansible version 2.5.

## Path Formatting for Windows

Windows differs from a traditional POSIX operating system in many ways. One of the major changes is the shift from `/` as the path separator to `\`. This can cause major issues with how playbooks are written, since `\` is often used as an escape character on POSIX systems.

Ansible allows two different styles of syntax; each deals with path separators for Windows differently:

### YAML Style

When using the YAML syntax for tasks, the rules are well-defined by the YAML standard:

- When using a normal string (without quotes), YAML will not consider the backslash an escape character.

- When using single quotes `'`, YAML will not consider the backslash an escape character.

- When using double quotes `"`, the backslash is considered an escape character and needs to escaped with another backslash.

Note

You should only quote strings when it is absolutely necessary or required by YAML, and then use single quotes.

The YAML specification considers the following escape sequences:

- `\0`, `\\`, `\"`, `\_`, `\a`, `\b`, `\e`, `\f`, `\n`, `\r`, `\t`, `\v`, `\L`, `\N` and `\P` – Single character escape

- `<TAB>`, `<SPACE>`, `<NBSP>`, `<LNSP>`, `<PSP>` – Special characters

- `\x..` – 2-digit hex escape

- `\u....` – 4-digit hex escape

- `\U........` – 8-digit hex escape

Here are some examples on how to write Windows paths:

    # GOOD
    tempdir: C:\Windows\Temp

    # WORKS
    tempdir: 'C:\Windows\Temp'
    tempdir: "C:\\Windows\\Temp"

    # BAD, BUT SOMETIMES WORKS
    tempdir: C:\\Windows\\Temp
    tempdir: 'C:\\Windows\\Temp'
    tempdir: C:/Windows/Temp

This is an example which will fail:

    # FAILS
    tempdir: "C:\Windows\Temp"

This example shows the use of single quotes when they are required:

    ---
    - name: Copy tomcat config
      win_copy:
        src: log4j.xml
        dest: '{{tc_home}}\lib\log4j.xml'

### Legacy key=value Style

The legacy `key=value` syntax is used on the command line for ad-hoc commands, or inside playbooks. The use of this style is discouraged within playbooks because backslash characters need to be escaped, making playbooks harder to read. The legacy syntax depends on the specific implementation in Ansible, and quoting (both single and double) does not have any effect on how it is parsed by Ansible.

The Ansible key=value parser parse_kv() considers the following escape sequences:

- `\`, `'`, `"`, `\a`, `\b`, `\f`, `\n`, `\r`, `\t` and `\v` – Single character escape

- `\x..` – 2-digit hex escape

- `\u....` – 4-digit hex escape

- `\U........` – 8-digit hex escape

- `\N{...}` – Unicode character by name

This means that the backslash is an escape character for some sequences, and it is usually safer to escape a backslash when in this form.

Here are some examples of using Windows paths with the key=value style:

    # GOOD
    tempdir=C:\\Windows\\Temp

    # WORKS
    tempdir='C:\\Windows\\Temp'
    tempdir="C:\\Windows\\Temp"

    # BAD, BUT SOMETIMES WORKS
    tempdir=C:\Windows\Temp
    tempdir='C:\Windows\Temp'
    tempdir="C:\Windows\Temp"
    tempdir=C:/Windows/Temp

    # FAILS
    tempdir=C:\Windows\temp
    tempdir='C:\Windows\temp'
    tempdir="C:\Windows\temp"

The failing examples don’t fail outright but will substitute `\t` with the `<TAB>` character resulting in `tempdir` being `C:\Windows<TAB>emp`.

## Limitations

Some things you cannot do with Ansible and Windows are:

- Upgrade PowerShell

- Interact with the WinRM listeners

Because WinRM is reliant on the services being online and running during normal operations, you cannot upgrade PowerShell or interact with WinRM listeners with Ansible. Both of these actions will cause the connection to fail. This can technically be avoided by using `async` or a scheduled task, but those methods are fragile if the process it runs breaks the underlying connection Ansible uses, and are best left to the bootstrapping process or before an image is created.

## Developing Windows Modules

Because Ansible modules for Windows are written in PowerShell, the development guides for Windows modules differ substantially from those for standard standard modules. Please see Windows module development walkthrough for more information.

See also

About Playbooks

  An introduction to playbooks

Best Practices

  Best practices advice

List of Windows Modules

  Windows specific module list, all implemented in PowerShell

User Mailing List

  Have a question? Stop by the google group!

irc.freenode.net

  #ansible IRC chat channel