RWS GIS Platform Reference Implementation

GitLab: c2platform/rws/ansible-gis 

The RWS GIS Platform Reference Implementation is hosted on GitLab and functions as the central Ansible Reference Implementation Project  dedicated to supporting the Rijkswaterstaat (RWS) GIS Platform.

• Purpose
• Overview
• Plays
  • Ansible Software Repository
• How-to
• Variables
  • gs_envs: Environment Group Validation
  • gs_tomcat_https_port
  • gs_download_temp_dir

Purpose

This project has two primary objectives:

1. Supporting RWS Development Environment: The RWS GIS Platform Ansible Project is an integral part of the RWS development environment, serving as a cornerstone for the RWS Ansible collections. It provides a structured inventory and automation framework that streamlines the development and management of various Ansible-based tasks and workflows within the RWS GIS Platform.
2. Open-Source Reference Implementation: Beyond its role within RWS, this project also operates as an open-source reference implementation. It offers a valuable resource for showcasing diverse automation solutions and exemplifying industry best practices. By doing so, it encourages collaboration and knowledge sharing among the wider automation community.

In summary, the RWS GIS Platform Ansible Project plays a pivotal role in enhancing the efficiency of RWS operations while contributing to the broader open-source ecosystem by serving as a model for effective automation practices.

Overview

Plays

Ansible Software Repository

This play targets three group of which only ansible_repo is relevant for RWS environments because the File Share is an external system and the Download group was only created to verify the setup.

A key variable for the Ansible Software Repository play plays/mgmt/ansible_repo.yml targets is gs_software_repository_ansible:

gs_software_repository_ansible:
  server: "{{ groups['ansible_file_share'][0] }}.internal.c2platform.org"
  url: "https://{{ groups['ansible_repo'][0] }}.internal.c2platform.org/software"
  unc: "//{{ groups['ansible_file_share'][0] }}.internal.c2platform.org/ansible-repo"
  unc-win: '\\{{ groups["ansible_file_share"][0] }}.internal.c2platform.org\ansible-repo'
  path: D:/file-share
  username: svc_ansible_repository
  password: "{{ gs_software_repository_ansible_password }}"  # vault
  cache: "//{{ groups['ansible_file_share'][0] }}.internal.c2platform.org/ansible-repo/cache"
  apache_username: ansible
  apache_password: "{{ gs_software_repository_ansible_apache_password }}"  # vault
  apache_htpasswd_path: /etc/httpd/.htpasswd
  etc_fstab_cred_file: "/etc/cred.svc_ansible_repository"
  # drive: S  # not used
  # cache: S:/cache

Refer to Create a Simple Software Repository for Ansible  for more information.

How-to

Step-by-step instructions on what you can do with this project are published on C2 Platform website, see How-to Rijkswaterstaat | C2 Platform

Variables

This section provides documentation for project-specific variables utilizing the gs_ prefix, which are introduced and employed within this inventory project. To better understand the conventions for variable prefixes, you can refer to the Variable prefix | C2 Platform documentation.

gs_envs: Environment Group Validation

This Ansible inventory project employs a group-based approach to organize and manage different DTAP environments. The gs_envs variable is a list that specifies the target environments for this project, such as ['development', 'test', 'acceptance', 'production']

The gs_envs variable is used to validate that each targeted node is associated with exactly one environment group. This validation check is implemented in the group_vars/windows/main.yml and group_vars/linux/main.yml files.

For more information on the group-based environment approach, refer to our documentation: Group-based environments | C2 Platform  .

gs_tomcat_https_port

Used to configure FME Flow and Tomcat:

1. Run the FME Installer.
2. Configure Tomcat
3. Manage fmeServerConfig.txt

gs_download_temp_dir

In this project, several roles utilized within the plays rely on the c2platform.wincore.download. One key variable, gs_download_temp_dir, is defined in group_vars/all/main.yml, as illustrated below:

gs_download_temp_dir:
  path: C:\vagrant\tmp
  # create: yes
  # delete: no
  # recursive: true
  delete_files: false

This variable is declared at the global level (in all.yml) to ensure that its settings can be conveniently reused throughout the inventory project. As an example, within group_vars/fme/main.yml, you can find the following line:

fme_flow_temp_dir: "{{ gs_download_temp_dir }}"