Ansible: lineinfile syntax error when there is a space after colon(:)

Question

Ansible\'s lineinfile gives a syntax error when there\'s a space after colon(:) in the line, like line=\'item: value\'. If there\'s no space like <

Answer 1

Escape the colon as {{ ":" }}:

- name: set up sudo for testgroup
  lineinfile: dest=/etc/sudoers line='%testgroup ALL= NOPASSWD{{ ":" }} /sbin/shutdown -r now' state=present insertafter=EOF validate='visudo -cf %s'

Answer 2

I got another suggestion at Ansible's github issue, which is actually suggested in the error message...

lineinfile: "dest=/etc/sudoers line='%testgroup ALL= NOPASSWD: /sbin/shutdown -r now' state=present insertafter=EOF validate='visudo -cf %s'"

And also, aonther thing that's worth sharing is that I was suggested to stop by one of the two mailing lists, as appropriate:

• https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/ansible-project - for user questions, tips, and tricks
• https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/ansible-devel - for strategy, future planning, and questions about writing code