Ansible command from inside virtualenv?

Question

This seems like it should be really simple:

tasks:
- name: install python packages
  pip: name=${item} virtualenv=~/buildbot-env
  with_items: [ buildbot ]
- nam         


        

Answer 1

The better way is to use the full path to installed script - it will run in its virtualenv automatically:

tasks:
- name: install python packages
  pip: name={{ item }} virtualenv={{ venv }}
  with_items: [ buildbot ]
- name: create buildbot master
  command: "{{ venv }}/bin/buildbot create-master ~/buildbot
            creates=~/buildbot/buildbot.tac"

Answer 2

Here's a way to enable the virtualenv for an entire play; this example builds the virtualenv in one play, then starts using it the next.

Not sure how clean it is, but it works. I'm just building a bit on what mikepurvis mentioned here.

---
# Build virtualenv
- hosts: all
vars:
  PROJECT_HOME: "/tmp/my_test_home"
  ansible_python_interpreter: "/usr/local/bin/python"
tasks:
  - name: "Create virtualenv"
    shell: virtualenv "{{ PROJECT_HOME }}/venv"
           creates="{{ PROJECT_HOME }}/venv/bin/activate"

  - name: "Copy virtualenv wrapper file"
    synchronize: src=pyvenv
                 dest="{{ PROJECT_HOME }}/venv/bin/pyvenv"

# Use virtualenv
- hosts: all
vars:
  PROJECT_HOME: "/tmp/my_test_home"
  ansible_python_interpreter: "/tmp/my_test_home/venv/bin/pyvenv"
tasks:
  - name: "Guard code, so we are more certain we are in a virtualenv"
    shell: echo $VIRTUAL_ENV
    register: command_result
    failed_when: command_result.stdout == ""

pyenv wrapper file:

#!/bin/bash
source "$( cd "$( dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}" )" && pwd )/activate"
python $@

Answer 3

Just run the virtualenvs pip in a shell:

shell: ~/buildbot-env/pip install ${item}

Works like a charm. I have no idea what the pip module does with virtualenvs, but it seems pretty useless.

Answer 4

This is a genericized version of the wrapper method.

venv_exec.j2:

#!/bin/bash
source {{ venv }}/bin/activate
$@

And then the playbook:

tasks:
  - pip: name={{ item }} virtualenv={{ venv }}
    with_items:
      - buildbot
  - template: src=venv_exec.j2 dest={{ venv }}/exec mode=755
  - command: "{{ venv }}/exec buildbot create-master {{ buildbot_master }}"

Answer 5

As I commented above, I create a script, say it is called buildbot.sh:

source ~/buildbot-env/bin/activate
buildbot create-master [and more stuff]

Then run it on the remote with a task like this:

- name: Create buildbot master
  script: buildbot.sh

To me this still seems unneccessary, but it maybe cleaner than running it in a shell command. Your playbook looks cleaner at the cost of not seeing immediately what the script does.

At least some modules do seem to use virtualenv, as both django_manage and rax_clb already have an inbuilt virtualenv parameter. It may not be such a big step for Ansible to include a command-in-virtenv sort of module.