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Core Concepts

The surface area you use every day. If Getting Started got you a working connection and one passing playbook, this section is where that playbook's every line stops being magic.

Read in this order

  1. Inventory — which hosts, grouped how
  2. Ad-Hoc Commands — one module, no file, run right now
  3. Playbooks, Plays, and Tasks — the structure everything else builds on
  4. Modules — the actual unit of work, and its idempotent contract
  5. Variables (Overview) — where values come from, with a map to the deep-dive section
  6. Conditionals — when:
  7. Loops — loop:
  8. Handlers — notify: and "restart, but only if something changed"
  9. Tags — running part of a playbook on purpose
  10. Check Mode and Diff Mode — --check / --diff
  11. Idempotency — the mental model everything above is in service of

Or jump straight to a reference

Next

Once these are solid, continue to Variables & Data or Modules, depending on what you need next.