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ansibleansible-2.x

How can I check if a string exists in a file?

Is it possible to check if a string exists in a file using Ansible?

I want to check is a user has access to a server. This can be done on the server using cat /etc/passwd | grep username, but I want Ansible to stop if the user is not there.
I have tried to use the lineinfile but can't seem to get it to return.

- name: find
  lineinfile: 
    dest: /etc/passwd
    regexp: [user]
    state: present
    line: "user"

The code above adds user to the file if he is not there. All I want to do is check. I don't want to modify the file in any way, is this possible.

Solution

  • I'd probably register and evaluate a variable.

    The following simple playbook works for me:

    - hosts: localhost
  tasks:

  - name: read the passwd file
    shell: cat /etc/passwd
    register: user_accts

  - name: a task that only happens if the user exists
    when: user_accts.stdout.find('hillsy') != -1
    debug: msg="user hillsy exists"