Let’s see the steps for configuring crontab with Ansible. At Bobcares, with our Server Management Services, we can handle your server issues.

Configuring Crontab With Ansible

Crontab: Cron is a system function that will conduct tasks for us on a predefined schedule. The schedule is known as the crontab, and the tool used to edit it is likewise known as the crontab. The crontab is a collection of commands that should be run on a regular basis.

The format for the Crontab is as follows:

MIN HOUR DOM MON DOW CMD

Crontab is a cronjob scheduler that allows us to schedule a command to run at a later time. We can use the cron service to schedule regular backups at certain times, as well as updates and file sync. It is possible to use it as a one-time event or as a recurring chore.

The crond daemon is a background service that allows cron to function. Cron examines the CRON TABLE (Crontab) for scheduled jobs every minute. It is a table in which we can schedule such repetitive tasks. Crontab generates a crontab file that contains commands and instructions for the cron daemon to perform.

Steps to set up Crontab

The steps are as follows:

• Make a cronjob file
• In the file, add the cronjob pattern and command
• Set up the file with crontab

Steps to configure Crontab with Ansible

The primary playbook.yml file in the root of the project is:

---
- hosts: aws-setup
gather_facts: yes
remote_user: ec2-user
become: yes
roles:
- crontab_scheduler

This playbook’s inventory file contains information on host machines labeled [aws-setup]. The above playbook has two roles. Among those two, the Crontab_scheduler role schedules a job that writes the PWD (Present Working Directory) into another file every minute hour day month weekday.

The crontab_scheduler role’s playbook is as follows:

---
- name: Crontab Basic Introduction
  shell: touch cron.conf

- name: create cronjob to schedule output after every year,month,week,hour,minute
  shell: echo " * * * * * pwd >>  /tmp/output.txt " > cron.conf

- name: configure cronjob via crontab scheduler
  shell:  crontab cron.conf

- name: listing cronjobs via crontab scheduler
  shell: crontab -l

- name: remove cronjob from crontab scheduler
  shell: crontab -r

The output file for this Crontab_scheduler role keeps on appending after every minute.

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Conclusion

The article provides a simple method from our Support team to configure the Crontab using Ansible playbooks.