You can host collections and roles on Galaxy to share with the Ansible community. Galaxy content is formatted in pre-packaged units of work such as :ref:`roles <playbooks_reuse_roles>`, and new in Galaxy 3.2, :ref:`collections <collections>`.
You can create roles for provisioning infrastructure, deploying applications, and all of the tasks you do everyday. Taking this a step further, you can create collections which provide a comprehensive package of automation that may include multiple playbooks, roles, modules, and plugins.
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.._creating_collections_galaxy:
Creating collections for Galaxy
===============================
Collections are a distribution format for Ansible content. You can use collections to package and distribute playbooks, roles, modules, and plugins.
You can publish and use collections through `Ansible Galaxy <https://galaxy.ansible.com>`_.
See :ref:`developing_collections` for details on how to create collections.
Use the ``init`` command to initialize the base structure of a new role, saving time on creating the various directories and main.yml files a role requires
..code-block:: bash
$ ansible-galaxy init role_name
The above will create the following directory structure in the current working directory:
..code-block:: text
role_name/
README.md
.travis.yml
defaults/
main.yml
files/
handlers/
main.yml
meta/
main.yml
templates/
tests/
inventory
test.yml
vars/
main.yml
If you want to create a repository for the role the repository root should be `role_name`.
If a directory matching the name of the role already exists in the current working directory, the init command will result in an error. To ignore the error
If you are creating a Container Enabled role, pass ``--type container`` to ``ansible-galaxy init``. This will create the same directory structure as above, but populate it
with default files appropriate for a Container Enabled role. For instance, the README.md has a slightly different structure, the *.travis.yml* file tests
the role using `Ansible Container <https://github.com/ansible/ansible-container>`_, and the meta directory includes a *container.yml* file.
Using the ``import``, ``delete`` and ``setup`` commands to manage your roles on the Galaxy website requires authentication, and the ``login`` command
can be used to do just that. Before you can use the ``login`` command, you must create an account on the Galaxy website.
The ``login`` command requires using your GitHub credentials. You can use your username and password, or you can create a `personal access token <https://help.github.com/articles/creating-an-access-token-for-command-line-use/>`_. If you choose to create a token, grant minimal access to the token, as it is used just to verify identify.
The following shows authenticating with the Galaxy website using a GitHub username and password:
..code-block:: text
$ ansible-galaxy login
We need your GitHub login to identify you.
This information will not be sent to Galaxy, only to api.github.com.
The password will not be displayed.
Use --github-token if you do not want to enter your password.
GitHub Username: dsmith
Password for dsmith:
Successfully logged into Galaxy as dsmith
When you choose to use your username and password, your password is not sent to Galaxy. It is used to authenticates with GitHub and create a personal access token.
It then sends the token to Galaxy, which in turn verifies that your identity and returns a Galaxy access token. After authentication completes the GitHub token is
If you do not want to use your GitHub password, or if you have two-factor authentication enabled with GitHub, use the ``--github-token`` option to pass a personal access token that you create.
The ``import`` command requires that you first authenticate using the ``login`` command. Once authenticated you can import any GitHub repository that you own or have been granted access.
Use the following to import to role:
..code-block:: bash
$ ansible-galaxy import github_user github_repo
By default the command will wait for Galaxy to complete the import process, displaying the results as the import progresses:
By default the name given to the role will be derived from the GitHub repository name. However, you can use the ``--role-name`` option to override this and set the name.
If the ``--no-wait`` option is present, the command will not wait for results. Results of the most recent import for any of your roles is available on the Galaxy web site by visiting *My Imports*.
The ``delete`` command requires that you first authenticate using the ``login`` command. Once authenticated you can remove a role from the Galaxy web site. You are only allowed to remove roles where you have access to the repository in GitHub.
Use the following to delete a role:
..code-block:: bash
$ ansible-galaxy delete github_user github_repo
This only removes the role from Galaxy. It does not remove or alter the actual GitHub repository.
You can create an integration or connection between a role in Galaxy and `Travis <https://travis-ci.org>`_. Once the connection is established, a build in Travis will
automatically trigger an import in Galaxy, updating the search index with the latest information about the role.
You create the integration using the ``setup`` command, but before an integration can be created, you must first authenticate using the ``login`` command; you will
also need an account in Travis, and your Travis token. Once you're ready, use the following command to create the integration:
The setup command requires your Travis token, however the token is not stored in Galaxy. It is used along with the GitHub username and repo to create a hash as described
in `the Travis documentation <https://docs.travis-ci.com/user/notifications/>`_. The hash is stored in Galaxy and used to verify notifications received from Travis.
The setup command enables Galaxy to respond to notifications. To configure Travis to run a build on your repository and send a notification, follow the
`Travis getting started guide <https://docs.travis-ci.com/user/getting-started/>`_.
To instruct Travis to notify Galaxy when a build completes, add the following to your .travis.yml file:
