TL;DR
To make Ansible accessible globally in your terminal, add the directory containing the ansible executable to your system’s PATH environment variable. This ensures you can run Ansible commands from anywhere without specifying the full path.
Why Add Ansible to PATH?
PATH is an environment variable in Unix-like systems that stores directories where executable programs are located. When you type a command, your shell searches these directories to find the program. If Ansible is not in your PATH, the terminal cannot locate it, resulting in a “command not found” error. If you installed Ansible using methods like setup.py or from source, its executable might not automatically be placed in a directory that’s already in your PATH. Adding it manually ensures a seamless experience running Ansible commands.
Steps to Add Ansible to PATH
1. Locate the Ansible Executable
First, find the directory where Ansible is installed. This is typically a directory like ~/.local/bin, /usr/local/bin, or a virtual environment. Run the following command:
which ansible This will return the full path to the ansible executable. Example output:
/home/user/.local/bin/ansible Note: If which does not return a path, verify your Ansible installation.
2. Update PATH Temporarily
To test if adding Ansible to PATH works, temporarily add it to the PATH variable in your shell session.
export PATH=$PATH:/path/to/ansible/directory Replace /path/to/ansible/directory with the directory from Step 1. For example:
export PATH=$PATH:/home/user/.local/bin Verify by running:
ansible --version Note: This change is temporary and will reset when you close the terminal.
3. Update PATH Permanently
To make the change persistent, add the export command to your shell configuration file based on your shell type:
- For Bash: Edit
~/.bashrcor~/.bash_profile - For Zsh: Edit
~/.zshrc - For Fish: Edit
~/.config/fish/config.fish
For Bash or Zsh, add the following line to the configuration file:
export PATH=$PATH:/path/to/ansible/directory After editing the file, reload it to apply the changes:
source ~/.bashrc # For Bash
source ~/.zshrc # For Zsh For Fish, use:
set -U fish_user_paths /path/to/ansible/directory $fish_user_paths 4. Test the Configuration
Confirm that Ansible is globally accessible:
ansible --version If successful, you will see the Ansible version and configuration details.
Download example code
You can also download sample scripts and code for the steps explained in this article.
Additional Notes
- If using a virtual environment, ensure the virtual environment is activated before modifying
PATH. - If Ansible is installed via a package manager like
apt,yum, orbrew, it may already be in yourPATH.
Common Issues and Fixes
1. Ansible Still Not Found
Ensure the directory path is correct and contains the ansible executable. If the executable isn’t there, recheck your installation method.
2. Permissions Error
You might need elevated privileges to add Ansible to system-wide directories. Use sudo if required, but it’s safer to use a local directory like ~/.local/bin.
