xenserver_guest – Manages virtual machines running on Citrix Hypervisor/XenServer host or pool¶

New in version 2.8.

Synopsis
Requirements
Parameters
Notes
Examples
Return Values
Status

Synopsis ¶

This module can be used to create new virtual machines from templates or other virtual machines, modify various virtual machine components like network and disk, rename a virtual machine and remove a virtual machine with associated components.

Requirements ¶

The below requirements are needed on the host that executes this module.

python >= 2.6
XenAPI

Parameters ¶

Parameter	Choices/Defaults	Comments
cdrom dictionary		A CD-ROM configuration for the VM. All parameters are case sensitive. Valid parameters are: - `type` (string): The type of CD-ROM, valid options are `none` or `iso`. With `none` the CD-ROM device will be present but empty. - `iso_name` (string): The file name of an ISO image from one of the XenServer ISO Libraries (implies `type: iso`). Required if `type` is set to `iso`.
custom_params list		Define a list of custom VM params to set on VM. Useful for advanced users familiar with managing VM params trough xe CLI. A custom value object takes two fields `key` and `value` (see example below).
disks list		A list of disks to add to VM. All parameters are case sensitive. Removing or detaching existing disks of VM is not supported. Required parameters per entry: - `size_[tb,gb,mb,kb,b]` (integer): Disk storage size in specified unit. VM needs to be shut down to reconfigure this parameter. Optional parameters per entry: - `name` (string): Disk name. You can also use `name_label` as an alias. - `name_desc` (string): Disk description. - `sr` (string): Storage Repository to create disk on. If not specified, will use default SR. Cannot be used for moving disk to other SR. - `sr_uuid` (string): UUID of a SR to create disk on. Use if SR name is not unique. aliases: disk
folder string		Destination folder for VM. This parameter is case sensitive. Example: folder: /folder1/folder2
force boolean	Choices: no ← yes	Ignore warnings and complete the actions. This parameter is useful for removing VM in running state or reconfiguring VM params that require VM to be shut down.
hardware dictionary		Manage VM's hardware parameters. VM needs to be shut down to reconfigure these parameters. Valid parameters are: - `num_cpus` (integer): Number of CPUs. - `num_cpu_cores_per_socket` (integer): Number of Cores Per Socket. `num_cpus` has to be a multiple of `num_cpu_cores_per_socket`. - `memory_mb` (integer): Amount of memory in MB.
home_server string		Name of a XenServer host that will be a Home Server for the VM. This parameter is case sensitive.
hostname string	Default: "localhost"	The hostname or IP address of the XenServer host or XenServer pool master. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `XENSERVER_HOST` will be used instead. aliases: host, pool
is_template boolean	Choices: no ← yes	Convert VM to template.
linked_clone boolean	Choices: no ← yes	Whether to create a Linked Clone from the template, existing VM or snapshot. If no, will create a full copy. This is equivalent to `Use storage-level fast disk clone` option in XenCenter.
name string / required		Name of the VM to work with. VMs running on XenServer do not necessarily have unique names. The module will fail if multiple VMs with same name are found. In case of multiple VMs with same name, use `uuid` to uniquely specify VM to manage. This parameter is case sensitive. aliases: name_label
name_desc string		VM description.
networks list		A list of networks (in the order of the NICs). All parameters are case sensitive. Required parameters per entry: - `name` (string): Name of a XenServer network to attach the network interface to. You can also use `name_label` as an alias. Optional parameters per entry (used for VM hardware): - `mac` (string): Customize MAC address of the interface. Optional parameters per entry (used for OS customization): - `type` (string): Type of IPv4 assignment, valid options are `none`, `dhcp` or `static`. Value `none` means whatever is default for OS. On some operating systems it could be DHCP configured (e.g. Windows) or unconfigured interface (e.g. Linux). - `ip` (string): Static IPv4 address (implies `type: static`). Can include prefix in format <IPv4 address>/<prefix> instead of using `netmask`. - `netmask` (string): Static IPv4 netmask required for `ip` if prefix is not specified. - `gateway` (string): Static IPv4 gateway. - `type6` (string): Type of IPv6 assignment, valid options are `none`, `dhcp` or `static`. Value `none` means whatever is default for OS. On some operating systems it could be DHCP configured (e.g. Windows) or unconfigured interface (e.g. Linux). - `ip6` (string): Static IPv6 address (implies `type6: static`) with prefix in format <IPv6 address>/<prefix>. - `gateway6` (string): Static IPv6 gateway. aliases: network
password string		The password to use for connecting to XenServer. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `XENSERVER_PASSWORD` will be used instead. aliases: pass, pwd
state string	Choices: present ← absent poweredon	Specify the state VM should be in. If `state` is set to `present` and VM exists, ensure the VM configuration conforms to given parameters. If `state` is set to `present` and VM does not exist, then VM is deployed with given parameters. If `state` is set to `absent` and VM exists, then VM is removed with its associated components. If `state` is set to `poweredon` and VM does not exist, then VM is deployed with given parameters and powered on automatically.
state_change_timeout integer	Default: 0	By default, module will wait indefinitely for VM to accquire an IP address if `wait_for_ip_address: yes`. If this parameter is set to positive value, the module will instead wait specified number of seconds for the state change. In case of timeout, module will generate an error message.
template string		Name of a template, an existing VM (must be shut down) or a snapshot that should be used to create VM. Templates/VMs/snapshots on XenServer do not necessarily have unique names. The module will fail if multiple templates with same name are found. In case of multiple templates/VMs/snapshots with same name, use `template_uuid` to uniquely specify source template. If VM already exists, this setting will be ignored. This parameter is case sensitive. aliases: template_src
template_uuid string		UUID of a template, an existing VM or a snapshot that should be used to create VM. It is required if template name is not unique.
username string	Default: "root"	The username to use for connecting to XenServer. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `XENSERVER_USER` will be used instead. aliases: admin, user
uuid string		UUID of the VM to manage if known. This is XenServer's unique identifier. It is required if name is not unique. Please note that a supplied UUID will be ignored on VM creation, as XenServer creates the UUID internally.
validate_certs boolean	Choices: no yes ←	Allows connection when SSL certificates are not valid. Set to `false` when certificates are not trusted. If the value is not specified in the task, the value of environment variable `XENSERVER_VALIDATE_CERTS` will be used instead.
wait_for_ip_address boolean	Choices: no ← yes	Wait until XenServer detects an IP address for the VM. If `state` is set to `absent`, this parameter is ignored. This requires XenServer Tools to be preinstalled on the VM to work properly.

Notes ¶

Note

Minimal supported version of XenServer is 5.6.
Module was tested with XenServer 6.5, 7.1, 7.2, 7.6, Citrix Hypervisor 8.0, XCP-ng 7.6 and 8.0.
To acquire XenAPI Python library, just run pip install XenAPI on your Ansible Control Node. The library can also be found inside Citrix Hypervisor/XenServer SDK (downloadable from Citrix website). Copy the XenAPI.py file from the SDK to your Python site-packages on your Ansible Control Node to use it. Latest version of the library can also be acquired from GitHub: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/xapi-project/xen-api/master/scripts/examples/python/XenAPI.py
If no scheme is specified in hostname, module defaults to http:// because https:// is problematic in most setups. Make sure you are accessing XenServer host in trusted environment or use https:// scheme explicitly.
To use https:// scheme for hostname you have to either import host certificate to your OS certificate store or use validate_certs: no which requires XenAPI library from XenServer 7.2 SDK or newer and Python 2.7.9 or newer.
Network configuration inside a guest OS, by using networks.type, networks.ip, networks.gateway etc. parameters, is supported on XenServer 7.0 or newer for Windows guests by using official XenServer Guest agent support for network configuration. The module will try to detect if such support is available and utilize it, else it will use a custom method of configuration via xenstore. Since XenServer Guest agent only support None and Static types of network configuration, where None means DHCP configured interface, networks.type and networks.type6 values none and dhcp have same effect. More info here: https://www.citrix.com/community/citrix-developer/citrix-hypervisor-developer/citrix-hypervisor-developing-products/citrix-hypervisor-staticip.html
On platforms without official support for network configuration inside a guest OS, network parameters will be written to xenstore vm-data/networks/<vif_device> key. Parameters can be inspected by using xenstore ls and xenstore read tools on *nix guests or trough WMI interface on Windows guests. They can also be found in VM facts instance.xenstore_data key as returned by the module. It is up to the user to implement a boot time scripts or custom agent that will read the parameters from xenstore and configure network with given parameters. Take note that for xenstore data to become available inside a guest, a VM restart is needed hence module will require VM restart if any parameter is changed. This is a limitation of XenAPI and xenstore. Considering these limitations, network configuration trough xenstore is most useful for bootstraping newly deployed VMs, much less for reconfiguring existing ones. More info here: https://support.citrix.com/article/CTX226713

Examples ¶

- name: Create a VM from a template
  xenserver_guest:
    hostname: "{{ xenserver_hostname }}"
    username: "{{ xenserver_username }}"
    password: "{{ xenserver_password }}"
    validate_certs: no
    folder: /testvms
    name: testvm_2
    state: poweredon
    template: CentOS 7
    disks:
    - size_gb: 10
      sr: my_sr
    hardware:
      num_cpus: 6
      num_cpu_cores_per_socket: 3
      memory_mb: 512
    cdrom:
      type: iso
      iso_name: guest-tools.iso
    networks:
    - name: VM Network
      mac: aa:bb:dd:aa:00:14
    wait_for_ip_address: yes
  delegate_to: localhost
  register: deploy

- name: Create a VM template
  xenserver_guest:
    hostname: "{{ xenserver_hostname }}"
    username: "{{ xenserver_username }}"
    password: "{{ xenserver_password }}"
    validate_certs: no
    folder: /testvms
    name: testvm_6
    is_template: yes
    disk:
    - size_gb: 10
      sr: my_sr
    hardware:
      memory_mb: 512
      num_cpus: 1
  delegate_to: localhost
  register: deploy

- name: Rename a VM (requires the VM's UUID)
  xenserver_guest:
    hostname: "{{ xenserver_hostname }}"
    username: "{{ xenserver_username }}"
    password: "{{ xenserver_password }}"
    uuid: 421e4592-c069-924d-ce20-7e7533fab926
    name: new_name
    state: present
  delegate_to: localhost

- name: Remove a VM by UUID
  xenserver_guest:
    hostname: "{{ xenserver_hostname }}"
    username: "{{ xenserver_username }}"
    password: "{{ xenserver_password }}"
    uuid: 421e4592-c069-924d-ce20-7e7533fab926
    state: absent
  delegate_to: localhost

- name: Modify custom params (boot order)
  xenserver_guest:
    hostname: "{{ xenserver_hostname }}"
    username: "{{ xenserver_username }}"
    password: "{{ xenserver_password }}"
    name: testvm_8
    state: present
    custom_params:
    - key: HVM_boot_params
      value: { "order": "ndc" }
  delegate_to: localhost

- name: Customize network parameters
  xenserver_guest:
    hostname: "{{ xenserver_hostname }}"
    username: "{{ xenserver_username }}"
    password: "{{ xenserver_password }}"
    name: testvm_10
    networks:
    - name: VM Network
      ip: 192.168.1.100/24
      gateway: 192.168.1.1
    - type: dhcp
  delegate_to: localhost

Return Values ¶

Common return values are documented here, the following are the fields unique to this module:

Key	Returned	Description
changes list	always	Detected or made changes to VM Sample: [{'hardware': ['num_cpus']}, {'disks_changed': [[], ['size']]}, {'disks_new': [{'name': 'new-disk', 'name_desc': '', 'position': 2, 'size_gb': '4', 'vbd_userdevice': '2'}]}, {'cdrom': ['type', 'iso_name']}, {'networks_changed': [['mac']]}, {'networks_new': [{'name': 'Pool-wide network associated with eth2', 'position': 1, 'vif_device': '1'}]}, 'need_poweredoff']
instance dictionary	always	Metadata about the VM Sample: {'cdrom': {'type': 'none'}, 'customization_agent': 'native', 'disks': [{'name': 'testvm_11-0', 'name_desc': '', 'os_device': 'xvda', 'size': 42949672960, 'sr': 'Local storage', 'sr_uuid': '0af1245e-bdb0-ba33-1446-57a962ec4075', 'vbd_userdevice': '0'}, {'name': 'testvm_11-1', 'name_desc': '', 'os_device': 'xvdb', 'size': 42949672960, 'sr': 'Local storage', 'sr_uuid': '0af1245e-bdb0-ba33-1446-57a962ec4075', 'vbd_userdevice': '1'}], 'domid': '56', 'folder': '', 'hardware': {'memory_mb': 8192, 'num_cpu_cores_per_socket': 2, 'num_cpus': 4}, 'home_server': '', 'is_template': False, 'name': 'testvm_11', 'name_desc': '', 'networks': [{'gateway': '192.168.0.254', 'gateway6': 'fc00::fffe', 'ip': '192.168.0.200', 'ip6': ['fe80:0000:0000:0000:e9cb:625a:32c5:c291', 'fc00:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000:0001'], 'mac': 'ba:91:3a:48:20:76', 'mtu': '1500', 'name': 'Pool-wide network associated with eth1', 'netmask': '255.255.255.128', 'prefix': '25', 'prefix6': '64', 'vif_device': '0'}], 'other_config': {'base_template_name': 'Windows Server 2016 (64-bit)', 'import_task': 'OpaqueRef:e43eb71c-45d6-5351-09ff-96e4fb7d0fa5', 'install-methods': 'cdrom', 'instant': 'true', 'mac_seed': 'f83e8d8a-cfdc-b105-b054-ef5cb416b77e'}, 'platform': {'acpi': '1', 'apic': 'true', 'cores-per-socket': '2', 'device_id': '0002', 'hpet': 'true', 'nx': 'true', 'pae': 'true', 'timeoffset': '-25200', 'vga': 'std', 'videoram': '8', 'viridian': 'true', 'viridian_reference_tsc': 'true', 'viridian_time_ref_count': 'true'}, 'state': 'poweredon', 'uuid': 'e3c0b2d5-5f05-424e-479c-d3df8b3e7cda', 'xenstore_data': {'vm-data': ''}}

Status ¶

This module is not guaranteed to have a backwards compatible interface. [preview]
This module is maintained by the Ansible Community. [community]

Authors¶

Bojan Vitnik (@bvitnik) <bvitnik@mainstream.rs>

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xenserver_guest – Manages virtual machines running on Citrix Hypervisor/XenServer host or pool¶

Synopsis¶

Requirements¶

Parameters¶

Notes¶

Examples¶

Return Values¶

Status¶