ansible synchronize module fails to get directory from remote to local - failed: No such file or directory - ansible

Question

I wish to copy /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod from mysourceuser#mysourcehost to destination mydestuser#mydesthost under the below location /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/
Evident that both the source and destinations are present and have good permissions.
[mydestuser#mydesthost ~]$ ssh mysourceuser#mysourcehost ls -ld '/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod'
##################################################################
# *** This Server is using Centrify *** #
# *** Remember to use your Active Directory account *** #
# *** password when logging in *** #
##################################################################
drwxrwxr-x 3 mysourceuser mysourceuser 209 Sep 26 14:58 /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod
[mydestuser#mydesthost ~]$ ls -ld /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/
drwxr-xr-x 2 mydestuser aces 6 Sep 26 14:13 /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/
Here is my playbook that runs on the mydesthost and gets me files & folders from a remote server mysourceuser#mysourcehost to local server mydestuser#mydesthost
- name: Copying from "{{ inventory_hostname }}" to this ansible server.
tags: validate
synchronize:
src: "'{{ item }}'"
dest: "{{ playbook_dir }}/tmpfiles/{{ Latest_Build_Number }}/"
mode: pull
copy_links: yes
with_items:
- "{{ source_file_new.splitlines() }}"
To run the above playbook:
ansible-playbook /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/copyfiles.yml -e "source_file_new='$source_file_new'" -e "Latest_Build_Number='500'"
Output of my run:
TASK [Copying from "mysourcehost" to this ansible server.] **********************
task path: /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/copyfiles.yml:218
Monday 26 September 2022 14:13:02 -0500 (0:00:00.047) 0:00:03.084 ******
redirecting (type: action) ansible.builtin.synchronize to ansible.posix.synchronize
redirecting (type: action) ansible.builtin.synchronize to ansible.posix.synchronize
<mysourcehost> ESTABLISH LOCAL CONNECTION FOR USER: mydestuser
<mysourcehost> EXEC /bin/sh -c '( umask 77 && mkdir -p "` echo /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81 `"&& mkdir "` echo /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597 `" && echo ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597="` echo /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597 `" ) && sleep 0'
Using module file /home/mydestuser/.ansible/collections/ansible_collections/ansible/posix/plugins/modules/synchronize.py
<mysourcehost> PUT /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/tmpxhpyaf0m TO /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597/AnsiballZ_synchronize.py
<mysourcehost> EXEC /bin/sh -c 'chmod u+x /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597/ /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597/AnsiballZ_synchronize.py && sleep 0'
<mysourcehost> EXEC /bin/sh -c '/usr/local/bin/python3.8 /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597/AnsiballZ_synchronize.py && sleep 0'
<mysourcehost> EXEC /bin/sh -c 'rm -f -r /home/mydestuser/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-20463qmilic81/ansible-tmp-1664219583.0005133-20679-105296975361597/ > /dev/null 2>&1 && sleep 0'
failed: [mysourcehost] (item=/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod) => {
"ansible_loop_var": "item",
"changed": false,
"cmd": "/bin/rsync --delay-updates -F --compress --copy-links --archive --rsh=/usr/share/centrifydc/bin/ssh -S none -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null --out-format=<<CHANGED>>%i %n%L mysourceuser#mysourcehost:'/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod' /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/",
"invocation": {
"module_args": {
"_local_rsync_password": null,
"_local_rsync_path": "rsync",
"_substitute_controller": false,
"archive": true,
"checksum": false,
"compress": true,
"copy_links": true,
"delete": false,
"dest": "/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/",
"dest_port": null,
"dirs": false,
"existing_only": false,
"group": null,
"link_dest": null,
"links": null,
"mode": "pull",
"owner": null,
"partial": false,
"perms": null,
"private_key": null,
"recursive": null,
"rsync_opts": [],
"rsync_path": null,
"rsync_timeout": 0,
"set_remote_user": true,
"src": "mysourceuser#mysourcehost:'/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod'",
"ssh_args": null,
"ssh_connection_multiplexing": false,
"times": null,
"verify_host": false
}
},
"item": "/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod",
"msg": "Warning: Permanently added 'mysourcehost' (ED25519) to the list of known hosts.\r\n\nThis system is for the use by authorized users only. All data contained\non all systems is owned by the company and may be monitored, intercepted,\nrecorded, read, copied, or captured in any manner and disclosed in any\nmanner, by authorized company personnel. Users (authorized or unauthorized)\nhave no explicit or implicit expectation of privacy. Unauthorized or improper\nuse of this system may result in administrative, disciplinary action, civil\nand criminal penalties. Use of this system by any user, authorized or\nunauthorized, constitutes express consent to this monitoring, interception,\nrecording, reading, copying, or capturing and disclosure.\n\nIF YOU DO NOT CONSENT, LOG OFF NOW.\n\n##################################################################\n# *** This Server is using Centrify *** #\n# *** Remember to use your Active Directory account *** #\n# *** password when logging in *** #\n##################################################################\n\nrsync: change_dir \"/home/mysourceuser//'/web/playbooks/automation/misc\" failed: No such file or directory (2)\nrsync error: some files/attrs were not transferred (see previous errors) (code 23) at main.c(1658) [Receiver=3.1.2]\nrsync: [Receiver] write error: Broken pipe (32)\n",
"rc": 23
}
From the output i got the concerned rsync command and tried to run it manually on my playbook host mydestuser#mydesthost and i get similar error:
"/bin/rsync --delay-updates -F --compress --copy-links --archive --rsh=/usr/share/centrifydc/bin/ssh -S none -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null --out-format=<<CHANGED>>%i %n%L mysourceuser#mysourcehost:'/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod' /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/"
Output:
bash: /bin/rsync --delay-updates -F --compress --copy-links --archive --rsh=/usr/share/centrifydc/bin/ssh -S none -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null --out-format=<<CHANGED>>%i %n%L mysourceuser#mysourcehost:'/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod' /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/: No such file or directory
Upon suggestion from StackOverflow I quoted --out-format but I continue to get the same error. See snapshot of the error in the output below:
"/bin/rsync --delay-updates -F --compress --copy-links --archive --rsh=/usr/share/centrifydc/bin/ssh -S none -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null --out-format='<<CHANGED>>%i %n%L' mysourceuser#mysourcehost:'/tmp/myfolder' /tmp/myfolder1"
Can you please suggest?

Answer 1

Your full command was this
/bin/rsync --delay-updates -F --compress --copy-links --archive --rsh=/usr/share/centrifydc/bin/ssh -S none -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null --out-format=<<CHANGED>>%i %n%L mysourceuser#mysourcehost:'/web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopyprod' /web/playbooks/automation/misc/filecopy/tmpfiles/500/
You've omitted to quote arguments containing spaces, so when the shell parses the line it splits at those spaces, leading to syntax errors when rsync tries to understand the line.
Fix the --rsh parameter, which contains spaces, by changing it to this:
--rsh='/usr/share/centrifydc/bin/ssh -S none -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null'
Fix the --out-format parameter, which contains whitespace and shell special characters by changing it to this:
--out-format='<<CHANGED>>%i %n%L'
In a later example, you've put double quotes around the entire command, so the shell is trying to execute the entire command as a single entity. For example, in the first line the shell splits the line at spaces then executes the command echo with a parameter hello. In second line the shell sees the quoted string and treats it as a single entity; it then tries to execute the command called echo hello - not a command echo with a parameter hello but a command with a literal space character in the middle:
echo hello # → hello
"echo hello" # → -bash: echo hello: command not found
Rule: if a command or parameter contains a space or other special shell character and it's to be considered as a single item, it must be quoted.

Answer 2

The playbook works for older versions of rsync.
With the latest version it started to fail as reported here.
Changed
synchronize:
src: "'{{ item }}'"
to
synchronize:
src: "{{ item }}"
and the error was gone issued resolved with the latest rsync.