Create folder on VCenter server using Ansible - ansible

Question

Problem statement:
Given a folder name, Check if it exists on VCenter Server and if not create the same.
Clone a VM from template under this folder.
For example, I want to clone a VM under "Administrator Desktops" as shown in the following image:
Click here to see the image
The script below is cloning a VM from specified template and placing the VM into specified folder. But fails when that folder does not exist on VCenter server:
---
- hosts: localhost
connection: local
sudo: false
user: root
gather_facts: false
serial: 1
vars_files:
- createVmVars.yml
tasks:
- name: Deploying VM from template.
vsphere_guest:
vcenter_hostname: "{{vcenter_hostname}}"
username: "{{vcenter_username}}"
password: "{{vcenter_password}}"
guest: "{{guest_name}}"
from_template: yes
template_src: "{{template_src}}"
cluster: "{{cluster}}"
resource_pool: "{{resource_pool}}"
vm_extra_config:
folder: "{{folder_name}}"
Need help to make this script flexible so that when the folder does not exists, it should create the mentioned folder and then clone the VM under this folder.

Answer 1

You can use this Ansible module to create folder in vsphere:
#!/usr/bin/python
# -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
DOCUMENTATION = '''
---
author: "Shashank Awasthi"
module: vsphere_create_folder
short_description: Create a folder on VCenter if it does not exist
description:
- This module requires login to VCenter Server
- This module requires pysphere python module installed
- This module creates a folder on mentioned VCenter Server
- This module does not create any folder if the folder with the same name is already existing on the VCenter Server
- This module supports nesting upto only 2 levels
version_added: "1.2"
options:
host:
description:
- The vsphere Server on which the folder is to be created
required: true
login:
description:
- The login name to authenticate on VSphere
required: true
password:
description:
- The password to authenticate VSphere
required: true
folder_name:
description:
- The folder name which is to be created
required: true
parent_folder_name:
description:
The name of parent folder under which the folder_name is residing.
required: true
datacenter_name:
description:
- The name of the datacenter where the folder is to be created
required: true
examples:
- description: create the folder with name NewDeployments
code:
- local_action: vsphere_create_folder host=$eszserver login=$esxlogin password=$esxpassword folder_name=$folder_name
parent_folder_name=$parent_folder_name datacenter_name=$dc_name
notes:
- This module ought ot be run from a system which can access vsphere directly
'''
import sys
try:
import pysphere
from pysphere import *
from pysphere.resources import VimService_services as VI
except ImportError:
print "failed=true, msg=Pysphere Python module not available"
sys.exit(1)
def main():
module = AnsibleModule(
argument_spec = dict(
host = dict(requred = True),
login = dict(required = True),
password = dict(required = True),
folder_name = dict(required = True),
parent_folder_name = dict(required = True),
datacenter_name = dict(required = True)
)
)
host = module.params.get('host')
login = module.params.get('login')
password = module.params.get('password')
folder_name = module.params.get('folder_name')
parent_folder_name = module.params.get('parent_folder_name')
datacenter_name = module.params.get('datacenter_name')
server = pysphere.VIServer()
try:
server.connect(host,login,password)
except Exception, e:
module.fail_json(msg = 'Failed to connect to %s: %s' % (host, e))
def createFolder(vm_folder,folder_name):
try:
request = VI.CreateFolderRequestMsg()
_this = request.new__this(vm_folder)
_this.set_attribute_type(vm_folder.get_attribute_type())
request.set_element__this(_this)
request.set_element_name(folder_name)
server._proxy.CreateFolder(request)
except pysphere.ZSI.FaultException, e:
pass
try:
datacenters = server._get_datacenters()
dc = datacenters[datacenter_name]
dc_props = VIProperty(server,dc)
vm_folder = dc_props.vmFolder._obj
createFolder(vm_folder,parent_folder_name)
folders = server._retrieve_properties_traversal(property_names=['name'], from_node = dc, obj_type = 'Folder')
for f in folders:
if f.PropSet[0].Val == parent_folder_name:
vm_folder = f.Obj
break
createFolder(vm_folder,folder_name)
except Exception, e:
module.fail_json(msg = "failed to create folder: %s" % e)
module.exit_json(changed = True, folder = folder_name, parent_folder = parent_folder_name)
#<<INCLUDE_ANSIBLE_MODULE_COMMON>>
main()