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    SaltStack Use Cases

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    • A
      AdamF @DustinB3403
      last edited by

      @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

      I know these are some basic questions, but the true underlying question I have is what use cases, are you all using SaltStack for?

      I was just about to post this same question! Good to see some conversation going on this.

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
      • D
        DustinB3403 @dafyre
        last edited by

        @dafyre said in SaltStack Use Cases:

        I'm using it for standing up new Apache / PHP or Nginx / PHP instances. Installing ZeroTier / joining machines to the ZT network.

        Haven't had time to mess with it much more than that.

        So the only issue I see that is holding me back from using saltstack is that it seems to be more for deploying servers and systems.

        I don't often have a ton of systems to deploy at once, or on a regular basis.

        What I feel like would be useful would be PDQ Deploy / GPO - Godmode all in one solution. But every time someone explains their use of SaltStack I immediately think to my self that it is not what I need.

        S 3 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 2
        • F
          FATeknollogee @dafyre
          last edited by

          @dafyre said in SaltStack Use Cases:

          Installing ZeroTier / joining machines to the ZT network.

          Any how to guides?

          D 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
          • S
            scottalanmiller
            last edited by

            So you can use Salt (or Chef, or Ansible, or Puppet) for anything. But where it shines is in defining your systems (servers, desktops, routers, switches, etc.) It's the tool for doing everything you do for management.... installing apps, configuring apps, configuring system settings, remote access, pulling information, etc.

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
            • S
              scottalanmiller @DustinB3403
              last edited by

              @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

              So the only issue I see that is holding me back from using saltstack is that it seems to be more for deploying servers and systems.

              That's the issue. It seems.

              D 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • S
                scottalanmiller @DustinB3403
                last edited by

                @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                I don't often have a ton of systems to deploy at once, or on a regular basis.

                Yeah, that's a perception problem. I'm not saying that you should just up and install Salt and do everything that way. But I am saying that the perception that Salt is for new builds is incorrect.

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • D
                  DustinB3403 @scottalanmiller
                  last edited by

                  @scottalanmiller said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                  @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                  So the only issue I see that is holding me back from using saltstack is that it seems to be more for deploying servers and systems.

                  That's the issue. It seems.

                  How does something seeming to be for a specific use case an issue? I'm asking where might I find use out of saltstack. . .

                  S 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • S
                    scottalanmiller @DustinB3403
                    last edited by

                    @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                    @scottalanmiller said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                    @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                    So the only issue I see that is holding me back from using saltstack is that it seems to be more for deploying servers and systems.

                    That's the issue. It seems.

                    How does something seeming to be for a specific use case an issue? I'm asking where might I find use out of saltstack. . .

                    Well the biggest challenge there is knowing what you do. And I mean that honestly, like... I know you and I know what you did a month ago. But you are in a new job and I actually don't know what your day to day workload looks like yet. So where Salt would make sense to you is hard for me to describe.

                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • S
                      scottalanmiller @DustinB3403
                      last edited by

                      @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                      @scottalanmiller said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                      @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                      So the only issue I see that is holding me back from using saltstack is that it seems to be more for deploying servers and systems.

                      That's the issue. It seems.

                      How does something seeming to be for a specific use case an issue?

                      By making you think that it might not apply to you because of the assumed use case.

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • D
                        dafyre @FATeknollogee
                        last edited by

                        @FATeknollogee said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                        @dafyre said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                        Installing ZeroTier / joining machines to the ZT network.

                        Any how to guides?

                        Not quite. I've got to sanitize my salt files before I can share them.

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • S
                          scottalanmiller @DustinB3403
                          last edited by

                          @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                          What I feel like would be useful would be PDQ Deploy / GPO - Godmode all in one solution. But every time someone explains their use of SaltStack I immediately think to my self that it is not what I need.

                          So I use it for every time that I need to deploy a new module or piece of software. Someone needs something, just stick it in the salt file. I do this constantly. I'm on my laptop and I have the state files locally. They are in a directory that opens all at once in Atom (my editor of choice.) All I do is add that software item to the right state file and save... done.

                          I have it set to upload the state files to GitLab, which is free, and my Salt Master pulls updates from GitLab every fifteen minutes or so. So my laptop changes flow straight to the servers, automatically.

                          A 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                          • A
                            Alex Sage @scottalanmiller
                            last edited by

                            @scottalanmiller said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                            @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                            What I feel like would be useful would be PDQ Deploy / GPO - Godmode all in one solution. But every time someone explains their use of SaltStack I immediately think to my self that it is not what I need.

                            So I use it for every time that I need to deploy a new module or piece of software. Someone needs something, just stick it in the salt file. I do this constantly. I'm on my laptop and I have the state files locally. They are in a directory that opens all at once in Atom (my editor of choice.) All I do is add that software item to the right state file and save... done.

                            I have it set to upload the state files to GitLab, which is free, and my Salt Master pulls updates from GitLab every fifteen minutes or so. So my laptop changes flow straight to the servers, automatically.

                            Very Nice Setup

                            S 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • S
                              scottalanmiller @Alex Sage
                              last edited by

                              @aaronstuder said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                              @scottalanmiller said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                              @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                              What I feel like would be useful would be PDQ Deploy / GPO - Godmode all in one solution. But every time someone explains their use of SaltStack I immediately think to my self that it is not what I need.

                              So I use it for every time that I need to deploy a new module or piece of software. Someone needs something, just stick it in the salt file. I do this constantly. I'm on my laptop and I have the state files locally. They are in a directory that opens all at once in Atom (my editor of choice.) All I do is add that software item to the right state file and save... done.

                              I have it set to upload the state files to GitLab, which is free, and my Salt Master pulls updates from GitLab every fifteen minutes or so. So my laptop changes flow straight to the servers, automatically.

                              Very Nice Setup

                              It's new, and I love it.

                              A 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                              • A
                                AdamF
                                last edited by

                                So this could also be useful for copying files to many servers at once from the central master I assume. For example, all minions need to have copies of source files that are updated from a central point. This could be used to push updates to all minions at once. Correct?

                                S 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • A
                                  Alex Sage @scottalanmiller
                                  last edited by

                                  @scottalanmiller said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                                  @aaronstuder said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                                  @scottalanmiller said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                                  @DustinB3403 said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                                  What I feel like would be useful would be PDQ Deploy / GPO - Godmode all in one solution. But every time someone explains their use of SaltStack I immediately think to my self that it is not what I need.

                                  So I use it for every time that I need to deploy a new module or piece of software. Someone needs something, just stick it in the salt file. I do this constantly. I'm on my laptop and I have the state files locally. They are in a directory that opens all at once in Atom (my editor of choice.) All I do is add that software item to the right state file and save... done.

                                  I have it set to upload the state files to GitLab, which is free, and my Salt Master pulls updates from GitLab every fifteen minutes or so. So my laptop changes flow straight to the servers, automatically.

                                  Very Nice Setup

                                  It's new, and I love it.

                                  You should share 😉

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                  • Emad RE
                                    Emad R
                                    last edited by Emad R

                                    Will be monitoring this thread like:

                                    http://cdn.bloody-disgusting.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/halloween_1978_still.jpg

                                    Also does it really work in Windows environments like it does on Linux, it seems like SaltStack and its brothers (Chef, Ansible, I forgot one) are tailored for Linux, and I dont want the master/server to be on Windows, that will be redundant I mean passing commands to Windows agents, and is their template library with commands where we can see what we can do under Windows.

                                    A RomoR S 3 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • A
                                      Alex Sage @Emad R
                                      last edited by

                                      @msff-amman-Itofficer said in SaltStack Use Cases:
                                      is their template library with commands where we can see what we can do under Windows.

                                      Link?

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • RomoR
                                        Romo @Emad R
                                        last edited by Romo

                                        @msff-amman-Itofficer said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                                        Will be monitoring this thread like:
                                        Also does it really work in Windows environments like it does on Linux, it seems like SaltStack and its brothers (Chef, Ansible, I forgot one) are tailored for Linux, and I dont want the master/server to be on Windows, that will be redundant I mean passing commands to Windows agents, and is their template library with commands where we can see what we can do under Windows.

                                        They do work for windows, the don't have all the modules for Windows yet but they have a pretty good selection.

                                        Ansible Windows Modules

                                        win_acl - Set file/directory permissions for a system user or group.
                                        win_acl_inheritance - Change ACL inheritance
                                        win_chocolatey - Installs packages using chocolatey
                                        win_command - Executes a command on a remote Windows node
                                        win_copy - Copies files to remote locations on windows hosts.
                                        win_disk_image - Manage ISO/VHD/VHDX mounts on Windows hosts
                                        win_dns_client - Configures DNS lookup on Windows hosts
                                        win_domain - Ensures the existence of a Windows domain.
                                        win_domain_controller - Manage domain controller/member server state for a Windows host
                                        win_domain_membership - Manage domain/workgroup membership for a Windows host
                                        win_dotnet_ngen - Runs ngen to recompile DLLs after .NET updates
                                        win_environment - Modifies environment variables on windows hosts.
                                        win_feature - Installs and uninstalls Windows Features on Windows Server
                                        win_file - Creates, touches or removes files or directories.
                                        win_file_version - Get DLL or EXE file build version
                                        win_find - return a list of files based on specific criteria
                                        win_firewall_rule - Windows firewall automation
                                        win_get_url - Fetches a file from a given URL
                                        win_group - Add and remove local groups
                                        win_iis_virtualdirectory - Configures a virtual directory in IIS.
                                        win_iis_webapplication - Configures IIS web applications.
                                        win_iis_webapppool - Configures an IIS Web Application Pool.
                                        win_iis_webbinding - Configures a IIS Web site.
                                        win_iis_website - Configures a IIS Web site.
                                        win_lineinfile - Ensure a particular line is in a file, or replace an existing line using a back-referenced regular expression.
                                        win_msg - Sends a message to logged in users on Windows hosts.
                                        win_msi - Installs and uninstalls Windows MSI files
                                        win_nssm - NSSM - the Non-Sucking Service Manager
                                        win_owner - Set owner
                                        win_package - Installs/Uninstalls an installable package, either from local file system or url
                                        win_path - Manage Windows path environment variables
                                        win_ping - A windows version of the classic ping module.
                                        win_psexec - Runs commands (remotely) as another (privileged) user
                                        win_reboot - Reboot a windows machine
                                        win_reg_stat - returns information about a Windows registry key or property of a key
                                        win_regedit - Add, change, or remove registry keys and values
                                        win_region - Set the region and format settings
                                        win_regmerge - Merges the contents of a registry file into the windows registry
                                        win_robocopy - Synchronizes the contents of two directories using Robocopy.
                                        win_say - Text to speech module for Windows to speak messages and optionally play sounds
                                        win_scheduled_task - Manage scheduled tasks
                                        win_service - Manages Windows services
                                        win_share - Manage Windows shares
                                        win_shell - Execute shell commands on target hosts.
                                        win_shortcut - Manage shortcuts on Windows
                                        win_stat - returns information about a Windows file
                                        win_tempfile - Creates temporary files and directories.
                                        win_template - Templates a file out to a remote server.
                                        win_timezone - Sets Windows machine timezone
                                        win_unzip - Unzips compressed files and archives on the Windows node
                                        win_updates - Download and install Windows updates
                                        win_uri - Interacts with webservices.
                                        win_user - Manages local Windows user accounts
                                        win_webpicmd - Installs packages using Web Platform Installer command-line
                                        

                                        Saltack Windows Modules

                                        salt.states.win_certutil module
                                        salt.states.win_dacl
                                        salt.states.win_dism module
                                        salt.states.win_dns_client
                                        salt.states.win_firewall
                                        salt.states.win_iis module
                                        salt.states.win_lgpo module
                                        salt.states.win_license module
                                        salt.states.win_network
                                        salt.states.win_path
                                        salt.states.win_pki module
                                        salt.states.win_powercfg
                                        salt.states.win_servermanager
                                        salt.states.win_smtp_server module
                                        salt.states.win_snmp module
                                        salt.states.win_system
                                        salt.states.win_update
                                        

                                        Speaking about ansible and saltstack the master/control node only runs on Linux.

                                        Emad RE 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                                        • stacksofplatesS
                                          stacksofplates
                                          last edited by stacksofplates

                                          So I can't answer for Salt since I don't use it, but I use Ansible for everything. For example, I have a separate DHCP and DNS server. Records are held in a YAML dictionary and when I need to add a machine, I add the DNS info and mac address and Ansible sets up the DHCP reservation on one machine and the DNS record in the other.

                                          I also use it for kickstart configs. Instead of Foreman or Cobbler, Ansible has a Jinja2 kickstart template. When I run the playbook, Ansible creates all of the kickstart configs for all of the machines in the same dictionary as above and then creates PXE boot files based on the MAC address for each machine.

                                          Ansible is pretty awesome with cloud services also. Dynamic inventories means you don't need to keep track of static inventories for your playbooks. Ansible can use any kind of script to get an inventory from AWS, DO, OpenStack, etc. As long as it returns JSON, your inventory is now the actual machines in your provider.

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                          • S
                                            scottalanmiller @Emad R
                                            last edited by

                                            @msff-amman-Itofficer said in SaltStack Use Cases:

                                            Will be monitoring this thread like:

                                            http://cdn.bloody-disgusting.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/halloween_1978_still.jpg

                                            Also does it really work in Windows environments like it does on Linux, it seems like SaltStack and its brothers (Chef, Ansible, I forgot one) are tailored for Linux, and I dont want the master/server to be on Windows, that will be redundant I mean passing commands to Windows agents, and is their template library with commands where we can see what we can do under Windows.

                                            Not tailored for any specific OS. Windows works fine.

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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