"This is the first post in my series on learning Ansible from scratch as part of my transition into DevOps. If you're looking to get hands-on with automation, you're in the right place."
🧭 Why I Started Learning Ansible
I’ve been seriously considering a career shift into DevOps.
I've always been fascinated by what happens after the code is written—how it gets deployed, how environments are configured, how systems scale without burning to the ground. The more I looked into it, the more I saw one common thread: automation.
That’s when I started noticing Ansible popping up everywhere:
- On job listings
- In blog posts
- In DevOps courses
I kept seeing things like:
“If you're new to DevOps, start with Ansible.”
I don’t know if that’s a good advice or not—but here we are. And for me, it made sense. Ansible seemed like the perfect entry point:
- Written in YAML, which is super readable (and I had experience with thanks to Flutter).
- Agentless, so I didn’t have to install anything on remote machines.
- Great for automating repetitive tasks, which is basically the DevOps way.
So I dove in. And instead of just taking notes, I decided to turn this into a public learning journey—a series of posts that document every step of the way, with examples, breakdowns, and lessons learned.
If you're also looking to get into DevOps but don't know where to start, this series might be just the thing to help you take that first step.
🧪 How I'm Learning
I’m learning by doing (and of-course, by going through some tutorials and documentation), in small, focused sessions.
Here’s what my setup looks like:
- A Docker-based Ansible lab (I’ll walk you through this in the next post)
- Short, real-world examples (like installing packages, managing users, etc.)
- A “try it, break it, fix it” mindset
It’s hands-on, beginner-friendly, and focused on real progress over perfect understanding.
📚 What This Series Covers
| Part | Title | What You'll Learn |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Why I Started Learning Ansible | You are here! |
| 2 | Setting Up an Ansible Lab with Docker | Get a working lab in 5 minutes |
| 3 | Understanding Inventories & Hosts | Targeting machines with Ansible |
| 4 | Writing Your First Playbook | Automating tasks, one YAML at a time |
| 5 | Getting Modular with Roles | Reusing and organizing your playbooks |
| 6 | Using Variables, Loops & Conditionals | Making automation flexible and smart |
| 7 | Common Errors & How to Fix Them | Debugging and staying sane |
| 8 | A Small Project to Wrap It Up | Apply everything in a real use case |
🧰 What You'll Need to Follow Along
Not much! Just:
- A system with Docker installed (Mac, Windows, or Linux is fine)
- Basic command line knowledge
- Curiosity and patience (especially when YAML complains about indentation 😅)
🔜 What's Next?
In the next post, we’ll build a quick Ansible playground using Docker—no servers, no cloud accounts, no stress.
➡️ Part 2 is coming in a few days—follow me here on dev.to so you don't miss it!
Got questions? Drop them in the comments. And if you're also starting out with Ansible, let me know—I'd love to hear how your journey's going too!
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