AnsibleByExample

Ansible Automation Platform 2.7 — Automation Portal and EE Builder

Advanced
2024-01-013By Luca Berton

Lesson 1 of 15 in Foundations

Ansible Foundations to Production — full curriculum
  1. 1. Introduction to Ansible and Automation
  2. 2. Installing and Configuring Ansible
  3. 3. Running Ad-Hoc Commands
  4. 4. Writing Your First Playbook
  5. 5. Understanding and Using Modules
  6. 6. Variables and Facts
  7. 7. Conditionals and Loops
  8. 8. Handlers and Idempotency
  9. 9. Structuring Projects with Roles
  10. 10. Inventory Management
  11. 11. Using Ansible Vault for Secrets
  12. 12. Debugging and Troubleshooting
  13. 13. Real-World Automation Examples
  14. 14. Final Project: Deploy a Web Server
  15. 15. Bonus - What's Next with Ansible?
View path overview →

Introduction

Red Hat's Ansible Automation Platform 2.7 introduces the Automation Portal — a visual self-service interface that transforms Execution Environment (EE) creation from a CLI-only task into a platform engineering experience. No more YAML syntax errors, no more memorizing ansible-builder flags.

What's New in AAP 2.7

Automation Portal

The Automation Portal provides:

  • Visual EE Builder — drag-and-drop interface for building Execution Environments
  • Template Gallery — pre-built EE templates for common use cases
  • Guided Workflows — step-by-step wizards eliminating YAML errors
  • Self-Service — developers build EEs without platform team bottleneck

Visual Execution Environment Builder

# Before AAP 2.7: Manual execution-environment.yml
---
version: 3
dependencies:
  galaxy: requirements.yml
  python: requirements.txt
  system: bindep.txt
images:
  base_image: registry.redhat.io/ansible-automation-platform-24/ee-minimal-rhel9:latest

With the visual builder:

  1. Select base image from dropdown
  2. Search and add collections visually
  3. Python deps auto-resolved from collection metadata
  4. One-click build and push to Private Automation Hub

Pre-built templates for:

TemplateUse CaseCollections Included
Network AutomationCisco/Arista/Junipercisco.ios, arista.eos, junipernetworks.junos
Cloud OperationsAWS/Azure/GCPamazon.aws, azure.azcollection, google.cloud
Security & ComplianceSTIG/CIS hardeningansible.posix, community.general
Windows ManagementAD/GPO/Updatesansible.windows, community.windows
Container PlatformOpenShift/K8skubernetes.core, redhat.openshift

Migration from AAP 2.5/2.6

# Check current AAP version
automation-controller-cli version

# Backup before upgrade
ansible-playbook backup.yml -e backup_dest=/backups/aap-pre-upgrade

# Upgrade to 2.7
cd /path/to/aap-2.7-installer
./setup.sh -e @credentials.yml

Platform Engineering Benefits

Before (CLI)After (Portal)
Learn ansible-builder syntaxPoint and click
Debug YAML indentationVisual validation
Manual dependency resolutionAuto-resolution
Platform team bottleneckSelf-service
Weeks to onboard new devsMinutes

Best Practices

  1. Start with templates — customize pre-built EEs rather than building from scratch
  2. Version your EEs — tag builds with semantic versions for reproducibility
  3. Use Private Automation Hub — central registry for approved EE images
  4. Governance policies — set allowed base images and collections at org level
  5. CI/CD integration — auto-build EEs on collection updates

Conclusion

AAP 2.7's Automation Portal removes the biggest barrier to Execution Environment adoption — complexity. Platform engineers get self-service EE creation, developers get guardrails without friction, and organizations get consistent, governed automation environments.

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