Ansible Tasks and Modules:

In Ansible, a task is a unit of work that represents a single procedure to be performed. Tasks are defined in playbooks and are responsible for executing actions on the target hosts. The actions themselves are carried out by Ansible modules.

Modules:

Ansible modules are standalone scripts that Ansible uses to perform various tasks on managed nodes. Modules are executed on the target hosts, and they handle a wide range of activities, from file manipulation and package installation to service management and user account creation.

Some common modules include:

• command and shell: Execute commands on the target host.

• copy: Copy files from the control node to the target hosts.

• apt and yum: Install packages on Debian/Ubuntu and Red Hat/CentOS systems, respectively.

• service: Manage services on the target hosts.

Tasks:

Tasks in Ansible playbooks represent the invocation of a module with specific arguments. They define what actions need to be taken on the target hosts. Tasks can include conditionals, loops, and other control structures to make playbooks more dynamic.

Here's an example playbook with multiple tasks:

In this example:

1. The first task installs the Apache package using the apt module.
2. The second task copies a configuration file to the target hosts using the copy module.
3. The handlers section defines a handler named "Restart Apache" that restarts the Apache service if notified.

Understanding how to structure tasks and use modules effectively is fundamental to creating powerful and flexible Ansible playbooks.