Ansible Development Containers with ansible-navigator

Bonus: Beyond the Blueprint / Guide 45 of 45 / Advanced

• OSUbuntu 26.04 LTS
• ansible-core2.20.1
• Python3.14.4
• TimeAbout 16 min

community-ansible-dev-tools is the development image - ansible-core plus ansible-lint, molecule and ansible-builder, at 1.39 GB. community-ee-minimal is the runtime image at 445 MB. Develop in the first, ship with something closer to the second.

This guide includes

Use this when the toolchain has to live in a container rather than on the control node. This matters because the development image carries a different Ansible than the host does - and it does not inherit your shell's environment.

• comparing the two images, and what each of them is for
• confirming the control node does not have the toolchain at all
• finding the container does, and that it is not the same Ansible
• seeing that your project is already mounted inside it
• linting and running the playbook in that container, and finding what it does not inherit

Before you start

• A control node configured as shown in the first step.
• podman and ansible-navigator, with both images already pulled.

1. 1

   The configuration this guide assumes

2. 2

   Two images, two jobs

3. 3

   The control node does not have the toolchain

4. 4

   The container does, and it is not the same Ansible

5. 5

   Your project is already inside it

6. 6

   Lint the playbook you actually have

7. 7

   Run the playbook in the same container

8. 8

   What it does not inherit

Official sources

• Ansible execution environments
• ansible-navigator settings
• ansible-lint