Ansible Play Execution Order

Roles and Collections / Guide 26 of 45 / Intermediate

• OSUbuntu 26.04 LTS
• ansible-core2.20.1
• Python3.14.4
• TimeAbout 14 min

Role dependencies are deduplicated: a role listed as a dependency by two others runs once, at the point of the first. That is usually what you want and is occasionally surprising - a dependency with side effects will not run again for the second consumer.

This guide includes

Use this when a task runs earlier or later than you expected. This matters because a play has four task sections that do not run in file order - and role dependencies run once, before the role that asked for them.

• building two tiny roles with a dependency between them
• reading the real order - pre_tasks, then roles, then tasks, then post_tasks
• confirming dependencies run once even when both roles are listed
• finding where a role's handlers actually live

Before you start

• A control node configured as shown in the first step.
• The session creates two tiny roles, base and appsvc, where appsvc depends on base. Nothing is changed on the managed node.

1. 1

   The configuration this guide assumes

2. 2

   Two tiny roles to order

3. 3

   The order a play runs in

4. 4

   Dependencies run once

5. 5

   Where a role's handlers live

Official sources

• Role dependencies
• Play execution order
• Handlers