# Execution log: idempotent management cluster (Ansible + cluster-api-operator)

Pairs with [docs/plans/2026-09-27-0058-mgmt-cluster-ansible.md](../plans/2026-09-27-0058-mgmt-cluster-ansible.md).

## Status

- [x] Step 0 — Initial import commit + plan commit
- [x] Step 1 — Scaffold `ansible/`, `.gitignore` exception, syntax/lint checks
- [ ] Step 2 — Run the playbook tag by tag against the lab (owner)
- [ ] Step 3 — Idempotency check (second full run `changed=0`)
- [ ] Step 4 — Docs, versions, decisions, changelog

## Step 0 — Initial import + plan

The repo had no commits, so the existing tree went in first as `5fd998c` (after a grep for
token/secret/key material found only placeholders), then the plan alone as `ac7d5a4`.

## Step 1 — Scaffold `ansible/` (2026-09-27 01:02 CEST)

Wrote `ansible/{ansible.cfg,inventory.yml,group_vars/all.yml,secrets.yml.example,mgmt.yml}` and
four templates as planned. `ansible/secrets.yml` was already ignored by `*secret*`; added
`!ansible/secrets.yml.example`.

`ansible-core` is not installed on the laptop, so checks ran through `uvx` (cached, nothing
installed globally), pinned to ansible-core 2.18 (resolved 2.18.19):

```bash
cd ansible
uvx --from 'ansible-core>=2.18,<2.19' ansible-playbook mgmt.yml --syntax-check
uvx --with 'ansible-core>=2.18,<2.19' ansible-lint --profile production mgmt.yml
```

First lint run: 6× `name[casing]`, 5× `no-changed-when`. The commands flagged are the
create/resize/start/install tasks that only run behind a `when:` guard, so they got
`changed_when: true` rather than a fake condition. Second run: production profile passed.

Rendered all templates with dummy values (`-e mgmt_ip=192.0.2.10`, secret `DUMMY`) through a
throwaway local playbook: provider manifest parses as 11 documents (5 Namespaces, Secret, 5
provider CRs), k3s config and kubeconfig rewrite (`server` → VM IP, every `default` name →
`lab-mgmt`) come out as intended.

Connectivity to the PVE host:

```bash
uvx --from 'ansible-core>=2.18,<2.19' ansible pve -m ping -o
# pv1-1 | UNREACHABLE!: ... root@192.168.0.8: Permission denied (publickey,password).
```

**Worth noting:**
- The plan's assumption "root SSH from the laptop to `pv1-1` works" does not hold yet; the host
  answers but rejects the laptop's keys. Needed before Step 2.
- Condition-based waits: the playbook waits for `Available` Deployments in each provider
  namespace instead of a condition on the provider CRs, so it doesn't depend on the operator's
  condition naming (plan left that open).
- VM params (`mgmt_vmid`, `mgmt_ip`, `mgmt_gateway`, `mgmt_dns`) are empty in `group_vars/all.yml`;
  Play 1 asserts on them.
- `clusterctl` is not installed on the laptop either (needed for phase-1 Step 3, not for this playbook).

## Step 2 — Playbook runs (in progress)

### `--tags vm`, first attempt (2026-09-27 09:30 CEST, owner)

Owner authorised the laptop key on `pv1-1`, installed ansible locally and filled in VM params
(`mgmt_vmid: 201`, `mgmt_ip: 192.168.4.21/24`, gateway `192.168.4.8`).

```bash
ansible-playbook mgmt.yml --tags vm
# TASK [Create the VM]
# "cmd": [..., "--nameserver", "8.8.8.8,", "2.2.2.2"]
# stderr: 400 too many arguments
```

`mgmt_dns` was the string `"8.8.8.8, 2.2.2.2"`; the command module splits on whitespace, so
`qm` got two positional leftovers. Fix: `mgmt_dns` is now a list and the task passes
`--nameserver '{{ mgmt_dns | join(' ') }}'` as one argument (space-separated is PVE's format for
the cloud-init nameserver list). Image download and key staging had already succeeded and are
idempotent on re-run; `qm status 201` confirmed no half-created VM was left behind.