# aci_rest – Direct access to the Cisco APIC REST API

New in version 2.4.

- Synopsis
- Requirements
- Parameters
- Notes
- See Also
- Examples
- Return Values
- Status

## Synopsis

- Enables the management of the Cisco ACI fabric through direct access to the Cisco APIC REST API.
- Thanks to the idempotent nature of the APIC, this module is idempotent and reports changes.

## Requirements

The below requirements are needed on the host that executes this module.

- lxml (when using XML payload)
- xmljson >= 0.1.8 (when using XML payload)
- python 2.7+ (when using xmljson)

## Parameters

Parameter | Choices/Defaults | Comments
--- | --- | ---
certificate_name string |  | The X.509 certificate name attached to the APIC AAA user used for signature-based authentication. If a `private_key` filename was provided, this defaults to the `private_key` basename, without extension. If PEM-formatted content was provided for `private_key`, this defaults to the `username` value. aliases: cert_name
content raw |  | When used instead of `src`, sets the payload of the API request directly. This may be convenient to template simple requests. For anything complex use the `template` lookup plugin (see examples) or the template module with parameter `src`.
host string / required |  | IP Address or hostname of APIC resolvable by Ansible control host. aliases: hostname

method
string

Choices:
- delete
- get ←
- post

The HTTP method of the request.
Using `delete` is typically used for deleting objects.
Using `get` is typically used for querying objects.
Using `post` is typically used for modifying objects.
aliases: action

output_level
string

Choices:
- debug
- info
- normal ←

Influence the output of this ACI module.
`normal` means the standard output, incl. `current` dict
`info` adds informational output, incl. `previous`, `proposed` and `sent` dicts
`debug` adds debugging output, incl. `filter_string`, `method`, `response`, `status` and `url` information

password string / required |  | The password to use for authentication. This option is mutual exclusive with `private_key`. If `private_key` is provided too, it will be used instead.
path string / required |  | URI being used to execute API calls. Must end in `.xml` or `.json`. aliases: uri
port integer |  | Port number to be used for REST connection. The default value depends on parameter `use_ssl`.
private_key string / required |  | Either a PEM-formatted private key file or the private key content used for signature-based authentication. This value also influences the default `certificate_name` that is used. This option is mutual exclusive with `password`. If `password` is provided too, it will be ignored. aliases: cert_key
src path |  | Name of the absolute path of the filename that includes the body of the HTTP request being sent to the ACI fabric. If you require a templated payload, use the `content` parameter together with the `template` lookup plugin, or use template. aliases: config_file
timeout integer | Default: 30 | The socket level timeout in seconds.

use_proxy
boolean

Choices:
- no
- yes ←

If `no`, it will not use a proxy, even if one is defined in an environment variable on the target hosts.

use_ssl
boolean

Choices:
- no
- yes ←

If `no`, an HTTP connection will be used instead of the default HTTPS connection.

username string | Default: "admin" | The username to use for authentication. aliases: user

validate_certs
boolean

Choices:
- no
- yes ←

If `no`, SSL certificates will not be validated.
This should only set to `no` when used on personally controlled sites using self-signed certificates.

## Notes

Note

- Certain payloads are known not to be idempotent, so be careful when constructing payloads, e.g. using `status="created"` will cause idempotency issues, use `status="modified"` instead. More information in the ACI documentation.
- Certain payloads (and used paths) are known to report no changes happened when changes did happen. This is a known APIC problem and has been reported to the vendor. A workaround for this issue exists. More information in the ACI documentation.
- XML payloads require the `lxml` and `xmljson` python libraries. For JSON payloads nothing special is needed.

## See Also

See also

aci_tenant – Manage tenants (fv:Tenant)
  The official documentation on the aci_tenant module.
Cisco APIC REST API Configuration Guide
  More information about the APIC REST API.
Cisco ACI Guide
  Detailed information on how to manage your ACI infrastructure using Ansible.
Developing Cisco ACI modules
  Detailed guide on how to write your own Cisco ACI modules to contribute.

## Examples

    - name: Add a tenant using certificate authentication
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/admin.key
        method: post
        path: /api/mo/uni.xml
        src: /home/cisco/ansible/aci/configs/aci_config.xml
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Add a tenant from a templated payload file from templates/
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/admin.key
        method: post
        path: /api/mo/uni.xml
        content: "{{ lookup('template', 'aci/tenant.xml.j2') }}"
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Add a tenant using inline YAML
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/admin.key
        validate_certs: no
        path: /api/mo/uni.json
        method: post
        content:
          fvTenant:
            attributes:
              name: Sales
              descr: Sales department
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Add a tenant using a JSON string
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/admin.key
        validate_certs: no
        path: /api/mo/uni.json
        method: post
        content:
          {
            "fvTenant": {
              "attributes": {
                "name": "Sales",
                "descr": "Sales department"
              }
            }
          }
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Add a tenant using an XML string
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/{{ aci_username }}.key
        validate_certs: no
        path: /api/mo/uni.xml
        method: post
        content: '<fvTenant name="Sales" descr="Sales departement"/>'
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Get tenants using password authentication
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        password: SomeSecretPassword
        method: get
        path: /api/node/class/fvTenant.json
      delegate_to: localhost
      register: query_result

    - name: Configure contracts
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/admin.key
        method: post
        path: /api/mo/uni.xml
        src: /home/cisco/ansible/aci/configs/contract_config.xml
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Register leaves and spines
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/admin.key
        validate_certs: no
        method: post
        path: /api/mo/uni/controller/nodeidentpol.xml
        content: |
          <fabricNodeIdentPol>
            <fabricNodeIdentP name="{{ item.name }}" nodeId="{{ item.nodeid }}" status="{{ item.status }}" serial="{{ item.serial }}"/>
          </fabricNodeIdentPol>
      with_items:
      - '{{ apic_leavesspines }}'
      delegate_to: localhost

    - name: Wait for all controllers to become ready
      aci_rest:
        host: apic
        username: admin
        private_key: pki/admin.key
        validate_certs: no
        path: /api/node/class/topSystem.json?query-target-filter=eq(topSystem.role,"controller")
      register: apics
      until: "'totalCount' in apics and apics.totalCount|int >= groups['apic']|count"
      retries: 120
      delay: 30
      delegate_to: localhost
      run_once: yes

## Return Values

Common return values are documented here, the following are the fields unique to this module:

Key | Returned | Description
--- | --- | ---
error_code integer | always | The REST ACI return code, useful for troubleshooting on failure Sample: 122
error_text string | always | The REST ACI descriptive text, useful for troubleshooting on failure Sample: unknown managed object class foo
imdata string | always | Converted output returned by the APIC REST (register this for post-processing) Sample: [{'error': {'attributes': {'code': '122', 'text': 'unknown managed object class foo'}}}]
payload string | always | The (templated) payload send to the APIC REST API (xml or json) Sample: <foo bar="boo"/>
raw string | parse error | The raw output returned by the APIC REST API (xml or json) Sample: <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><imdata totalCount="1"><error code="122" text="unknown managed object class foo"/></imdata>
response string | always | HTTP response string Sample: HTTP Error 400: Bad Request
status integer | always | HTTP status code Sample: 400
totalCount string | always | Number of items in the imdata array Sample: 0
url string | success | URL used for APIC REST call Sample: https://1.2.3.4/api/mo/uni/tn-[Dag].json?rsp-subtree=modified

## Status

- This module is not guaranteed to have a backwards compatible interface. [preview]
- This module is maintained by an Ansible Partner. [certified]

### Authors

- Dag Wieers (@dagwieers)

Hint

If you notice any issues in this documentation, you can edit this document to improve it.