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Use Puppet Modules to Create a LAMP Stack

Updated Originally authored by Linode
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Puppet modules are the building blocks of your Puppet managed servers. Modules install and configure packages, create directories, and generate any other server changes that the user includes in the module. A Puppet module aims to perform all parts of a certain task, such as downloading the Apache package, configuring all files, changing the MPM data, and setting up virtual hosts. Modules are, in turn, broken down into classes that are .pp files meant to simplify the module into various tasks and improve the module’s readability for any future users.

In this guide, you will create an Apache and a PHP module. A MySQL module will be adapted from the Puppet Lab’s MySQL module found on the Puppet Forge. These steps will create a full LAMP stack on your server and provide an overview of the various ways modules can be utilized.

Before You Begin

Set up a Puppet Master (Ubuntu 18.04) and two Puppet agents (Ubuntu 18.04 and CentOS 7) by following the steps in the Getting Started with Puppet - Basic Installation and Setup guide.

Create the Apache Module

  1. From the Puppet Master, navigate to Puppet’s module directory and create the apache directory:

    cd /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/
sudo mkdir apache

  2. From within the apache directory, create manifests, templates, files, and examples directories:

    cd apache
sudo mkdir {manifests,templates,files,examples}

  3. Navigate to the manifests directory:

    cd manifests

    From here, the module will be separated into classes, based on the goals of that particular section of code. In this instance, there will be an init.pp class for downloading the Apache package, a params.pp file to define any variables and parameters, config.pp to manage any configuration files for the Apache service itself, and a vhosts.pp file to define the virtual hosts. This module will also make use of Hiera data to store variables for each node.

Create the Initial Apache Class and Parameters

  1. From within the manifests directory, create an init.pp file to hold the apache class. This class should share its name with the module name. This file will be used to install the Apache package. Since Ubuntu 18.04 and CentOS 7 use different package names for Apache, a variable will be used:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/init.pp
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    class apache {

  package { 'apache':
    name    => $apachename,
    ensure  => present,
  }

}

    The package resource allows for the management of a package. This is used to add, remove, or ensure a package is present. In most cases, the name of the resource (apache, above) should be the name of the package being managed. Because of the difference in naming conventions, however, this resource is simply called apache, while the actual name of the package is called upon with the name reference. name, in this instance, calls for the yet-undefined variable $apachename. The ensure reference ensures that the package is present.

  2. The params.pp file will be used to define the needed variables. While these variables could be defined within the init.pp file, since more variables will need to be used outside of the resource type itself, using a params.pp file allows for variables to be defined in if statements and used across multiple classes.

    Create a params.pp and add the following code:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/params.pp
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    class apache::params {

  if $::osfamily == 'RedHat' {
    $apachename   = 'httpd'
  }
  elsif $::osfamily == 'Debian' {
      $apachename   = 'apache2'
  }
  else {
    fail ( 'this is not a supported distro.')
  }

}

    Outside of the original init.pp class, each class name needs to branch off of apache. As such, this class is called apache::params. The name after the double colon should share a name with the file.

    An if statement is used to define the parameters, pulling from information provided by Facter, which is already installed on the Puppet master. In this case, Facter will be used to pull down the operating system family (osfamily), to discern if it is Red Hat or Debian-based.

    Note
    For the duration of this guide, when something needs to be added to the parameter list the variables needed for Red Hat and Debian will be provided, but the expanding code will not be shown. A complete copy of params.pp can be viewed here.

  3. With the parameters finally defined, we need to call the params.pp file and the parameters into init.pp. To do this, the parameters need to be added after the class name, but before the opening curly bracket ({):

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/init.pp
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    class apache (
  $apachename   = $::apache::params::apachename,
) inherits ::apache::params {

    The value string $::apache::params::value tells Puppet to pull the values from the apache modules, params class, followed by the parameter name. The fragment inherits ::apache::params allows for init.pp to inherit these values.

Manage Configuration Files

The Apache configuration file will be different depending on whether you are working on a Red Hat- or Debian-based system. These can be viewed here: httpd.conf (Red Hat), apache2.conf (Debian).

  1. Copy the content of httpd.conf and apache2.conf in separate files and save them in the files directory located at /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/files.

  2. Both files need to be edited to disable keepalive. You will need to add the line KeepAlive Off the httpd.conf file. If you do not want to change this setting, a comment should be added to the top of each file:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/files/httpd.conf
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    # This file is managed by Puppet

  3. Add these files to the init.pp file, so Puppet will know where they are located on both the master server and agent nodes. To do this, the file resource is used:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/init.pp
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    file { 'configuration-file':
  path    => $conffile,
  ensure  => file,
  source  => $confsource,
}

    Because the configuration file is found in two different locations, the resource is given the generic name configuration-file with the file path defined as a parameter with the path attribute. ensure ensures that it is a file. source provides the location on the Puppet master of the files created above.

  4. Open the params.pp file. The $conffile and $confsource variables need to be defined within the if statement:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/params.pp
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    if $::osfamily == 'RedHat' {

...

  $conffile     = '/etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf'
  $confsource   = 'puppet:///modules/apache/httpd.conf'
}
elsif $::osfamily == 'Debian' {

...

  $conffile     = '/etc/apache2/apache2.conf'
  $confsource   = 'puppet:///modules/apache/apache2.conf'
}
else {

...

    These parameters will also need to be added to the beginning of the apache class declaration in the init.pp file, similar to the previous example. A complete copy of the init.pp file can be seen here for reference.

  5. When the configuration file is changed, Apache needs to restart. To automate this, the service resource can be used in combination with the notify attribute, which will call the resource to run whenever the configuration file is changed:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/init.pp
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    file { 'configuration-file':
  path    => $conffile,
  ensure  => file,
  source  => $confsource,
  notify  => Service['apache-service'],
}

service { 'apache-service':
  name          => $apachename,
  hasrestart    => true,
}

    The service resource uses the already-created parameter that defined the Apache name on Red Hat and Debian systems. The hasrestart attribute will trigger a restart of the defined service.

Create the Virtual Hosts Files

Depending on your systems distribution the virtual hosts files will be managed differently. Because of this, the code for virtual hosts will be encased in an if statement, similar to the one used in the params.pp class but containing actual Puppet resources. This will provide an example of an alternate use of if statements within Puppet’s code.

  1. From within the apache/manifests/ directory, create and open a vhosts.pp file. Add the skeleton of the if statement:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/vhosts.pp
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    class apache::vhosts {

  if $::osfamily == 'RedHat' {

  } elsif $::osfamily == 'Debian' {

  } else {

  }

}

  2. The location of the virtual hosts file on our CentOS 7 server is /etc/httpd/conf.d/vhost.conf. This file will need to be created as a template on the Puppet master. The same needs to be done for the Ubuntu virtual hosts file, which is located at /etc/apache2/sites-available/example.com.conf, replacing example.com with the server’s FQDN. Navigate to the templates file within the apache module, and then create two files for your virtual hosts:

    For Red Hat systems:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/templates/vhosts-rh.conf.erb
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    <VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin	<%= @adminemail %>
    ServerName <%= @servername %>
    ServerAlias www.<%= @servername %>
    DocumentRoot /var/www/<%= @servername -%>/public_html/
    ErrorLog /var/www/<%- @servername -%>/logs/error.log
    CustomLog /var/www/<%= @servername -%>/logs/access.log combined
</Virtual Host>

    For Debian systems:

    File: /etc/puppet/modules/apache/templates/vhosts-deb.conf.erb
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    <VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin	<%= @adminemail %>
    ServerName <%= @servername %>
    ServerAlias www.<%= @servername %>
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html/<%= @servername -%>/public_html/
    ErrorLog /var/www/html/<%- @servername -%>/logs/error.log
    CustomLog /var/www/html/<%= @servername -%>/logs/access.log combined
    <Directory /var/www/html/<%= @servername -%>/public_html>
        Require all granted
    </Directory>
</Virtual Host>

    Only two variables are used in these files: adminemail and servername. These will be defined on a node-by-node basis, within the site.pp file.

  3. Return to the vhosts.pp file. The templates created can now be referenced in the code:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/vhosts.pp
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    class apache::vhosts {

  if $::osfamily == 'RedHat' {
    file { '/etc/httpd/conf.d/vhost.conf':
      ensure    => file,
      content   => template('apache/vhosts-rh.conf.erb'),
    }
  } elsif $::osfamily == 'Debian' {
    file { "/etc/apache2/sites-available/$servername.conf":
      ensure  => file,
      content  => template('apache/vhosts-deb.conf.erb'),
    }
  } else {
      fail('This is not a supported distro.')
  }

}

    Both distribution families call to the file resource and take on the title of the virtual host’s location on the respective distribution. For Debian, this once more means referencing the $servername value. The content attribute calls to the respective templates.

    Note
    Values containing variables, such as the name of the Debian file resource above, need to be wrapped in double quotes ("). Any variables in single quotes (') are parsed exactly as written and will not pull in a variable.

  4. Both virtual hosts files reference two directories that are not on the systems by default. These can be created through the use of the file resource, each located within the if statement. The complete vhosts.conf file should resemble:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/manifests/vhosts.pp
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    class apache::vhosts {

  if $::osfamily == 'RedHat' {
    file { '/etc/httpd/conf.d/vhost.conf':
      ensure    => file,
      content   => template('apache/vhosts-rh.conf.erb'),
    }
    file { [ '/var/www/$servername',
             '/var/www/$servername/public_html',
             '/var/www/$servername/log', ]:
      ensure    => directory,
    }
  } elsif $::osfamily == 'Debian' {
    file { "/etc/apache2/sites-available/$servername.conf":
      ensure  => file,
      content  => template('apache/vhosts-deb.conf.erb'),
    }
    file { [ '/var/www/$servername',
             '/var/www/$servername/public_html',
             '/var/www/$servername/logs', ]:
      ensure    => directory,
    }
  } else {
    fail ( 'This is not a supported distro.')
  }

}

Test and Run the Module

  1. From within the apache/manifests/ directory, run the puppet parser on all files to ensure the Puppet coding is without error:

    sudo /opt/puppetlabs/bin/puppet parser validate init.pp params.pp vhosts.pp

    It should return empty, barring any issues.

  2. Navigate to the examples directory within the apache module. Create an init.pp file and include the created classes. Replace the values for $servername and $adminemail with your own:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/apache/examples/init.pp
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    $serveremail = 'webmaster@example.com'
$servername = 'example.com'

include apache
include apache::vhosts

  3. Test the module by running puppet apply with the --noop tag:

    sudo /opt/puppetlabs/bin/puppet apply --noop init.pp

    It should return no errors, and output that it will trigger refreshes from events. To install and configure apache on the Puppet master, this can be run again without --noop , if so desired.

  4. Navigate back to the main Puppet directory and then to the manifests folder (not the one located in the Apache module).

    cd /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/manifests

    If you are continuing this guide from the Getting Started with Puppet - Basic Installation and Setup guide, you should have a site.pp file already created. If not, create one now.

  5. Open site.pp and include the Apache module for each agent node. Also input the variables for the adminemail and servername parameters. If you followed the Getting Started with Puppet - Basic Installation and Setup guide, a single node configuration within site.pp will resemble the following:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/manifests/site.pp
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    node 'ubuntuhost.example.com' {
  $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
  $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

  include accounts
  include apache
  include apache::vhosts

  resources { 'firewall':
    purge => true,
  }

  Firewall {
    before        => Class['firewall::post'],
    require       => Class['firewall::pre'],
  }

  class { ['firewall::pre', 'firewall::post']: }

  }

node 'centoshost.example.com' {
  $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
  $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

  include accounts
  include apache
  include apache::vhosts

  resources { 'firewall':
    purge => true,
  }

  Firewall {
    before        => Class['firewall::post'],
    require       => Class['firewall::pre'],
  }

  class { ['firewall::pre', 'firewall::post']: }

  }

    If you did not follow the Getting Started with Puppet - Basic Installation and Setup guide, then your site.pp file should resemble the following example:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/manifests/site.pp
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    node 'ubupuppet.ip.linodeusercontent.com' {
  $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
  $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

  include apache
  include apache::vhosts

  }

node 'centospuppet.ip.linodeusercontent.com' {
  $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
  $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

  include apache
  include apache::vhosts

  }

  6. By default, the Puppet agent service on your managed nodes will automatically check with the master once every 30 minutes and apply any new configurations from the master. You can also manually invoke the Puppet agent process in-between automatic agent runs. To manually run the new module on your agent nodes, log in to the nodes and run:

    sudo /opt/puppetlabs/bin/puppet agent -t

Using the MySQL Module

Many modules needed to run a server already exist within Puppet Labs’ Puppet Forge. These can be configured just as extensively as a module that you created and can save time since the module need not be created from scratch.

Ensure you are in the /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules directory and install the Puppet Forge’s MySQL module by PuppetLabs. This will also install any prerequisite modules.

cd /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules
sudo /opt/puppetlabs/bin/puppet module install puppetlabs-mysql

Use Hiera to Create Databases

Before you begin to create the configuration files for the MySQL module, consider that you may not want the same values to be used across all agent nodes. To supply Puppet with the correct data per node, Hiera is used. In this instance, you will be using a different root password per node, thus creating different MySQL databases.

  1. Navigate to /etc/puppet and create Hiera’s configuration file hiera.yaml in the main puppet directory. You will use Hiera’s default values:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/hiera.yaml
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    ---
version: 5
hierarchy:
  - name: Common
    path: common.yaml
defaults:
  data_hash: yaml_data
  datadir: data

  2. Create the file common.yaml. It will be used to define the default root password for MySQL:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/common.yaml
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    mysql::server::root_password: 'password'

    The common.yaml file is used when a variable is not defined elsewhere. This means all servers will share the same MySQL root password. These passwords can also be hashed to increase security.

  3. To use the MySQL module’s defaults you can simply add an include '::mysql::server' line to the site.pp file. However, in this example, you will override some of the module’s defaults to create a database for each of your nodes. Edit the site.pp file with the following values:

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    node 'ubupuppet.ip.linodeusercontent.com' {
  $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
  $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

  include apache
  include apache::vhosts
  include php

  mysql::db { "mydb_${fqdn}":
    user     => 'myuser',
    password => 'mypass',
    dbname   => 'mydb',
    host     => $::fqdn,
    grant    => ['SELECT', 'UPDATE'],
    tag      => $domain,
  }

}

node 'centospuppet.ip.linodeusercontent.com' {
  $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
  $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

  include apache
  include apache::vhosts
  include mysql::server
  include php

  mysql::db { "mydb_${fqdn}":
    user     => 'myuser',
    password => 'mypass',
    dbname   => 'mydb',
    host     => $::fqdn,
    grant    => ['SELECT', 'UPDATE'],
    tag      => $domain,
  }

 }

  4. You can run these updates manually on each node by SSHing into each node and issuing the following command:

     sudo /opt/puppetlabs/bin/puppet agent -t

    Otherwise, the Puppet agent service on your managed nodes will automatically check with the master once every 30 minutes and apply any new configurations from the master.

Create the PHP Module

  1. Create the php directory in the /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules path, and generate the files, manifests, templates, and examples directories afterward:

    sudo mkdir php
cd php
sudo mkdir {files,manifests,examples,templates}

  2. Create the init.pp. This file will use the package resource to install PHP. Two packages will be installed: The PHP package and the PHP extension and application repository. Add the following contents to your file:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/modules/php/manifests/init.pp
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    class php {

  package { 'php':
    name: $phpname,
    ensure: present,
  }

  package { 'php-pear':
    ensure: present,
  }

}

  3. Add include php to the hosts in your sites.pp file:

    File: /etc/puppetlabs/code/environments/production/manifests/site.pp
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        node 'ubupuppet.ip.linodeusercontent.com' {
      $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
      $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

      include apache
      include apache::vhosts
      include mysql::database
      include php

      }

    node 'centospuppet.ip.linodeusercontent.com' {
      $adminemail = 'webmaster@example.com'
      $servername = 'hostname.example.com'

      include apache
      include apache::vhosts
      include mysql::database
      include php

      }

  4. Run the following command on your agent nodes to pull in any changes to your servers.

     sudo /opt/puppetlabs/bin/puppet agent -t

    Otherwise, the Puppet agent service on your managed nodes will automatically check with the master once every 30 minutes and apply any new configurations from the master.

    You should now have a fully functioning LAMP stack on each of your Puppet managed nodes.

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