Ansible first_found makes environment-specific config cleaner
Use Ansible first_found to keep host-specific, environment-specific, and default config fallback clean.
AutomationAnsibleConfig ManagementRolesAutomationMaintainability
Problem
Ansible roles become messy when every environment needs a slightly different config file.
Why it happens
Too many conditionals are added inside tasks or templates.
Fix / Approach
Use `first_found` to resolve config in priority order, such as host-specific, group-specific, then default.
Command / Config
Example lookup order:
- `inventory_hostname.yml`
- `group_name.yml`
- `default.yml`
When to use
- Agent profiles
- Service config
- Environment-specific files
- Reusable roles
When not to use
- When config must be generated dynamically from variables