On 25.01.2017 23:37, mark.to...@dsv.com wrote:
I have a problem where a line that contains a certain space delimited
string must exist in a file. The string can be anywhere in the line:
start, middle, or end. If a line that contains that string does not
exist,
then a line with that string needs to be inserted into the file. I
have
been trying to use the lineinfile module to solve this, but so far I
have
been unsuccessful. Below is the code I have tried:
- lineinfile:
dest: "/path/to/myfile"
regexp: '^(.*)(\s*this_string_must_exist)(\s+.*)$'
line: '\g<1> this_string_must_exist\g<3>'
backrefs: true
state: present
I have tried many variations of the regular expression and line, but
nothing I have tried totally achieves what I am looking for. I have
verified that the regular expression can locate a line with the string
regardless of where the string is within the line, and if such a line
is
located it is not modified. But I have not been successful in getting
a
new line inserted if it does not already exist.
Does anyone have any suggestions?
The reason it doesn't work is explained in the documentation.
https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/lineinfile_module.html#options
In the comments about the backrefs:
"... and if the regexp doesn't match anywhere in the file, the file will
be left unchanged."
So you'll need to find a way to do it without backrefs: yes if you are
going to use lineinfile.
--
Kai Stian Olstad
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