Understanding Ansible, AWX, and Ansible Automation Platform

If your team wants to get involved with the community and shape the Ansible project or share ideas, visit www.ansible.com/community. You can learn more about becoming a contributor and explore the different personas that make up the vibrant Ansible community. Your input is what helps the community grow, and it is directly incorporated into the product.

Some people use Ansible Automation Platform and also contribute to community projects. They benefit from a fully supported platform while also staying current on the upstream projects.

Determining your team’s area of focus is key to choosing the right automation tool—and adopting the tool successfully.

Are you focusing on multi-datacenter automation infrastructure (servers, applications, and network and security infrastructure), managing a cloud platform (public, private, and hybrid clouds), or creating complex automation objectives (such as automating IT operations, tiered deployments, and edge environments)? If yes, Ansible Automation Platform is the best choice for your organization.

Does your team have skills in programming Python and Go, understand development methods for Swagger/OpenAPI, and know how to perform GitHub pull requests? If yes, then you could use and contribute to Ansible’s many community projects, such as AWX.

Your team might want to use the platform while also contributing to community projects. Community contributions are included in product updates, and your continued contributions to upstream projects will impact your experience with the platform.

When considering automation solutions, most customers seek out a platform that will allow for in-place upgrades and the ability to test releases without affecting functionality.

Ansible Automation Platform provides these capabilities and more by including guaranteed upgrades, migration paths, and environments for isolated testing. In contrast, AWX users are responsible for upgrades and maintenance of AWX infrastructure.

Many organizations using AWX have a limited number of employees—sometimes just a single person—with the skills to manage the software. If this institutional knowledge leaves your organization, it can put your business operations at risk.

With an enterprise solution, you gain support—reducing the risk of all of your automation knowledge being tied to a small team or individual. You also gain the possibility for career growth for your team. Training opportunities help employees boost their skills and gain certifications, furthering their development and career potential. For managers, this incentive can help retain top talent.