Are you tired of running into the dreaded “Operation not permitted” error when trying to mount a CIFS volume on a Podman container using Molecule/Ansible? Well, you’re in luck because this article is here to guide you through the process of successfully mounting a CIFS volume on a Podman container with Molecule/Ansible.
- What is Podman?
- What is Molecule?
- What is Ansible?
- The Problem: Operation not Permitted
- Prerequisites
- Step 1: Create an Ansible Role
- Step 2: Create a Molecule Scenario
- Step 3: Create a Podman Container
- Step 4: Run Molecule
- Step 5: Overcome the Operation not Permitted Error
- Step 6: Verify the Mount
- Conclusion
- Common Errors and Solutions
What is Podman?
Before we dive into the tutorial, let’s quickly cover what Podman is. Podman is a containerization platform that allows you to run and manage containers on a Linux system. It’s similar to Docker, but with a few key differences. Podman is daemon-less, which means it doesn’t require a running daemon process to manage containers. This makes it a lightweight and flexible alternative to Docker.
What is Molecule?
Molecule is a testing framework for Ansible roles. It allows you to write tests for your Ansible roles and ensure they work as expected. Molecule uses Docker or Podman to create test environments, which makes it a great tool for testing infrastructure automation.
What is Ansible?
Ansible is an open-source automation tool that allows you to automate infrastructure deployment, configuration, and management. It uses YAML playbooks to define the desired state of your infrastructure, and then it takes care of making it so.
The Problem: Operation not Permitted
When trying to mount a CIFS volume on a Podman container using Molecule/Ansible, you might encounter the following error:
mount: /mnt: Operation not permitted
This error occurs because the Podman container doesn’t have the necessary permissions to mount the CIFS volume. But don’t worry, we’ll show you how to overcome this challenge.
Prerequisites
Before you begin, make sure you have the following installed:
- Podman (version 1.9.3 or higher)
- Molecule (version 3.0.2 or higher)
- Ansible (version 2.9.10 or higher)
- A CIFS share setup and available
Step 1: Create an Ansible Role
Create a new Ansible role called `cifs_mount` with the following directory structure:
cifs_mount
roles
cifs_mount
tasks
main.yml
handlers
main.yml
defaults
main.yml
meta
main.yml
In the `tasks/main.yml` file, add the following code:
---
- name: Mount CIFS volume
mount:
path: /mnt
src://{{ cifs_share }}/{{ cifs_mount_point }}
opts: rw,vers=3.0,username={{ cifs_username }},password={{ cifs_password }},dir_mode=0777,file_mode=0666
state: mounted
This task will mount the CIFS volume to the `/mnt` directory in the container.
Step 2: Create a Molecule Scenario
Create a new Molecule scenario called `cifs-mount` with the following directory structure:
molecule
cifs-mount
molecule.yml
converge.yml
In the `molecule.yml` file, add the following code:
---
scenario:
name: cifs-mount
driver:
name: podman
provisioner:
name: ansible
platforms:
- name:.centos7
lint:
name: yamllint
This scenario will use Podman as the container driver, Ansible as the provisioner, and CentOS 7 as the platform.
Step 3: Create a Podman Container
In the `converge.yml` file, add the following code:
---
- name: Create a Podman container
podman_container:
name: cifs-mount
image: centos:7
state: present
volumes:
- /mnt:/mnt
- name: Install necessary packages
yum:
name: cifs-utils
state: present
- name: Mount CIFS volume
include_role:
name: cifs_mount
This playbook will create a new Podman container called `cifs-mount` with the CentOS 7 image, install the `cifs-utils` package, and then include the `cifs_mount` role to mount the CIFS volume.
Step 4: Run Molecule
Run the following command to execute the Molecule scenario:
molecule converge -s cifs-mount
This will create a new Podman container, install the necessary packages, and mount the CIFS volume.
Step 5: Overcome the Operation not Permitted Error
To overcome the “Operation not permitted” error, you need to add the following line to the `converge.yml` file:
- name: Set privileged mode
podman_container:
name: cifs-mount
privileged: true
This will run the container in privileged mode, allowing it to mount the CIFS volume.
Step 6: Verify the Mount
Once the Molecule scenario has completed, verify that the CIFS volume has been mounted successfully by running the following command:
molecule verify -s cifs-mount
This will check that the CIFS volume is mounted to the `/mnt` directory in the container.
Conclusion
In this article, we’ve shown you how to mount a CIFS volume on a Podman container using Molecule/Ansible. We’ve covered the necessary steps to create an Ansible role, a Molecule scenario, and a Podman container. We’ve also shown you how to overcome the “Operation not permitted” error by running the container in privileged mode.
With these instructions, you should be able to successfully mount a CIFS volume on a Podman container using Molecule/Ansible. Happy automating!
Tool | Version |
---|---|
Podman | 1.9.3 or higher |
Molecule | 3.0.2 or higher |
Ansible | 2.9.10 or higher |
Note: Make sure to replace the placeholder values in the code snippets with your actual CIFS share, mount point, username, and password.
Common Errors and Solutions
Here are some common errors you might encounter and their solutions:
Error 1: Mount failed: invalid option
Solution: Check that the `opts` parameter in the `mount` task is correct. Make sure to specify the `vers=3.0` option for CIFS version 3.0.
Error 2: Mount failed: permission denied
Solution: Add the `privileged: true` option to the `podman_container` task to run the container in privileged mode.
Error 3: CIFS share not available
Solution: Check that the CIFS share is available and correctly configured. Make sure the username and password are correct.
We hope this article has been helpful in guiding you through the process of mounting a CIFS volume on a Podman container using Molecule/Ansible. If you have any further questions or need more assistance, feel free to ask!
Frequently Asked Question
Got stuck while mounting a CIFS volume on a podman container with molecule/ansible? Worry not, we’ve got you covered!
Q1: What’s the common culprit behind the “Operation not permitted” error when mounting a CIFS volume on a podman container?
It’s usually a permissions issue! The podman container doesn’t have the necessary permissions to mount the CIFS volume. You can try running the container with elevated privileges using the `–privileged` flag or by configuring the `caps_add` parameter in your molecule/ansible playbook.
Q2: How do I specify the CIFS mount options in my molecule/ansible playbook to avoid the “Operation not permitted” error?
You can specify the mount options using the `mount_options` parameter in your molecule/ansible playbook. For example, you can use `mount_options: “rw,vers=3.0,username={{ cifs_username }},password={{ cifs_password }}”` to specify the mount options for your CIFS volume.
Q3: What’s the role of SELinux in the “Operation not permitted” error when mounting a CIFS volume on a podman container?
SELinux can sometimes get in the way of mounting a CIFS volume. To avoid this issue, you can try setting the SELinux context to `container_file_t` using the `chcon` command or by configuring the `selinux_ctx` parameter in your molecule/ansible playbook.
Q4: How do I verify that the CIFS mount is working correctly after fixing the “Operation not permitted” error?
You can verify the mount by checking the output of the `mount` command inside the container or by listing the contents of the mounted directory using the `ls` command. If everything is working correctly, you should see the CIFS volume mounted and accessible.
Q5: Are there any security implications I should be aware of when mounting a CIFS volume on a podman container with molecule/ansible?
Yes, mounting a CIFS volume can introduce security risks if not done properly. Make sure to use secure credentials, limit access to the mounted volume, and configure SELinux contexts to prevent potential security breaches.