Ansible + Ubuntu 18.04 + MySQL = "The PyMySQL (Python 2.7 and Python 3.X) or MySQL-python (Python 2.X) module is required."

Question

I’m seeing the above message on multiple playbooks using Ansible 2.8 on Ubuntu 18.04. In the interests of simplicity I’ve reproduced it using this basic playbook for a single node Drupal server. https://github.com/geerlingguy/ansible-for-devops/tree/master/drupal; this playbook works fine on earlier versions of ubuntu, but not on 18.04 which I understand includes python3 by default.

I’ve used vagrant to create the base machine, which shows the following:

$ which python
/usr/bin/python
$ which python2
/usr/bin/python2
$ which python3
/usr/bin/python3
$ python --version
Python 2.7.15rc1
$ python2 --version
Python 2.7.15rc1
$ python3 --version
Python 3.6.7

Which seems to be telling me that both python 2 and python 3 are installed, but that 2.7 is the default as that is what responds to $ python --version.

I have tried all the suggestions described in this article: https://www.rollnorocks.com/2018/12/ansible-python-and-mysql-untangling-the-mess/ Including specifying the

ansible_python_interpreter=/usr/bin/python3

But nothing affects the message. The edited -vvv output from the playbook run is below. Has anyone got any more ideas about either the problem or solution.

TASK [Remove the MySQL test database.] ****************************************************************************************************************************
task path: /vagrant/provisioning/playbook.yml:96
<10.1.1.11> ESTABLISH SSH CONNECTION FOR USER: mt-ansible-user
<10.1.1.11> SSH: EXEC ssh -C -o ControlMaster=auto -o ControlPersist=60s -o 
.
.
.
Using module file /usr/local/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/ansible/modules/database/mysql/mysql_db.py
<10.1.1.11> PUT /home/mt-tools-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-21287bh5dK5/tmp7pOKOH TO /home/mt-ansible-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-tmp-1558868136.49-16683638151793
1/AnsiballZ_mysql_db.py                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
<10.1.1.11> SSH: EXEC sftp -b - -C -o ControlMaster=auto -o ControlPersist=60s -o 'IdentityFile="/home/mt-tools-user/.ssh/mt_ansible_rsa"' -o KbdInteractiveAuthent
ication=no -o PreferredAuthentications=gssapi-with-mic,gssapi-keyex,hostbased,publickey -o PasswordAuthentication=no -o 'User="mt-ansible-user"' -o ConnectTimeout=                                                                          
10 -o ControlPath=/home/mt-tools-user/.ansible/cp/af4de51057 '[10.1.1.11]'                                                                                                                                                                    
<10.1.1.11> (0, 'sftp> put /home/mt-tools-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-local-21287bh5dK5/tmp7pOKOH /home/mt-ansible-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-tmp-1558868136.49-166836
381517931/AnsiballZ_mysql_db.py\n', '')                                                                                                                                                                                                       
<10.1.1.11> ESTABLISH SSH CONNECTION FOR USER: mt-ansible-user
<10.1.1.11> SSH: EXEC ssh -C -o ControlMaster=auto -o ControlPersist=60s -o 'IdentityFile="/home/mt-tools-user/.ssh/mt_ansible_rsa"' -o KbdInteractiveAuthenticatio
n=no -o PreferredAuthentications=gssapi-with-mic,gssapi-keyex,hostbased,publickey -o PasswordAuthentication=no -o 'User="mt-ansible-user"' -o ConnectTimeout=10 -o                                                                           
ControlPath=/home/mt-tools-user/.ansible/cp/af4de51057 10.1.1.11 '/bin/sh -c '"'"'chmod u+x /home/mt-ansible-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-tmp-1558868136.49-1668363815                                                                          
17931/ /home/mt-ansible-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-tmp-1558868136.49-166836381517931/AnsiballZ_mysql_db.py && sleep 0'"'"''                                                                                                                    
<10.1.1.11> (0, '', '')
<10.1.1.11> ESTABLISH SSH CONNECTION FOR USER: mt-ansible-user
<10.1.1.11> SSH: EXEC ssh -C -o ControlMaster=auto -o ControlPersist=60s -o 'IdentityFile="/home/mt-tools-user/.ssh/mt_ansible_rsa"' -o KbdInteractiveAuthenticatio
n=no -o PreferredAuthentications=gssapi-with-mic,gssapi-keyex,hostbased,publickey -o PasswordAuthentication=no -o 'User="mt-ansible-user"' -o ConnectTimeout=10 -o                                                                           
ControlPath=/home/mt-tools-user/.ansible/cp/af4de51057 -tt 10.1.1.11 '/bin/sh -c '"'"'sudo -H -S -n  -u root /bin/sh -c '"'"'"'"'"'"'"'"'echo BECOME-SUCCESS-qwjewg                                                                          
qckuyapsxnkbqoegainrkyiinc ; /usr/bin/python3 /home/mt-ansible-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-tmp-1558868136.49-166836381517931/AnsiballZ_mysql_db.py'"'"'"'"'"'"'"'"' &
& sleep 0'"'"''
<10.1.1.11> (1, 'BECOME-SUCCESS-qwjewgqckuyapsxnkbqoegainrkyiinc\r\n\r\n{"msg": "The PyMySQL (Python 2.7 and Python 3.X) or MySQL-python (Python 2.X) module is req
uired.", "failed": true, "invocation": {"module_args": {"db": "test", "state": "absent", "name": "test", "login_host": "localhost", "login_port": 3306, "encoding":
"", "collation": "", "connect_timeout": 30, "config_file": "/root/.my.cnf", "single_transaction": false, "quick": true, "ignore_tables": [], "login_user": null, "
login_password": null, "login_unix_socket": null, "target": null, "client_cert": null, "client_key": null, "ca_cert": null}}}\r\n', 'Shared connection to 10.1.1.11
closed.\r\n')
<10.1.1.11> Failed to connect to the host via ssh: Shared connection to 10.1.1.11 closed.
<10.1.1.11> ESTABLISH SSH CONNECTION FOR USER: mt-ansible-user
<10.1.1.11> SSH: EXEC ssh -C -o ControlMaster=auto -o ControlPersist=60s -o 'IdentityFile="/home/mt-tools-user/.ssh/mt_ansible_rsa"' -o KbdInteractiveAuthenticatio
n=no -o PreferredAuthentications=gssapi-with-mic,gssapi-keyex,hostbased,publickey -o PasswordAuthentication=no -o 'User="mt-ansible-user"' -o ConnectTimeout=10 -o
ControlPath=/home/mt-tools-user/.ansible/cp/af4de51057 10.1.1.11 '/bin/sh -c '"'"'rm -f -r /home/mt-ansible-user/.ansible/tmp/ansible-tmp-1558868136.49-16683638151
7931/ > /dev/null 2>&1 && sleep 0'"'"''
<10.1.1.11> (0, '', '')

Answer 1

Your remote host is telling you:

The PyMySQL (Python 2.7 and Python 3.X) or MySQL-python (Python 2.X) module is required.

Did you follow the recommendations and install the required pymysql python package on your remote host ?

For a quick test, on your remote host:

• if using python 2.7: sudo pip install pymysql
• if using python 3.x: sudo pip3 install pymysql

Once tested, to make sure this dependency is always present, add a task in your playbook prior to launching any mysql task:

- name: Make sure pymysql is present
  become: true # needed if the other tasks are not played as root
  pip:
    name: pymysql
    state: present

You should not have to specify the executable option in this case (see doc) as it will default to your ansible_python_interpreter