# Ansible Role: Varnish

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Installs the [Varnish HTTP Cache](https://varnish-cache.org/) on RedHat/CentOS or Debian/Ubuntu Linux.

## Requirements

Requires the EPEL repository on RedHat/CentOS (you can install it using the `geerlingguy.repo-epel` role).

## Role Variables

Available variables are listed below, along with default values (see `defaults/main.yml`):

    varnish_package_name: "varnish"

Varnish package name you want to install. See `apt-cache policy varnish` or `yum list varnish` for a listing of available candidates.

    varnish_version: "5.1"

Varnish version that should be installed. See the [Varnish Cache packagecloud.io repositories](https://packagecloud.io/varnishcache) for a listing of available versions. Some examples include: `5.1`, `5.0`, `4.1`, `4.0`, `3.0`, and `2.1`.

    varnish_config_path: /etc/varnish

The path in which Varnish configuration files will be stored.

    varnish_use_default_vcl: true

Whether to use the included (simplistic) default Varnish VCL, using the backend host/port defined with the next two variables. Set this to `false` and copy your own `default.vcl` file into the `varnish_config_path` if you'd like to use a more complicated setup. If this variable is set to `true`, all other configuration will be taken from Varnish's own [default VCL](https://www.varnish-cache.org/trac/browser/bin/varnishd/default.vcl?rev=3.0).

    varnish_default_vcl_template_path: default.vcl.j2

The default VCL file to be copied (if `varnish_use_default_vcl` is `true`). Defaults the the simple template inside `templates/default.vcl.j2`. This path should be relative to the directory from which you run your playbook.

    varnish_listen_port: "80"

The port on which Varnish will listen (typically port 80).

    varnish_default_backend_host: "127.0.0.1"
    varnish_default_backend_port: "8080"

Some settings for the default "default.vcl" template that will be copied to the `varnish_config_path` folder. The default backend host/port could be Apache or Nginx (or some other HTTP server) running on the same host or some other host (in which case, you might use port 80 instead).

    varnish_limit_nofile: 131072

The `nofiles` PAM limit Varnish will attempt to set for open files. The normal default is ~1024 which is much too low for Varnish usage.

    varnish_secret: "14bac2e6-1e34-4770-8078-974373b76c90"

The secret/key to be used for connecting to Varnish's admin backend (for purge requests, etc.).

    varnish_admin_listen_host: "127.0.0.1"
    varnish_admin_listen_port: "6082"

The host and port through which Varnish will accept admin requests (like purge and status requests).

    varnish_storage: "file,/var/lib/varnish/varnish_storage.bin,256M"

How Varnish stores cache entries (this is passed in as the argument for `-s`). If you want to use in-memory storage, change to something like `malloc,256M`. Please read Varnish's [Getting Started guide](http://book.varnish-software.com/4.0/chapters/Getting_Started.html) for more information.

    varnish_pidfile: /run/varnishd.pid

Varnish PID file path. Set to an empty string if you don't want to use a PID file.

    varnish_enabled_services:
      - varnish

Services that will be started at boot and should be running after this role is complete. You might need to add additional services if required, e.g. `varnishncsa` and `varnishlog`. If set to an empty array, no services will be enabled at startup.

    varnish_backends:
      apache:
        host: 10.0.2.2
        port: 80
      nodejs:
        host: 10.0.2.3
        port: 80
    
    varnish_vhosts:
      example.com:
        backend: apache
      nodejs.example.com:
        backend: nodejs

You can configure multiple backends (and direct traffic from multiple virtual hosts to different backends) using the `varnish_backends` and `varnish_vhosts` variables. If you only use one backend (defined via `varnish_default_backend_host` and `varnish_default_backend_port`), then you do not need to define these variables. Do not add a `www` to the `vhosts` keys; it is added automatically by the `default.vcl.j2` VCL template.

## Dependencies

None.

## Example Playbook

    - hosts: webservers
      vars_files:
        - vars/main.yml
      roles:
        - geerlingguy.varnish

*Inside `vars/main.yml`*:

    varnish_secret: "[secret generated by uuidgen]"
    varnish_default_backend_port: 81
    ... etc ...

## License

MIT / BSD

## Author Information

This role was created in 2014 by [Jeff Geerling](https://www.jeffgeerling.com/), author of [Ansible for DevOps](https://www.ansiblefordevops.com/).