Ansible's power lies in its ability to automate repetitive tasks, but what happens when you need to perform actions based on the existence of a file? That's where the `stat` module comes in handy! With `stat`, you can easily check if a file or directory exists on a remote host before proceeding with subsequent tasks.
Here's a quick example:
```yaml
- name: Check if a file exists
stat:
path: /path/to/your/file.txt
register: file_status
- name: Do something if the file exists
debug:
msg: "File exists! Time to rock!"
when: file_status.stat.exists
- name: Do something else if it doesn't exist
debug:
msg: "File doesn't exist. Creating it..."
when: not file_status.stat.exists
```
In this snippet, we first use the `stat` module to check the existence of `/path/to/your/file.txt`. The results are registered into the `file_status` variable. We then use the `when` conditional, combined with `file_status.stat.exists`, to execute different tasks based on the file's presence. Mastering this simple technique is key to writing robust and adaptable Ansible playbooks!
