A container-based simulation environment for enterprise Linux infrastructure operations. This project provides Ansible automation for provisioning, patching, hardening, and decommissioning of simulated Linux nodes, along with scripts for scaling and failure simulation.

Overview

The Enterprise Infrastructure Simulator creates a realistic environment for testing and demonstrating infrastructure automation at scale. It uses Docker containers to simulate multiple Linux nodes and provides comprehensive Ansible playbooks for enterprise operations.

Architecture

Container Simulation: Docker-based Linux nodes with realistic configurations
Ansible Automation: Modular playbooks for infrastructure lifecycle management
Dynamic Inventory: Automated host discovery and grouping
Simulation Scripts: Automated scaling and failure injection
Scenario Management: Pre-defined operational scenarios

Quick Start

Prerequisites

Docker and Docker Compose
Ansible 2.9+
Make

Setup

# Clone and navigate to project
cd enterprise-infra-simulator

# Start the infrastructure
make up

# Verify deployment
ansible -i inventory/hosts.ini all -m ping

Available Operations

Infrastructure Management

# Provision new nodes
ansible-playbook -i inventory/hosts.ini playbooks/provision.yml

# Apply security patches
make patch

# Harden systems
ansible-playbook -i inventory/hosts.ini playbooks/harden.yml

# Decommission nodes
ansible-playbook -i inventory/hosts.ini playbooks/decommission.yml

# Destroy infrastructure
make destroy

Simulation Operations

# Scale up infrastructure
./scripts/simulate_scaling.sh up 5

# Simulate network failure
./scripts/simulate_failure.sh --type network --duration 300

# Run operational scenario
ansible-playbook -i inventory/hosts.ini scenarios/scaling_event.yml

Project Structure

enterprise-infra-simulator/
├── inventory/              # Ansible inventory files
│   └── hosts.ini          # Dynamic host inventory
├── playbooks/             # Ansible automation playbooks
│   ├── provision.yml      # Node provisioning
│   ├── patch.yml          # Security patching
│   ├── harden.yml         # Security hardening
│   └── decommission.yml   # Node decommissioning
├── scripts/               # Simulation and utility scripts
│   ├── simulate_scaling.sh    # Infrastructure scaling
│   └── simulate_failure.sh    # Failure injection
├── scenarios/             # Operational scenarios
│   └── scaling_event.yml  # Scaling scenario
├── docker-compose.yml     # Container orchestration
├── Makefile              # Build automation
└── README.md

Inventory Management

The simulator uses dynamic inventory with the following groups:

webservers: Web application servers
databases: Database servers
loadbalancers: Load balancing infrastructure
monitoring: Monitoring and logging servers

Playbooks

Provision Playbook

Creates Docker containers with base Linux configurations
Installs required packages and services
Configures basic networking and security
Registers nodes in inventory

Patch Playbook

Updates system packages
Applies security patches
Restarts services as needed
Generates patch reports

Harden Playbook

Implements CIS security benchmarks
Configures firewall rules
Hardens SSH configuration
Disables unnecessary services

Decommission Playbook

Gracefully stops services
Exports configuration and data
Removes containers
Cleans up inventory

Simulation Scripts

Scaling Simulation

./scripts/simulate_scaling.sh [up|down] [count] [type]

Parameters:

direction: up/down
count: Number of nodes to add/remove
type: Node type (web/db/lb/monitor)

Failure Simulation

./scripts/simulate_failure.sh --type [failure_type] --duration [seconds]

Failure Types:

network: Network connectivity issues
disk: Disk space exhaustion
service: Service failures
node: Complete node outages

Scenarios

Pre-defined operational scenarios for testing:

Scaling Event: Automated scaling during traffic spikes
Disaster Recovery: Node failure and recovery procedures
Maintenance Window: Scheduled patching and updates
Security Incident: Breach simulation and response

Configuration

Environment Variables

# Number of initial nodes
INFRA_NODE_COUNT=3

# Node types to deploy
INFRA_NODE_TYPES=web,db,lb

# Simulation parameters
SIMULATION_DURATION=3600
SIMULATION_INTENSITY=medium

Docker Configuration

Container resources and networking are configured in docker-compose.yml:

services:
  infra-node:
    image: ubuntu:20.04
    deploy:
      replicas: 3
      resources:
        limits:
          memory: 512M
          cpus: '0.5'

Monitoring and Logging

Ansible execution logs: ansible.log
Container logs: docker logs <container-name>
Simulation logs: logs/simulation.log

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Ansible Connection Failures:

# Check container status
docker ps | grep infra-sim

# Verify SSH connectivity
ansible -i inventory/hosts.ini all -m ping

Container Resource Issues:

# Check Docker resources
docker system df

# Clean up containers
docker system prune

Simulation Script Errors:

# Check script permissions
chmod +x scripts/*.sh

# Verify dependencies
./scripts/simulate_failure.sh --help

Development

Adding New Playbooks

Create playbook in playbooks/ directory
Follow Ansible best practices
Test with --check mode
Update documentation

Custom Scenarios

Define scenario in scenarios/ directory
Include required variables
Test with dry-run
Document operational procedures

Security Considerations

Containers run with limited privileges
SSH keys are generated per deployment
Firewall rules are applied automatically
Security scanning integrated in CI/CD

Performance Optimization

Container resource limits prevent resource exhaustion
Ansible parallel execution for faster operations
Efficient failure simulation without full outages
Optimized Docker layer caching

Contributing

Follow existing code structure and naming conventions
Add comprehensive documentation
Include tests for new functionality
Update runbooks for operational changes

License

Enterprise Internal Use Only