Installs core development tools and utilities for software development. This role provides a lightweight foundation for coding without heavy data science dependencies.

For data science tools (Anaconda, Jupyter, R), see the datascience role.

Requirements

Ansible 2.9+
Debian/Ubuntu systems
Root or sudo access

Installed Components

Development Tools

git: Version control system
build-essential: C/C++ compilation tools (gcc, g++, make)
python3: Python 3 interpreter
python3-pip: Python package manager

Node.js

Node.js 22.x: Latest LTS from NodeSource
npm: Node package manager (included with Node.js)
Configured from official NodeSource repository

Variables

Core Settings

Variable	Default	Description
`development_packages`	See defaults	Base packages installed by the role

Dependencies

base role (for core utilities)

Example Playbook

Basic Installation

- hosts: developers
  roles:
    - role: development

Customize packages

- hosts: developers
  roles:
    - role: development
      vars:
        development_packages:
          - git
          - build-essential
          - python3
          - python3-pip

Usage

# Install on specific host
make dev HOST=dev01

# Install only development tools (skip other roles)
ansible-playbook playbooks/development.yml --limit dev01 --tags development

Post-Installation

Verify Installations

git --version
node --version
npm --version
python3 --version

Node.js Usage

# Install packages globally
npm install -g <package>

# Check Node.js version
node --version  # Should show v22.x

Performance Notes

Installation Time

Base packages: 1-2 minutes
Node.js: 1-2 minutes
Total: ~3-5 minutes

Disk Space

Node.js + npm: ~100MB
Build tools: ~50MB
Total: ~150MB

Integration

With Data Science Role

- hosts: datascience_workstation
  roles:
    - role: development      # Core dev tools
    - role: datascience      # Anaconda, Jupyter, R

With Docker

- hosts: fullstack_dev
  roles:
    - role: development
    - role: docker

Troubleshooting

Node.js Version Issues

If Node.js doesn't upgrade to v22:

# Check current version
node --version

# Force reinstall
apt-get remove nodejs
# Re-run playbook

Notes

Node.js 22 is the current LTS version
NodeSource repository is configured for automatic updates
Build tools (gcc, make) are essential for npm native modules
Python 3 is included for development scripts
All installations are idempotent (safe to re-run)

Comparison with Data Science Role

Component	Development Role	Data Science Role
Git	✅	-
Node.js	✅	-
Build Tools	✅	-
Anaconda	❌	✅
Jupyter	❌	✅
R Language	❌	✅
Install Time	~10 min	~30-60 min
Disk Space	~150MB	~3GB

Recommendation: Use development role for general coding. Add datascience role only when needed for data analysis/ML work.

README.md

Role: development

Description