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The AWX CLI (awx) is the official command-line interface for Ansible AWX, providing programmatic access to AWX resources through a simple and intuitive command structure.

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Overview

The awxkit package provides:
  • awx - The main CLI tool for interacting with AWX/Ansible Automation Platform
  • akit - An interactive Python session with awxkit loaded
The CLI is built on top of the awxkit Python library and provides HTTP OPTIONS-based resource discovery and action mapping.

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Requirements

  • Python: 3.11 or higher (Python 3.11 and 3.12 are officially supported)
  • Operating System: Linux or macOS
  • Network Access: Connection to an AWX or Ansible Automation Platform instance

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Installation Methods

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Install from PyPI

The recommended way to install the AWX CLI is via pip:

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Install from GitHub

To install a specific version matching your AWX deployment:
Replace $VERSION with your AWX version (e.g., 23.4.0). To see all available releases, visit: https://github.com/ansible/awx/releases

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Install from Source

For development or customization:

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Core Dependencies

The following dependencies are automatically installed:
  • PyYAML - YAML parsing support
  • requests - HTTP client library
  • setuptools - Python package utilities

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Optional Dependencies

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Output Formatting

For advanced JSON output filtering with jq:
The jq extra requires libtool and other build dependencies on some platforms. See jq PyPI page for platform-specific requirements.

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WebSocket Support

For real-time job output monitoring via WebSockets:

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Cryptography

For additional cryptographic functionality:

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Install All Optional Features

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Verify Installation

After installation, verify the CLI is available:
This should display the installed version of awxkit.

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Platform-Specific Notes

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Linux

On most Linux distributions, you can install directly with pip. Some distributions may require:

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macOS

On macOS, use Homebrew’s Python or the system Python:

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Virtual Environments

It’s recommended to use virtual environments to avoid conflicts:

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Ansible Automation Platform Considerations

When using AWX CLI with Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.5 and later, you must set an environment variable:
Add this to your shell profile (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc) to make it persistent:

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Upgrade AWX CLI

To upgrade to the latest version:
To upgrade to a specific version:

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Uninstall

To remove the AWX CLI:

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Next Steps

After installation, proceed to:
  • Configuration - Set up authentication and connection settings
  • Usage - Learn basic CLI commands and patterns
  • Commands - Explore available resources and actions