knife node
knife node
subcommand to manage the nodes that exist on a Chef
Infra Server.Note
bulk delete
Use the bulk delete
argument to delete one or more nodes that match a
pattern defined by a regular expression. The regular expression must be
within quotes and not be surrounded by forward slashes (/).
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node bulk delete REGEX
Options
This command does not have any specific options.
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Bulk delete nodes
Use a regular expression to define the pattern used to bulk delete nodes:
knife node bulk delete "^[0-9]{3}$"
Type Y
to confirm a deletion.
create
Use the create
argument to add a node to the Chef Infra Server. Node
data is stored as JSON on the Chef Infra Server.
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node create NODE_NAME
Options
This command does not have any specific options.
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Create a node
To add a node named node1
, enter:
knife node create node1
In the $EDITOR enter the node data in JSON:
{
"normal": {
},
"name": "foobar",
"override": {
},
"default": {
},
"json_class": "Chef::Node",
"automatic": {
},
"run_list": [
"recipe[zsh]",
"role[webserver]"
],
"chef_type": "node"
}
When finished, save it.
delete
Use the delete
argument to delete a node from the Chef Infra Server.
If using Chef Infra Client 12.17 or later, you can delete multiple nodes using
this subcommand.
Note
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node delete NODE_NAME
Options
This command does not have any specific options.
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Delete a node
To delete a node named node1
, enter:
knife node delete node1
edit
Use the edit
argument to edit the details of a node on a Chef Infra
Server. Node data is stored as JSON on the Chef Infra Server.
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node edit NODE_NAME (options)
Options
This argument has the following options:
-a
,--all
Display a node in the $EDITOR. By default, attributes that are default, override, or automatic, are not shown.
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Edit a node
To edit the data for a node named node1
, enter:
knife node edit node1 -a
Update the role data in JSON:
{
"normal": {
},
"name": "node1",
"override": {
},
"default": {
},
"json_class": "Chef::Node",
"automatic": {
},
"run_list": [
"recipe[devops]",
"role[webserver]"
],
"chef_type": "node"
}
When finished, save it.
environment set
Use the environment set
argument to set the environment for a node
without editing the node object.
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node environment_set NODE_NAME ENVIRONMENT_NAME (options)
Options
This command does not have any specific options.
Examples
None.
from file
Use the from file
argument to create a node using existing node data
as a template.
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node from file FILE
Options
This command does not have any specific options.
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Create a node using a JSON file
To add a node using data contained in a JSON file:
knife node from file "PATH_TO_JSON_FILE"
list
Use the list
argument to view the nodes that exist on a Chef
Infra Server.
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node list (options)
Options
This argument has the following options:
-w
,--with-uri
Show the corresponding URIs.
Note
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
View a list of nodes
To verify the list of nodes that are registered with the Chef Infra Server, enter:
knife node list
to return something similar to:
i-12345678
rs-123456
policy set
Use the policy set
argument to set the policy group and policy name
for a node.
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node policy set NODE POLICY_GROUP POLICY_NAME
Examples
Set the policy group and policy name for a node named test-node
:
knife node policy set test-node 'test-group' 'test-name'
run_list add
A run-list defines all of the information necessary for Chef to configure a node into the desired state. A run-list is:
- An ordered list of roles and/or recipes that are run in the exact order defined in the run-list; if a recipe appears more than once in the run-list, Chef Infra Client will not run it twice
- Always specific to the node on which it runs; nodes may have a run-list that is identical to the run-list used by other nodes
- Stored as part of the node object on the Chef server
- Maintained using knife and then uploaded from the workstation to the Chef Infra Server, or maintained using Chef Automate
run_list add
argument to add run-list items (roles or recipes)
to a node.A run-list must be in one of the following formats: fully qualified, cookbook, or default. Both roles and recipes must be in quotes, for example:
"role[NAME]"
or
"recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE]"
Use a comma to separate roles and recipes when adding more than one item the run-list:
"recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE],COOKBOOK::RECIPE,role[NAME]"
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node run_list add NODE_NAME RUN_LIST_ITEM (options)
Warning
When running knife in Windows, a string may be interpreted as a wildcard pattern when quotes are not present in the command. The number of quotes to use depends on the shell from which the command is being run.
When running knife from the command prompt, a string should be
surrounded by single quotes (' '
). For example:
knife node run_list set test-node 'recipe[iptables]'
When running knife from Windows PowerShell, a string should be
surrounded by triple single quotes (''' '''
). For example:
knife node run_list set test-node '''recipe[iptables]'''
Note
The Chef Infra Client 12.4 release adds an optional feature to the Microsoft
Installer Package (MSI) for Chef. This feature enables the ability to
pass quoted strings from the Windows PowerShell command line without the
need for triple single quotes (''' '''
). This feature installs a
Windows PowerShell module (typically in C:\opscode\chef\modules
) that
is also appended to the PSModulePath
environment variable. This
feature is not enabled by default. To activate this feature, run the
following command from within Windows PowerShell:
Import-Module chef
or add Import-Module chef
to the profile for Windows PowerShell
located at:
~\Documents\WindowsPowerShell\Microsoft.PowerShell_profile.ps1
This module exports cmdlets that have the same name as the command-line tools—chef-client, knife—that are built into Chef.
For example:
knife exec -E 'puts ARGV' """&s0meth1ng"""
is now:
knife exec -E 'puts ARGV' '&s0meth1ng'
and:
knife node run_list set test-node '''role[ssssssomething]'''
is now:
knife node run_list set test-node 'role[ssssssomething]'
To remove this feature, run the following command from within Windows PowerShell:
Remove-Module chef
Options
This argument has the following options:
-a ITEM
,--after ITEM
Add a run-list item after the specified run-list item.
-b ITEM
,--before ITEM
Add a run-list item before the specified run-list item.
Note
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Add a role
To add a role to a run-list, enter:
knife node run_list add NODE_NAME 'role[ROLE_NAME]'
Add roles and recipes
To add roles and recipes to a run-list, enter:
knife node run_list add NODE_NAME 'recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME],recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME],role[ROLE_NAME]'
Add a recipe with a FQDN
To add a recipe to a run-list using the fully qualified format, enter:
knife node run_list add NODE_NAME 'recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME]'
Add a recipe with a cookbook
To add a recipe to a run-list using the cookbook format, enter:
knife node run_list add NODE_NAME 'COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME'
Add the default recipe
To add the default recipe of a cookbook to a run-list, enter:
knife node run_list add NODE_NAME 'COOKBOOK'
run_list remove
Use therun_list remove
argument to remove run-list items (roles or
recipes) from a node. A recipe must be in one of the following formats:
fully qualified, cookbook, or default. Both roles and recipes must be in
quotes, for example: 'role[ROLE_NAME]'
or
'recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME]'
. Use a comma to separate roles and
recipes when removing more than one, like this:
'recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME],COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME,role[ROLE_NAME]'
.Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node run_list remove NODE_NAME RUN_LIST_ITEM
Options
This command does not have any specific options.
Note
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Remove a role
To remove a role from a run-list, enter:
knife node run_list remove NODE_NAME 'role[ROLE_NAME]'
Remove a run-list
To remove a recipe from a run-list using the fully qualified format, enter:
knife node run_list remove NODE_NAME 'recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME]'
run_list set
Use therun_list set
argument to set the run-list for a node. A recipe
must be in one of the following formats: fully qualified, cookbook, or
default. Both roles and recipes must be in quotes, for example:
"role[ROLE_NAME]"
or "recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME]"
. Use a comma to
separate roles and recipes when setting more than one, like this:
"recipe[COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME],COOKBOOK::RECIPE_NAME,role[ROLE_NAME]"
.Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node run_list set NODE_NAME RUN_LIST_ITEM
Warning
When running knife in Windows, a string may be interpreted as a wildcard pattern when quotes are not present in the command. The number of quotes to use depends on the shell from which the command is being run.
When running knife from the command prompt, a string should be
surrounded by single quotes (' '
). For example:
knife node run_list set test-node 'recipe[iptables]'
When running knife from Windows PowerShell, a string should be
surrounded by triple single quotes (''' '''
). For example:
knife node run_list set test-node '''recipe[iptables]'''
Note
The Chef Infra Client 12.4 release adds an optional feature to the Microsoft
Installer Package (MSI) for Chef. This feature enables the ability to
pass quoted strings from the Windows PowerShell command line without the
need for triple single quotes (''' '''
). This feature installs a
Windows PowerShell module (typically in C:\opscode\chef\modules
) that
is also appended to the PSModulePath
environment variable. This
feature is not enabled by default. To activate this feature, run the
following command from within Windows PowerShell:
Import-Module chef
or add Import-Module chef
to the profile for Windows PowerShell
located at:
~\Documents\WindowsPowerShell\Microsoft.PowerShell_profile.ps1
This module exports cmdlets that have the same name as the command-line tools—chef-client, knife—that are built into Chef.
For example:
knife exec -E 'puts ARGV' """&s0meth1ng"""
is now:
knife exec -E 'puts ARGV' '&s0meth1ng'
and:
knife node run_list set test-node '''role[ssssssomething]'''
is now:
knife node run_list set test-node 'role[ssssssomething]'
To remove this feature, run the following command from within Windows PowerShell:
Remove-Module chef
Options
This command does not have any specific options.
Examples
None.
show
Use the show
argument to display information about a node.
Syntax
This argument has the following syntax:
knife node show NODE_NAME (options)
Options
This argument has the following options:
-a ATTR
,--attribute ATTR
The attribute (or attributes) to show.
-F json
,--format=json
Display output as JSON.
-l
,--long
Display all attributes in the output.
-m
,--medium
Display normal attributes in the output.
-r
,--run-list
Show only the run-list.
Examples
The following examples show how to use this knife subcommand:
Show all data about nodes
To view all data for a node named build
, enter:
knife node show build
to return:
Node Name: build
Environment: _default
FQDN:
IP:
Run List:
Roles:
Recipes:
Platform:
Show basic information about nodes
To show basic information about a node, that is truncated and formatted:
knife node show NODE_NAME
Show all data about nodes, truncated
To show all information about a node, formatted:
knife node show -l NODE_NAME
Show attributes
To list a single node attribute:
knife node show NODE_NAME -a ATTRIBUTE_NAME
where ATTRIBUTE_NAME
is something like kernel
or platform
.
To list a nested attribute:
knife node show NODE_NAME -a ATTRIBUTE_NAME.NESTED_ATTRIBUTE_NAME
where ATTRIBUTE_NAME
is something like kernel
and
NESTED_ATTRIBUTE_NAME
is something like machine
.
Show the FQDN
To view the FQDN for a node named i-12345678
, enter:
knife node show i-12345678 -a fqdn
to return:
fqdn: ip-10-251-75-20.ec2.internal
Show a run-list
To view the run-list for a node named dev
, enter:
knife node show dev -r
Show as JSON data
To view information in JSON format, use the -F
common option; use a
command like this for a node named devops
:
knife node show devops -F json
Other formats available include text
, yaml
, and pp
.
Show as raw JSON data
To view node information in raw JSON, use the -l
or --long
option:
knife node show -l -F json NODE_NAME
and/or:
knife node show -l --format=json NODE_NAME