Ansible LEMP WordPress Automation

🚀 Production-ready, fully automated LEMP stack (Linux, Nginx, MySQL, PHP) + WordPress deployment using Ansible

🌐 Other Languages

• 🇩🇪 Deutsch
• 🇭🇺 Magyar

🎯 Features

🏗️ Core Infrastructure

✅ Complete LEMP Stack Installation

• Nginx web server with production-ready optimization
• MySQL 8.0+ with secure setup and performance tuning
• PHP 8.4+ with FPM, OPcache and WordPress extensions
• Ubuntu/Debian family support (20.04, 22.04, 24.04, Debian 11, 12)

🛡️ WordPress & Security

✅ WordPress Automation & Security

• Latest WordPress installation with WP-CLI integration
• Automatic database setup and secure configuration
• Integrated SSL/HTTPS support with Let's Encrypt
• Security hardening (proper file permissions, secure configurations)

⚡ Performance & Caching

✅ Ultimate Performance Optimizations

• Redis object caching for database optimization
• PHP OPcache configuration for improved performance
• MySQL performance tuning with optimized configurations
• Nginx optimization with gzip, caching headers and worker tuning

🔧 Production Features

✅ Production & Development Ready

• Two deployment modes: Basic LEMP + Ultimate Performance
• Docker testing environment for safe testing
• Modular, clean architecture - production-tested and documented
• Idempotent playbooks (safe to run multiple times)
• SSL support integrated in both deployment modes

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Control Machine: Ansible 6.0+ installed
• Target Server: Ubuntu 20.04+ or Debian 11+ with SSH access and sudo privileges
• Network: SSH access (port 22) and web access (ports 80/443)

1. Clone Repository

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/ansible-lemp-wordpress.git
cd ansible-lemp-wordpress

2. Configure Inventory

cp inventory/production.yml.example inventory/production.yml
# Edit inventory/production.yml with your server details

3. Choose Your Deployment Mode

Option A: Basic LEMP + WordPress

# Standard LEMP stack with WordPress
ansible-playbook -i inventory/production.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress.yml

Option B: Ultimate Performance Setup

# LEMP + WordPress + Redis + OPcache + Nginx optimization
ansible-playbook -i inventory/production.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress-ultimate.yml

Option C: With SSL/HTTPS

# Enable SSL during deployment
ansible-playbook -i inventory/production.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress.yml \
  -e "ssl_enabled=true" -e "ssl_email=your-email@domain.com"

# Or with Ultimate Performance + SSL
ansible-playbook -i inventory/production.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress-ultimate.yml \
  -e "ssl_enabled=true" -e "ssl_email=your-email@domain.com"

4. Access Your WordPress Site

• Website: http://your-server-ip (or https:// if SSL enabled)
• Admin Panel: http://your-server-ip/wp-admin
• Default Login: Check your inventory file for wp_admin_user and wp_admin_password

🐳 Docker Testing Environment

Perfect for testing before deploying to production servers:

cd docker/
docker-compose up -d

# Test Basic LEMP deployment
ansible-playbook -i inventory/docker.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress.yml

# Test Ultimate Performance deployment
ansible-playbook -i inventory/docker.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress-ultimate.yml

Access test site: http://localhost:8080

📁 Project Structure

ansible-lemp-wordpress/
├── playbooks/                    # Main Ansible playbooks (PRODUCTION-READY)
│   ├── lemp-wordpress.yml           # Basic LEMP + WordPress deployment
│   └── lemp-wordpress-ultimate.yml  # Ultimate: LEMP + WordPress + Redis + OPcache + Optimization
├── inventory/                    # Server inventory configurations
│   ├── production.yml               # Production server configuration
│   └── docker.yml                   # Docker test environment
├── templates/                    # Jinja2 configuration templates (PRODUCTION-TESTED)
│   ├── wp-config.php.j2            # WordPress configuration
│   ├── wordpress.nginx.j2          # Nginx virtual host (HTTP)
│   ├── wordpress-ssl.nginx.j2      # Nginx virtual host (HTTPS)
│   ├── my.cnf.j2                   # MySQL configuration
│   └── www.conf.j2                 # PHP-FPM pool configuration
├── vars/                        # OS-specific variables
│   └── debian-family.yml           # Debian/Ubuntu variables
├── docker/                      # Docker testing environment
│   ├── docker-compose.yml          # Docker setup
│   ├── Dockerfile                  # Ubuntu test container
│   └── start-services.sh           # Service startup script
└── docs/                        # Documentation
    ├── production-deployment.md
    ├── ssl-setup.md
    └── troubleshooting.md

⚙️ Configuration

Deployment Modes

Basic LEMP Mode (lemp-wordpress.yml)

• Standard LEMP stack (Nginx, MySQL, PHP)
• WordPress with WP-CLI
• SSL support (optional)
• Suitable for small to medium sites

Ultimate Performance Mode (lemp-wordpress-ultimate.yml)

• Everything from Basic mode, plus:
• Redis object caching
• PHP OPcache optimization
• Nginx performance tuning
• MySQL optimization
• Suitable for high-traffic sites

SSL Configuration

Both deployment modes support SSL:

# In inventory/production.yml
wordpress_servers:
  hosts:
    your-server:
      ansible_host: your-ip
      ssl_enabled: true
      ssl_email: your-email@domain.com

Variable Configuration

Essential WordPress Variables:

# WordPress Admin
wp_admin_user: admin              # WordPress admin username
wp_admin_password: "{{ vault_wp_admin_password }}"  # Use Ansible Vault!
wp_admin_email: admin@domain.com  # WordPress admin email
wp_site_title: "My WordPress Site"

# Database
mysql_root_password: "{{ vault_mysql_root_password }}"    # Use Ansible Vault!
wordpress_db_name: wordpress
wordpress_db_user: wordpress
wordpress_db_password: "{{ vault_wordpress_db_password }}" # Use Ansible Vault!

# SSL (optional)
ssl_enabled: false
ssl_email: admin@domain.com

Performance Variables (Ultimate Mode):

# Redis Configuration
redis_enabled: true
redis_maxmemory: 256mb

# PHP Optimization
php_memory_limit: 512M
php_upload_max_filesize: 128M
php_opcache_enabled: true

# Nginx Optimization
nginx_worker_processes: auto
nginx_optimization_enabled: true

Server Requirements

• OS: Ubuntu 20.04+ or Debian 11+
• RAM: Minimum 1GB (2GB+ recommended for Ultimate mode)
• Storage: Minimum 10GB free space
• Network: SSH access + web ports (80/443)

🔒 Security & Best Practices

Security Features

• Secure password handling with Ansible Vault
• Proper file permissions for WordPress and system files
• MySQL security with custom root password and restricted access
• Nginx security headers and configuration hardening
• SSL/HTTPS support with Let's Encrypt integration

Best Practices

# Use Ansible Vault for sensitive data
ansible-vault create inventory/group_vars/all/vault.yml

# Example vault.yml content:
vault_mysql_root_password: "your-secure-mysql-password"
vault_wp_admin_password: "your-secure-wp-password"
vault_wordpress_db_password: "your-secure-db-password"

# Deploy with vault
ansible-playbook -i inventory/production.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress.yml --ask-vault-pass

🧪 Testing

Pre-deployment Testing

# Test with Docker first
cd docker/
docker-compose up -d
ansible-playbook -i inventory/docker.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress.yml

# Access test environment
curl -I http://localhost:8080/

Validation Commands

# Check WordPress installation
curl -s http://your-server/ | grep "WordPress"

# Test admin access
curl -I http://your-server/wp-admin/

# Check PHP version
ansible all -i inventory/production.yml -m shell -a "php --version"

# Test MySQL connection
ansible all -i inventory/production.yml -m shell -a "mysql -u root -p{{ vault_mysql_root_password }} -e 'SELECT VERSION();'"

🔒 Security

🚀 Performance Features

Basic Mode Performance

• PHP-FPM optimization with tuned pool configuration
• MySQL optimization with production-ready settings
• Nginx optimization with gzip compression and caching headers

Ultimate Mode Performance

Everything from Basic mode, plus:

• Redis Object Caching for database query optimization
• PHP OPcache for bytecode caching and improved PHP performance
• Advanced Nginx tuning with worker optimization and connection handling
• MySQL performance tuning with enhanced configurations

Performance Comparison

# Deploy Basic mode
ansible-playbook -i inventory/production.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress.yml

# Deploy Ultimate mode for high-traffic sites
ansible-playbook -i inventory/production.yml playbooks/lemp-wordpress-ultimate.yml

🌍 OS Compatibility

OS	Version	Status	Notes
Ubuntu	25.04	✅ Supported	Interim release
Ubuntu	24.04 LTS	✅ Fully Tested	Recommended
Ubuntu	22.04 LTS	✅ Fully Tested	Recommended
Ubuntu	20.04 LTS	✅ Supported	Tested
Debian	14	🔶 Testing	Forky (upcoming)
Debian	13	✅ Supported	Current stable
Debian	12	✅ Supported	Compatible
Debian	11	✅ Supported	Compatible

📚 Documentation

• Production Deployment Guide
• SSL/Let's Encrypt Setup
• Troubleshooting Guide
• Contributing Guidelines

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guidelines for details.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Test your changes with the Docker environment
4. Submit a pull request

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🙏 Acknowledgments

• WordPress - The amazing CMS
• WP-CLI - WordPress command-line tool
• Ansible - Automation platform
• Community contributors and testers

📞 Support

• 📧 Issues: GitHub Issues
• 📖 Documentation: Wiki
• 💬 Discussions: GitHub Discussions

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👨‍💻 Author

Sebastian Palencsár

• Copyright (c) 2025 Sebastian Palencsár
• GitHub: @spalencsar