vmtemplate
Installation
Entrypoint
Types
Vmtemplate

vmtemplate

Packer and Vault, optionally driven by Git-hosted configurations.

This module is designed for infrastructure automation involving dynamic VM
image generation in vSphere environments. It supports building templates via
Packer with secure secret injection from Vault (AppRole or token-based),
optionally sourcing the build configuration from a Git repository.

The primary function RunVsphereWorkflow orchestrates this process. It clones
a Packer configuration from Git or uses a provided local directory, then
invokes the Bake function to initialize and optionally build the template.
Secrets such as vSphere credentials or config values are fetched from Vault
and injected securely into the Packer process.

This module is well-suited for use within Dagger-based CI/CD pipelines or
automated image delivery systems. Its integration with Vault ensures secrets
never touch the disk, while Git integration makes the workflow reproducible.

Future enhancements planned include:
- Creating and validating test VMs from newly built templates
- Running Ansible-based verification and post-provisioning logic
- Performing automated template promotion and cleanup
- Supporting versioned GitOps-style workflows for image release

This documentation provides an overview of the current implementation and
serves as a foundation for extending the VM lifecycle automation further.

Installation

dagger install github.com/stuttgart-things/blueprints/vmtemplate@v1.72.0

Entrypoint

Return Type

Vmtemplate

Example

dagger -m github.com/stuttgart-things/blueprints/vmtemplate@f3d10202deba4f1726692e874a8eb109b33b4184 call \

func (m *MyModule) Example() *dagger.Vmtemplate  {
	return dag.
			Vmtemplate()
}

@function
def example() -> dagger.Vmtemplate:
	return (
		dag.vmtemplate()
	)

@func()
example(): Vmtemplate {
	return dag
		.vmtemplate()
}

Types

Vmtemplate 🔗

bake() 🔗

Return Type

String !

Arguments

Name	Type	Default Value	Description
packerConfigDir	Directory !	-	No description provided
packerConfig	String !	-	No description provided
packerVersion	String	"1.13.1"	The Packer version to use
arch	String	"linux_amd64"	The Packer arch
initOnly	Boolean	false	If true, only init packer w/out build
vaultAddr	String	-	vaultAddr
vaultRoleId	Secret	-	vaultRoleID
vaultSecretId	Secret	-	vaultSecretID
vaultToken	Secret	-	vaultToken

Example

dagger -m github.com/stuttgart-things/blueprints/vmtemplate@f3d10202deba4f1726692e874a8eb109b33b4184 call \
 bake --packer-config-dir DIR_PATH --packer-config string

func (m *MyModule) Example(ctx context.Context, packerConfigDir *dagger.Directory, packerConfig string) string  {
	return dag.
			Vmtemplate().
			Bake(ctx, packerConfigDir, packerConfig)
}

@function
async def example(packer_config_dir: dagger.Directory, packer_config: str) -> str:
	return await (
		dag.vmtemplate()
		.bake(packer_config_dir, packer_config)
	)

@func()
async example(packerConfigDir: Directory, packerConfig: string): Promise<string> {
	return dag
		.vmtemplate()
		.bake(packerConfigDir, packerConfig)
}

cloneGitRepository() 🔗

Return Type

Directory !

Arguments

Name	Type	Default Value	Description
scm	String	"github"	Source code management (SCM) version to use
repository	String !	-	No description provided
token	Secret !	-	No description provided

Example

dagger -m github.com/stuttgart-things/blueprints/vmtemplate@f3d10202deba4f1726692e874a8eb109b33b4184 call \
 clone-git-repository --repository string --token env:MYSECRET

func (m *MyModule) Example(repository string, token *dagger.Secret) *dagger.Directory  {
	return dag.
			Vmtemplate().
			CloneGitRepository(repository, token)
}

@function
def example(repository: str, token: dagger.Secret) -> dagger.Directory:
	return (
		dag.vmtemplate()
		.clone_git_repository(repository, token)
	)

@func()
example(repository: string, token: Secret): Directory {
	return dag
		.vmtemplate()
		.cloneGitRepository(repository, token)
}

renderAndCommit() 🔗

RenderAndCommit renders templates and optionally commits the result to a GitHub branch with an optional pull request.

Return Type

Directory !

Arguments

Name	Type	Default Value	Description
packerTemplatesDir	Directory !	-	Directory containing packer template files (.tmpl)
packerTemplates	String !	-	Comma-separated list of packer template files to render
testVmTemplatesDir	Directory	-	Directory containing test VM template files (.tmpl)
testVmTemplates	String	-	Comma-separated list of test VM template files to render
buildDir	Directory !	-	Directory containing build-specific variables and static files
envDir	Directory	-	Additional directory containing shared variable files (e.g., environment configs)
variablesFiles	String !	-	Comma-separated list of YAML variable files to merge, in priority order (last wins)
overrides	String	-	Comma-separated key=value overrides with highest priority (e.g., "isoChecksum=abc123,cpus=16")
repository	String	-	GitHub repository (e.g., "stuttgart-things/stuttgart-things")
token	Secret	-	GitHub authentication token
branchName	String	-	Branch name for the commit
baseBranch	String	"main"	Base branch to create from
createBranch	Boolean	false	Create a new branch before committing
commitConfig	Boolean	false	Commit rendered files to the branch
createPullRequest	Boolean	false	Create a pull request after committing
commitMessage	String	-	Commit message
packerDestinationPath	String	-	Destination path in the repository for packer files
testVmDestinationPath	String	-	Destination path in the repository for test VM files
pullRequestTitle	String	-	Pull request title
pullRequestBody	String	-	Pull request body

Example

dagger -m github.com/stuttgart-things/blueprints/vmtemplate@f3d10202deba4f1726692e874a8eb109b33b4184 call \
 render-and-commit --packer-templates-dir DIR_PATH --packer-templates string --build-dir DIR_PATH --variables-files string

func (m *MyModule) Example(packerTemplatesDir *dagger.Directory, packerTemplates string, buildDir *dagger.Directory, variablesFiles string) *dagger.Directory  {
	return dag.
			Vmtemplate().
			RenderAndCommit(packerTemplatesDir, packerTemplates, buildDir, variablesFiles)
}

@function
def example(packer_templates_dir: dagger.Directory, packer_templates: str, build_dir: dagger.Directory, variables_files: str) -> dagger.Directory:
	return (
		dag.vmtemplate()
		.render_and_commit(packer_templates_dir, packer_templates, build_dir, variables_files)
	)

@func()
example(packerTemplatesDir: Directory, packerTemplates: string, buildDir: Directory, variablesFiles: string): Directory {
	return dag
		.vmtemplate()
		.renderAndCommit(packerTemplatesDir, packerTemplates, buildDir, variablesFiles)
}

renderBuildConfig() 🔗

RenderBuildConfig renders templates by merging multiple YAML variable files (environment + OS + build overrides) into a single context. Later files override earlier ones. Returns a directory with rendered files.

Return Type

Directory !

Arguments

Name	Type	Default Value	Description
templatesDir	Directory !	-	Directory containing the template files (.tmpl)
templates	String !	-	Comma-separated list of template files to render
buildDir	Directory !	-	Directory containing build-specific variable files and static files
variablesFiles	String !	-	Comma-separated list of YAML variable files to merge, in order of priority (last wins)
envDir	Directory	-	Additional directory containing shared variable files (e.g., environment configs)
overrides	String	-	Comma-separated key=value overrides with highest priority (e.g., "isoChecksum=abc123,cpus=16")

Example

dagger -m github.com/stuttgart-things/blueprints/vmtemplate@f3d10202deba4f1726692e874a8eb109b33b4184 call \
 render-build-config --templates-dir DIR_PATH --templates string --build-dir DIR_PATH --variables-files string

func (m *MyModule) Example(templatesDir *dagger.Directory, templates string, buildDir *dagger.Directory, variablesFiles string) *dagger.Directory  {
	return dag.
			Vmtemplate().
			RenderBuildConfig(templatesDir, templates, buildDir, variablesFiles)
}

@function
def example(templates_dir: dagger.Directory, templates: str, build_dir: dagger.Directory, variables_files: str) -> dagger.Directory:
	return (
		dag.vmtemplate()
		.render_build_config(templates_dir, templates, build_dir, variables_files)
	)

@func()
example(templatesDir: Directory, templates: string, buildDir: Directory, variablesFiles: string): Directory {
	return dag
		.vmtemplate()
		.renderBuildConfig(templatesDir, templates, buildDir, variablesFiles)
}

runVsphereWorkflow() 🔗

Return Type

String !

Arguments

Name	Type	Default Value	Description
packerConfig	String !	-	The Packer configuration file name (after rendering, e.g., "vsphere-base-os.pkr.hcl")
packerVersion	String	"1.13.1"	The Packer version to use
arch	String	"linux_amd64"	The Packer arch
initOnly	Boolean	false	If true, only init packer w/out build
vaultAddr	String	-	vaultAddr
vaultRoleId	Secret	-	vaultRoleID
vaultSecretId	Secret	-	vaultSecretID
vaultToken	Secret	-	vaultToken
packerTemplatesDir	Directory !	-	Directory containing packer template files (.tmpl), e.g., packer/templates/packer
packerTemplates	String !	-	Comma-separated list of packer template files to render (e.g., "vsphere-base-os.pkr.hcl.tmpl,user-data.tmpl")
testVmTemplatesDir	Directory	-	Directory containing test VM template files (.tmpl), e.g., packer/templates/test-vm
testVmTemplates	String	-	Comma-separated list of test VM template files to render (e.g., "test-vm.tf.tmpl,state.tf.tmpl")
buildDir	Directory !	-	Directory containing build-specific variables and static files (e.g., base-os.yaml, meta-data)
envDir	Directory	-	Directory containing shared environment variable files (e.g., packer/environments)
variablesFiles	String !	-	Comma-separated list of YAML variable files to merge, in priority order (last wins)
overrides	String	-	Comma-separated key=value overrides with highest priority (e.g., "isoChecksum=abc123,cpus=16")
testVm	Boolean	false	Enable test VM creation and validation before promotion
testPlaybooks	String	-	Comma-separated Ansible playbook paths for test VM validation
testRequirements	File	-	Ansible requirements file for test playbooks
ansibleWaitTimeout	Integer	30	Seconds to wait for test VM before running Ansible
sshUser	Secret	-	SSH user for test VM
sshPassword	Secret	-	SSH password for test VM
ansibleParameters	String	-	Ansible parameters for test playbooks (e.g., "key1=value1,key2=value2")
ansibleInventoryType	String	"simple"	Ansible inventory type: "simple" or "cluster"
promoteTemplate	Boolean	false	Enable golden image promotion (rename, move, delete old)
goldenTemplateName	String	-	Target name for the golden template (e.g., "ubuntu25-base")
goldenTemplateFolder	String	-	vCenter folder to move the golden template to (e.g., "/LabUL/vm/golden")
vcenter	Secret	-	vCenter URL for govc operations
vcenterUsername	Secret	-	vCenter username for govc operations
vcenterPassword	Secret	-	vCenter password for govc operations

Example

dagger -m github.com/stuttgart-things/blueprints/vmtemplate@f3d10202deba4f1726692e874a8eb109b33b4184 call \
 run-vsphere-workflow --packer-config string --packer-templates-dir DIR_PATH --packer-templates string --build-dir DIR_PATH --variables-files string

func (m *MyModule) Example(ctx context.Context, packerConfig string, packerTemplatesDir *dagger.Directory, packerTemplates string, buildDir *dagger.Directory, variablesFiles string) string  {
	return dag.
			Vmtemplate().
			RunVsphereWorkflow(ctx, packerConfig, packerTemplatesDir, packerTemplates, buildDir, variablesFiles)
}

@function
async def example(packer_config: str, packer_templates_dir: dagger.Directory, packer_templates: str, build_dir: dagger.Directory, variables_files: str) -> str:
	return await (
		dag.vmtemplate()
		.run_vsphere_workflow(packer_config, packer_templates_dir, packer_templates, build_dir, variables_files)
	)

@func()
async example(packerConfig: string, packerTemplatesDir: Directory, packerTemplates: string, buildDir: Directory, variablesFiles: string): Promise<string> {
	return dag
		.vmtemplate()
		.runVsphereWorkflow(packerConfig, packerTemplatesDir, packerTemplates, buildDir, variablesFiles)
}