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Rocky Linux images

Rocky Linux images provide an Enterprise Linux compatible base for Ansible automation. They are useful when your control-node tooling, compliance expectations, or package choices align with the RHEL-compatible ecosystem.

The supported Rocky Linux base is Rocky Linux 10.

Available Rocky Linux tags

Base image Supported tags
Rocky Linux 10 2.21-rockylinux-10, 2.20-rockylinux-10, 2.19-rockylinux-10, 2.18-rockylinux-10

See the complete supported tag matrix for all operating systems.

Pull a Rocky Linux image

docker pull willhallonline/ansible:2.21-rockylinux-10

docker pull willhallonline/ansible:2.20-rockylinux-10

docker pull willhallonline/ansible:2.18-rockylinux-10

Run Ansible from a Rocky Linux image

docker run --rm -it   -v "$PWD:/work"   -w /work   willhallonline/ansible:2.21-rockylinux-10   ansible-playbook -i inventory site.yml

Run an ad hoc connectivity check:

docker run --rm -it   -v "$PWD:/work"   -w /work   willhallonline/ansible:2.21-rockylinux-10   ansible all -i inventory -m ping

Characteristics

Property Rocky Linux images
Package manager dnf
C library glibc
Base Rocky Linux 10
Best fit Enterprise Linux compatible workflows
Watch point Larger than Alpine and different package names from Debian/Ubuntu

Rocky Linux is a good match when you manage Enterprise Linux fleets and want the container control node to feel close to the managed hosts. It is also useful when internal security or compliance documentation expects RHEL-compatible commands and package names.

What's included

Each Rocky Linux image includes:

  • ansible-core from PyPI;
  • the ansible community package from PyPI;
  • ansible-lint from PyPI;
  • Python; and
  • the tooling needed to run Ansible against remote hosts.

The supporting tooling is selected for Ansible control-node operation, including remote connectivity, Git workflows, and common runtime dependencies. See what's inside for more detail.

When to choose Rocky Linux

Choose Rocky Linux when:

  • your organization standardizes on Enterprise Linux compatible distributions;
  • your playbook development mirrors RHEL-like managed nodes;
  • you need dnf and RPM packaging in your custom image;
  • internal documentation assumes RHEL-compatible commands; or
  • you want all current Ansible streams on the same Rocky Linux base.

Consider another family when:

  • image size is the most important constraint;
  • your project uses Debian or Ubuntu package names in wrapper scripts;
  • you want slim Debian variants; or
  • you need Alpine's minimal footprint.

Match your managed environment

If most of your managed hosts are Enterprise Linux systems, using a Rocky Linux control-node image can make local testing and dependency installation easier to reason about.

Extending Rocky Linux images

Use dnf for operating system packages:

FROM willhallonline/ansible:2.21-rockylinux-10

RUN dnf install -y jq     && dnf clean all

Install Python tools only when the project needs them:

FROM willhallonline/ansible:2.21-rockylinux-10

RUN pip install --no-cache-dir molecule

See extending images for additional patterns.

Dockerfile

The Rocky Linux Dockerfile is in the upstream repository under ansible-core/: