Error passing arguments to ansible playbook

Question

I am trying to create a playboook that executes a python3 script with 2 parameters, name and password in localhost. However, when i try to execute the paybook with this command ansible -b --become-user=ras createdeploy.yaml --extra-vars "user=ras pass=ras" I get this error message:

[WARNING]: provided hosts list is empty, only localhost is available. Note that the implicit localhost does not match 'all'

ERROR! Invalid variable name in vars specified for Play: 'pass' is not a valid variable name

The error appears to have been in '/home/ras/createdeploy.yaml': line 3, column 5, but may
be elsewhere in the file depending on the exact syntax problem.

The offending line appears to be:

  vars:
    user: "{{ user }}"
    ^ here
We could be wrong, but this one looks like it might be an issue with
missing quotes.  Always quote template expression brackets when they
start a value. For instance:

    with_items:
      - {{ foo }}

Should be written as:

    with_items:
      - "{{ foo }}"

Here you are the .yaml file:

- hosts: all
  vars:
    user: "{{ user }}"
    pass: "{{ pass }}"

  tasks:
    - name: Stop services
      shell: "bash stopservices.sh"

    - name: Edit real hosts file
      shell: "bash editrealmachinehosts.sh"

    - name: Create dirs and cloning
      command: python3 user pass

Answer 1

I'd suggest that you first put some default values within the playbook (if you explicitly want your variables there, for the purpose of .. reducing interactivity/command line args lets say):

- hosts: all
  vars:
    user: greatuser
    passa: greatpassword

Second, I'm pretty sure that pass is a reserved word somewhere, although I'm failing to find it in the documentation. That's why I've changed your variable to passa. The final version of your playbook should look like this:

- hosts: all
  vars:
     user: greatuser
     passa: greatpassword

  tasks:
     - name: Stop services
       shell: "bash stopservices.sh"

     - name: Edit real hosts file
       shell: "bash editrealmachinehosts.sh"

     - name: Create dirs and cloning
       command: python3 {{ user }} {{ passa }}

Note the way used to reference to the username and password variables in the third task - {{ variable }} instead of variable.

Execute your playbook with the following command:

ansible-playbook createdeploy.yaml --extra-vars "user=ras passa=ras" -b --become-user=ras

As your target host is actually localhost (if I did understood you correctly), and since you're not showing your inventory file, I'd like to suggest that you might have to add -c local to the list of arguments of your ansible-playbook command.