..
   THIS DOCUMENT IS AUTOMATICALLY GENERATED BY ANTSIBULL! PLEASE DO NOT EDIT MANUALLY! (YOU PROBABLY WANT TO EDIT porting_guide_core_2.19.rst)

.. _porting_12_guide:

========================
Ansible 12 Porting Guide
========================

.. contents::
  :depth: 2


Ansible 12 is based on Ansible-core 2.19.

We suggest you read this page along with the `Ansible 12 Changelog <https://github.com/ansible-community/ansible-build-data/blob/main/12/CHANGELOG-v12.md>`_ to understand what updates you may need to make.

Introduction
============

This release includes an overhaul of the templating system and a new feature dubbed Data Tagging.
These changes enable reporting of numerous problematic behaviors that went undetected in previous releases,
with wide-ranging positive effects on security, performance, and user experience.

Backward compatibility has been preserved where practical, but some breaking changes were necessary.
This guide describes some common problem scenarios with example content, error messsages, and suggested solutions.

We recommend you test your playbooks and roles in a staging environment with this release to determine where you may need to make changes.

Playbook
========

Broken Conditionals
-------------------

Broken conditionals occur when the input expression or template is not a string, or the result is not a boolean.
Python and Jinja provide implicit "truthy" evaluation of most non-empty non-boolean values in conditional expressions.
While sometimes desirable for brevity, truthy conditional evaluation often masks serious logic errors in playbooks that
could not be reliably detected by previous versions of ``ansible-core``.

Changes to templating in this release detects non-boolean conditionals during expression evaluation and reports an error
by default. The error can be temporarily reduced to a warning with the ``ALLOW_BROKEN_CONDITIONALS`` config setting.

The following examples are derived from broken conditionals that masked logic errors in actual playbooks.


Example - implicit boolean conversion
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This expression relies on an implicit truthy evaluation of ``inventory_hostname``.
An explicit predicate with a boolean result, such as ``| length > 0`` or ``is truthy``, should be used instead.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: inventory_hostname

The error reported is:

.. code-block:: text

    Conditional result was 'localhost' of type 'str', which evaluates to True. Conditionals must have a boolean result.


This can be resolved by using an explicit boolean conversion:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: inventory_hostname | length > 0


Example - unintentional truthy conditional
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The second part of this conditional is erroneously quoted.
The quoted part becomes the expression result (evaluated as truthy), so the expression can never be ``False``.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: inventory_hostname is defined and 'inventory_hostname | length > 0'


The error reported is:

.. code-block:: text

    Conditional result was 'inventory_hostname | length > 0' of type 'str', which evaluates to True. Conditionals must have a boolean result.


This can be resolved by removing the erroneous quotes:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: inventory_hostname is defined and inventory_hostname | length > 0


Example - expression syntax error
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Previous Ansible releases could mask some expression syntax errors as a truthy result.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: 1 == 2,
    #               ^ invalid comma


The error reported is:

.. code-block:: text

     Syntax error in expression: chunk after expression


This can be resolved by removing the invalid comma after the expression.


Example - Jinja order of operations
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This expression uses the ``~`` concatenation operator, which is evaluated after the ``contains`` test.
The result is always a non-empty string, which is truthy.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: inventory_hostname is contains "local" ~ "host"


The error reported is:

.. code-block:: text

    Conditional result was 'Truehost' of type 'str', which evaluates to True. Conditionals must have a boolean result.


This can be resolved by inserting parentheses to resolve the concatenation operation before the ``contains`` test:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: inventory_hostname is contains("local" ~ "host")


Example - dictionary as conditional
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This conditional should have been quoted.
In a YAML list element, an unquoted string with a space after a colon is interpreted by the YAML parser as a mapping.
Non-empty mappings are always truthy.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that:
         - result.msg == "some_key: some_value"
    #                             ^^ colon+space == problem

The error reported is:

.. code-block:: text

    Conditional expressions must be strings.


This can be resolved by quoting the entire assertion expression:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that:
         - 'result.msg == "some_key: some_value"'


Multi-pass templating
---------------------

Embedding templates within other templates or expressions could previously result in untrusted templates being executed.
The overhauled templating engine in this release no longer supports this insecure behavior.


Example - unnecessary template in expression
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This conditional references a variable using a template instead of using the variable directly in the expression.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: 1 + {{ value }} == 2
      vars:
        value: 1


The error reported is:

.. code-block:: text

    Syntax error in expression. Template delimiters are not supported in expressions: expected token ':', got '}'


This can be resolved by referencing the variable without a template:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: 1 + value == 2
      vars:
        value: 1


Example - dynamic expression construction
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This conditional is dynamically created using a template, which is expected to be evaluated as an expression.
Previously, the template was rendered by task argument templating, resulting in a plain string,
which was later evaluated by the ``assert`` action.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - assert:
        that: inventory_hostname {{ comparison }} 'localhost'
      vars:
        comparison: ==


The error reported is:

.. code-block:: text

    Syntax error in expression. Template delimiters are not supported in expressions: chunk after expression


Dynamic expression construction from playbooks is insecure and unsupported.


.. _untrusted_templates:

Troubleshooting untrusted templates
-----------------------------------

By default, untrusted templates are silently ignored.
Troubleshooting trust issues with templates can be aided by enabling warnings or errors for untrusted templates.
The environment variable ``_ANSIBLE_TEMPLAR_UNTRUSTED_TEMPLATE_BEHAVIOR`` can be used to control this behavior.

Valid options are:

* ``warning`` - A warning will be issued when an untrusted template is encountered.
* ``fail`` - An error will be raised when an untrusted template is encountered.
* ``ignore`` - Untrusted templates are silently ignored and used as-is. This is the default behavior.

.. note::
    This optional warning and failure behavior is experimental and subject to change in future versions.


Loops no longer leak omit placeholders
--------------------------------------

Omit placeholders no longer leak between loop item templating and task templating.

Previously, ``omit`` placeholders could remain embedded in loop items after templating and be used as an ``omit`` for task templating.
Now, values resolving to ``omit`` are dropped immediately when loop items are templated.

To turn missing values into an ``omit`` for task templating, use ``| default(omit)``.
This solution is backward compatible with previous versions of ``ansible-core``.

Example - missing default(omit)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The following task tries to pass ``omit`` from a loop to the task, but the value is undefined since it was omitted:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
        msg: "{{ item.msg }}"  # 'msg' is undefined
      loop:
       - msg: "{{ omit }}"  # 'msg' will be omitted from the loop item


This updated task uses ``default(omit)`` on the missing value to ensure it is omitted for the task:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
        msg: "{{ item.msg | default(omit) }}"  # 'msg' is undefined, use 'default(omit)' to turn it into an omit
      loop:
       - msg: "{{ omit }}"  # passed through in earlier versions, this value is now omitted from the loop item


Privilege escalation timeouts
-----------------------------

Timeout waiting on privilege escalation (``become``) is now an unreachable error instead of a task error.
Existing playbooks should be changed to replace ``ignore_errors`` with ``ignore_unreachable`` on tasks where
timeout on ``become`` should be ignored.


Engine
======

Templating
----------

Template trust model inversion
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Previously, ``ansible-core`` implicitly trusted all string values to be rendered as Jinja templates,
but applied an "unsafe" wrapper object around strings obtained from untrusted sources (for example, module results).
Unsafe-wrapped strings were silently ignored by the template engine,
as many templating operations can execute arbitrary code on the control host as the user running ansible-core.
This required any code that operated on strings to correctly propagate the wrapper object,
which resulted in numerous CVE-worthy RCE (remote code execution) vulnerabilities.

This release inverts the previous trust model.
Only strings marked as loaded from a trusted source are eligible to be rendered as templates.
Untrusted values can (as before) be referenced by templates, but the template expression itself must always be trusted.
While this change still requires consideration for propagation of trust markers when manipulating strings,
failure to do so now results in a loss of templating ability instead of a potentially high-severity security issue.

Attempts to render a template appearing in an untrusted string will (as before) return the original string unmodified.
By default, attempting to render an untrusted template fails silently,
though such failures can be elevated to a warning or error via configuration.

Newly-created string results from template operations will never have trust automatically applied,
though templates that return existing trusted string values unmodified will not strip their trust.
It is also possible for plugins to explicitly apply trust.

Backward-compatible template trust behavior is applied automatically in most cases;
for example, templates appearing in playbooks, roles, variable files,
and most built-in inventory plugins will yield trusted template strings.
Custom plugins that source template strings will be required to use new public APIs to apply trust where appropriate.

See :ref:`plugin_api` and :ref:`untrusted_templates` for additional information.


Native Jinja mode required
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Previous versions supported templating in two different modes:

* Jinja's original string templating mode converted the result of each templating operation to a string.
* Jinja's native mode *usually* preserved variable types in template results.

In both modes, ``ansible-core`` evaluated the final template string results as Python literals, falling back to the
original string if the evaluation resulted in an error.
Selection of the templating mode was controlled by configuration, defaulting to Jinja's original string templating.

Jinja's native templating mode is now used exclusively.
The configuration option for setting the templating mode is deprecated and no longer has any effect.

Preservation of native types in templating has been improved to correct gaps in the previous implementation,
entirely eliminating the final literal evaluation pass (a frequent source of confusion, errors, and performance issues).
In rare cases where playbooks relied on implicit object conversion from strings,
an explicit conversion will be required.

Some existing templates may unintentionally convert non-strings to strings.
In previous versions this conversion could be masked by the evaluation of strings as Python literals.


Example - unintentional string conversion
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

This expression erroneously passes a list to the ``replace`` filter, which operates only on strings.
The filter silently converts the list input to a string.
Due to some string results previously parsing as lists, this mistake often went undetected in earlier versions.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
        msg: "{{ ['test1', 'test2'] | replace('test', 'prod') }}"


The result of this template becomes a string:

.. code-block:: ansible-output

    ok: [localhost] => {
        "msg": "['prod1', 'prod2']"
    }


This can be resolved by using the ``map`` filter to apply the ``replace`` filter to each list element:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
        msg: "{{ ['test1', 'test2'] | map('replace', 'test', 'prod') }}"


The result of the corrected template remains a list:

.. code-block:: ansible-output

    ok: [localhost] => {
        "msg": [
            "prod1",
            "prod2"
        ]
    }


Lazy templating
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Ansible's interface with the Jinja templating engine has been heavily refined,
yielding significant performance improvements for many complex templating operations.
Previously, deeply-nested, recursive,
or self-referential templating operations were always resolved to their full depth and breadth on every access,
including repeated access to the same data within a single templating operation.
This resulted in expensive and repetitive evaluation of the same templates within a single logical template operation,
even for templates deep inside nested data structures that were never directly accessed.
The new template engine lazily defers nearly all recursion and templating until values are accessed,
or known to be exiting the template engine,
and intermediate nested or indirected templated results are cached for the duration of the template operation,
reducing repetitive templating.
These changes have shown exponential performance improvements for many real-world complex templating scenarios.

Consistent handling of range
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The result of using the Jinja global function ``range()`` was heavily dependent on the context in which it was used and
whether Jinja's native mode was enabled.
To preserve the ability to use very large ranges in filter chains the result is now always a range object, which means
it cannot be returned from a template unless you convert it to a returnable type.

Example - intentional list conversion
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
      loop: "{{ range(0, 2) }}"

Ranges not embedded in containers would usually be converted to lists during template finalization.
They will now result in this error:

.. code-block:: text

    Error rendering template: Type 'range' is unsupported for variable storage.


This can be resolved by making the conversion explicit:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
      loop: "{{ range(0, 2) | list }}"


Example - unintentional string conversion
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
        msg: "{{ [range(0,2), range(7,10)] }}"


Ranges embedded in containers would usually be converted to string representations of the range object.

.. code-block:: ansible-output

    ok: [localhost] => {
        "msg": "[range(0, 2), range(7, 10)]"
    }

Attempting to do this will now result in an error; you can mimic the old behaviour by explicitly converting the container
to a string, or convert the ranges to lists if you actually want to do something useful with them.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - debug:
        msg: "{{ [range(0,2), range(7,10)] | string }}"

    - debug:
        msg: "{{ [range(0,2), range(7,10)] | map('list') }}"

Error handling
--------------

Contextual warnings and errors
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Changes to internal error handling in ``ansible-core`` will be visible in many situations that result in a warning or error.
In most cases, the operational context (what was happening when the error or warning was generated)
and data element(s) involved are captured and included in user-facing messages.
Errors and warnings that occur during task execution are more consistently included in the task result, with the full
details accessible to callbacks and (in the case of errors), a minimal error message in the ``msg`` field of the result.
Due to the standardized nature of this error handling, seemingly redundant elements may appear in some error messages.
These will improve over time as other error handling improvements are made but are currently necessary to ensure proper
context is available in all error situations.
Error message contents are not considered stable, so automation that relies on them should be avoided when possible.


Variable provenance tracking
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The new Data Tagging feature expands provenance tracking on variables to nearly every source.
This allows for much more descriptive error messaging, as the entire chain of execution can be consulted to include
contextual information about what was happening when an error occurred.
In most cases, this includes file path, source lines, and column markers.
Non-file variable sources such as CLI arguments, inventory plugins and environment are also supported.


Deprecation warnings on value access
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

New features allow most ``ansible-core`` variables and values to be tagged as deprecated.
Plugins and modules can apply these tags to augment deprecated elements of their return values with a description and
help text to suggest alternatives, which will be displayed in a runtime warning when the tagged value is accessed by,
for example, a playbook or template.
This allows for easier evolution and removal of module and fact results, and obsolete core behaviors.

For example, accessing the deprecated ``play_hosts`` magic variable will trigger a deprecation warning that suggests
the use of the ``ansible_play_batch`` variable instead.


Improved Ansible module error handling
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Ansible modules implemented in Python now have exception handling provided by the AnsiballZ wrapper.
In previous versions of ``ansible-core``, unhandled exceptions in an Ansible module simply printed a traceback and exited
without providing a standard module response, which caused the task result to contain a generic ``MODULE FAILURE``
message and any raw output text produced by the module.

To address this, modules often implemented unnecessary ``try/except`` blocks around most code where specific error
handling was not possible, only to call ``AnsibleModule.fail_json`` with a generic failure message.
This pattern is no longer necessary, as all unhandled exceptions in Ansible Python modules are now captured by the
AnsiballZ wrapper and returned as a structured module result,
with automatic inclusion of traceback information when enabled by the controller.


Improved handling of undefined
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Undefined handling has been improved to avoid situations where a Jinja plugin silently ignores undefined values.

This commonly occurs when a Jinja plugin, such as a filter or test,
checks the type of a variable without accounting for the possibility of an undefined value being present.


Example - missing attribute
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""

This task incorrectly references an undefined ``exists`` attribute from a ``stat`` result in a conditional.
The undefined value was not detected in previous versions because it is passed to the ``false`` Jinja test plugin,
which silently ignores undefined values.
As a result, this conditional could never be ``True`` in earlier versions of ansible-core,
and there was no indication that the ``failed_when`` expression was invalid.

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - stat:
        path: /does-not-exist
      register: result
      failed_when: result.exists is false
      #                   ^ missing reference to stat

In the current release the faulty expression is detected and results in an error.

This can be corrected by adding the missing ``stat`` attribute to the conditional:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - stat:
        path: /does-not-exist
      register: result
      failed_when: result.stat.exists is false


Displaying tracebacks
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

In previous ``ansible-core`` versions, tracebacks from some controller-side errors were available by increasing verbosity
with the ``-vvv`` option, but the availability and behavior was inconsistent.
This feature was also limited to errors.

Handling of errors, warnings and deprecations throughout much of the ``ansible-core`` codebase has now been standardized.
Tracebacks can be optionally collected and displayed for all exceptions, as well as at the call site of errors,
warnings, or deprecations (even in module code) using the ``ANSIBLE_DISPLAY_TRACEBACK`` environment variable.

Valid options are:

* ``always`` - Tracebacks will always be displayed. This option takes precedence over others below.
* ``never`` - Tracebacks will never be displayed. This option takes precedence over others below.
* ``error`` - Tracebacks will be displayed for errors.
* ``warning`` - Tracebacks will be displayed for warnings other than deprecation warnings.
* ``deprecated`` - Tracebacks will be displayed for deprecation warnings.

Multiple options can be combined by separating them with commas.


.. _plugin_api:

Plugin API
==========

Deprecating values
------------------

Plugins and Python modules can tag returned values as deprecated with the new ``deprecate_value`` function from
``ansible.module_utils.datatag``.
A description of the deprecated feature, optional help text, and removal timeframes can be attached to the value,
which will appear in a runtime warning if the deprecated value is referenced in an expression.
The warning message will include information about the module/plugin that applied the deprecation tag and the
location of the expression that accessed it.

.. code-block:: python

    from ansible.module_utils.datatag import deprecate_value

    ...

    module.exit_json(
        color_name=deprecate_value(
            value="blue",
            msg="The `color_name` return value is deprecated.",
            help_text="Use `color_code` instead.",
        ),
        color_code="#0000ff",
    )


When accessing the `color_name` from the module result, the following warning will be shown

.. code-block:: text

    [DEPRECATION WARNING]: The `color_name` return value is deprecated. This feature will be removed from the 'ns.collection.paint' module in a future release.
    Origin: /examples/use_deprecated.yml:8:14

    6
    7     - debug:
    8         var: result.color_name
                   ^ column 14

    Use `color_code` instead.


Applying template trust to individual values
--------------------------------------------

String values are no longer trusted to be rendered as templates by default. Strings loaded from playbooks, vars files,
and other built-in trusted sources are usually marked trusted by default.
Plugins that create new string instances with embedded templates must use the new ``trust_as_template`` function
from ``ansible.template`` to tag those values as originating from a trusted source to allow the templates
to be rendered.

.. warning::
    This section and the associated public API are currently incomplete.


Applying template trust in inventory and vars plugins
-----------------------------------------------------

Inventory plugins can set group and host variables.
In most cases, these variables are static values from external sources and do not require trust.
Values that can contain templates will require explicit trust via ``trust_as_template`` to be allowed to render,
but trust should not be applied to variable values from external sources that could be maliciously altered to include
templates.

.. warning::
    This section and the associated public API are currently incomplete.


Raising exceptions
------------------

When raising exceptions in an exception handler, be sure to use ``raise ... from`` as appropriate.
This supersedes the use of the ``AnsibleError`` arg ``orig_exc`` to represent the cause.
Specifying ``orig_exc`` as the cause is still permitted for backward compatibility.

Failure to use ``raise ... from`` when ``orig_exc`` is set will result in a warning.
Additionally, if the two cause exceptions do not match, a warning will be issued.


Overly-broad exception handling in Jinja plugins
------------------------------------------------

Jinja plugins with overly broad exception handling, such as ``except Exception``,
may behave incorrectly when accessing the contents of variables which are containers (``dict``, ``list``).
This can occur when a templated value from a variable is undefined,
is an undecryptable vaulted value, or another value which triggers lazily reported fault conditions.

Jinja plugins should catch more specific exception types where possible,
and do so around the smallest reasonable portion of code.
Be especially careful to avoid broad exception handling around code which accesses the contents of container variables.


Ansible custom data types
-------------------------

Many variable objects in ``ansible-core`` are represented by custom types.
In previous versions these could be seen as types such as:

* ``AnsibleUnicode`` (a subclass of ``str``)
* ``AnsibleSequence`` (a subclass of ``list``)
* ``AnsibleMapping`` (a subclass of ``dict``)

These types, and more, now have new subclasses derived from their native Python types.
In most cases these types behave indistinguishably from the types they extend, and existing code should function normally.
However, some Python libraries do not handle builtin object subclasses properly.
Custom plugins that interact with such libraries may require changes to convert and pass the native types.

.. warning::
    This section and the associated public API are currently incomplete.


AnsibleVaultEncryptedUnicode replaced by EncryptedString
--------------------------------------------------------

The ``AnsibleVaultEncryptedUnicode`` type has been replaced by ``EncryptedString``.

Plugins which create ``AnsibleVaultEncryptedUnicode`` will now receive ``EncryptedString`` instances instead.
This feature ensures backward compatibility with previous versions of ``ansible-core``.

Plugins which perform ``isinstance`` checks, looking for ``AnsibleVaultEncryptedUnicode``, will no longer encounter these types.
Values formerly represented by that type will now appear as a tagged ``str`` instead.
Special handling in plugins is no longer required to access the contents of these values.


No implicit conversion of non-string dict keys
----------------------------------------------

In previous versions, ``ansible-core`` relied on Python's ``json.dumps`` to implicitly convert ``int``, ``float``, ``bool`` and ``None`` dictionary keys to strings in various scenarios, including returning of module results.
For example, a module was allowed to contain the following code:

.. code-block:: python

    oid = 123
    d = {oid: "value"}
    module.exit_json(return_value=d)

Starting with this release, modules must explicitly convert any non-string keys to strings (for example, by using the ``str()`` Python function) before passing dictionaries to the ``AnsibleModule.exit_json()`` method of ``ansible-core``. The above code must be changed as follows:

.. code-block:: python

    oid = 123
    d = {str(oid): "value"}
    module.exit_json(return_value=d)

If you encounter ``"[ERROR]: Task failed: Module failed: Key of type '<NON-STRING>' is not JSON serializable by the 'module_legacy_m2c' profile.``, it indicates that the module that is used in the task does not perform the required key conversion.


Command Line
============

No notable changes


Deprecated
==========

No notable changes


Modules
=======

* With the changes to the templating system it is no longer possible to use the ``async_status`` module's ``started`` and ``finished`` integer properties as values in conditionals as booleans are required. It is recommended to use ``started`` and ``finished`` test plugins instead, for example:

.. code-block:: yaml+jinja

    - async_status:
        jid: '{{ registered_task_result.ansible_job_id }}'
      register: job_result
      until: job_result is finished
      retries: 5
      delay: 10


Modules removed
---------------

The following modules no longer exist:

* No notable changes


Deprecation notices
-------------------

No notable changes


Noteworthy module changes
-------------------------

No notable changes


Plugins
=======

Noteworthy plugin changes
-------------------------

* The ``ssh`` connection plugin now supports using ``SSH_ASKPASS`` to supply passwords
  for authentication as an alternative to the ``sshpass`` program. The default is to use
  ``SSH_ASKPASS`` instead of ``sshpass``. This is controlled by the ``password_mechanism``
  configuration for the ``ssh`` connection plugin. To switch back to using ``sshpass``
  make one of the following changes:

  To your ``ansible.cfg`` file:

  .. code-block:: ini

     [ssh_connection]
     password_mechanism = sshpass

  By exporting an environment variable:

  .. code-block:: shell

     export ANSIBLE_SSH_PASSWORD_MECHANISM=sshpass

  By setting the following variable:

  .. code-block:: yaml

     ansible_ssh_password_mechanism: sshpass

* Coercing unrecognized input values in the ``bool`` filter is deprecated.
  The ``bool`` filter now returns only ``True`` or ``False``, depending on the input:

  * ``True`` - Returned for ``True``, ``1`` and case-insensitive matches on the strings: "yes", "on", "true", "1"
  * ``False`` - Returned for ``False``, ``0`` and case-insensitive matches on the strings: "no", "off", "false", "0"

  Any other input will result in a deprecation warning. This warning will become an error in ``ansible-core`` 2.23.

  When a deprecation warning is issued, the return value is ``False`` unless the input equals ``1``,
  which can occur when the input is the ``float`` value of ``1.0``.

  This filter now returns ``False`` instead of ``None`` when the input is ``None``.
  The aforementioned deprecation warning is also issued in this case.

* Passing nested non-scalars with embedded templates that may resolve to ``Undefined`` to Jinja2
  filter plugins, such as ``default`` and ``mandatory``, and test plugins including ``defined`` and ``undefined``
  no longer evaluate as they did in previous versions because nested non-scalars with embedded templates are templated
  on use only.
  In 2.19, this assertion passes:

  .. code-block:: yaml

     - assert:
         that:
           # Unlike earlier versions, complex_var is defined even though complex_var.nested is not.
           - complex_var is defined
           # Unlike earlier versions, the default value is not applied because complex_var is defined.
           - (complex_var | default(unused)).nested is undefined
           # Like earlier versions, directly accessing complex_var.nested evaluates as undefined.
           - complex_var.nested is undefined
       vars:
         complex_var:
           # Before 2.19, complex_var.nested is evaluated immediately when complex_var is accessed.
           # In 2.19, complex_var.nested is evaluated only when it is accessed.
           nested: "{{ undefined_variable }}"
         unused:
           # This variable is used only if complex_var is undefined.
           # This only happens in ansible-core before 2.19.
           nested: default


Porting custom scripts
======================

No notable changes


Networking
==========

No notable changes

Porting Guide for v12.0.0rc1
============================

Known Issues
------------

vmware.vmware_rest
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- The lookup plugins use ``cloud.common``, but this collection does not support ansible-core 2.19 or higher (https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware_rest/pull/621).

Major Changes
-------------

vmware.vmware_rest
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Remove ``cloud.common`` as a dependency, so it will not be installed automatically anymore (https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware_rest/pull/621).

Removed Collections
-------------------

- cloud.common (previously included version: 5.0.0)

You can still install a removed collection manually with ``ansible-galaxy collection install <name-of-collection>``.

Porting Guide for v12.0.0b4
===========================

Major Changes
-------------

cisco.ios
^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `dependencies` of ansible.netcommon to `>=8.1.0`, since previous versions of the dependency had compatibility issues with `ansible-core>=2.19`.

cisco.iosxr
^^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `dependencies` of ansible.netcommon to `>=8.1.0`, since previous versions of the dependency had compatibility issues with `ansible-core>=2.19`.

cisco.nxos
^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `dependencies` of ansible.netcommon to `>=8.1.0`, since previous versions of the dependency had compatibility issues with `ansible-core>=2.19`.

dellemc.unity
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Adding support for Unity v5.5.

Deprecated Features
-------------------

- The ``ibm.qradar`` collection has been deprecated.
  It will be removed from Ansible 13 if no one starts maintaining it again before Ansible 13.
  See `Collections Removal Process for unmaintained collections <https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/devel/community/collection_contributors/collection_package_removal.html#unmaintained-collections>`__ for more details (`https://forum.ansible.com/t/44259 <https://forum.ansible.com/t/44259>`__).

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- bearychat - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 12.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/issues/10514).
- cpanm - deprecate ``mode=compatibility``, ``mode=new`` should be used instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10434).
- github_repo - deprecate ``force_defaults=true`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10435).
- rocketchat - the default value for ``is_pre740``, currently ``true``, is deprecated and will change to ``false`` in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10490).

Porting Guide for v12.0.0b3
===========================

Known Issues
------------

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_attributes - The module accepts both the string as well as integer value for the field "SNMP.1.AgentCommunity" for iDRAC10.
- idrac_diagnostics - This module doesn't support export of diagnostics file to HTTP and HTTPS share via SOCKS proxy.
- ome_smart_fabric_uplink - The module supported by OpenManage Enterprise Modular, however it does not allow the creation of multiple uplinks of the same name. If an uplink is created using the same name as an existing uplink, then the existing uplink is modified.

Major Changes
-------------

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- OpenManage iDRAC Ansible modules are now compatible with Ansible Core version 2.19.
- idrac_bios - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_boot - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_boot - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_certificates - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_reset - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_reset - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_support_assist - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_user - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_user - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- ome_firmware - This module is enhanced to support OME 4.5.
- ome_firmware_baseline - This module is enhanced to support OME 4.5.
- ome_firmware_baseline_compliance_info - This module is enhanced to support OME 4.5.
- ome_firmware_baseline_info - This module is enhanced to support OME 4.5.
- ome_firmware_catalog - This module is enhanced to support OME 4.5.
- redfish_firmware - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.

netapp.ontap
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- na_ontap_autoupdate_support - REST only support to enable automatic software update, requires ONTAP 9.10 or later.
- na_ontap_s3_buckets - new option `snapshot_policy` added in REST, requires ONTAP 9.16.1 or later.

Porting Guide for v12.0.0b1
===========================

Added Collections
-----------------

- google.cloud (version 1.6.0)

Known Issues
------------

community.libvirt
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- virt_volume - check_mode is disabled. It was not fully supported in the previous code either ('state/present', 'command/create' did not support it).

Breaking Changes
----------------

community.hashi_vault
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- ansible-core - support for all end-of-life versions of ``ansible-core`` has been dropped. The collection is tested with ``ansible-core>=2.17`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.hashi_vault/issues/470).
- python - support for older versions of Python has been dropped. The collection is tested with all supported controller-side versions and a few lower target-side versions depending on the tests (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.hashi_vault/issues/470).

Major Changes
-------------

- The previously removed collection google.cloud was re-added to Ansible 12 (`https://forum.ansible.com/t/8609 <https://forum.ansible.com/t/8609>`__).
  The sanity test failures have been addressed.

community.libvirt
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- virt_volume - a new command 'create_cidata_cdrom' enables the creation of a cloud-init CDROM, which can be attached to a cloud-init enabled base image, for bootstrapping networking, users etc.
- virt_volume - the commands create_from, delete, download, info, resize, upload, wipe, facts did not work and were not tested. They have either been refactored to work, and tested, or removed.
- virt_volume - the mechanism of passing variables to the member functions was not flexible enough to cope with differing parameter requirements. All parameters are now passed as kwargs, which allows the member functions to select the parameters they need.
- virt_volume - the module appears to have been derived from virt_pool, but not cleaned up to remove much non-functional code.  It has been refactored to remove the pool-specific code, and to make it more flexible.

community.zabbix
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- All Roles - Updated to support Zabbix 7.4

Removed Features
----------------

community.libvirt
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- virt_volume - PoolConnection class has been removed
- virt_volume - the 'deleted' state has been removed as its definition was not entirely accurate, and the 'wipe' boolean option is added to 'state/absent' and 'command/delete'.
- virt_volume - undocumented but unused FLAGS have been removed.
- virt_volume - undocumented but unused/non-functional functions (get_status, get_status2, get_state, get_uuid, build) have been removed.

hitachivantara.vspone_block
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- `hv_gateway_admin_password` module has been removed.
- `hv_gateway_subscriber_facts` module has been removed.
- `hv_gateway_subscriber` module has been removed.
- `hv_gateway_subscription_facts` module has been removed.
- `hv_gateway_unsubscribe_resource` module has been removed.
- `hv_storagesystem` module has been removed.
- `hv_system_facts` module has been removed.
- `hv_uaig_token_facts` module has been removed.

Deprecated Features
-------------------

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- catapult - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/issues/10318, https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10329).
- pacemaker_cluster - the parameter ``state`` will become a required parameter in community.general 12.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10227).

community.hashi_vault
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- ansible-core - support for several ``ansible-core`` versions will be dropped in ``v7.0.0``. The collection will focus on current supported versions of ``ansible-core`` going forward and more agressively drop end-of-life or soon-to-be EOL versions (https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/devel/reference_appendices/release_and_maintenance.html).
- python - support for several ``python`` versions will be dropped in ``v7.0.0``. The collection will focus on ``python`` versions that are supported by the active versions of ``ansible-core`` on the controller side at a minimum, and some subset of target versions (https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/devel/reference_appendices/release_and_maintenance.html).

community.zabbix
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Web Role - Depricated `zabbix_web_SSLSessionCacheTimeout` for `zabbix_web_ssl_session_cache_timeout`
- Web Role - Depricated `zabbix_web_SSLSessionCache` for `zabbix_web_ssl_session_cache`

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a9
===========================

Known Issues
------------

community.hrobot
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- storagebox* modules - the Hetzner Robot API for storage boxes is `deprecated and will be sunset on July 30, 2025 <https://docs.hetzner.cloud/changelog#2025-06-25-new-api-for-storage-boxes>`__. The modules are currently not compatible with the new API. We will try to adjust them until then, but usage and return values might change slightly due to differences in the APIs.
  For the new API, an API token needs to be registered and provided as ``hetzner_token`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.hrobot/pull/166).

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_attributes - The module accepts both the string as well as integer value for the field "SNMP.1.AgentCommunity" for iDRAC10.
- idrac_diagnostics - This module doesn't support export of diagnostics file to HTTP and HTTPS share via SOCKS proxy.
- ome_smart_fabric_uplink - The module supported by OpenManage Enterprise Modular, however it does not allow the creation of multiple uplinks of the same name. If an uplink is created using the same name as an existing uplink, then the existing uplink is modified.

Major Changes
-------------

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_bios - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_diagnostics - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_firmware - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_job_queue - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_lifecycle_controller_logs - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_network_attributes - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_secure_boot - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_server_powerstate - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_session - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_system_erase - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- redfish_event_subscription - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- redfish_power_state - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.

vmware.vmware_rest
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- modules - disable turbo mode for module execution by default. Make it optional to enable it using an environment variable (https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware_rest/issues/499)

Deprecated Features
-------------------

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Jinja test plugins - Returning a non-boolean result from a Jinja test plugin is deprecated.
- YAML parsing - Usage of the YAML 1.1 ``!!omap`` and ``!!pairs`` tags is deprecated. Use standard mappings instead.
- YAML parsing - Usage of the undocumented ``!vault-encrypted`` YAML tag is deprecated. Use ``!vault`` instead.
- config - The ``DEFAULT_ALLOW_UNSAFE_LOOKUPS`` configuration option is deprecated and no longer has any effect. Ansible templating no longer encounters situations where use of lookup plugins is considered "unsafe".
- config - The ``DEFAULT_UNDEFINED_VAR_BEHAVIOR`` configuration option is deprecated and no longer has any effect. Attempting to use an undefined variable where undefined values are unexpected is now always an error. This behavior was enabled by default in previous versions, and disabling it yielded inconsistent results.
- config - The ``STRING_TYPE_FILTERS`` configuration option is deprecated and no longer has any effect. Since the template engine now always preserves native types, there is no longer a risk of unintended conversion from strings to native types.
- config - Using the ``DEFAULT_JINJA2_EXTENSIONS`` configuration option to enable Jinja2 extensions is deprecated. Previously, custom Jinja extensions were disabled by default, as they can destabilize the Ansible templating environment. Templates should only make use of filter, test and lookup plugins.
- config - Using the ``DEFAULT_MANAGED_STR`` configuration option to customize the value of the ``ansible_managed`` variable is deprecated. The ``ansible_managed`` variable can now be set the same as any other variable.
- playbook - The ``timedout.frame`` task result value (injected when a task timeout occurs) is deprecated. Include ``error`` in the ``DISPLAY_TRACEBACK`` config value to capture a full Python traceback for timed out actions.
- public API - The ``ansible.errors.AnsibleFilterTypeError`` exception type has been deprecated. Use ``AnsibleTypeError`` instead.
- public API - The ``ansible.errors._AnsibleActionDone`` exception type has been deprecated. Action plugins should return a task result dictionary in success cases instead of raising.
- public API - The ``ansible.module_utils.common.json.json_dump`` function is deprecated. Call Python stdlib ``json.dumps`` instead, with ``cls`` set to an Ansible profile encoder type from ``ansible.module_utils.common.json.get_encoder``.

community.crypto
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- acme_certificate - the option ``modify_account``'s default value ``true`` has been deprecated. It will change to ``false`` in community.crypto 4.0.0. We recommend to set the option to an explicit value to avoid deprecation warnings, and to prefer setting it to ``false`` already now. Better use the ``community.crypto.acme_account`` module instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/issues/924).

vmware.vmware_rest
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- lookup plugins - Deprecate all lookup plugins in favor of vmware.vmware.moid_from_path (https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware_rest/pull/608)

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a7
===========================

Known Issues
------------

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- reveal_ansible_type filter plugin and ansible_type test plugin - note that ansible-core's Data Tagging feature implements new aliases, such as ``_AnsibleTaggedStr`` for ``str``, ``_AnsibleTaggedInt`` for ``int``, and ``_AnsibleTaggedFloat`` for ``float`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9833).

vyos.vyos
^^^^^^^^^

- existing code for 1.3 facility protocol and facility level are not compatible, only one will be set and level is the priority.

Breaking Changes
----------------

cloud.common
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Remove support for ansible versions greater than ``2.19`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/cloud.common/pull/183).

community.okd
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Remove openshift inventory plugin deprecated in 3.0.0 (https://github.com/openshift/community.okd/pull/252).

kubernetes.core
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Remove deprecated ``k8s`` invetory plugin (https://github.com/ansible-collections/kubernetes.core/pull/867).
- Remove support for ``ansible-core<2.16`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/kubernetes.core/pull/867).

vyos.vyos
^^^^^^^^^

- Removed `vyos_logging`. Use `vyos_logging_global` instead.
- lldp_global - if "address" is available, merge will cause it to be added, in contrast to the previous behavior where it was replaced. When used in replace mode, it will remove any existing addresses and replace them with the new one.
- vyos_bgp_address_family - Support for 1.3+ VyOS only
- vyos_bgp_global - Support for 1.3+ VyOS only
- vyos_firewall_rules - removed p2p options as they have been removed prior to 1.3 of VyOS
- vyos_firewall_rules - tcp.flags is now a list with an inversion flag to support 1.4+ firewall rules, but still supports 1.3-
- vyos_lldp_global - civic_address is no longer a valid key (removed prior to 1.3)
- vyos_logging_global - For 1.4, `protocol` is an attribute of the syslog host, not the facility
- vyos_snmp_server - no longer works with versions prior to 1.3
- vyos_snmp_server - parameter `engine_id` is no longer a `user` or `trap_target` parameter and is now a `snmp_v3` parameter
- vyos_snmp_server - parameters `encrypted-key` and `plaintext-key` are now `encrypted-password` and `plaintext-password`
- vyos_user - explicit support for version 1.3+ only
- vyos_user - removed level (and its alias, role) they were removed in 1.3

Major Changes
-------------

ansible.utils
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `requires_ansible` to `>=2.16.0`, since previous ansible-core versions are EoL now.

grafana.grafana
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Add delete protection by @KucicM in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/381
- Fix Mimir URL verify task by @parcimonic in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/358
- Fix some regression introduced by v6 by @voidquark in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/376
- Update when statement to test for dashboard files found by @hal58th in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/363
- Use become false in find task by @santilococo in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/368
- alloy_readiness_check_use_https by @piotr-g in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/359

vyos.vyos
^^^^^^^^^

- bgp modules - Added support for 1.4+ "system-as". 1.3 embedded as_number is still supported
- vyos bgp modules - Many configuration attributes moved from `bgp_global` to `bgp_address_family` module (see documentation).
- vyos_bgp_address_family - Aligned with version 1.3+ configuration - aggregate_address, maximum_paths, network, and redistribute moved from `bgp_global` module. These are now Address-family specific. Many neighbor attributes also moved from `vyos_bgp_global` to `vyos_bgp_address_family` module.
- vyos_bgp_global - Aligned with version 1.3+ configuration - aggregate_address, maximum_paths, network, and redistribute Removed to `bgp_address_family` module.
- vyos_user - add support for encrypted password specification
- vyos_user - add support for public-key authentication

Removed Collections
-------------------

- cisco.ise (previously included version: 2.10.0)

You can still install a removed collection manually with ``ansible-galaxy collection install <name-of-collection>``.

Removed Features
----------------

- The ``cisco.ise`` collection was considered unmaintained and has been removed from Ansible 12 (`https://forum.ansible.com/t/43367 <https://forum.ansible.com/t/43367>`__).
  Users can still install this collection with ``ansible-galaxy collection install cisco.ise``.

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Dropped support for ansible-core 2.15. The collection now requires ansible-core 2.16 or newer. This means that on the controller, Python 3.10+ is required. On the target side, Python 2.7 and Python 3.6+ are supported (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10160, https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10192).
- The Proxmox content (modules and plugins) has been moved to the `new collection community.proxmox <https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.proxmox>`__. Since community.general 11.0.0, these modules and plugins have been replaced by deprecated redirections to community.proxmox. You need to explicitly install community.proxmox, for example with ``ansible-galaxy collection install community.proxmox``, or by installing a new enough version of the Ansible community package. We suggest to update your roles and playbooks to use the new FQCNs as soon as possible to avoid getting deprecation messages (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10110).
- apt_rpm - the ``present`` and ``installed`` states are no longer equivalent to ``latest``, but to ``present_not_latest`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- clc_* modules and doc fragment - the modules were removed since CenturyLink Cloud services went EOL in September 2023 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- django_manage - the ``ack_venv_creation_deprecation`` option has been removed. It had no effect anymore anyway (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- git_config - it is no longer allowed to use ``state=present`` with no value to read the config value. Use the ``community.general.git_config_info`` module instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- git_config - the ``list_all`` option has been removed. Use the ``community.general.git_config_info`` module instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- hipchat - the module was removed since the hipchat service has been discontinued and the self-hosted variant has been End of Life since 2020 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- manifold lookup plugin - the plugin was removed since the company was acquired in 2021 and service was ceased afterwards (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- mh.mixins.deps module utils - this module utils has been removed. Use the ``deps`` module utils instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- mh.mixins.vars module utils - this module utils has been removed. Use ``VarDict`` from the ``vardict`` module utils instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- mh.module_helper module utils - ``AnsibleModule`` and ``VarsMixin`` are no longer provided (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- mh.module_helper module utils - ``VarDict`` is now imported from the ``vardict`` module utils and no longer from the removed ``mh.mixins.vars`` module utils (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- mh.module_helper module utils - the attributes ``use_old_vardict`` and ``mute_vardict_deprecation`` from ``ModuleHelper`` have been removed. We suggest to remove them from your modules if you no longer support community.general < 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- module_helper module utils - ``StateMixin``, ``DependencyCtxMgr``, ``VarMeta``, ``VarDict``, and ``VarsMixin`` are no longer provided (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- pipx - module no longer supports ``pipx`` older than 1.7.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10137).
- pipx_info - module no longer supports ``pipx`` older than 1.7.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10137).
- profitbrick* modules - the modules were removed since the supporting library is unsupported since 2021 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- redfish_utils module utils - the ``_init_session`` method has been removed (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).
- stackpath_compute inventory plugin - the plugin was removed since the company and the service were sunset in June 2024 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10126).

Deprecated Features
-------------------

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- inventory plugins - Setting invalid Ansible variable names in inventory plugins is deprecated.
- playbook syntax - Specifying the task ``args`` keyword without a value is deprecated.
- playbook syntax - Using ``key=value`` args and the task ``args`` keyword on the same task is deprecated.
- playbook syntax - Using a mapping with the ``action`` keyword is deprecated. (https://github.com/ansible/ansible/issues/84101)

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- MH module utils - attribute ``debug`` definition in subclasses of MH is now deprecated, as that name will become a delegation to ``AnsibleModule`` in community.general 12.0.0, and any such attribute will be overridden by that delegation in that version (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9577).
- atomic_container - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9487).
- atomic_host - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9487).
- atomic_image - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9487).
- facter - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 12.0.0, use ``community.general.facter_facts`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9451).
- locale_gen - ``ubuntu_mode=True``, or ``mechanism=ubuntu_legacy`` is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9238).
- manifold lookup plugin - plugin is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10028).
- opkg - deprecate value ``""`` for parameter ``force`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9172).
- pipx module_utils - function ``make_process_list()`` is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10031).
- profitbricks - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9733).
- profitbricks_datacenter - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9733).
- profitbricks_nic - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9733).
- profitbricks_volume - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9733).
- profitbricks_volume_attachments - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9733).
- pure module utils - the module utils is deprecated and will be removed from community.general 12.0.0. The modules using this were removed in community.general 3.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9432).
- purestorage doc fragments - the doc fragment is deprecated and will be removed from community.general 12.0.0. The modules using this were removed in community.general 3.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9432).
- redfish_utils module utils - deprecate method ``RedfishUtils._init_session()`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9190).
- sensu_check - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0, use collection ``sensu.sensu_go`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9483).
- sensu_client - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0, use collection ``sensu.sensu_go`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9483).
- sensu_handler - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0, use collection ``sensu.sensu_go`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9483).
- sensu_silence - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0, use collection ``sensu.sensu_go`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9483).
- sensu_subscription - module is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0, use collection ``sensu.sensu_go`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9483).
- slack - the default value ``auto`` of the ``prepend_hash`` option is deprecated and will change to ``never`` in community.general 12.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9443).
- stackpath_compute inventory plugin - plugin is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10026).
- yaml callback plugin - deprecate plugin in favor of ``result_format=yaml`` in plugin ``ansible.bulitin.default`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9456).
- yaml callback plugin - the YAML callback plugin was deprecated for removal in community.general 13.0.0. Since it needs to use ansible-core internals since ansible-core 2.19 that are changing a lot, we will remove this plugin already from community.general 12.0.0 to ease the maintenance burden (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10213).

vyos.vyos
^^^^^^^^^

- vyos_bgp_global - no_ipv4_unicast - deprecated for use with VyOS 1.4+, use `ipv4_unicast` instead
- vyos_firewall_interfaces - deprecated for use with VyOS 1.4+, firewalls are no longer connected directly to interfaces. See the Firewall Configuration documentation for how to establish a connection betwen the firewall rulesets and the flow, interface, or zone.
- vyos_lldp_global - `address` is deprecated, use `addresses` instead. To be removed in 7.0.0.
- vyos_logging_global - `protocol` is deprecated for 1.4 and later, use `facility` instead. To be removed in next major version where supprot for 1.3 is removed

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a6
===========================

Added Collections
-----------------

- community.proxmox (version 1.0.1)

Breaking Changes
----------------

community.zabbix
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- All Roles - Remove support for Ubuntu 20.04
- zabbix 6.4 in roles is no longer supported

Deprecated Features
-------------------

community.vmware
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- module_utils.vmware - Deprecate ``connect_to_api`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2372).
- vmware_guest_powerstate - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2398).

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a5
===========================

Known Issues
------------

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_diagnostics - Issue(285322) - This module doesn't support export of diagnostics file to HTTP and HTTPS share via SOCKS proxy.
- idrac_firmware - Issue(279282) - This module does not support firmware update using HTTP, HTTPS, and FTP shares with authentication on iDRAC8.
- ome_smart_fabric_uplink - Issue(186024) - The module supported by OpenManage Enterprise Modular, however it does not allow the creation of multiple uplinks of the same name. If an uplink is created using the same name as an existing uplink, then the existing uplink is modified.

Breaking Changes
----------------

amazon.aws
^^^^^^^^^^

- amazon.aws collection - Support for ansible-core < 2.17 has been dropped (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2601).
- amazon.aws collection - Support for the ``EC2_ACCESS_KEY`` environment variable was deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and has now been removed.  Please use the ``access_key`` parameter or ``AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID`` environment variable instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - Support for the ``EC2_REGION`` environment variable was deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and has now been removed.  Please use the ``region`` parameter or ``AWS_REGION`` environment variable instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - Support for the ``EC2_SECRET_KEY`` environment variable was deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and has now been removed.  Please use the ``secret_key`` parameter or ``AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY`` environment variable instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - Support for the ``EC2_SECURITY_TOKEN`` and ``AWS_SECURITY_TOKEN`` environment variables were deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and have now been removed.  Please use the ``session_token`` parameter or ``AWS_SESSION_TOKEN`` environment variable instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - Support for the ``EC2_URL`` and ``S3_URL`` environment variables were deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and have now been removed.  Please use the ``endpoint_url`` parameter or ``AWS_URL`` environment variable instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - The ``access_token``, ``aws_security_token`` and ``security_token`` aliases for the ``session_token`` parameter were deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and have now been removed.  Please use the ``session_token`` name instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - The ``boto_profile`` alias for the ``profile`` parameter was deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and has now been removed.  Please use the ``profile`` name instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - The ``ec2_access_key`` alias for the ``access_key`` parameter was deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and has now been removed.  Please use the ``access_key`` name instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - The ``ec2_region`` alias for the ``region`` parameter was deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and has now been removed.  Please use the ``region`` name instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - The ``ec2_secret_key`` alias for the ``secret_key`` parameter was deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and has now been removed.  Please use the ``secret_key`` name instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- amazon.aws collection - The ``endpoint``, ``ec2_url`` and ``s3_url`` aliases for the ``endpoint_url`` parameter were deprecated in release ``6.0.0`` and have now been removed.  Please use the ``region`` name instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- docs_fragments - The previously deprecated ``amazon.aws.aws_credentials`` docs fragment has been removed please use ``amazon.aws.common.plugins`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- docs_fragments - The previously deprecated ``amazon.aws.aws_region`` docs fragment has been removed please use ``amazon.aws.region.plugins`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- docs_fragments - The previously deprecated ``amazon.aws.aws`` docs fragment has been removed please use ``amazon.aws.common.modules`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- docs_fragments - The previously deprecated ``amazon.aws.ec2`` docs fragment has been removed please use ``amazon.aws.region.modules`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2527).
- ec2_vpc_peering_info - the `result` key has been removed from the return value. `vpc_peering_connections` should be used instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2618).
- module_utils.botocore - drop deprecated ``boto3`` parameter for ``get_aws_region()`` and ``get_aws_connection_info()``, this parameter has had no effect since release 4.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2443).
- module_utils.ec2 - drop deprecated ``boto3`` parameter for ``get_ec2_security_group_ids_from_names()`` and ``get_aws_connection_info()``, this parameter has had no effect since release 4.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2603).
- rds_param_group - the redirect has been removed and playbooks should be updated to use rds_instance_param_group (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2618).

community.aws
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Support for ``ansible-core<2.17`` has been dropped (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.aws/pull/2303).
- The community.aws collection has dropped support for ``botocore<1.31.0`` and ``boto3<1.28.0``. Most modules will continue to work with older versions of the AWS SDK.  However, compatibility with older versions of the SDK is not guaranteed and will not be tested. When using older versions of the SDK a warning will be emitted by Ansible (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.aws/pull/2195).
- connection/aws_ssm - The connection plugin has been migrated from the ``community.aws`` collection. Playbooks or Inventory using the Fully Qualified Collection Name for this connection plugin should be updated to use ``amazon.aws.aws_ssm``.

community.crypto
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- All doc_fragments are now private to the collection and must not be used from other collections or unrelated plugins/modules. Breaking changes in these can happen at any time, even in bugfix releases (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/898).
- All module_utils and plugin_utils are now private to the collection and must not be used from other collections or unrelated plugins/modules. Breaking changes in these can happen at any time, even in bugfix releases (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/887).
- Ignore value of ``select_crypto_backend`` for all modules except acme_* and ..., and always assume the value ``auto``. This ensures that the ``cryptography`` version is always checked (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/883).
- The validation for relative timestamps is now more strict. A string starting with ``+`` or ``-`` must be valid, otherwise validation will fail. In the past such strings were often silently ignored, and in many cases the code which triggered the validation was not able to handle no result (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/885).
- acme.certificates module utils - the ``retrieve_acme_v1_certificate()`` helper function has been removed (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- get_certificate - the default for ``asn1_base64`` changed from ``false`` to ``true`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- x509_crl - the ``mode`` parameter no longer denotes the update mode, but the CRL file mode. Use ``crl_mode`` instead for the update mode (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).

hetzner.hcloud
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Drop support for ansible-core 2.15.
- Drop support for ansible-core 2.16.
- Drop support for python 3.8.
- inventory - The default value for the `hostvars_prefix` option is now set to `hcloud_`. Make sure to update all references to host variables provided by the inventory. You may revert this change by setting the `hostvars_prefix` option to `""`.
- server - The deprecated ``force_upgrade`` argument is removed from the server module. Please use the ``force`` argument instead.
- volume - Volumes are no longer detached when the server argument is not provided. Please use the ``volume_attachment`` module to manage volume attachments.

Major Changes
-------------

amazon.aws
^^^^^^^^^^

- amazon.aws collection - The amazon.aws collection has dropped support for ``botocore<1.34.0`` and ``boto3<1.34.0``. Most modules will continue to work with older versions of the AWS SDK, however compatibility with older versions of the SDK is not guaranteed and will not be tested. When using older versions of the SDK a warning will be emitted by Ansible (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2426).
- amazon.aws collection - due to the AWS SDKs announcing the end of support for Python less than 3.8 (https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/developer/python-support-policy-updates-for-aws-sdks-and-tools/), support for Python less than 3.8 by this collection was deprecated in release 6.0.0 and removed in release 10.0.0. (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2426).
- connection/aws_ssm - The module has been migrated from the ``community.aws`` collection. Playbooks using the Fully Qualified Collection Name for this module should be updated to use ``amazon.aws.aws_ssm``.

community.aws
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- community.aws collection - The community.aws collection has dropped support for ``botocore<1.34.0`` and ``boto3<1.34.0``. Most modules will continue to work with older versions of the AWS SDK, however compatibility with older versions of the SDK is not guaranteed and will not be tested. When using older versions of the SDK a warning will be emitted by Ansible (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2426).

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_attributes - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_attributes - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_lifecycle_controller_jobs - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_lifecycle_controller_status_info - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_syslog - This module is deprecated.
- idrac_user_info - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_virtual_media - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.

Removed Features
----------------

community.crypto
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- All Entrust content is being removed since the Entrust service in currently being sunsetted after the sale of Entrust's Public Certificates Business to Sectigo; see `the announcement with key dates <https://www.entrust.com/tls-certificate-information-center>`__ and `the migration brief for customers <https://www.sectigo.com/uploads/resources/EOL_Migration-Brief-End-Customer.pdf>`__ for details. Since this process will be completed in 2025, we decided to remove all Entrust content from community.general 3.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/issues/895, https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/901).
- The collection no longer supports cryptography < 3.3 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/878, https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/882).
- acme.acme module utils - the ``get_default_argspec()`` function has been removed. Use ``create_default_argspec()`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- acme.backends module utils - the methods ``get_ordered_csr_identifiers()`` and ``get_cert_information()`` of ``CryptoBackend`` now must be implemented (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- acme.documentation docs fragment - the ``documentation`` docs fragment has been removed. Use both the ``basic`` and ``account`` docs fragments in ``acme`` instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- acme_* modules - support for ACME v1 has been removed (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- community.crypto no longer supports Ansible 2.9, ansible-base 2.10, and ansible-core versions 2.11, 2.12, 2.13, 2.14, 2.15, and 2.16. While content from this collection might still work with some older versions of ansible-core, it will not work with any Python version before 3.7 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/870).
- crypto.basic module utils - remove ``CRYPTOGRAPHY_HAS_*`` flags. All tested features are supported since cryptography 3.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/878).
- crypto.cryptography_support module utils - remove ``cryptography_serial_number_of_cert()`` helper function (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/878).
- crypto.module_backends.common module utils - this module utils has been removed. Use the ``argspec`` module utils instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- crypto.support module utils - remove ``pyopenssl`` backend (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/874).
- ecs_certificate - the module has been removed. Please use community.crypto 2.x.y if you need this module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/900).
- ecs_domain - the module has been removed. Please use community.crypto 2.x.y if you need this module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/900).
- execution environment dependencies - remove PyOpenSSL dependency (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/874).
- openssl_csr_pipe - the module now ignores check mode and will always behave as if check mode is not active (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- openssl_pkcs12 - support for the ``pyopenssl`` backend has been removed (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- openssl_privatekey_pipe - the module now ignores check mode and will always behave as if check mode is not active (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).
- time module utils - remove ``pyopenssl`` backend (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/874).
- x509_certificate - the ``entrust`` provider has been removed. Please use community.crypto 2.x.y if you need this provider (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/900).
- x509_certificate_pipe - the ``entrust`` provider has been removed. Please use community.crypto 2.x.y if you need this provider (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/900).
- x509_certificate_pipe - the module now ignores check mode and will always behave as if check mode is not active (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/873).

Deprecated Features
-------------------

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- The ``ShellModule.checksum`` method is now deprecated and will be removed in ansible-core 2.23. Use ``ActionBase._execute_remote_stat()`` instead.
- The ``ansible.module_utils.common.collections.count()`` function is deprecated and will be removed in ansible-core 2.23. Use ``collections.Counter()`` from the Python standard library instead.
- ``ansible.compat.importlib_resources`` is deprecated and will be removed in ansible-core 2.23. Use ``importlib.resources`` from the Python standard library instead.

cisco.nxos
^^^^^^^^^^

- nxos_hsrp - deprecate nxos.nxos.nxos_hsrp in favor of nxos.nxos.nxos_hsrp_interfaces.
- nxos_vrf_interface - deprecate nxos.nxos.nxos_vrf_interface in favor of nxos.nxos.nxos_vrf_interfaces.

community.aws
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- community.aws collection - due to the AWS SDKs announcing the end of support for Python less than 3.8 (https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/developer/python-support-policy-updates-for-aws-sdks-and-tools/) support for Python less than 3.8 by this collection has been deprecated and will removed in release 10.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.aws/pull/2195).

community.crypto
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- acme_certificate - deprecate the ``agreement`` option which has no more effect. It will be removed from community.crypto 4.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/891).
- openssl_pkcs12 - deprecate the ``maciter_size`` option which has no more effect. It will be removed from community.crypto 4.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/891).

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- The proxmox content (modules and plugins) is being moved to the `new collection community.proxmox <https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.proxmox>`__. In community.general 11.0.0, these modules and plugins will be replaced by deprecated redirections to community.proxmox. You need to explicitly install community.proxmox, for example with ``ansible-galaxy collection install community.proxmox``. We suggest to update your roles and playbooks to use the new FQCNs as soon as possible to avoid getting deprecation messages (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10109).
- pipx module_utils - function ``make_process_list()`` is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 13.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10031).

community.postgresql
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- postgresql modules - the ``port`` alias is deprecated and will be removed in ``community.postgresql 5.0.0``, use the ``login_port`` argument instead.

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a4
===========================

Major Changes
-------------

netapp.ontap
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- library `netapp-lib` is now an optional requirement.
- na_ontap_lun - added compatibility for ASA r2 systems.
- na_ontap_lun_copy - added check to prevent use on unsupported ASA r2 systems.
- na_ontap_lun_map - added compatibility for ASA r2 systems.
- na_ontap_lun_map_reporting_nodes - added compatibility for ASA r2 systems.
- na_ontap_nvme_namespace - added compatibility for ASA r2 systems.
- na_ontap_nvme_subsystem - added compatibility for ASA r2 systems.

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a3
===========================

Known Issues
------------

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_diagnostics - Issue(285322) - This module doesn't support export of diagnostics file to HTTP and HTTPS share via SOCKS proxy.
- idrac_firmware - Issue(279282) - This module does not support firmware update using HTTP, HTTPS, and FTP shares with authentication on iDRAC8.
- ome_smart_fabric_uplink - Issue(186024) - The module supported by OpenManage Enterprise Modular, however it does not allow the creation of multiple uplinks of the same name. If an uplink is created using the same name as an existing uplink, then the existing uplink is modified.

Breaking Changes
----------------

vmware.vmware
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- drop support for ansible 2.15 since it is EOL https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware/issues/103
- updated minimum pyVmomi version to 8.0.3.0.1 https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware/issues/56

Major Changes
-------------

community.postgresql
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- the collection does not test against Python 2 and starts accepting content written in Python 3 since collection version 4.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.postgresql/issues/829).

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_gather_facts - This role is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_lifecycle_controller_job_status_info - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.
- idrac_system_info - This module is enhanced to support iDRAC10.

vmware.vmware
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- cluster modules - Add identifying information about the cluster managed to the output of cluster modules
- folder_paths - Throw an error when a relative folder path is provided and the datacenter name is not provided
- module_utils/argument_spec - make argument specs public so other collections can use them https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware/issues/144
- module_utils/clients - make client utils public so other collections can use them https://github.com/ansible-collections/vmware.vmware/issues/144
- update query file to include cluster module queries

Removed Features
----------------

ansible.windows
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- win_domain - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.domain`` instead
- win_domain_controller - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.domain_controller`` instead
- win_domain_membership - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.membership`` instead
- win_feature - Removed deprecated return value ``restart_needed`` in ``feature_result``, use ``reboot_required`` instead
- win_updates - Removed deprecated return value ``filtered_reason``, use ``filtered_reasons`` instead

community.postgresql
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- postgresql_info - the db alias has been removed in ``community.postgresql 4.0.0``. Please use the ``login_db`` option instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.postgresql/issues/801).
- postgresql_lang - the module has been removed in ``community.postgresql 4.0.0``. Please use the ``community.postgresql.postgresql_ext`` module instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.postgresql/issues/561).
- postgresql_privs - the ``password`` argument has been removed in ``community.postgresql 4.0.0``. Use the ``login_password`` argument instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.postgresql/issues/408).
- postgresql_user - the ``priv`` argument has been removed in ``community.postgresql 4.0.0``. Please use the ``community.postgresql.postgresql_privs`` module to grant/revoke privileges instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.postgresql/issues/493).

community.windows
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- win_domain_computer - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.computer`` instead
- win_domain_group - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.group`` instead
- win_domain_group_membership - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.membership`` instead
- win_domain_object_info - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.object_info`` instead
- win_domain_ou - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.ou`` instead
- win_domain_user - Removed deprecated module, use ``microsoft.ad.user`` instead
- win_lineinfile - Removed deprecated return value ``backup``, use ``backup_file`` instead
- win_xml - Removed deprecated, and undocumented, return value ``backup``, use ``backup_file`` instead

vmware.vmware
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- vm_list_group_by_clusters - Tombstone module in favor of vmware.vmware.vm_list_group_by_clusters_info

Deprecated Features
-------------------

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Passing a ``warnings` or ``deprecations`` key to ``exit_json`` or ``fail_json`` is deprecated. Use ``AnsibleModule.warn`` or ``AnsibleModule.deprecate`` instead.
- plugins - Accessing plugins with ``_``-prefixed filenames without the ``_`` prefix is deprecated.

community.postgresql
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- postgresql modules = the ``login``, ``unix_socket`` and ``host`` aliases are deprecated and will be removed in ``community.postgresql 5.0.0``, use the ``login_user``, ``login_unix_socket`` and ``login_host`` arguments instead.
- postgresql_set - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in ``community.postgresql 5.0.0``. Please use the ``community.postgresql.postgresql_alter_system`` module instead (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.postgresql/issues/823).

community.windows
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- win_audit_policy_system - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_audit_policy_system``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_audit_policy_system`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_audit_rule - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_audit_rule``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_audit_rule`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_auto_logon - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_auto_logon``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_auto_logon`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_certificate_info - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_certificate_info``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_certificate_info`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_computer_description - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_computer_description``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_computer_description`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_credential - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_credential``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_credential`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_dhcp_lease - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_dhcp_lease``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_dhcp_lease`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_dns_record - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_dns_record``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_dns_record`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_dns_zone - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_dns_zone``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_dns_zone`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_eventlog - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_eventlog``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_eventlog`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_feature_info - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_feature_info``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_feature_info`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_file_compression - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_file_compression``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_file_compression`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_firewall - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_firewall``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_firewall`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_hosts - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_hosts``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_hosts`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_hotfix - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_hotfix``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_hotfix`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_http_proxy - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_http_proxy``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_http_proxy`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_iis_virtualdirectory - Deprecated module, use ``microsoft.iis.virtual_directory`` instead as the module will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_iis_webapplication - Deprecated module, use ``microsoft.iis.web_application`` instead instead as the module will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_iis_webapppool - Deprecated module, use ``microsoft.iis.web_app_pool`` instead instead as the module will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_iis_webbinding - Deprecated module, use ``microsoft.iis.website`` instead instead as the module will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_iis_website - Deprecated module, use ``microsoft.iis.website`` instead instead as the module will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_inet_proxy - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_inet_proxy``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_inet_proxy`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_listen_ports_facts - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_listen_ports_facts``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_listen_ports_facts`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_mapped_drive - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_mapped_drive``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_mapped_drive`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_product_facts - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_product_facts``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_product_facts`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_region - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_region``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_region`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_route - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_route``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_route`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_timezone - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_timezone``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_timezone`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0
- win_user_profile - Deprecated module and will be redirected to ``ansible.windows.win_user_profile``. Use ``ansible.windows.win_user_profile`` instead as the redirection will be removed in 4.0.0

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a2
===========================

Known Issues
------------

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- reveal_ansible_type filter plugin and ansible_type test plugin - note that ansible-core's Data Tagging feature implements new aliases, such as ``_AnsibleTaggedStr`` for ``str``, ``_AnsibleTaggedInt`` for ``int``, and ``_AnsibleTaggedFloat`` for ``float`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/9833).

Major Changes
-------------

grafana.grafana
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Add tempo role by @CSTDev in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/323
- Do not log grafana.ini contents when setting facts by @root-expert in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/325
- Fix loki_operational_config section not getting rendered in config.yml by @olegkaspersky in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/330
- Fix sectionless items edge case by @santilococo in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/303
- Fix tags Inherit default vars by @MJurayev in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/341
- Fix the markdown code fences for install command by @benmatselby in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/306
- Grafana fix facts in main.yml by @voidquark in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/315
- Make dashboard imports more flexible by @torfbolt in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/308
- force temporary directory even in check mode for  dashboards.yml by @cmehat in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/339
- integrate sles legacy init-script support by @floerica in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/184
- management of the config.river with the conversion of the config.yaml by @lbrule in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/149

Deprecated Features
-------------------

community.general
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- manifold lookup plugin - plugin is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10028).
- stackpath_compute inventory plugin - plugin is deprecated and will be removed in community.general 11.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.general/pull/10026).

community.vmware
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- vmware_dvs_portgroup - ``mac_learning`` is deprecated in favour of ``network_policy.mac_learning`` (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2360).

Porting Guide for v12.0.0a1
===========================

Added Collections
-----------------

- hitachivantara.vspone_block (version 3.3.0)
- microsoft.iis (version 1.0.2)

Known Issues
------------

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- idrac_diagnostics - Issue(285322) - This module doesn't support export of diagnostics file to HTTP and HTTPS share via SOCKS proxy.
- idrac_firmware - Issue(279282) - This module does not support firmware update using HTTP, HTTPS, and FTP shares with authentication on iDRAC8.
- ome_smart_fabric_uplink - Issue(186024) - The module supported by OpenManage Enterprise Modular, however it does not allow the creation of multiple uplinks of the same name. If an uplink is created using the same name as an existing uplink, then the existing uplink is modified.

purestorage.flasharray
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- All Fusion fleet members will be assumed to be at the same Purity//FA version level as the array connected to by Ansible.
- FlashArray//CBS is not currently supported as a member of a Fusion fleet

Breaking Changes
----------------

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Support for the ``toml`` library has been removed from TOML inventory parsing and dumping. Use ``tomli`` for parsing on Python 3.10. Python 3.11 and later have built-in support for parsing. Use ``tomli-w`` to support outputting inventory in TOML format.
- assert - The ``quiet`` argument must be a commonly-accepted boolean value. Previously, unrecognized values were silently treated as False.
- conditionals - Conditional expressions that result in non-boolean values are now an error by default. Such results often indicate unintentional use of templates where they are not supported, resulting in a conditional that is always true. When this option is enabled, conditional expressions which are a literal ``None`` or empty string will evaluate as true, for backwards compatibility. The error can be temporarily changed to a deprecation warning by enabling the ``ALLOW_BROKEN_CONDITIONALS`` config option.
- first_found lookup - When specifying ``files`` or ``paths`` as a templated list containing undefined values, the undefined list elements will be discarded with a warning. Previously, the entire list would be discarded without any warning.
- internals - The ``AnsibleLoader`` and ``AnsibleDumper`` classes for working with YAML are now factory functions and cannot be extended.
- internals - The ``ansible.utils.native_jinja`` Python module has been removed.
- lookup plugins - Lookup plugins called as `with_(lookup)` will no longer have the `_subdir` attribute set.
- lookup plugins - ``terms`` will always be passed to ``run`` as the first positional arg, where previously it was sometimes passed as a keyword arg when using ``with_`` syntax.
- loops - Omit placeholders no longer leak between loop item templating and task templating. Previously, ``omit`` placeholders could remain embedded in loop items after templating and be used as an ``omit`` for task templating. Now, values resolving to ``omit`` are dropped immediately when loop items are templated. To turn missing values into an ``omit`` for task templating, use ``| default(omit)``. This solution is backward-compatible with previous versions of ansible-core.
- modules - Ansible modules using ``sys.excepthook`` must use a standard ``try/except`` instead.
- plugins - Any plugin that sources or creates templates must properly tag them as trusted.
- plugins - Custom Jinja plugins that accept undefined top-level arguments must opt in to receiving them.
- plugins - Custom Jinja plugins that use ``environment.getitem`` to retrieve undefined values will now trigger a ``MarkerError`` exception. This exception must be handled to allow the plugin to return a ``Marker``, or the plugin must opt-in to accepting ``Marker`` values.
- public API - The ``ansible.vars.fact_cache.FactCache`` wrapper has been removed.
- serialization of ``omit`` sentinel - Serialization of variables containing ``omit`` sentinels (e.g., by the ``to_json`` and ``to_yaml`` filters or ``ansible-inventory``) will fail if the variable has not completed templating. Previously, serialization succeeded with placeholder strings emitted in the serialized output.
- set_fact - The string values "yes", "no", "true" and "false" were previously converted (ignoring case) to boolean values when not using Jinja2 native mode. Since Jinja2 native mode is always used, this conversion no longer occurs. When boolean values are required, native boolean syntax should be used where variables are defined, such as in YAML. When native boolean syntax is not an option, the ``bool`` filter can be used to parse string values into booleans.
- template lookup - The ``convert_data`` option is deprecated and no longer has any effect. Use the ``from_json`` filter on the lookup result instead.
- templating - Access to ``_`` prefixed attributes and methods, and methods with known side effects, is no longer permitted. In cases where a matching mapping key is present, the associated value will be returned instead of an error. This increases template environment isolation and ensures more consistent behavior between the ``.`` and ``[]`` operators.
- templating - Conditionals and lookups which use embedded inline templates in Jinja string constants now display a warning. These templates should be converted to their expression equivalent.
- templating - Many Jinja plugins (filters, lookups, tests) and methods previously silently ignored undefined inputs, which often masked subtle errors. Passing an undefined argument to a Jinja plugin or method that does not declare undefined support now results in an undefined value.
- templating - Templates are always rendered in Jinja2 native mode. As a result, non-string values are no longer automatically converted to strings.
- templating - Templates resulting in ``None`` are no longer automatically converted to an empty string.
- templating - Templates with embedded inline templates that were not contained within a Jinja string constant now result in an error, as support for multi-pass templating was removed for security reasons. In most cases, such templates can be easily rewritten to avoid the use of embedded inline templates.
- templating - The ``allow_unsafe_lookups`` option no longer has any effect. Lookup plugins are responsible for tagging strings containing templates to allow evaluation as a template.
- templating - The result of the ``range()`` global function cannot be returned from a template- it should always be passed to a filter (e.g., ``random``). Previously, range objects returned from an intermediate template were always converted to a list, which is inconsistent with inline consumption of range objects.
- templating - ``#jinja2:`` overrides in templates with invalid override names or types are now templating errors.

ansible.posix
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- firewalld - Changed the type of forward and masquerade options from str to bool (https://github.com/ansible-collections/ansible.posix/issues/582).
- firewalld - Changed the type of icmp_block_inversion option from str to bool (https://github.com/ansible-collections/ansible.posix/issues/586).

community.postgresql
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- postgresql_info - the ``db`` alias is deprecated and will be removed in the next major release, use the ``login_db`` argument instead.
- postgresql_pg_hba - regarding #776 'keep_comments_at_rules' has been deprecated and won't do anything, the default is to keep the comments at the rules they are specified with. keep_comments_at_rules will be removed in 5.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.postgresql/pull/778)
- postgresql_user - the ``db`` alias is deprecated and will be removed in the next major release, use the ``login_db`` argument instead.

dellemc.enterprise_sonic
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- sonic_aaa - Update AAA module to align with SONiC functionality (https://github.com/ansible-collections/dellemc.enterprise_sonic/pull/382).
- sonic_bgp_communities - Change 'aann' option as a suboption of 'members' and update its type from string to list of strings (https://github.com/ansible-collections/dellemc.enterprise_sonic/pull/440).
- sonic_route_maps - Change the 'set ip_next_hop' option from a single-line option to a dictionary (https://github.com/ansible-collection/dellemc.enterprise_sonic/pull/421).
- sonic_vlan_mapping - New vlan_mapping resource module. The users of the vlan_mapping resource module with playbooks written for the SONiC 4.1 will need to revise their playbooks based on the new argspec to use those playbooks for SONiC 4.2 and later versions. (https://github.com/ansible-collections/dellemc.enterprise_sonic/pull/296).

theforeman.foreman
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Drop support for Ansible 2.9.
- Drop support for Python 2.7 and 3.5.

Major Changes
-------------

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Jinja plugins - Jinja builtin filter and test plugins are now accessible via their fully-qualified names ``ansible.builtin.{name}``.
- Task Execution / Forks - Forks no longer inherit stdio from the parent ``ansible-playbook`` process. ``stdout``, ``stderr``, and ``stdin`` within a worker are detached from the terminal, and non-functional. All needs to access stdio from a fork for controller side plugins requires use of ``Display``.
- ansible-test - Packages beneath ``module_utils`` can now contain ``__init__.py`` files.
- variables - The type system underlying Ansible's variable storage has been significantly overhauled and formalized. Attempts to store unsupported Python object types in variables now more consistently yields early warnings or errors.
- variables - To support new Ansible features, many variable objects are now represented by subclasses of their respective native Python types. In most cases, they behave indistinguishably from their original types, but some Python libraries do not handle builtin object subclasses properly. Custom plugins that interact with such libraries may require changes to convert and pass the native types.

ansible.netcommon
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `requires_ansible` to `>=2.16.0`, since previous ansible-core versions are EoL now.

arista.eos
^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `requires_ansible` to `>=2.16.0`, since previous ansible-core versions are EoL now.

cisco.ios
^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `requires_ansible` to `>=2.16.0`, since previous ansible-core versions are EoL now.

cisco.iosxr
^^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `requires_ansible` to `>=2.16.0`, since previous ansible-core versions are EoL now.

cisco.nxos
^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `requires_ansible` to `>=2.16.0`, since previous ansible-core versions are EoL now.

community.vmware
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- vmware_dvswitch_pvlans - The VLAN ID type has been updated to be handled as an integer (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2267).

community.zabbix
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- All Roles - Updated to support version 7.2

dellemc.openmanage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- omevv_baseline_profile - This module allows to manage baseline profile.
- omevv_baseline_profile_info - This module allows to retrieve baseline profile information.
- omevv_compliance_info - This module allows to retrieve firmware compliance reports.
- omevv_firmware - This module allows to update firmware of the single host and single cluster.

fortinet.fortios
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Support check_mode on all the configuration modules.
- Supported new versions 7.6.1 and 7.6.2.
- Updated the examples with correct values that have minimum or maximum values.

grafana.grafana
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Ability to set custom directory path for *.alloy config files by @voidquark in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/294
- Fix 'dict object' has no attribute 'path' when running with --check by @JMLX42 in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/283
- Update grafana template by @santilococo in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/300
- add loki bloom support by @voidquark in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/298
- grafana.ini yaml syntax by @intermittentnrg in https://github.com/grafana/grafana-ansible-collection/pull/232

junipernetworks.junos
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Bumping `requires_ansible` to `>=2.16.0`, since previous ansible-core versions are EoL now.

Removed Collections
-------------------

- cisco.asa (previously included version: 6.0.0)
- community.network (previously included version: 5.1.0)
- google.cloud (previously included version: 1.4.1)
- ibm.spectrum_virtualize (previously included version: 2.0.0)
- sensu.sensu_go (previously included version: 1.14.0)

You can still install a removed collection manually with ``ansible-galaxy collection install <name-of-collection>``.

Removed Features
----------------

- The collection ``ibm.spectrum_virtualize`` has been completely removed from Ansible.
  It has been renamed to ``ibm.storage_virtualize``.
  The collection will be completely removed from Ansible eventually.
  Please update your FQCNs from ``ibm.spectrum_virtualize`` to ``ibm.storage_virtualize``.
- The deprecated ``cisco.asa`` collection has been removed (`https://forum.ansible.com/t/38960 <https://forum.ansible.com/t/38960>`__).
- The deprecated ``community.network`` collection has been removed (`https://forum.ansible.com/t/8030 <https://forum.ansible.com/t/8030>`__).
- The google.cloud collection has been removed from Ansible 12 due to violations of the Ansible inclusion requirements.
  The collection has \ `unresolved sanity test failures <https://github.com/ansible-collections/google.cloud/issues/613>`__.
  See `Collections Removal Process for collections not satisfying the collection requirements <https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/devel/community/collection_contributors/collection_package_removal.html#collections-not-satisfying-the-collection-requirements>`__ for more details (`https://forum.ansible.com/t/8609 <https://forum.ansible.com/t/8609>`__).
  Users can still install this collection with ``ansible-galaxy collection install google.cloud``.
- The sensu.sensu_go collection has been removed from Ansible 12 due to violations of the Ansible inclusion requirements.
  The collection has \ `unresolved sanity test failures <https://github.com/sensu/sensu-go-ansible/issues/362>`__.
  See `Collections Removal Process for collections not satisfying the collection requirements <https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/devel/community/collection_contributors/collection_package_removal.html#collections-not-satisfying-the-collection-requirements>`__ for more details (`https://forum.ansible.com/t/8380 <https://forum.ansible.com/t/8380>`__).
  Users can still install this collection with ``ansible-galaxy collection install sensu.sensu_go``.

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Remove deprecated plural form of collection path (https://github.com/ansible/ansible/pull/84156).
- Removed deprecated STRING_CONVERSION_ACTION (https://github.com/ansible/ansible/issues/84220).
- encrypt - passing unsupported passlib hashtype now raises AnsibleFilterError.
- manager - remove deprecated include_delegate_to parameter from get_vars API.
- modules - Modules returning non-UTF8 strings now result in an error. The ``MODULE_STRICT_UTF8_RESPONSE`` setting can be used to disable this check.
- removed deprecated pycompat24 and compat.importlib.
- selector - remove deprecated compat.selector related files (https://github.com/ansible/ansible/pull/84155).
- windows - removed common module functions ``ConvertFrom-AnsibleJson``, ``Format-AnsibleException`` from Windows modules as they are not used and add unneeded complexity to the code.

ansible.posix
^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- skippy - Remove skippy pluglin as it is no longer supported(https://github.com/ansible-collections/ansible.posix/issues/350).

cisco.nxos
^^^^^^^^^^

- This release removes all deprecated plugins that have reached their end-of-life, including:
- nxos_snmp_community
- nxos_snmp_contact
- nxos_snmp_host
- nxos_snmp_location
- nxos_snmp_user

junipernetworks.junos
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- This includes the following modules:
- This release removes all deprecated plugins that have reached their end-of-life.
- junos_scp

Deprecated Features
-------------------

Ansible-core
^^^^^^^^^^^^

- CLI - The ``--inventory-file`` option alias is deprecated. Use the ``-i`` or ``--inventory`` option instead.
- Strategy Plugins - Use of strategy plugins not provided in ``ansible.builtin`` are deprecated and do not carry any backwards compatibility guarantees going forward. A future release will remove the ability to use external strategy plugins. No alternative for third party strategy plugins is currently planned.
- ``ansible.module_utils.compat.datetime`` - The datetime compatibility shims are now deprecated. They are scheduled to be removed in ``ansible-core`` v2.21. This includes ``UTC``, ``utcfromtimestamp()`` and ``utcnow`` importable from said module (https://github.com/ansible/ansible/pull/81874).
- bool filter - Support for coercing unrecognized input values (including None) has been deprecated. Consult the filter documentation for acceptable values, or consider use of the ``truthy`` and ``falsy`` tests.
- cache plugins - The `ansible.plugins.cache.base` Python module is deprecated. Use `ansible.plugins.cache` instead.
- callback plugins - The `v2_on_any` callback method is deprecated. Use specific callback methods instead.
- callback plugins - The v1 callback API (callback methods not prefixed with `v2_`) is deprecated. Use `v2_` prefixed methods instead.
- conditionals - Conditionals using Jinja templating delimiters (e.g., ``{{``, ``{%``) should be rewritten as expressions without delimiters, unless the entire conditional value is a single template that resolves to a trusted string expression. This is useful for dynamic indirection of conditional expressions, but is limited to trusted literal string expressions.
- config - The ``ACTION_WARNINGS`` config has no effect. It previously disabled command warnings, which have since been removed.
- config - The ``DEFAULT_JINJA2_NATIVE`` option has no effect. Jinja2 native mode is now the default and only option.
- config - The ``DEFAULT_NULL_REPRESENTATION`` option has no effect. Null values are no longer automatically converted to another value during templating of single variable references.
- display - The ``Display.get_deprecation_message`` method has been deprecated. Call ``Display.deprecated`` to display a deprecation message, or call it with ``removed=True`` to raise an ``AnsibleError``.
- file loading - Loading text files with ``DataLoader`` containing data that cannot be decoded under the expected encoding is deprecated. In most cases the encoding must be UTF-8, although some plugins allow choosing a different encoding. Previously, invalid data was silently wrapped in Unicode surrogate escape sequences, often resulting in later errors or other data corruption.
- first_found lookup - Splitting of file paths on ``,;:`` is deprecated. Pass a list of paths instead. The ``split`` method on strings can be used to split variables into a list as needed.
- interpreter discovery - The ``auto_legacy`` and ``auto_legacy_silent`` options for ``INTERPRETER_PYTHON`` are deprecated. Use ``auto`` or ``auto_silent`` options instead, as they have the same effect.
- oneline callback - The ``oneline`` callback and its associated ad-hoc CLI args (``-o``, ``--one-line``) are deprecated.
- paramiko - The paramiko connection plugin has been deprecated with planned removal in 2.21.
- playbook variables - The ``play_hosts`` variable has been deprecated, use ``ansible_play_batch`` instead.
- plugin error handling - The ``AnsibleError`` constructor arg ``suppress_extended_error`` is deprecated. Using ``suppress_extended_error=True`` has the same effect as ``show_content=False``.
- template lookup - The jinja2_native option is no longer used in the Ansible Core code base. Jinja2 native mode is now the default and only option.
- templating - Support for enabling Jinja2 extensions (not plugins) has been deprecated.
- templating - The ``disable_lookups`` option has no effect, since plugins must be updated to apply trust before any templating can be performed.
- tree callback - The ``tree`` callback and its associated ad-hoc CLI args (``-t``, ``--tree``) are deprecated.

amazon.aws
^^^^^^^^^^

- autoscaling_group - the ``decrement_desired_capacity`` parameter has been deprecated and will be removed in release 14.0.0 of this collection. Management of instances attached an autoscaling group can be performed using the  ``amazon.aws.autoscaling_instance`` module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2396).
- autoscaling_group - the ``replace_batch_size``, ``lc_check`` and ``lt_check`` parameters have been deprecated and will be removed in release 14.0.0 of this collection. Rolling replacement of instances in an autoscaling group can be performed using the  ``amazon.aws.autoscaling_instance_refresh`` module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2396).
- autoscaling_group - the functionality provided through the ``detach_instances`` parameter has been deprecated and will be removed in release 14.0.0 of this collection. Management of instances attached an autoscaling group can be performed using the  ``amazon.aws.autoscaling_instance`` module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2396).
- autoscaling_group - the functionality provided through the ``replace_all_instances`` parameter has been deprecated and will be removed in release 14.0.0 of this collection. Rolling replacement of instances in an autoscaling group can be performed using the  ``amazon.aws.autoscaling_instance_refresh`` module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2396).
- autoscaling_group - the functionality provided through the ``replace_instances`` parameter has been deprecated and will be removed in release 14.0.0 of this collection. Management of instances attached an autoscaling group can be performed using the  ``amazon.aws.autoscaling_instance`` module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/amazon.aws/pull/2396).

ansible.netcommon
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Added deprecation warnings for the above plugins, displayed when running respective filter plugins.
- `parse_cli_textfsm` filter plugin is deprecated and will be removed in a future release after 2027-02-01. Use `ansible.utils.cli_parse` with the `ansible.utils.textfsm_parser` parser as a replacement.
- `parse_cli` filter plugin is deprecated and will be removed in a future release after 2027-02-01. Use `ansible.utils.cli_parse` as a replacement.
- `parse_xml` filter plugin is deprecated and will be removed in a future release after 2027-02-01. Use `ansible.utils.cli_parse` with the `ansible.utils.xml_parser` parser as a replacement.

cisco.ios
^^^^^^^^^

- ios_vlans - deprecate mtu, please use ios_interfaces to configure mtu to the interface where vlans is applied.

community.crypto
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- Support for ansible-core 2.11, 2.12, 2.13, 2.14, 2.15, and 2.16 is deprecated, and will be removed in the next major release (community.crypto 3.0.0). Some modules might still work with some of these versions afterwards, but we will no longer keep compatibility code that was needed to support them. Note that this means that support for all Python versions before 3.7 will be dropped, also on the target side (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/issues/559, https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/839).
- Support for cryptography < 3.4 is deprecated, and will be removed in the next major release (community.crypto 3.0.0). Some modules might still work with older versions of cryptography, but we will no longer keep compatibility code that was needed to support them (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/issues/559, https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/839).
- openssl_pkcs12 - the PyOpenSSL based backend is deprecated and will be removed from community.crypto 3.0.0. From that point on you need cryptography 3.0 or newer to use this module (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/issues/667, https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.crypto/pull/831).

community.hrobot
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- boot - the various ``arch`` suboptions have been deprecated and will be removed from community.hrobot 3.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.hrobot/pull/134).

community.postgresql
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- postgresql_copy - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_db - the ``rename`` choice of the state option is deprecated and will be removed in version 5.0.0, use the ``postgresql_query`` module instead.
- postgresql_ext - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_idx - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_membership - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_owner - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_ping - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_privs - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_publication - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_query - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_schema - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_script - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_sequence - the ``rename_to`` option is deprecated and will be removed in version 5.0.0, use the ``postgresql_query`` module instead.
- postgresql_sequence - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_set - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_slot - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_subscription - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_table - the ``rename`` option is deprecated and will be removed in version 5.0.0, use the ``postgresql_query module`` instead.
- postgresql_table - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_tablespace - the ``rename_to`` option is deprecated and will be removed in version 5.0.0, use the ``postgresql_query`` module instead.
- postgresql_tablespace - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.
- postgresql_user_obj_stat_info - the parameter aliases db and database are deprecated and will be removed in community.postgresql 5.0.0. Use login_db instead.

community.vmware
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- module_utils.vmware - host_version_at_least is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2303).
- plugin_utils.inventory - this plugin util is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2304).
- plugins.httpapi - this is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2306).
- vcenter_folder - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2340).
- vm_device_helper.py - is_nvdimm_controller is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2311).
- vm_device_helper.py - is_nvdimm_device is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2311).
- vmware - find_host_portgroup_by_name is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2311).
- vmware - find_vmdk_file is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2311).
- vmware - network_exists_by_name is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2311).
- vmware - vmdk_disk_path_split is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2311).
- vmware_cluster_ha - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2321).
- vmware_cluster_info - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2260).
- vmware_content_deploy_ovf_template - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2332).
- vmware_content_deploy_template - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2332).
- vmware_content_library_manager - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2345).
- vmware_host - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2337).
- vmware_host_inventory - the inventory plugin is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2283).
- vmware_maintenancemode - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2293).
- vmware_rest_client - get_folder_by_name is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2311).
- vmware_vm_inventory - the inventory plugin is deprecated and will be removed in community.vmware 7.0.0 (https://github.com/ansible-collections/community.vmware/pull/2283).

vmware.vmware_rest
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

- content_library_item_info - the module has been deprecated and will be removed in vmware.vmware_rest 5.0.0
