name: Rundeck Runbook Automation Vocabulary
description: >-
  Core vocabulary, terminology, and domain concepts used in Rundeck runbook
  automation. Covers job management, execution, node targeting, ACL policies,
  and DevOps integration patterns.
created: '2026-05-02'
modified: '2026-05-02'
terms:

  - term: Job
    definition: >-
      A named, reusable automation workflow in Rundeck that defines a sequence of
      steps to execute on target nodes. Jobs can be parameterized with options,
      scheduled, and triggered via API, webhook, or manually.
    tags:
      - Job
      - Automation

  - term: Execution
    definition: >-
      A single run instance of a job or ad hoc command. Executions have a lifecycle
      (running, succeeded, failed, aborted) and record output logs, duration, and
      targeted nodes.
    tags:
      - Execution
      - Job

  - term: Project
    definition: >-
      A logical container in Rundeck that organizes jobs, node configurations,
      and access control. Projects can model environments (dev, staging, prod) or
      application teams.
    tags:
      - Project
      - Organization

  - term: Node
    definition: >-
      A target machine (physical, virtual, or cloud) registered in Rundeck that
      jobs can be executed against. Nodes have attributes like hostname, OS type,
      username, and tags used for filtering.
    tags:
      - Node
      - Infrastructure

  - term: Node Filter
    definition: >-
      An expression used to select a subset of nodes to target for job execution.
      Filters can match on node name, tags, OS, hostname, and custom attributes.
    tags:
      - Node
      - Filtering

  - term: Step
    definition: >-
      An individual action within a job definition. Steps can be commands,
      scripts, job references (call another job), or plugin-provided actions.
      Steps execute sequentially or in parallel.
    tags:
      - Job
      - Workflow

  - term: Option
    definition: >-
      A named input parameter for a job that can be supplied at runtime via
      the UI, CLI, or API. Options support required/optional, default values,
      enumeration constraints, and secure (masked) values.
    tags:
      - Job
      - Parameters

  - term: ACL Policy
    definition: >-
      Access Control List Policy in Rundeck. YAML-formatted policies that define
      what actions users and groups can perform on resources (jobs, executions,
      projects, nodes). Enforces role-based access control.
    tags:
      - Security
      - Access Control
      - RBAC

  - term: API Token
    definition: >-
      A secret string used to authenticate API requests to Rundeck. Tokens are
      associated with a user and optionally scoped to specific roles. Passed via
      X-Rundeck-Auth-Token header.
    tags:
      - Authentication
      - API
      - Security

  - term: Execution Mode
    definition: >-
      The operational state of a Rundeck server: active (executions run normally)
      or passive (executions are suspended for maintenance). Controlled via
      the system executions API.
    tags:
      - System
      - Administration

  - term: Runbook Automation
    definition: >-
      The automation of operational runbooks: documented procedures that IT teams
      execute to manage systems, deploy software, respond to incidents, and
      perform routine maintenance.
    tags:
      - Runbook
      - Automation
      - Operations

  - term: Webhook
    definition: >-
      An HTTP callback mechanism in Rundeck that allows external systems to
      trigger job executions in response to events. Supports authentication tokens
      and input mapping.
    tags:
      - Integration
      - Webhook

  - term: Log Storage
    definition: >-
      The system for storing and retrieving execution output logs. Rundeck supports
      local file storage and remote storage plugins (S3, Azure Blob, etc.).
    tags:
      - Logging
      - Storage

  - term: Cluster
    definition: >-
      A multi-server Rundeck deployment for high availability and load distribution.
      Cluster members share job scheduling via a distributed database backend.
    tags:
      - Cluster
      - High Availability
      - Enterprise

  - term: Self-Service Operations
    definition: >-
      The practice of enabling non-technical teams to safely execute predefined
      automation tasks through Rundeck's role-based UI, reducing dependency on
      infrastructure teams for routine operations.
    tags:
      - Operations
      - Self-Service