CODEWITHSUNDEEP
azure-devopsazure-pipelines
MAHDTech
MAHDTech

Reputation: 733

Azure Pipelines: Passing a variable as a parameter to a template

I am currently evaluating Azure Pipelines with a small POC and I think I have hit a limitation but wanted to know if anyone had a workaround.

Here is the key parts for what I am trying to do.

azure-pipelines.yml

variables:
  - name: FavouriteSportsTeam
    value: "Houston Rockets"
jobs:
  - template: Build1.yml
    parameters:
      SportsTeam: $(FavouriteSportsTeam)
  - template: Build2.yml
    parameters:
      SportsTeam: $(FavouriteSportsTeam)

Build1.yml

parameters:
  SportsTeam: "A Default Team"
jobs:
  - job: SportsTeamPrinter
    steps:
      - script: "echo ${{ parameters.SportsTeam }}"

Now when I attempt to run this, the variable passed from the azure-pipelines.yml file isn't expanded, and it's left as "$(FavouriteSportsTeam)"

Is it possible to pass an expanded variable as a parameter to another file?

Upvotes: 63

Views: 52729

Answers (4)

officer
officer

Reputation: 2448

I had the same problem with a deployment job within a template where I tried to set the environment depending on a parameter. The template parameter would the receive a run-time variable $(Environment).

The issue was that run-time variables are not yet available at the time the value pass to environment is interpreted. Solution was to not pass the variable in run-time syntax but use the expression syntax ${{ variables.environment }}:

deploy-appservice.yml

parameters:
- name: environment # don't pass run-time variables

jobs:
- deployment: DeployAppService
  environment: ${{ parameters.environment }}
  strategy: [...]

azure-pipelines.yml

- stage: QA
  variables: 
    Environment: QA
  jobs:
  - template: templates/deploy-appservice.yml
    parameters:
      environment: ${{ variables.environment }} # use expression syntax

If you wrongly pass a run-time variable $(Environment) this string is what the deployment job will try to name the Azure DevOps environment. I guess, since this is not a valid name, it will use Test as a fallback name, which then appears in the Environments menu.

I have written a more detailed blog post about managing deployment environments on my personal website.

Upvotes: 33

Krzysztof Czelusniak
Krzysztof Czelusniak

Reputation: 1317

This works:

azure-pipelines.yml

variables:
  FavouriteSportsTeam: "Houston Rockets"
jobs:
  - template: Build1.yml
    parameters:
      SportsTeam: $(FavouriteSportsTeam)
  - template: Build2.yml
    parameters:
      SportsTeam: $(FavouriteSportsTeam)

Build1.yml

parameters:
  SportsTeam: "A Default Team"
jobs:
  - job: SportsTeamPrinter
    steps:
      - script: "echo ${{ parameters.SportsTeam }}"

Upvotes: 19

oleksa
oleksa

Reputation: 4007

I suppose that template parameters are evaluated before variables are initialized. That is why you are getting $(FavouriteSportsTeam) instead of variable value

I've tried to set template parameter value from the variable in different ways but no luck

In the template parameter value can be resolved with format or without (using the ${{ }} ) like

#template1
parameters:
  poolname: dev4-kyiv
  versionFile: ''

jobs:
  - job: versionJob 
    pool:
      name: ${{ parameters.poolname }}
    steps:
      - powershell: |
          Write-Host ("${{ parameters.versionFile }}")

or with local template variables

#template2
parameters:
  releaseFilePath: ''
  packageTags: '' 
jobs:
  - job: build
    variables:
      releaseNotesFile: '${{ parameters.releaseFilePath }}/releaseNotes.txt'
      tags: '${{ parameters.packageTags }}'

but I can not find the way how to set template parameter value using variable from the main script that uses template.

Upvotes: 3

4c74356b41
4c74356b41

Reputation: 72151

yes, but you have to use format() function:

Inline: |
  ${{ format('$Tags = (Get-AzureRmResourceGroup -Name {0}).Tags
  $Tags.Version = "$(Build.BuildNumber)"
  $Tags.FailedVersion = "-"; Set-AzureRmResourceGroup -Name {0} -Tag $Tags',
        parameters.resourceGroupName ) }}

here's an example. you can also make it multi line for better readability.

https://github.com/Microsoft/azure-pipelines-agent/issues/1686

Upvotes: 0

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