network_restore.yml fails with 'sshpass: command not found' when restore_mode is overwrite

[ericcames]

Summary

Running playbooks/network_restore.yml with restore_mode: overwrite on IOS devices fails with:

changed: true
stdout: ''
stderr: '/bin/sh: line 1: sshpass: command not found'
rc: 127
cmd: >
  sshpass -p "..." scp -O -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no
  /backup/<date>/cisco.txt
  admin@cisco:'flash:<date>-cisco.txt'

Root Cause

roles/restore/tasks/ios/overwrite.yml uses sshpass to authenticate the SCP transfer to the Cisco device when ansible_password is set. The task is delegated to backup-server, so sshpass must be installed on the backup-server — not on the Ansible control node. This dependency is undocumented.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Set restore_mode: overwrite (or rely on the default, which resolves to overwrite per ios.yml)
2. Run ansible-playbook playbooks/network_restore.yml -e rollback_date=<date>
3. Observe failure at the "Copy file over to flash on network device using SCP" task

Expected Behavior

Either:

• sshpass is listed as a prerequisite for the backup-server in the README, or
• The playbook checks for sshpass and fails with a clear message before attempting the SCP

Fix

Install sshpass on the backup-server:

sudo dnf install sshpass   # RHEL/Fedora
sudo apt install sshpass   # Debian/Ubuntu

And document this as a prerequisite in the repo README or role README (roles/restore/README.md).

Environment

• Ansible network_os: cisco.ios
• restore_mode: overwrite
• Failing task: roles/restore/tasks/ios/overwrite.yml — "Copy file over to flash on network device using SCP"