Using public modules

When you write a Puppet module to manage some software or service, you don't have to start from scratch. Community-contributed modules are available at the Puppet Forge site for many popular applications. Sometimes, a community module will be exactly what you need, and you can download and start using it straight away. In most cases, you will need to make some modifications to suit your particular needs and environment.

Like all community efforts, there are some excellent and some less-than-excellent modules on the Forge. You should read the README section of the module and decide whether the module is going to work in your installation. At the very least, ensure that your distribution is supported. puppetlabs has introduced a set of modules that are supported, that is, if you are an enterprise customer, they will support your use of the module in your installation. Additionally, most Forge modules deal with multiple operating systems, distributions, and a great number...