Summary
Runners add a scripting element to Salt, using Python. They are designed to run on the Master, but do not require the salt-master service to be running, unless they are using the local client to issue commands to Minions. Runners are designed to manage targeting on their own, but you can add elements to allow users to specify targets anyway. They are especially useful for using the output from one job as input for another job, which allows you to wrap your own logic around execution modules.
In the next chapter, we will allow the Master to use external sources to store the files that it serves to its Minions. Next up: adding external file servers.
