From e225530db9d4194209f2d0fa963cdd58a91ada1e Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: patrick <patrickjaroszewski@protonmail.com>
Date: Wed, 24 Jun 2026 21:45:05 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] ensure ddclient service is running; default protocols to []

- Add an explicit service state=started enabled=true task so the role is self-healing if the unit is disabled or stopped, rather than relying solely on the restart handler.
- Default ddclient_protocols to [] so the template's for-loop no longer errors when the var is omitted.
- README: note service management in the tagline and document the new ddclient_protocols default.
---
 README.md       | 4 +++-
 tasks/main.yaml | 6 ++++++
 2 files changed, 9 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index d2116f3..54556d4 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # Ansible Role: ddclient
 
-Installs and configures ddclient for dynamic DNS updates.
+Installs ddclient, writes `/etc/ddclient.conf` and `/etc/default/ddclient`, and ensures the `ddclient` service is enabled and running.
 
 ## Example Playbook
 
@@ -59,6 +59,8 @@ Only applicable if using the IP detection method `fw`.
 
 ### Protocol Configuration
 
+`ddclient_protocols` is a list of DDNS provider entries. Defaults to `[]` — the role runs to completion but ddclient will have no updates to perform until you set it.
+
 **Common keys:**
 
 | Key | Required | Description |
diff --git a/tasks/main.yaml b/tasks/main.yaml
index 8e627b2..92b8d96 100755
--- a/tasks/main.yaml
+++ b/tasks/main.yaml
@@ -19,3 +19,9 @@
     owner: root
     mode: "0600"
   notify: Restart ddclient service
+
+- name: Ensure ddclient service is enabled and running
+  ansible.builtin.service:
+    name: ddclient
+    state: started
+    enabled: true