So the first step in adding automation to an existing infrastructure is identifying whats out there and classifying it into types and groups. If you already have this info somewhere (eg an existing ldap infrastructure) then you're done and can skip to step two (activities).

Leaving out a ton of detailed instructions on installing the core server (I'll cover that later) here's the quick and dirty way to install icagent on Ubuntu boxes (and Debian, with some adaptations.)

So I've been gone for a long time (lots of medical issues, among other things) but I'm back and working at a new job now. And one of the first big tasks is automation - most of the servers are virtualized, but the management (and creation) is still hap-hazard and arbitrary. But that's going to change..