diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci-enterprise.yaml b/.github/workflows/ci-enterprise.yaml
index 10afd7a00e..7222bdbfbc 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci-enterprise.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci-enterprise.yaml
@@ -184,12 +184,15 @@ jobs:
           scanners: "vuln"
           
   test-container:
+    strategy:
+      matrix: 
+        deployment_type: ["docker", "podman"]
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    continue-on-error: true
     needs:
       - meta
       - build_action
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
+
     services:
       splunk:
         image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
@@ -202,41 +205,68 @@ jobs:
           SPLUNK_PASSWORD: Changed@11
           SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
           SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
-          - 601:601
-          - 5614:5514
-          - 5601:5601
-          - 6000:6000
-          - 6002:6002
-          - 9000:9000
-        env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_HTTP_COMPRESSION: "yes"
-          SC4S_LISTEN_PFSENSE_FIREWALL_TCP_PORT: 6000
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_TCP_PORT: 5514
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_UDP_PORT: 5514
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_TWO_TCP_PORT: 5601
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SPECTRACOM_NTP_TCP_PORT: 6002
-          SC4S_LISTEN_CISCO_ESA_TCP_PORT: 9000
-          SC4S_LISTEN_RARITAN_DSX_TCP_PORT: 9001
-          SC4S_LISTEN_CHECKPOINT_SPLUNK_NOISE_CONTROL: "yes"
-          SC4S_SOURCE_RICOH_SYSLOG_FIXHOST: "yes"
-          TEST_SC4S_ACTIVATE_EXAMPLES: "yes"
-          SC4S_DEBUG_CONTAINER: "yes"
-          SC4S_SOURCE_VMWARE_VSPHERE_GROUPMSG: "yes"
-          SC4S_NETAPP_ONTAP_NEW_FORMAT: "yes"
-          SC4S_USE_VPS_CACHE: "yes"
+
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           submodules: false
           persist-credentials: false
+      - name: Install Ansible and other dependencies as python package
+        run: |
+          pip install ansible~=6.1.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install pywinrm>=0.4.2 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install ansible-lint>=6.0.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install docker
+      - name: Configure Ansible Environment Variables
+        env:
+          ANSIBLE_CONFIG: ansible.cfg
+          ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING: False
+        run: |
+          echo "ANSIBLE_CONFIG is set to: $ANSIBLE_CONFIG"
+          echo "ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING is set to: $ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING"
+          sudo systemctl set-environment SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
+      - name: Update inventory file
+        run: |
+          cat << EOF > ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml
+          ---
+          all:
+            hosts:
+            children:
+              node:
+                hosts:
+                  node_1:
+                    ansible_host: 127.0.0.1
+                    ansible_connection: local
+                    ansible_user: root
+      - name: Update env_file
+        run: |
+          echo "Updating ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml"
+          cat << EOF > ansible/resources/env_file
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL=https://127.0.0.1:8088
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY=no
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_HTTP_COMPRESSION=yes
+          SC4S_LISTEN_PFSENSE_FIREWALL_TCP_PORT=6000
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_TCP_PORT=5514
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_UDP_PORT=5514
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_TWO_TCP_PORT=5601
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SPECTRACOM_NTP_TCP_PORT=6002
+          SC4S_LISTEN_CISCO_ESA_TCP_PORT=9000
+          SC4S_LISTEN_RARITAN_DSX_TCP_PORT=9001
+          SC4S_LISTEN_CHECKPOINT_SPLUNK_NOISE_CONTROL=yes
+          SC4S_SOURCE_RICOH_SYSLOG_FIXHOST=yes
+          TEST_SC4S_ACTIVATE_EXAMPLES=yes
+          SC4S_DEBUG_CONTAINER=yes
+          SC4S_SOURCE_VMWARE_VSPHERE_GROUPMSG=yes
+          SC4S_NETAPP_ONTAP_NEW_FORMAT=yes
+          SC4S_USE_VPS_CACHE=yes
+      - name: Update current SC4S image in unit file
+        run: |
+          sed -i 's|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=ghcr.io/splunk/splunk-connect-for-syslog/container3:latest"|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}"|' ansible/resources/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_sc4s.service
+      - name: Run Ansible Playbook
+        run: |
+          ansible-playbook --connection=local -i ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml ansible/playbooks/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.yml 
       - name: Run tests
         run: |
           pip3 install poetry
@@ -245,22 +275,34 @@ jobs:
           poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
             --splunk_type=external \
             --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
+            --splunk_host=127.0.0.1 \
+            --sc4s_host=127.0.0.1 \
             --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
             -n 14 \
             -k 'not lite and not name_cache'
-  test-ipv4-name-cache:
+      - name: artifact-test-results
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: test-container-results_${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.xml
+          path: test-results/test.xml
+        if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
+  
+  test-name-cache:
+    strategy:
+      matrix: 
+        deployment_type: ["docker", "podman"]
+        SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: ["yes","no"]
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    continue-on-error: true
     needs:
       - meta
       - build_action
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
+
     services:
       splunk:
         image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
         ports:
+          - 8000:8000
           - 8088:8088
           - 8089:8089
         env:
@@ -268,70 +310,56 @@ jobs:
           SPLUNK_PASSWORD: Changed@11
           SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
           SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
-        env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
-          SC4S_USE_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-          SC4S_CLEAR_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
+
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           submodules: false
           persist-credentials: false
-      - name: Run tests
+      - name: Install Ansible and other dependencies as python package
         run: |
-          pip3 install poetry
-          poetry install
-          mkdir -p test-results || true
-          poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
-            --splunk_type=external \
-            --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
-            --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
-            -n 1 \
-            -m 'name_cache'
-  test-ipv6-name-cache:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    needs:
-      - meta
-      - build_action
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
-    services:
-      splunk:
-        image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
-        ports:
-          - 8088:8088
-          - 8089:8089
-        env:
-          SPLUNK_HEC_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SPLUNK_PASSWORD: Changed@11
-          SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
-          SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
+          pip install ansible~=6.1.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install pywinrm>=0.4.2 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install ansible-lint>=6.0.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install docker
+      - name: Configure Ansible Environment Variables
         env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
+          ANSIBLE_CONFIG: ansible.cfg
+          ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING: False
+        run: |
+          echo "ANSIBLE_CONFIG is set to: $ANSIBLE_CONFIG"
+          echo "ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING is set to: $ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING"
+          sudo systemctl set-environment SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
+      - name: Update inventory file
+        run: |
+          cat << EOF > ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml
+          ---
+          all:
+            hosts:
+            children:
+              node:
+                hosts:
+                  node_1:
+                    ansible_host: 127.0.0.1
+                    ansible_connection: local
+                    ansible_user: root
+      - name: Update env_file
+        run: |
+          echo "Updating ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml"
+          cat << EOF > ansible/resources/env_file
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL=https://127.0.0.1:8088
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY=no
           SC4S_USE_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
           SC4S_CLEAR_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-          SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: "yes"
-    steps:
-      - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          submodules: false
-          persist-credentials: false
+          SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: "${{ matrix.SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE }}"
+      - name: Update current SC4S image in unit file
+        run: |
+          sed -i 's|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=ghcr.io/splunk/splunk-connect-for-syslog/container3:latest"|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}"|' ansible/resources/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_sc4s.service
+      - name: Run Ansible Playbook
+        run: |
+          ansible-playbook --connection=local -i ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml ansible/playbooks/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.yml 
       - name: Run tests
         run: |
           pip3 install poetry
@@ -340,11 +368,17 @@ jobs:
           poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
             --splunk_type=external \
             --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
+            --splunk_host=127.0.0.1 \
+            --sc4s_host=127.0.0.1 \
             --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
             -n 1 \
             -m 'name_cache'
+      - name: artifact-test-results
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: test-name-cache-results_${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_IPv6_${{ matrix.SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE }}.xml
+          path: test-results/test.xml
+        if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
   release:
     name: Release
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
@@ -352,7 +386,7 @@ jobs:
       - meta
       - build_action
       - test-container
-      - test-ipv4-name-cache
+      - test-name-cache
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci-lite.yaml b/.github/workflows/ci-lite.yaml
index 79c5066140..a477dba2b3 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci-lite.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci-lite.yaml
@@ -178,14 +178,14 @@ jobs:
           scanners: "vuln"
           
   test-container:
+    strategy:
+      matrix: 
+        deployment_type: ["docker", "podman"]
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    continue-on-error: true
     needs:
       - meta
       - build_action
-    # runs all of the steps inside the specified container rather than on the VM host.
-    # Because of this the network configuration changes from host based network to a container network.
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
 
     services:
       splunk:
@@ -200,41 +200,67 @@ jobs:
           SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
           SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
 
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
-          - 601:601
-          - 5614:5514
-          - 5601:5601
-          - 6000:6000
-          - 6002:6002
-          - 9000:9000
-        env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_HTTP_COMPRESSION: "yes"
-          SC4S_LISTEN_PFSENSE_FIREWALL_TCP_PORT: 6000
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_TCP_PORT: 5514
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_UDP_PORT: 5514
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_TWO_TCP_PORT: 5601
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SPECTRACOM_NTP_TCP_PORT: 6002
-          SC4S_LISTEN_CISCO_ESA_TCP_PORT: 9000
-          SC4S_LISTEN_RARITAN_DSX_TCP_PORT: 9001
-          SC4S_LISTEN_CHECKPOINT_SPLUNK_NOISE_CONTROL: "yes"
-          SC4S_SOURCE_RICOH_SYSLOG_FIXHOST: "yes"
-          TEST_SC4S_ACTIVATE_EXAMPLES: "yes"
-          SC4S_DEBUG_CONTAINER: "yes"
-          SC4S_SOURCE_VMWARE_VSPHERE_GROUPMSG: "yes"
-          SC4S_NETAPP_ONTAP_NEW_FORMAT: "yes"
-          SC4S_USE_VPS_CACHE: "yes"
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           submodules: false
           persist-credentials: false
+      - name: Install Ansible and other dependencies as python package
+        run: |
+          pip install ansible~=6.1.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install pywinrm>=0.4.2 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install ansible-lint>=6.0.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install docker
+      - name: Configure Ansible Environment Variables
+        env:
+          ANSIBLE_CONFIG: ansible.cfg
+          ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING: False
+        run: |
+          echo "ANSIBLE_CONFIG is set to: $ANSIBLE_CONFIG"
+          echo "ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING is set to: $ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING"
+          sudo systemctl set-environment SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
+      - name: Update inventory file
+        run: |
+          cat << EOF > ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml
+          ---
+          all:
+            hosts:
+            children:
+              node:
+                hosts:
+                  node_1:
+                    ansible_host: 127.0.0.1
+                    ansible_connection: local
+                    ansible_user: root
+      - name: Update env_file
+        run: |
+          echo "Updating ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml"
+          cat << EOF > ansible/resources/env_file
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL=https://127.0.0.1:8088
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY=no
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_HTTP_COMPRESSION=yes
+          SC4S_LISTEN_PFSENSE_FIREWALL_TCP_PORT=6000
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_TCP_PORT=5514
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_UDP_PORT=5514
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_TWO_TCP_PORT=5601
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SPECTRACOM_NTP_TCP_PORT=6002
+          SC4S_LISTEN_CISCO_ESA_TCP_PORT=9000
+          SC4S_LISTEN_RARITAN_DSX_TCP_PORT=9001
+          SC4S_LISTEN_CHECKPOINT_SPLUNK_NOISE_CONTROL=yes
+          SC4S_SOURCE_RICOH_SYSLOG_FIXHOST=yes
+          TEST_SC4S_ACTIVATE_EXAMPLES=yes
+          SC4S_DEBUG_CONTAINER=yes
+          SC4S_SOURCE_VMWARE_VSPHERE_GROUPMSG=yes
+          SC4S_NETAPP_ONTAP_NEW_FORMAT=yes
+          SC4S_USE_VPS_CACHE=yes
+      - name: Update current SC4S image in unit file
+        run: |
+          sed -i 's|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=ghcr.io/splunk/splunk-connect-for-syslog/container3:latest"|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}"|' ansible/resources/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_sc4s.service
+      - name: Run Ansible Playbook
+        run: |
+          ansible-playbook --connection=local -i ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml ansible/playbooks/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.yml 
       - name: Run tests
         run: |
           pip3 install poetry
@@ -243,24 +269,33 @@ jobs:
           poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
             --splunk_type=external \
             --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
+            --splunk_host=127.0.0.1 \
+            --sc4s_host=127.0.0.1 \
             --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
             -n 14 -m "lite or addons"
-
-  test-ipv4-name-cache:
+      - name: artifact-test-results
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: test-container-results_${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.xml
+          path: test-results/test.xml
+        if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
+  
+  test-name-cache:
+    strategy:
+      matrix: 
+        deployment_type: ["docker", "podman"]
+        SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: ["yes","no"]
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    continue-on-error: true
     needs:
       - meta
       - build_action
-    # runs all of the steps inside the specified container rather than on the VM host.
-    # Because of this the network configuration changes from host based network to a container network.
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
+
     services:
       splunk:
         image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
         ports:
+          - 8000:8000
           - 8088:8088
           - 8089:8089
         env:
@@ -269,76 +304,55 @@ jobs:
           SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
           SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
 
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
-        env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
-          SC4S_USE_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-          SC4S_CLEAR_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           submodules: false
           persist-credentials: false
-      - name: Run tests
+      - name: Install Ansible and other dependencies as python package
         run: |
-          pip3 install poetry
-          poetry install
-          mkdir -p test-results || true
-          poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
-            --splunk_type=external \
-            --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
-            --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
-            -n 1 \
-            -m 'name_cache'
-
-  test-ipv6-name-cache:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    needs:
-      - meta
-      - build_action
-    # runs all of the steps inside the specified container rather than on the VM host.
-    # Because of this the network configuration changes from host based network to a container network.
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
-    services:
-      splunk:
-        image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
-        ports:
-          - 8088:8088
-          - 8089:8089
-        env:
-          SPLUNK_HEC_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SPLUNK_PASSWORD: Changed@11
-          SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
-          SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
-
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
+          pip install ansible~=6.1.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install pywinrm>=0.4.2 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install ansible-lint>=6.0.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install docker
+      - name: Configure Ansible Environment Variables
         env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
+          ANSIBLE_CONFIG: ansible.cfg
+          ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING: False
+        run: |
+          echo "ANSIBLE_CONFIG is set to: $ANSIBLE_CONFIG"
+          echo "ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING is set to: $ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING"
+          sudo systemctl set-environment SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
+      - name: Update inventory file
+        run: |
+          cat << EOF > ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml
+          ---
+          all:
+            hosts:
+            children:
+              node:
+                hosts:
+                  node_1:
+                    ansible_host: 127.0.0.1
+                    ansible_connection: local
+                    ansible_user: root
+      - name: Update env_file
+        run: |
+          echo "Updating ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml"
+          cat << EOF > ansible/resources/env_file
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL=https://127.0.0.1:8088
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY=no
           SC4S_USE_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
           SC4S_CLEAR_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-          SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: "yes"
-
-    steps:
-      - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          submodules: false
-          persist-credentials: false
+          SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: "${{ matrix.SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE }}"
+      - name: Update current SC4S image in unit file
+        run: |
+          sed -i 's|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=ghcr.io/splunk/splunk-connect-for-syslog/container3:latest"|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}"|' ansible/resources/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_sc4s.service
+      - name: Run Ansible Playbook
+        run: |
+          ansible-playbook --connection=local -i ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml ansible/playbooks/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.yml 
       - name: Run tests
         run: |
           pip3 install poetry
@@ -347,11 +361,17 @@ jobs:
           poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
             --splunk_type=external \
             --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
+            --splunk_host=127.0.0.1 \
+            --sc4s_host=127.0.0.1 \
             --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
             -n 1 \
             -m 'name_cache'
+      - name: artifact-test-results
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: test-name-cache-results_${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_IPv6_${{ matrix.SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE }}.xml
+          path: test-results/test.xml
+        if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
 
   test-healthcheck:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
@@ -412,8 +432,7 @@ jobs:
       - meta
       - build_action
       - test-container
-      - test-ipv4-name-cache
-      - test-ipv6-name-cache
+      - test-name-cache
       - test-healthcheck
       - test-healthcheck-unit-tests
     steps:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci-main.yaml b/.github/workflows/ci-main.yaml
index a2cdbb3280..7dcdf23548 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci-main.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci-main.yaml
@@ -178,15 +178,14 @@ jobs:
           scanners: "vuln"
           
   test-container:
+    strategy:
+      matrix: 
+        deployment_type: ["docker", "podman"]
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    continue-on-error: true
     needs:
       - meta
       - build_action
-    # runs all of the steps inside the specified container rather than on the VM host.
-    # Because of this the network configuration changes from host based network to a container network.
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
-
     services:
       splunk:
         image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
@@ -199,43 +198,67 @@ jobs:
           SPLUNK_PASSWORD: Changed@11
           SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
           SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
-
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
-          - 601:601
-          - 5614:5514
-          - 5601:5601
-          - 6000:6000
-          - 6002:6002
-          - 9000:9000
-        env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_HTTP_COMPRESSION: "yes"
-          SC4S_LISTEN_PFSENSE_FIREWALL_TCP_PORT: 6000
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_TCP_PORT: 5514
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_UDP_PORT: 5514
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_TWO_TCP_PORT: 5601
-          SC4S_LISTEN_SPECTRACOM_NTP_TCP_PORT: 6002
-          SC4S_LISTEN_CISCO_ESA_TCP_PORT: 9000
-          SC4S_LISTEN_RARITAN_DSX_TCP_PORT: 9001
-          SC4S_LISTEN_CHECKPOINT_SPLUNK_NOISE_CONTROL: "yes"
-          SC4S_SOURCE_RICOH_SYSLOG_FIXHOST: "yes"
-          TEST_SC4S_ACTIVATE_EXAMPLES: "yes"
-          SC4S_DEBUG_CONTAINER: "yes"
-          SC4S_SOURCE_VMWARE_VSPHERE_GROUPMSG: "yes"
-          SC4S_NETAPP_ONTAP_NEW_FORMAT: "yes"
-          SC4S_USE_VPS_CACHE: "yes"
-
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           submodules: false
           persist-credentials: false
+      - name: Install Ansible and other dependencies as python package
+        run: |
+          pip install ansible~=6.1.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install pywinrm>=0.4.2 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install ansible-lint>=6.0.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install docker
+      - name: Configure Ansible Environment Variables
+        env:
+          ANSIBLE_CONFIG: ansible.cfg
+          ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING: False
+        run: |
+          echo "ANSIBLE_CONFIG is set to: $ANSIBLE_CONFIG"
+          echo "ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING is set to: $ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING"
+          sudo systemctl set-environment SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
+      - name: Update inventory file
+        run: |
+          cat << EOF > ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml
+          ---
+          all:
+            hosts:
+            children:
+              node:
+                hosts:
+                  node_1:
+                    ansible_host: 127.0.0.1
+                    ansible_connection: local
+                    ansible_user: root
+      - name: Update env_file
+        run: |
+          echo "Updating ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml"
+          cat << EOF > ansible/resources/env_file
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL=https://127.0.0.1:8088
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY=no
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_HTTP_COMPRESSION=yes
+          SC4S_LISTEN_PFSENSE_FIREWALL_TCP_PORT=6000
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_TCP_PORT=5514
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_ONE_UDP_PORT=5514
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SIMPLE_TEST_TWO_TCP_PORT=5601
+          SC4S_LISTEN_SPECTRACOM_NTP_TCP_PORT=6002
+          SC4S_LISTEN_CISCO_ESA_TCP_PORT=9000
+          SC4S_LISTEN_RARITAN_DSX_TCP_PORT=9001
+          SC4S_LISTEN_CHECKPOINT_SPLUNK_NOISE_CONTROL=yes
+          SC4S_SOURCE_RICOH_SYSLOG_FIXHOST=yes
+          TEST_SC4S_ACTIVATE_EXAMPLES=yes
+          SC4S_DEBUG_CONTAINER=yes
+          SC4S_SOURCE_VMWARE_VSPHERE_GROUPMSG=yes
+          SC4S_NETAPP_ONTAP_NEW_FORMAT=yes
+          SC4S_USE_VPS_CACHE=yes
+      - name: Update current SC4S image in unit file
+        run: |
+          sed -i 's|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=ghcr.io/splunk/splunk-connect-for-syslog/container3:latest"|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}"|' ansible/resources/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_sc4s.service
+      - name: Run Ansible Playbook
+        run: |
+          ansible-playbook --connection=local -i ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml ansible/playbooks/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.yml 
       - name: Run tests
         run: |
           pip3 install poetry
@@ -244,25 +267,33 @@ jobs:
           poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
             --splunk_type=external \
             --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
+            --splunk_host=127.0.0.1 \
+            --sc4s_host=127.0.0.1 \
             --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
             -n 14 \
             -k 'not lite and not name_cache'
+      - name: artifact-test-results
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: test-container-results_${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.xml
+          path: test-results/test.xml
+        if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
   
-  test-ipv4-name-cache:
+  test-name-cache:
+    strategy:
+      matrix: 
+        deployment_type: ["docker", "podman"]
+        SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: ["yes","no"]
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    continue-on-error: true
     needs:
       - meta
       - build_action
-    # runs all of the steps inside the specified container rather than on the VM host.
-    # Because of this the network configuration changes from host based network to a container network.
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
     services:
       splunk:
         image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
         ports:
+          - 8000:8000
           - 8088:8088
           - 8089:8089
         env:
@@ -270,77 +301,58 @@ jobs:
           SPLUNK_PASSWORD: Changed@11
           SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
           SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
-
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
-        env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
-          SC4S_USE_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-          SC4S_CLEAR_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
         with:
           submodules: false
           persist-credentials: false
-      - name: Run tests
+      - name: Install Ansible and other dependencies as python package
         run: |
-          pip3 install poetry
-          poetry install
-          mkdir -p test-results || true
-          poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
-            --splunk_type=external \
-            --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
-            --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
-            -n 1 \
-            -m 'name_cache'
-
-  test-ipv6-name-cache:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    needs:
-      - meta
-      - build_action
-    # runs all of the steps inside the specified container rather than on the VM host.
-    # Because of this the network configuration changes from host based network to a container network.
-    container:
-      image: python:3.9-buster
-    services:
-      splunk:
-        image: splunk/splunk:${{ fromJson(needs.meta.outputs.matrix_supportedSplunk)[0].version }}
-        ports:
-          - 8088:8088
-          - 8089:8089
-        env:
-          SPLUNK_HEC_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SPLUNK_PASSWORD: Changed@11
-          SPLUNK_START_ARGS: --accept-license
-          SPLUNK_APPS_URL: https://github.com/splunk/splunk-configurations-base-indexes/releases/download/v1.0.0/splunk_configurations_base_indexes-1.0.0.tar.gz
-
-      sc4s:
-        image: ${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
-        ports:
-          - 514:514
+          pip install ansible~=6.1.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install pywinrm>=0.4.2 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install ansible-lint>=6.0.0 --no-cache-dir \
+          && pip install docker
+      - name: Configure Ansible Environment Variables
         env:
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL: https://splunk:8088
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN: 70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
-          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY: "no"
-          SC4S_USE_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-          SC4S_CLEAR_NAME_CACHE: "yes"
-          SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE: "yes"
-
-    steps:
-      - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          submodules: false
-          persist-credentials: false
+          ANSIBLE_CONFIG: ansible.cfg
+          ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING: False
+        run: |
+          echo "ANSIBLE_CONFIG is set to: $ANSIBLE_CONFIG"
+          echo "ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING is set to: $ANSIBLE_HOST_KEY_CHECKING"
+          sudo systemctl set-environment SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}
+      - name: Update inventory file
+        run: |
+          cat << EOF > ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml
+          ---
+          all:
+            hosts:
+            children:
+              node:
+                hosts:
+                  node_1:
+                    ansible_host: 0.0.0.0
+                    ansible_connection: local
+                    ansible_user: root
+      - name: Update env_file
+        run: |
+          echo "Updating ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml"
+          cat << EOF > ansible/resources/env_file
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_URL=https://127.0.0.1:8088
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TOKEN=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630
+          SC4S_DEST_SPLUNK_HEC_DEFAULT_TLS_VERIFY=no
+          SC4S_USE_NAME_CACHE=yes
+          SC4S_CLEAR_NAME_CACHE=yes
+          SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE=${{ matrix.SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE }}
+      - name: Update current SC4S image in unit file
+        run: |
+          sed -i 's|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=ghcr.io/splunk/splunk-connect-for-syslog/container3:latest"|Environment="SC4S_IMAGE=${{ needs.meta.outputs.container_base }}"|' ansible/resources/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_sc4s.service
+      # - name: Update current SC4S network in unit file
+      #   run: |
+      #     sed -i 's|--network host|--network ${{ job.container.network }}|' ansible/resources/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_sc4s.service
+      - name: Run Ansible Playbook
+        run: |
+          ansible-playbook --connection=local -i ansible/inventory/inventory.yaml ansible/playbooks/${{ matrix.deployment_type }}.yml 
       - name: Run tests
         run: |
           pip3 install poetry
@@ -349,11 +361,17 @@ jobs:
           poetry run pytest -v --tb=long \
             --splunk_type=external \
             --splunk_hec_token=70b6ae71-76b3-4c38-9597-0c5b37ad9630 \
-            --splunk_host=splunk \
-            --sc4s_host=sc4s \
+            --splunk_host=127.0.0.1 \
+            --sc4s_host=127.0.0.1 \
             --junitxml=test-results/test.xml \
             -n 1 \
             -m 'name_cache'
+      - name: artifact-test-results
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
+        with:
+          name: test-name-cache-results_${{ matrix.deployment_type }}_IPv6_${{ matrix.SC4S_IPV6_ENABLE }}.xml
+          path: test-results/test.xml
+        if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
 
   test-healthcheck:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
@@ -437,8 +455,7 @@ jobs:
       - meta
       - build_action
       - test-container
-      - test-ipv4-name-cache
-      - test-ipv6-name-cache
+      - test-name-cache
       - test-healthcheck
       - test-healthcheck-unit-tests
       - mike
diff --git a/ansible/resources/docker_sc4s.service b/ansible/resources/docker_sc4s.service
index 6b18a46cfd..4c973d0ebb 100644
--- a/ansible/resources/docker_sc4s.service
+++ b/ansible/resources/docker_sc4s.service
@@ -39,8 +39,9 @@ ExecStart=/usr/bin/docker run \
         -v "$SC4S_ARCHIVE_MOUNT" \
         -v "$SC4S_TLS_MOUNT" \
         --env-file=/opt/sc4s/env_file \
-        --network host \
+        --network test_network \
+        --network-alias sc4s \
         --name SC4S \
         --rm $SC4S_IMAGE
 
-Restart=on-failure
\ No newline at end of file
+Restart=on-failure
diff --git a/ansible/roles/install_docker/tasks/install_docker_debian.yml b/ansible/roles/install_docker/tasks/install_docker_debian.yml
index 21a517907d..d3d434a774 100644
--- a/ansible/roles/install_docker/tasks/install_docker_debian.yml
+++ b/ansible/roles/install_docker/tasks/install_docker_debian.yml
@@ -23,10 +23,16 @@
     repo: deb https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu focal stable
     state: present
 
+- name: Check if 'docker' command exists
+  ansible.builtin.command: which docker
+  register: docker_command_check
+  ignore_errors: true
+
 - name: Install docker-ce
   apt:
     name: docker-ce
     state: latest
+  when: docker_command_check.rc != 0
 
 - name: Install Docker Module for Python
   pip:
diff --git a/ansible/tasks/docker/deploy_app.yml b/ansible/tasks/docker/deploy_app.yml
index 50462fac88..03c4a7d284 100644
--- a/ansible/tasks/docker/deploy_app.yml
+++ b/ansible/tasks/docker/deploy_app.yml
@@ -12,15 +12,23 @@
 
 - name: Copying unit file on the server
   copy:
-    src: "/opt/ansible/resources/docker_sc4s.service"
+    src: "../../../ansible/resources/docker_sc4s.service"
     dest: "/lib/systemd/system/sc4s.service"
     owner: "{{ ansible_user }}"
     group: "{{ ansible_user }}"
     mode: u=rw,g=rw
 
+- name: Check current working directory on the target host
+  ansible.builtin.command: pwd
+  register: current_directory_output
+
+- name: Print the working directory
+  ansible.builtin.debug:
+    var: current_directory_output.stdout
+
 - name: Copying env_file file on the server
   copy:
-    src: "/opt/ansible/resources/env_file"
+    src: "../../../ansible/resources/env_file"
     dest: "/opt/sc4s/env_file"
     owner: "{{ ansible_user }}"
     group: "{{ ansible_user }}"
diff --git a/ansible/tasks/podman/deploy_app.yml b/ansible/tasks/podman/deploy_app.yml
index 07632d8eaa..f74fe85807 100644
--- a/ansible/tasks/podman/deploy_app.yml
+++ b/ansible/tasks/podman/deploy_app.yml
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@
 
 - name: Copying unit file on the server
   copy:
-    src: "/opt/ansible/resources/podman_sc4s.service"
+    src: "../../../ansible/resources/podman_sc4s.service"
     dest: "/lib/systemd/system/sc4s.service"
     owner: "{{ ansible_user }}"
     group: "{{ ansible_user }}"
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 
 - name: Copying env_file file on the server
   copy:
-    src: "/opt/ansible/resources/env_file"
+    src: "../../../ansible/resources/env_file"
     dest: "/opt/sc4s/env_file"
     owner: "{{ ansible_user }}"
     group: "{{ ansible_user }}"