5.3 Provisioning infrastructure with code

Infrastructure as Code (IaC) revolutionizes how we manage computing resources. By using code to provision and configure servers, networks, and storage, we can automate and version control our infrastructure. This approach reduces errors and boosts efficiency.

Popular tools like Terraform and AWS CloudFormation make IaC a reality. They let us define our infrastructure using simple languages, making it easier to deploy consistently across different environments. This flexibility is key in today's multi-cloud world.

Infrastructure Provisioning in IaC

Concept and Importance

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• Infrastructure provisioning sets up and configures computing resources (servers, networks, storage) to support an application or service
• Critical component of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) involves managing and provisioning infrastructure resources using machine-readable definition files or code
• Enables version control, automation, and reproducibility of infrastructure, reducing manual errors and increasing efficiency in infrastructure management
• Treating infrastructure as code allows teams to collaborate more effectively, maintain consistency across environments, and enable faster deployment and scaling of applications

Infrastructure Provisioning Tools

Popular Tools and Platforms

• Terraform is an open-source infrastructure as code tool that defines and provisions infrastructure resources across multiple cloud providers and on-premises environments using HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL)
• AWS CloudFormation is an Amazon Web Services service that defines and provisions AWS resources using JSON or YAML templates, ensuring consistent and repeatable infrastructure deployments
• Other popular tools include Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates for Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Deployment Manager for Google Cloud Platform, and Pulumi, which supports multiple programming languages
• These tools provide features such as dependency management, resource graph visualization, state management, and integration with version control systems (Git)

Benefits and Capabilities

• Provide a way to define, deploy, and manage infrastructure resources using code or configuration files
• Enable consistent and repeatable infrastructure deployments across different environments and cloud providers
• Offer features for managing infrastructure dependencies, visualizing resource relationships, tracking resource state, and integrating with version control systems
• Allow for modular and reusable infrastructure code, promoting collaboration and maintainability

Infrastructure as Code Writing

Declarative Languages and Templates

• Define the desired state of the infrastructure, specifying what resources should exist and their configurations, rather than step-by-step instructions on how to create them
• HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL) is a declarative language used by Terraform to define infrastructure resources and their dependencies, supporting variables, modules, and expressions for creating reusable and parameterized infrastructure code
• AWS CloudFormation uses JSON or YAML templates to define the desired state of AWS resources, including resource declarations, input parameters, and output values, allowing for modular and customizable infrastructure definitions

Best Practices and Maintainability

• Organize infrastructure code in a modular and structured manner, following best practices such as using variables for configuration values, separating concerns into different files or modules, and applying consistent naming conventions
• Version-control infrastructure code, perform testing, and conduct code reviews to ensure maintainability, reproducibility, and collaboration among team members
• Regularly update and refactor infrastructure code to keep it aligned with the evolving requirements and best practices of the organization
• Document infrastructure code and maintain clear README files to facilitate understanding and onboarding of new team members

Infrastructure Deployment and Management

Multi-Cloud and Environment Support

• Infrastructure provisioning tools enable the deployment and management of infrastructure resources across multiple cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) and environments, promoting cloud agnosticism and flexibility
• Terraform supports a wide range of cloud providers, allowing for consistent resource definition and management across different platforms
• CloudFormation is specific to AWS but integrates with other AWS services and enables provisioning and management within the AWS ecosystem
• Create different environments (development, staging, production) with consistent configurations and dependencies using infrastructure as code

Automation and Lifecycle Management

• Automate infrastructure deployment using continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines, ensuring consistent and reliable deployments across different stages of the application lifecycle
• Provisioning tools provide capabilities for managing the lifecycle of infrastructure resources, including creating, updating, and deleting resources based on the defined code or templates
• Implement monitoring and logging of provisioned infrastructure resources to maintain the health, performance, and security of the deployed applications and services
• Utilize infrastructure as code to enable self-service provisioning and teardown of resources, empowering teams to manage their own infrastructure needs while adhering to organizational standards and policies