Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is a crucial aspect of modern DevOps practices, and it is becoming increasingly important for organizations looking to optimize and automate their infrastructure management on Azure. IaC allows you to use code to define, provision, and manage your infrastructure, making it easier to manage, scale, and maintain. In this guide, we’ll explore the different IaC methodologies, approaches, and best practices for implementing IaC on Azure, including the benefits and challenges of using Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates, Azure CLI and PowerShell, and Terraform. By following this guide, you’ll be able to understand the best practices for implementing IaC on Azure, and how to use IaC to improve your infrastructure management.

Introduction to IaC and Terraform

Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is a methodology that allows you to manage and provision your infrastructure using code, rather than manual configuration. This approach enables organizations to automate their infrastructure management, which can improve efficiency, consistency, and scalability. IaC is a crucial aspect of modern DevOps practices, as it allows teams to work in a more collaborative and efficient manner.

One of the most popular tools used for implementing IaC is Terraform. Terraform is an open-source tool that provides a simple and consistent way to define and provision infrastructure across multiple cloud providers, including Azure. It allows you to write your infrastructure in a high-level, human-readable language called HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL) and provision it on Azure using the Azure Provider. With Terraform, you can define your infrastructure as code, version it, and collaborate with your team members, which makes it easy to manage, maintain and scale.

What is IaC

Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is a methodology that allows you to manage and provision your infrastructure using code, rather than manual configuration. Let’s say we have solution than needs virtual machines, storage accounts, databases ,and network resources, IaC is the alternative way to provision those. Otherwise you can use something like Azure portal, or write a command on Azure CLI on your terminal.

IaC allows you to define your infrastructure in a high-level, human-readable language. This means that you can treat your infrastructure like any other software, version it, and collaborate with your team members. This approach enables organizations to automate their infrastructure management , which can improve efficiency, consistency, and scalability.

IaC in the DevOps world

In the DevOps world, Infrastructure as Code (IaC) plays a vital role in automating the provisioning and management of infrastructure. It allows organizations to treat their infrastructure like any other software, version it, and collaborate with their team members.

For example a GitHub workflow to adjust the needed Infrastructure of latest version of your solution on push to main. Moreover you can select any commit in your git and provision the needed resources to lunch that version of your solution almost effortless.

This means by using IaC, organizations can manage their infrastructure in a more efficient and consistent way as Iac eliminates the need for manual configuration and reduces the risk of human error. This allows teams to focus on delivering new features and improvements to their customers, rather than spending time on manual configuration.

IaC also allows organizations to manage their infrastructure in a more consistent and repeatable way. This is because IaC allows you to define your infrastructure in a high-level, human-readable language, such as HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL) or JSON, and use it to provision and manage your infrastructure. This means that you can deploy and manage your infrastructure across multiple environments, such as development, staging, and production, in a consistent and repeatable way.

IaC Methodologies, Approach, and Best Practices

Infrastructure as Code (IaC) methodologies

Infrastructure as Code (IaC) methodologies are the different approaches and techniques used to define and provision infrastructure using code. These methodologies provide organizations with a simple and consistent way to manage and provision their infrastructure.

Here are some common IaC methodologies:

1. Imperative IaC: This methodology involves using code to specify how to provision and manage your infrastructure. This approach is similar to using a programming language to write instructions for a computer. It is commonly used with tools like Ansible, Puppet, and Chef.
2. Declarative IaC: This methodology involves using code to specify what your infrastructure should look like, rather than how to provision it. This approach is similar to using a markup language to describe a document. It is commonly used with tools like Terraform, CloudFormation, and ARM templates.
3. Hybrid IaC: This methodology involves using a combination of both imperative and declarative approaches. This approach allows organizations to take advantage of the benefits of both methodologies.

GitOps IaC: This methodology involves using Git as the single source of truth for infrastructure management. This allows teams to version their infrastructure, collaborate with their team members and automate the provisioning and management of their infrastructure.

IaC approach and best practices

When implementing Infrastructure as Code (IaC), it is important to follow certain best practices to ensure that your infrastructure is managed in a consistent and efficient way. Here are some best practices to keep in mind when using IaC:

1. Use version control: Version control systems like Git allow you to version your infrastructure and collaborate with your team members. This makes it easy to manage, maintain, and scale your infrastructure.
2. Use modular design: Use a modular design approach to define your infrastructure. This allows you to easily manage, maintain, and scale your infrastructure.
3. Automate testing: Automate testing of your infrastructure to ensure that it is provisioned and configured correctly. This helps to reduce the risk of human error and ensures that your infrastructure is deployed consistently across multiple environments.
4. Use infrastructure as code testing: Use infrastructure as code testing to ensure that your infrastructure is provisioned and configured correctly. This helps to reduce the risk of human error and ensures that your infrastructure is deployed consistently across multiple environments.
5. Use continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipeline: Use a CI/CD pipeline to automate the provisioning and management of your infrastructure. This allows you to deploy new features and improvements to your customers more quickly and efficiently.
6. Monitor and manage your infrastructure: Monitor and manage your infrastructure to ensure that it is running optimally. This allows you to quickly identify and resolve any issues that may arise.

By following these best practices, organizations can ensure that their infrastructure is managed in a consistent and efficient way, and they can take advantage of the benefits of using IaC.

Comparing Options for Azure

When implementing Infrastructure as Code (IaC) on Azure, there are several options available, including Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates, Azure CLI and PowerShell, and Terraform. Each option has its own set of benefits and challenges, and organizations should choose the option that best fits their needs and requirements.

Azure CLI and PowerShell

Azure CLI and PowerShell are command-line tools that can be used to deploy resources on Azure. They are well-suited for organizations that are already using Azure and want to automate their infrastructure management using scripts.

• Pros:
  • It is native to Azure and can be used to deploy resources in an imperative way.
  • It is well-suited for organizations that are already using Azure and want to automate their infrastructure management using scripts.
  • It is easy to use and understand for those who are familiar with command-line interface.
• Cons:
  • It does not provide a consistent syntax for multiple cloud providers, so it’s not suitable for multi-cloud solutions.
  • It can be difficult to manage complex deployments and to version infrastructure with Azure CLI.
  • It is not totally idempotent

Sample below of Azure CLI command first creates a resource group called “resourceGroupName” in the specified “westus2”, then creates a storage account with the name “storageAccountName” inside that resource group, and with the same location specified, with the sku “Standard_LRS”, kind “StorageV2”, and access-tier “Hot”.

az group create --name "resourceGroupName" --location "westus2"
az storage account create \
    --name "storageaccountname" \
    --resource-group "resourceGroupName" \
    --location "location" \
    --sku Standard_LRS \
    --kind StorageV2 \
    --access-tier Hot

Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates

ARM templates are JSON files that define the resources to be deployed on Azure. They are native to Azure and can be used to deploy resources in a declarative way. ARM templates are well-suited for organizations that are already using Azure and want to take advantage of its native capabilities.

• Pros:
  • ARM templates are native to Azure and can be used to deploy resources in a declarative way.
  • They are well-suited for organizations that are already using Azure and want to take advantage of its native capabilities.
  • ARM templates provide a consistent way to manage and provision resources across different environments.
• Cons:
  • ARM templates can be complex and difficult to understand for those who are not familiar with JSON.
  • It can be difficult to manage complex deployments and to version infrastructure with ARM templates.
  • ARM templates are not suitable for multi-cloud solutions.

Here is an arm version similar to what above

{
  "$schema": "https://schema.management.azure.com/schemas/2019-04-01/deploymentTemplate.json#",
  "contentVersion": "1.0.0.0",
  "parameters": {
    "location": {
      "type": "string",
      "defaultValue": "[resourceGroup().location]"
    },
    "storageAccountName": {
      "type": "string",
      "defaultValue": "[format('toylaunch{0}', uniqueString(resourceGroup().id))]"
    }
  },
  "resources": [
    {
      "type": "Microsoft.Storage/storageAccounts",
      "apiVersion": "2021-06-01",
      "name": "[parameters('storageAccountName')]",
      "location": "[parameters('location')]",
      "sku": {
        "name": "Standard_LRS"
      },
      "kind": "StorageV2",
      "properties": {
        "accessTier": "Hot"
      }
    }
  ]
}

Bicep

Bicep is a domain-specific language (DSL) that uses declarative syntax to deploy Azure resources. It allows you to define your infrastructure in a high-level, human-readable language, and use it to provision and manage your infrastructure. Bicep provides concise syntax, reliable type safety, and support for code reuse. It offers a first-class authoring experience for your infrastructure-as-code solutions in Azure. Bicep provides support for all resource types and API versions, a simple syntax, repeatable results, orchestration, modularity, integration with Azure services, a preview option, and no state or state files to manage. Additionally, Bicep is completely free and open source, supported by Microsoft support.

• Pros:
  • Bicep provides concise syntax and reliable type safety.
  • It immediately supports all preview and GA versions for Azure services.
  • It is integrated with Azure services such as Azure Policy, template specs, and Blueprints.
  • It provides a preview option to get a preview of changes before deploying the Bicep file.
  • It is completely free and open-source.
• Cons:
  • It is only supported on Azure, so it is not suitable for multi-cloud solutions.

Here is an Bicep version similar to what above

param location string = resourceGroup().location
param storageAccountName string = 'toylaunch${uniqueString(resourceGroup().id)}'

resource storageAccount 'Microsoft.Storage/storageAccounts@2021-06-01' = {
  name: storageAccountName
  location: location
  sku: {
    name: 'Standard_LRS'
  }
  kind: 'StorageV2'
  properties: {
    accessTier: 'Hot'
  }
}

Terraform

Terraform is an open-source tool that can be used to deploy resources on Azure. It is well-suited for organizations that are looking for a multi-cloud solution and want to use a consistent tool across multiple cloud providers.

One of the major benefits of using Terraform is that it is a multi-cloud solution. This means that you can use the same tool and configuration language to provision and manage infrastructure across multiple cloud providers, including Azure, AWS, and GCP.

With Terraform, you can write your infrastructure in a high-level, human-readable language called HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL) and use the same configuration to provision and manage your infrastructure on different cloud providers. This allows you to standardize your infrastructure management across multiple clouds, which can improve efficiency, consistency, and scalability.

Additionally, Terraform allows you to use modules to reuse and share code across different cloud providers. This makes it easy to manage, maintain, and scale your infrastructure across multiple clouds.

Furthermore, Terraform also provides a powerful state management feature that allows you to track and manage the state of your infrastructure across multiple clouds. This makes it easy to keep track of changes to your infrastructure and ensure that it is deployed consistently across multiple clouds.

• Pros:
  • Terraform is an open-source tool that can be used to deploy resources on Azure and other cloud providers.
  • It provides a consistent syntax across different cloud providers, making it suitable for multi-cloud solutions.
  • It allows you to version your infrastructure and collaborate with your team members.
  • It provides a simple and consistent way to manage and provision your infrastructure.
• Cons:
  • It may have a steeper learning curve for those who are not familiar with the HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL)
  • It requires additional setup and configuration compared to other options like Azure CLI or ARM templates.

Here is an terraform version similar to what above

terraform {
  required_providers {
    azurerm = {
      source  = "hashicorp/azurerm"
      version = "=3.0.0"
    }
  }
}

provider "azurerm" {
  features {}
} 
resource "azurerm_resource_group" "example" {
name = "toylaunch-rg"
location = "westus2"
}
resource "azurerm_storage_account" "example" {
name = "storageaccountname"
location = azurerm_resource_group.example.location
resource_group_name = azurerm_resource_group.example.name
account_tier = "Standard"
account_replication_type = "LRS"
access_tier = "Hot"
}

Conclusion

Benefits of using IaC and Terraform on Azure

In conclusion, using Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and Terraform on Azure provides several benefits for organizations. By using IaC, organizations can manage their infrastructure in a consistent and efficient way, using version control systems like Git, and automate the provisioning and management of their infrastructure.

Terraform, in particular, is an open-source tool that can be used to deploy resources on Azure and other cloud providers, providing a consistent syntax across different cloud providers, making it suitable for multi-cloud solutions. It allows organizations to version their infrastructure and collaborate with their team members, providing a simple and consistent way to manage and provision their infrastructure.

Additionally, the integration of Azure services with Bicep provides an advantage over other options, as it allows a preview of changes before deploying the Bicep file, and eliminates the need to manage state. It’s also supported by Microsoft support.

In any case, organizations should carefully consider their specific needs and requirements when choosing the right IaC methodology and tool for their infrastructure management on Azure. Each option has its own set of benefits and challenges, and choosing the right one can help organizations improve their infrastructure management and deployment processes.

Future of IaC and Terraform in the cloud computing industry

The future of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and Terraform in the cloud computing industry looks bright. The increasing adoption of cloud computing and the need for efficient and consistent infrastructure management has led to a growing demand for IaC solutions.

As organizations continue to adopt cloud computing, the use of IaC will become even more important. Organizations will need to manage and provision their infrastructure in a consistent and efficient way, and IaC will play a critical role in achieving this.

Terraform, in particular, is well-positioned for the future. Its ability to be used across multiple cloud providers makes it a versatile tool that can help organizations manage their infrastructure in a consistent way, regardless of the cloud provider they are using.

Additionally, the growing adoption of Kubernetes and the need for infrastructure provisioning and management in the containerized environment will also drive the adoption of Terraform. As more organizations adopt Kubernetes, the need for tools that can provision and manage infrastructure in this environment will also increase.

In summary, the future of IaC and Terraform in the cloud computing industry looks bright. As organizations continue to adopt cloud computing and containerization, the use of IaC and Terraform will become even more important. Organizations will rely on these tools to manage and provision their infrastructure in a consistent and efficient way, and we can expect to see continued innovation and development in the field of IaC and Terraform.