Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is the practice of managing and provisioning infrastructure through software and automated processes, rather than through hardware and manual processes. It allows software developers to write and execute instructions for compute, storage and network requirements, and thus provision them more quickly than would be possible via a manual process. Unlike the basic scripts that are used to automate repetitive IT processes, infrastructure as code can govern more complex, versatile and adaptive processes.
Infrastructure as Code and Platform as Code (PaC) are similar concepts applied to different layers of the tech stack. As we’ve seen, IaC deals with provisioning compute, storage and networking at the infrastructure layer. By contrast, PaC deals with the platform layer (including the OS and development tools), and allows developers to define and execute the platform for their applications.
Besides dealing with different layers, the key difference between IaC and PaC is in how they are implemented: IaC is implemented by writing wrappers over Kubernetes APIs, while PaC is implemented by writing Kubernetes API extensions.
Implementing Infrastructure as Code has a number of benefits, including:
Infrastructure as Code (IaC) is necessary in a DevOps enterprise environment that is containerized, and has few disadvantages. However, it does have a few potential challenges: The array of Infrastructure as Code tools available can be complex and may introduce the need for additional training for IT teams. Infrastructure automation also means errors can proliferate quickly in an IaC environment, so version control and testing are extra important. Similarly, although IaC generally protects against configuration drift, it can actually contribute to configuration drift if IT admins change server configurations outside the standard IaC template, so it’s important to operationalize IaC standards and to document policies carefully.
When it comes to security, Infrastructure as Code comes with the same caveat as any type of automation: It must be set up properly from the beginning to avoid increased damage or security issues from errors that are repeated at scale. When set up and considered carefully, however, secure Infrastructure as Code can minimize the risks of human error and ensure that security considerations are built into the development process.
Because it relies on automation rather than manual processes, IaC boasts all the security benefits of automation and can avoid the security issues associated with configuration drift. Centralized management of servers and applications ensures consistency and security across the environment. Changes are not made manually, but instead must be defined in the code, which helps prevent unauthorized changes. In fact, declarative setups ensure that any changes made directly (rather than through code) are automatically overridden in favor of the state defined in the code. It’s also easy to revert changes (even ones made via code) thanks to strong version control.
IaC environments are also easier to audit, since everything (including server configurations) is defined and documented in code, making it easy to provide that information to an outside auditor.