Terraform
Terraform is an open-source infrastructure as code (IaC) tool developed by HashiCorp. It enables users to define and provision infrastructure resources such as virtual machines, databases, and networks using a declarative configuration language. With Terraform, infrastructure can be managed as code, allowing for versioning, collaboration, and automation.
Terraform supports a variety of cloud providers such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and more. It also allows users to manage on-premises infrastructure and third-party services. Terraform is often used in combination with other DevOps tools such as Ansible, Jenkins, and Kubernetes.
Some of the key features of Terraform include:
- Declarative configuration: Infrastructure is defined using a simple configuration language, allowing for easy versioning and collaboration.
- Resource graph: Terraform builds a dependency graph of all resources, ensuring that they are created in the correct order and dependencies are managed properly.
- Plan and apply: Terraform allows users to preview changes before applying them, reducing the risk of errors and downtime.
- Provider plugins: Terraform supports a wide range of cloud providers and services, with new providers being added regularly.
Overall, Terraform is a powerful tool for managing infrastructure as code, allowing users to automate and simplify their infrastructure management tasks.