Infrastructure as Code - Research Paper Sample

Introduction

Infrastructure as Code refers to the number of practices in cloud computing that use "codes" instead of manual commands to set up a network and virtual machines, the networking environment's configuration, and installation of packages for the application under development. The Code is used to manage both the software, containers, virtual machines, and physical machines required for the network. Therefore, the Code developed for cloud computing must be managed and controlled using similar processes ass any other related software. The Code needs designing, testing, and storage within a controlled repository (Rahman, 2019). Although most information technology operators widely use other related technologies such as ad hoc in-network scripting jobs, Infrastructure as Code, on the other hand, employs other emerging practices emerging with the cloud computing emergence, especially Infrastructure as service (IaaS) technology. The report focuses on Instructure as Code in managing to cloud network and investigating how emerging technologies as BallotOnline will benefit from adopting IaC and various cloud computing network securities.

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Service Environment

In a case involving Infrastructure as a service environment, all network resources, storage, and computation are virtualized; hence configuration and allocation are done using an application programming interface. However, most cloud service providers have developed console, making it easier to manage an interactive application as another APIs additional layer. However, it is not possible to cloud computing system with multiple nodes when using the console. For instance, creating a new virtual machine when using established cloud computing environments like the Amazon web service management console may require navigating through a number of web forms and filling several fields. Virtual machines are created and destroyed severally during the testing and development process; hence, using these tasks manually remains non-feasible.

Therefore, to address the underlying issues when dealing with extended cloud computing infrastructure, such as a case with multiple nodes, Infrastructure as Code was introduced. IaC solves both high-frequency destruction or the creation of environments involving multiple virtual machines ranging from thousands for the case of internet-scale services. Infrastructure as Code involves the use of scripting language to specify the needed system configuration and engine orchestration, which helps in script execution and invocation of the Infrastructure as a service APIs. All the scripting languages are build from existing languages. Some of the everyday IaC environments include Ansible, which adopts YAML as a scripting language, and the Chef1 tool uses Ruby as the scripting language. Consequently, engine execution is comprehensive to support extensive internet as service APIs in the configuration and allocation of virtual resources.

Importance of IAC in Cloud Computing

Infrastructure as Code technology and practices allows several capabilities that are widely being used in software development. To maintain the capabilities robustness, designing, and creating is based on integrating various technologies to produce a robust software development leading to core automation. Therefore, IaC is widely adopted in the development and configuration of software and other systems in the environment. The resulting automation process provides repeatability while increasing efficiency. Consequently, the Infrastructure code adopted in IaC should be stored within a version-controlled repository. By adopting this technique, versioning robustness is retained. Consequently, a particular configuration can be recreated since the versioning and automation create reliability and efficiency, allowing easy navigation to earlier changes during development phases such as integration or production process hence supporting easy debugging and recreation process. Due to the nature of the development environment, it becomes easy to share across integration, development, and production environments, improving environmental parity and eliminating cases where developed software does not work in other environments other than the developer's end.

Networking in Cloud

The Cloud computing concept is currently clearly established; however, other critical issues such as the provision of security in the cloud are significant. Therefore, many emerging technologies have been engineered to offer cloud network security. The introduction of a virtual private network (VPN) in a cloud environment provides secure transmission of information over the public cloud environment. Consequently, a virtual private cloud offers a logical separation of the private and public cloud environment. Since anyone can directly access the public cloud resources, there are several threats associated with it (Nelson-Smith, 2013). Therefore, to avoid such threats in cloud networks, the VPC concept is introduced to offer effective threat management strategies.

Cloud networking involves using and hosting all necessary network services and resources such as network management software, virtual firewall, bandwidth, and virtual routers from the cloud regardless of whether hybrid, private, or public. Therefore, the network can be categorized as entirely cloud-based or cloud enabled enabled networking, on-premise networking, or some of the resources used for managing the network are cloud-based.

Consequently, the primary network infrasture consisting of data transmission, routing, and packet forwarding remains on-premise; however, other aspects such as security services, general maintenance, network monitoring, and network management is done through the cloud, especially the use of SaaS-based firewall in offering protection on-premise networks. Cloud-based networking, therefore, means the entire network is within the cloud, including physical hardware and network resource management. Cloud-based networking offers easy connectivity between various resources and applications being used in the cloud. To offer robustness needed in creating software such as BallotOnline platform integrating and requiring easy sharing of information and resources in a distributed environment, a complex yet effective management system is required.

Cloud Command-Line Interfaces

as stated earlier, several interfaces can be used to access cloud services and resources. However, due to complexity and the number of resources to be maintained, interfaces such as graphical user interface can be challenging. Therefore, the AWS command-line interface is used to centralize all these activities within a single terminal, making it easy to manage cloud resources. Despite most AWS services being accessible through the AWS management console or the APIs, the AWS command line has an added advantage, including software and computer operating system independent (Jerry, 2016). Therefore, it can be run on multiple operating systems such as Windows, macOS and Linux based platforms to manage the various AWS services from the client computer terminal.

The steps involved in installing the command line terminal's installing and general configuration are also straightforward, allowing the end-users to use various functionalities provided by the AWS console from the terminal. The AWS command-line interface can also be accessed remotely using a remote terminal such as SSH and PuTTY. The AWS system can also be used in automating the AWS resources operational task.

Explanation of Declarative Cloud Resource Definitions

Currently, there is consistent move and adoption of the "infrastructure as code." Despite that, there are existing notions oriented towards increasing the popularity and number of declarative configuration management tools. The latter contains both internal and mental models of the architecture and tools used in declarative cloud resources. Some aspects of the conceptual framework might work differently according to the resources and model employed.

Declarative cloud resource definition refers to the unit or class of tools that enable operators to declare a system's desired state, whether a physical machine, an entire google cloud account, an EC2 VPC, or any other feature. Then, it allows the system to compare the present states and desired states automatically. After that, the system would be updated automatically as a managed system to meet and match the declared and desired state. It was initially pioneered by a puppet, even though other tools may fall into this category.

Advantages of Declarative Cloud Resource Definitions

Declarative cloud resource definition assists in determining the importance of having a strict layering of Kubernetes. The layering is where resource definitions are stored and accepted in fully refined terms such as YAML or JSON. It also allows abstraction to be availed or done to the systems externally. Additionally, it allows the optimization of a system.

Apart from that, it allows developers to write abstractions in styles and tools they already have a clue about and understand. For example, Instead of getting stuck and confused while writing a loop in puppets bespoke DSL, declarative cloud resource definition allows developers to declare the system's effective and efficient states. Declarative cloud resource definition enables the configuration more testable; it is easy to write tests that unfold to make assertions and generate a catalog concerning a new system version to determine the implemented change and their implications if the configuration generation is done separately from the convergence. Using declarative cloud resource definition, a developer can understand whether the new version of the system produces a similar or another catalog, hence determining whether the change had a functional impact.

Conclusion

AWS CloudFormation can be used to maintain cloud deployments via creating, deleting, and updating an entire stack as a single class or unit. In every instance, there is a requirement, instead of managing each resource individually. Additionally, stacks can be provisioned and managed across multiple AWS regions and AWS accounts. Besides, other AWS services can be incorporated into CloudFormation.