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When it comes to deploying infrastructure as code (IaC), there are a variety of different tools available. If you rely on Azure solutions to manage your cloud technology, then ARM templates can be a great way to define and configure your infrastructure as code (IaC) project. These templates use a declarative approach, which allows you to state what the final result should look like instead of having to outline each step in a sequence. This makes it easier to manage updates without having to worry about identifying the exact order of operations.

Another advantage to ARM templates is that you can consistently deploy your infrastructure at any stage of development. This is just another way that infrastructure as code (IaC) can be used to accelerate the development lifecycle and avoid discrepancies. The templates are also incredibly versatile. You can customize them according to your needs. Here are just a few features that come with ARM templates:

• Automatic validation. Your template won’t be deployed until it has passed a validation check. This helps to ensure a successful deployment.
• What-if operation. Preview changes before they are deployed so that you can see exactly what will have if you add, delete or update resources.
• Deployment tracking. Keep track of deployment history and view vital data about parameter and output values.
• Instant access to tools. As Azure adds new resources, they will instantly become available in the template. You don’t have to implement updates or wait for access to new tools.
• Policy as code. Handle governance and manage compliance issues with automated tools.
• CI/CD integration. Use CI/CD automation tools to update the infrastructure and continuously create and deploy various projects based on ARM templates.

Benefits of ARM Templates

There is a variety of different infrastructure as code services, to choose from, but ARM templates offer some distinct advantages.

• Relies on declarative language. IaC can either be declarative or imperative. Declarative language focuses on the “what” and imperative is concerned with how. Many developers find that the declarative approach is easier to manage.
• Consistent and repeatable results. At any point during the development lifecycle, you can deploy your infrastructure and experience consistent results. As you update the IaC, you can simply develop a template that demonstrates the ideal results instead of creating individual templates for each update.

• Customizable templates. You have full control over how templates are defined and resources are grouped.

Ultimately, infrastructure as code (IaC) represents the future of cloud technology by cutting costs and expanding capabilities. By employing infrastructure as code (IaC), companies can accelerate innovation by speeding up the DevOps lifecycle and freeing up employees to work on core goals as opposed to getting caught up in the tasks of manually managing infrastructure. For those who use Azure solutions, ARM templates can be an invaluable tool that further simplifies IaC while also offering a long list of beneficial features. If you would like to learn more about cloud technology and security, IaC, compliance, Azure, and much more, be sure to contact the experts at prancer. We have years of experience helping businesses take advantage of cloud validation frameworks to ensure continuous cloud compliance.