Development

Everything as Code - A Trend or a Necessity?

Created   Updated
  1. The main advantages of as code are:
  2. The main challenges of as code are:
  3. Is it justified?
  4. Status of as code in each domain
  5. Diagram as Code Resources
    1. Mermaid JS
    2. PlantUML
    3. AWS Diagram-as-Code
  6. Conclusion

In the era of cloud computing, automation, and DevSecOps, the concept of “everything as code” or simply “as code” has become increasingly popular and relevant. But what does it mean, and what are the benefits and challenges of adopting it?

Everything as code is a paradigm that treats any aspect of software development, delivery, or operation as a code artifact that can be versioned, tested, and deployed using the same tools and processes as the application code. As code encompasses various domains, such as:

  • Infrastructure as code (IaC): The practice of defining and managing cloud resources, such as servers, networks, and storage, using configuration files or scripts. Terraform is the best representations of Infrastructure as code.
  • Policy as code: The practice of expressing and enforcing security, compliance, or governance rules as code that can be integrated into the development and deployment pipelines.
  • Diagram as code: The practice of creating and updating diagrams, such as architecture diagrams or flowcharts, using code that can be rendered into graphical formats.
  • Presentation as code: The practice of creating and updating presentations, such as slides or reports, using code that can be converted into different formats or platforms. slidev is one of the tool but HTML/CSS/JS and VBA can be an less human-readable alternative.
  • Database as code: The practice of defining and managing database schemas, data, and migrations using code that can be executed by database engines or tools.
  • Documentation as code: The practice of writing and maintaining documentation using plain text formats, such as Markdown or AsciiDoc, that can be processed by documentation generators or integrated into code repositories. There are countless frame to generate human-readble document from programmer friendly code.
  • Configuration Management as code: The practice of defining and managing application settings, such as environment variables or feature flags, using code that can be applied dynamically or statically.
  • UI as code: The practice of creating and updating user interfaces, such as web pages or mobile apps, using code that can be rendered into different devices or platforms. UI is usually stored with XML and HTML but it is not uncommon generate from programming language.
  • AI as code: The practice of creating and updating artificial intelligence models, such as machine learning or deep learning models, using code that can be trained and deployed using AI frameworks or platforms. Meanwhile, model can be layered" with inferencing. ollama has Dockerfile like as code that can be used for that purpose beside system prompt.

The main advantages of as code are:

  • Consistency: As code ensures that all aspects of software development, delivery, or operation are consistent with each other and with the application code. This reduces errors, conflicts, and discrepancies that may arise from manual or ad hoc interventions.
  • Reusability: As code enables the reuse of code artifacts across different projects, environments, or teams. This increases efficiency, productivity, and collaboration among developers and operators.
  • Traceability: As code provides a clear and complete history of changes made to any aspect of software development, delivery, or operation. This facilitates auditing, debugging, and troubleshooting issues that may occur during the software lifecycle.
  • Scalability: As code allows for the easy and rapid scaling of cloud resources, workflows, or models to meet changing demands or requirements. This improves performance, availability, and resilience of software systems.
  • Automation: As code enables the automation of tasks that are otherwise tedious, time-consuming, or error-prone. This frees up developers and operators to focus on more creative or strategic activities.

The main challenges of as code are:

  • Complexity: As code introduces additional layers of abstraction and complexity to software development, delivery, or operation. This requires developers and operators to learn new skills, tools, and languages to deal with different domains of as code.
  • Integration: As code requires the integration of various tools and platforms to support different domains of as code. This may pose compatibility issues,
    security risks,
    or maintenance overheads for developers and operators.
  • Testing: Most as code demands rigorous testing of code artifacts to ensure their correctness,
    reliability, and quality. This may require additional resources, time, or expertise for developers and operators.

Is it justified?

Is it justified to use as code for each use case? The answer depends on several factors,
such as:

  • The nature and scope of the project: Some projects may benefit more from as code than others, depending on their size, complexity,or domain. For example, a large-scale, distributed, or data-intensive project may benefit more from IaC, WaC, or AIC than a small-scale, monolithic, or logic-intensive project.
  • The maturity and availability of the tools and platforms: Some tools and platforms may support as code better than others,depending on their features, functionality, or compatibility. For example, some cloud providers may offer more options and flexibility for IaC than others, or some AI frameworks may offer more capabilities and performance for AIC than others.
  • The skills and preferences of the developers and operators: Some developers and operators may prefer as code over others,depending on their skills, experience, or style. For example, some developers may enjoy writing code more than using graphical interfaces, or some operators may prefer using code more than using dashboards.

Status of as code in each domain

With the above factor, below is the scale from my personal view,

as code status justified (5 star max)
Infrastructure Very mature and widely use ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Policy Mature but not being widely use ⭐⭐⭐
Diagram Depends on diagram type. Some is difficult to adjust layout ⭐⭐⭐
Presentation Difficult to fine tune layout and create animations ⭐
Database ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Documentation Markdown and many more ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Configuration ⭐⭐⭐
UI Can be generated with programming language ⭐⭐⭐⭐
AI Model can be layered ⭐⭐

Diagram as Code Resources

Mermaid JS

https://mermaid.js.org/

The best way to represent diagrams as code in YAML language is through MermaidJS, a JavaScript library that can generate diagrams on the fly. GitHub and many platforms support MermaidJS natively. Other platforms like Hexo, which generates this blog, also have plugins to render diagrams with MermaidJS. The error messages are very intuitive compared to other diagram as code libraries. Highly recommended for writing simple diagrams.

PlantUML

https://github.com/plantuml/plantuml

A well-known diagram as code generator produces images from human-readable language. It generates images at a tolerable speed, even when processing Java programs. This tool supports multiple-page diagrams. However, mastering positioning can be challenging even it supports various layout types. Lines may run over labels and other issues may arise as your diagrams become more complex.

AWS Diagram-as-Code

https://github.com/awslabs/diagram-as-code

The project began on February, 2024, which is relatively fresh. the diagram looks nice with icons and grouping:

Example from AWS

Although it uses YAML, writing diagrams with its structure can be punishing once you start to set links between resources. You need to write at least four lines to describe them effectively, such as Source, Target, SourcePosition, and TargetPosition:

links.yaml
Links:
   - Source: ALB
     SourcePosition: NNW
     Target: VPCPublicSubnet1Instance
     TargetPosition: SSE
     TargetArrowHead:
       Type: Open

SourcePosition and TargetPosition are required because the line does not automatically position itself with respect to the resource. Although the diagram looks nice, it does not support AWS styling like callouts. Not recommended unless you want a quick diagram from infrastructure as code in CloudFormation, or converting from Terraform. However, you still need a lot of work to finalize a diagram.

Conclusion

In conclusion, as code is a powerful and promising paradigm that can enhance software development, delivery, or operation. However, it also comes with its own challenges and trade-offs that need to be considered carefully before adopting it. As code is not a one-size-fits-all solution, but rather a context-dependent choice that depends on the project, the tools, and the people involved.

Share