Terraform vs. CloudFormation
If you're familiar with infrastructure as code, you've probably heard of Terraform and CloudFormation. Both are cloud APIs that let you create and manage infrastructure in the cloud programmatically, using code instead of manual processes.
Although both offer essentially the same functionality, there are several differences between them that may influence your decision about which one to use for your next project. In this blog post, we'll compare and contrast Terraform and CloudFormation, taking into account their features, functionality, and ease of use.
Terraform
Terraform is an open-source infrastructure as code tool created by HashiCorp. It's designed to be cloud-agnostic, meaning it can work with multiple cloud providers such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform.
Features
- Supports declarative syntax for creating and managing infrastructure.
- Offers state management for easy tracking of changes to infrastructure.
- Supports dependency management to ensure order of resources creation is well defined.
- Comes with a vast community and official documentation.
Functionality
Terraform supports the following:
- Infrastructure as code
- Resource management
- Integration with multiple cloud providers
- Deployment management
- Secret management
Ease of Use
Terraform has a decent learning curve, but once you understand the basics, it's pretty easy to use. However, Terraform configurations can get quite complicated if you're configuring several resources at once.
Pricing
Terraform is free and open-source.
CloudFormation
CloudFormation is a cloud infrastructure management tool created by Amazon Web Services. As an AWS service, it only works with AWS.
Features
- Supports declarative syntax for creating and managing infrastructure
- Provides version control through AWS CloudFormation stacks and templates
- Integrates with both AWS services managed and customer managed resources using AWS Service Catalog
Functionality
CloudFormation supports the following:
- Infrastructure as code
- Resource management
- Deployment management
- CloudWatch Events and Lambda function Execution
- AWS Service Catalog Integration
Ease of Use
CloudFormation is generally easier to use than Terraform. Its YAML or JSON syntax makes it easier to read and write, and you don't have to learn a new language to use it. However, as your stack gets more complex, the template file can get quite long and unwieldy.
Pricing
CloudFormation is free except for the resources you create with it.
Comparison Table
Here's a quick comparison table of the features of Terraform vs. CloudFormation:
| Feature | Terraform | CloudFormation |
|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure as code | Yes | Yes |
| Resource management | Yes | Yes |
| Integration with multiple cloud providers | Yes | No |
| Deployment management | Yes | Yes |
| CloudWatch Events and Lambda function Execution | No | Yes |
| AWS Service Catalog Integration | No | Yes |
| State management | Yes | Yes |
| Dependency management | Yes | Yes (albeit not as well-developed as Terraform) |
| Secret management | Yes (Some secrets management integrations are still limited or experimental) | Yes (AWS Secrets Manager is supported by Amazon) |
Conclusion
Both Terraform and CloudFormation are excellent cloud APIs for infrastructure as code. Terraform can work with multiple cloud providers, while CloudFormation only works with AWS. However, CloudFormation provides better integration with AWS services.
The choice between Terraform vs. CloudFormation depends solely on the project requirements. Regardless of the cloud API you end up choosing, it is crucial to choose one that matches your skills and experience, then to invest in time to learn the nuances of the tool you chose.
References:
- Terraform official documentation: https://www.terraform.io/docs/index.html
- CloudFormation official documentation: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cloudformation/index.html
- Comparison: Terraform vs CloudFormation: https://devopscube.com/terraform-vs-cloudformation/