Introduction to Atlantis
Atlantis is a modern, self-hosted application designed to streamline and automate Terraform workflows. Written in Go, this application plays a crucial role in infrastructure management by listening for Terraform pull request events via webhooks. By integrating Atlantis into development environments, teams can enhance their workflow efficiency and collaboration on infrastructure modifications.
What is Atlantis?
Atlantis functions as a server that automates the Terraform pull request process. It listens for specific events triggered by pull requests in repositories and executes essential Terraform commands. This functionality supports the infrastructure as code (IaC) approach, helping teams manage and provision their infrastructure through concise, collaborative, and trackable methods.
What Does It Do?
When a pull request is made that contains Terraform changes, Atlantis springs into action. It runs Terraform commands such as plan, import, and apply remotely. After executing these commands, Atlantis comments directly on the pull request with the results, providing immediate feedback to developers. This automation allows teams to review and discuss infrastructure changes seamlessly within the same ecosystem they use for code reviews.
Why Should You Use It?
Atlantis offers several compelling advantages for teams working with Terraform:
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Visibility Across Teams: By displaying Terraform changes in pull requests, Atlantis makes these modifications visible to all team members, fostering transparency and collaborative review.
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Empowering Collaboration: It enables not only operations engineers but also developers from various backgrounds to contribute to Terraform code, promoting wider participation in infrastructure management.
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Standardized Workflows: Atlantis helps standardize how Terraform is used across projects by automating routine tasks and ensuring consistent processes, thereby reducing potential errors and discrepancies.
For organizations seeking efficient, collaborative, and reliable Terraform workflows, Atlantis represents a powerful tool, enriching their infrastructure management strategies by integrating Terraform processes into the everyday development lifecycle.