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Replacing

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FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

How to build my infrastructure with just a diagram?

Design

In this article, I will share my extensive knowledge of the Cloud Infrastructure industry, which I have gained through discussions with over 20,000 engineers. Drawing from these conversations, I will provide insights into the major trends that are currently shaping the industry.

How do you use Terraform outputs on Brainboard?

Design

For situations where, for e.g. you deploy a large web application infrastructure using Terraform, you often need certain endpoints, IP addresses, database user credentials, and so forth. This information is most useful for passing the values to modules along with other scenarios. Output variables in Terraform are used to display the required information in the console output after a successful application of configuration for the root module.

How do you create self-service infrastructure on Brainboard?

Design

To create self-service infrastructure on Brainboard, use Terraform to define your infrastructure as code, provide access to your Terraform code through version control, use modules to encapsulate complex infrastructure configurations, and automate the deployment and management of your resources. This will allow your team members to deploy and manage their own infrastructure, reducing the need for manual intervention and making it easier to manage your infrastructure at scale.

Does Brainboard support Terraform variables? How do you define Terraform variables on Brainboard?

Design

Yes, Brainboard supports Terraform variables. Terraform variables are a way to parameterize Terraform configurations, allowing you to pass values into your Terraform code that can be used to configure your resources. In Brainboard, you can define Terraform variables in your Terraform code and use them to parameterize your resources. Brainboard integrates with Terraform, providing a visual representation of your infrastructure and making it easier to manage your Terraform variables and the resources that they configure.

Does Brainboard support Terraform modules? How can you use Terraform modules on Brainboard?

Design

Yes, Brainboard supports Terraform modules. To use Terraform modules on Brainboard, you simply need to include the module in your Terraform code and configure it as you would any other Terraform resource. Brainboard integrates with Terraform, allowing you to manage your Terraform state, visualize your infrastructure, and automate the deployment and management of your resources, including modules.

Can I create tf.files on Brainboard or do I need to include all the Terraform code of my resources in the main.tf?

Design

Yes, you can create multiple Terraform files in Brainboard. Terraform supports organizing your Terraform code into multiple files, which can be useful for large or complex infrastructure deployments. For example, you can create separate Terraform files for different components of your infrastructure, such as network, compute, and storage. You can also create separate Terraform files for different environments, such as development, staging, and production. To use multiple Terraform files, you need to include the main Terraform file in your Brainboard CI/CD pipeline and specify the other Terraform files in the same directory. Terraform will automatically find and use all of the Terraform files in the directory when executing your Terraform code. Here's an example of how you can organize your Terraform code into multiple files: ``` main.tf: provider "aws" { region = "us-west-2" } module "network" { source = "./modules/network" } module "compute" { source = "./modules/compute" } modules/network/main.tf: module "network" { source = "terraform-aws-modules/vpc/aws" name = "example-vpc" cidr = "10.0.0.0/16" private_subnets = ["10.0.1.0/24", "10.0.2.0/24", "10.0.3.0/24"] public_subnets = ["10.0.101.0/24", "10.0.102.0/24", "10.0.103.0/24"] tags = { Terraform = "true" Environment = "dev" } } modules/compute/main.tf: module "compute" { source = "terraform-aws-modules/instance/aws" instance_type = "t2.micro" ami = "ami-0c55b159cbfafe1f0" count = 3 subnet_id = module.network.private_subnets[0] security_groups = [module.network.default_security_group_id] tags = { Terraform = "true" Environment = "dev" } } ``` In this example, the main Terraform file (main.tf) includes two Terraform modules, one for the network and one for the compute, which are defined in separate Terraform files (modules/network/main.tf and modules/compute/main.tf). This allows you to organize your Terraform code into smaller, reusable, and more manageable components.

What is the best diagramming solution?

Design

With so many diagramming solutions available, why would you need another one? Brainboard is not just a comprehensive diagramming solution suitable for scalable teams, but also a deployment engine and an alternative to Terraform Cloud. It places a strong emphasis on visualizing existing infrastructure and managing cloud assets at scale.

How to use Brainboard diagram-to-code solution?

Design

Brainboard's diagram-to-code solution allows you to quickly and easily create Terraform code from pre-made diagrams. This helps to streamline your cloud infrastructure development process and make it easier to manage.

How to Get Started with Terraform?

Design

Brainboard makes it easy to get started with Terraform. With its intuitive user interface, you can create and manage your cloud infrastructure with ease. Get started now!

Is Brainboard free?

Design

Yes, there is a free version of Brainboard. When you sign up, you have 21 days free trial that gives you access to all feature of Brainboard, after that, if you don't upgrade you'll be automatically put in the free tier.

How do you integrate with Terraform Cloud / Terraform Enterprise?

Design

With regard to managing Terraform state files, this functionality is available on Brainboard's enterprise subscription. With regard to deploying your infrastructure, Brainboard integrates with your Git provider, allowing you to create pull/merge requests directly from Brainboard. From Git you can resume your existing processes which may include provisioning the resources at the cloud provider through Terraform Cloud.

How often you update cloud providers?

Design

The update process is automatic. As soon as a new version is released, we automatically trigger the update process that will do extensive tests. Tests usually take up to 48h to complete, and if they are successful we release the new version automatically.

How can I collaborate with my colleagues?

Design

There are 2 aspects in terms of collaboration:Build: 1. Brainboard supports real time editing of the same architecture by multiple users. All you need to do is to invite your colleagues and give them the right access. 2.Deploy: when you build your CI/CD pipeline within Brainboard, you have the possibility to request approvals from any team/person, which allows you to orchestrate the execution by involving all stakeholders.

Can I migrate my existing infrastructure into Brainboard?

Design

You have the possibility to import your existing infrastructure and auto-generate the diagram. We support importing any file that contains a valid Terraform code.There are 2 ways to do it: - Provide the URL of the Git repo (Github, Gitlab, Bitbucket...) - Upload one or multiple files

What is the difference between Brainboard and vanilla Terraform?

Design

Terraform is a powerful IaC tool that deploys the code you write. Brainboard, on the other hand, is an end-to-end cloud management solution built on top of Terraform with a visual architecture designer, where the Terraform code is automatically generated. It also has a secure CI/CD engine, native Git integrations and more features to help you standardize and centralize your cloud.

Do I need to be Terraform expert to use Brainboard?

Design

No. You don't need to be a Terraform or IaC expert to use Brainboard. In fact, Brainboard simplifies the complexity of Terraform and help you configure cloud resources with a configuration files menu. It will then write clean Terraform code according to best practices. We also help the community by providing free Terraform trainings, or you can even book a 30min session with us to help on your use-cases. For advanced Terraform users, Brainboard will just change your life. You'll design faster, test earlier and automate at scale.

How Brainboard is better than any drawing application?

Design

Brainboard is a one-stop solution for you and your team to Design, Deploy & Manage modern cloud infrastructure. You design your architecture, auto-generate your Terraform code, and deploy your infrastructure within Brainboard.

How do I generate the Terraform code for my cloud architecture?

Design

The Terraform code is automatically generated for you cloud architecture as you design.

How to manage a GitHub organization with Infrastructure-as-code?

Deploy

This post will share our experience in adopting infrastructure as code (IaC) to manage GitHub organization resources.

Read more

How do you use policy as code on Brainboard?

Deploy

Policy as code refers to the practice of defining security and compliance policies as code, rather than manual processes or documentation. In Brainboard, policy as code can be implemented in several ways: OPA, Checkov, Terraform, a library of compliance templates, allowing to create custom policies using Terraform code or allowing multiple team members to collaborate on the design and management of your infrastructure.

Read more

WhichTerraform remote state backend does Brainboard support?

Deploy

Brainboard uses Terraform as the provisioning engine and so the concept of the remote backend comes from the configuration of Terraform that allows you to specify which storage system you want to use and how to access it. This includes: Terraform Cloud, AWS S3, Google Cloud Storage, Microsoft Blob Storage, Terraform cloud backend and more.

Read more

Can I choose the scope of my cloud and git credentials?

Deploy

Yes. When configuring your git, you can specify the scope of your credentials as well as generate tokens to give limited access. In Brainboard, Git are present in 2 ways: Git app integration is a mechanism that allows you to control access to repositories and users from your git provider and not inside Brainboard. Which means that with this integration, users don't user their personal git tokens and have no configuration to do in Brainboard. When doing Pull Requests, Brainboard sends the information of the user creating the PR to be able to track who does what. Refer to Pull Requests page for more information about how it works. Personal git tokens allow every user to add one or more git credentials in Brainboard to be able to do pull requests. Pull requests initiated by the user will use the credential specified with its associated scope in a way that you can track who does which pull request. Only organization owner or admin can configure, edit or delete the Github integration. Every token in Brainboard has a unique identifier, so updating any credential will not affect its scope.

Read more

How can I deploy Ansible Playbook / Helm?

Deploy

Currently, you are unable to deploy Ansible Playbooks or Helm charts using Brainboard. However, our team is working diligently to implement this feature as soon as possible. In the meantime, you can still trigger workflows using webhooks.

Read more

Can I deploy multi-cloud environments?

Deploy

Yes, you can deploy multi-cloud environments with Brainboard. Brainboard's CI/CD engine is designed to support multi-cloud deployments, allowing you to manage and deploy your applications across different cloud environments, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and Microsoft Azure. This enables you to take advantage of the unique benefits of each cloud platform and ensure high availability, scalability, and disaster recovery for your applications. To deploy to multiple cloud environments, you can create separate workflows in the Brainboard CI/CD engine, each targeting a different cloud platform. You can then manage these workflows and deployments through a single interface, making it easier to coordinate and monitor multi-cloud deployments.

Read more

How do I use the drift detection feature on Brainboard?

Deploy

The drift detection feature on Brainboard can be found in the CI/CD Engine, under the 'Deploy' tab. Our team has already pre-designed a default workflow with a single task for you.

Read more

How does Brainboard integrate with my current workflows?

Deploy

In brainboard, you are able to include all your current workflows: - Manage all your Terraform States. - Setup the Git integration in Brainboard to be able to do pull requests and import existing code. - Create replicable templates for you and your team to use. - Import your Terraform modules from a registry, locally or git.

Read more

How does Brainboard integrate tools like Infracost, Checkov, Tfsec, etc…?

Deploy

From Design to Production, 75% faster. Brainboard integrates natively pioneers in the Cloud Computing industry to deliver the best seamless experience in the Cloud. The new CI/CD Engine is bringing a whole new level of automations and integrations into Brainboard.

Read more

Which git providers does Brainboard support?

Deploy

The following git providers are supported: - Github - GitLab - Azure DevOps - BitBucket If your git repository is not listed here, you can request it in our public roadmap.

Read more

Can I deploy my architecture with Brainboard?

Deploy

Brainboard has an innovative CI/CD engine dedicated for the infrastructure, where you can execute all Terraform actions (Terraform plan, Terraform apply, Terraform destroy) within a secure sandbox and get the output in real time or build your deployment workflow and trigger it.

Read more

How To Manage Infrastructure With Terraform

Manage

Cloud management is the centralized administration of cloud assets, including any applications, data storage, and computing resources that an organization connects to via the internet. Successful cloud management ensures that administrators regularly monitor cloud costs, best utilize cloud resources, and keep the environment secure and compliant with regulatory standards. An organization should develop a clear cloud management strategy to support its cloud environment healthy. For example, they might enact company policies pertaining to implementing and using cloud resources. An organization may also designate an individual or group to lead cloud management efforts.

Read more

Why Understanding Infrastructure-as-code is Critical to Scaling Your Technology Infrastructure

Manage

Infrastructure as code (IaC) is one of the most important trends in modern IT development. Read about the benefits of IaC and how to implement it.

Read more

How to improve your IaC with a Specialized Management Platform?

Manage

Most often, there is no point in implementing an in-house solution as the cost and effort of building and maintaining it may exceed its potential benefits. Read more in this article.

Read more

How can Brainboard help with compliance and security?

Manage

In this article, we will explore the importance of security and code checks in Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) and how Brainboard’s CI/CD engine provides built-in security tasks to enhance the security of your infrastructure. We will also examine some of the native security layers available in Terraform and Brainboard that can be applied before, during, or after deploying to production.

Read more

What are the benefits of using Brainboard for cloud infrastructure management?

Manage

Brainboard offers several benefits for cloud infrastructure management, including: Brainboard provides a visual representation of your cloud infrastructure, making it easier to understand and manage your resources. Brainboard integrates with Terraform, a popular infrastructure as code tool, to automate the deployment and management of your cloud infrastructure. Brainboard allows multiple team members to collaborate on the design and management of your infrastructure. Brainboard helps you to ensure compliance with industry standards and best practices. Brainboard is designed to scale with your infrastructure, making it suitable for both small and large organizations.

Read more

How can I save cloud cost with Infracost?

Manage

Brainboard natively integrates with Infracost, the best open-source cost estimation solution out there.

Read more

Is SSO supported?

Manage

Yes, in the enterprise version. We support both SAML and OAUTH.

Read more

Can I create templates for my cloud infrastructures?

Manage

Brainboard allows you to create a template from any architecture you have. By doing so, you build your internal catalog of templates that any one within your organization can use off the shelf without reinventing the wheel.

Read more

What are the supported cloud providers?

Manage

The following providers are supported: - Azure - AWS - OCI - GCP - Scaleway. You can request (or vote for) your cloud provider to be added it in our public roadmap

Read more

How do Brainboard integrate with Terragrunt?

Manage

Within Brainboard you can natively version and promote architectures from one environment to another, leveraging variables to configure the linked architectures individually. This native functionality removes the need for a tool like Terragrunt.

Read more

Is there a hosted version of Brainboard?

Manage

Yes, we provide a self-hosted version based on eligibility criteria. If you are interested in the hosted version, please contact us.

Read more

Join an engineering community around IaC tools and best practices

Learn from others, share your work, and extend your tool set with a diverse group of cloud architects, plugin integrations, engineers, managers, DevOps, and many more from around the world.

simple cloud design

"As an engineer myself, I wanted to empower engineers to focus on designing, deploying and managing cloud architectures right, with best practices and security by design, allowing anyone to understand the infrastructure. Brainboard is the solution for enterprise cloud infrastructure."

Chafik

CEO & Founder of Brainboard

Empowering Engineering teams around the World

"Brainboard is a revolutionary technology. It created a whole ecosystem to design and operate the cloud, taking infrastructure management to the next level."

Sebastian Pahl Co-founderDocker Brainboard

Sebastian Pahl

Co-founder

"What a time-saver Brainboard is. All of my resources, modules, templates are right there in the library, ready to pull in error free the first time."

Sebastian Pahl Co-founder

Thomas Smith

Manager

"The team shared their expertise and best practices with us, which made the process of building our infrastructure much smoother and efficient. We felt empowered and confident in our abilities to build something truly great with the help of the Brainboard team."

Sebastian Pahl Co-founderSebastian Pahl Co-founder

Alain

Senior Consultant at KPMG

"Fasten your belt and get ready to reach the clouds with ease, effectiveness, and elegance. Being able to organize, design and deploy architectures for all the applications that are built makes me save a lot of time. Brainboard solves for me the hassle can be to managing the environment and settings for cloud-based applications.”

Sebastian Pahl Co-founder

Michel M.

Azure customer, Infrastructure Manager

“Brainboard allows us to quickly visualize our cloud platforms and assets, and even deploy multi-cloud architectures with one click. It's also helped us better manage our cloud infrastructure costs.”

EricZiwo

Eric O.

CTO

"Very easy-to-use tool to design Azure architecture and generate Terraform scripts. I was a newbie in Terraform when I first started using Brainboard, and it was beneficial. It is also effortless to clone architectures, reuse parts/modules and also do reverse engineering."

Sebastian Pahl Co-founder

David G.

Azure customer, Terraform newbie

“I can't find the words to describe how incredible, powerful, and practical Brainboard is for me as a DevOps Engineer.”

Y combinator

Abel L.

DevOps Engineer

“I have been using Brainboard along with Infracost for a few months now and I am extremely impressed with their efficiency in saving cloud costs. The integration of Infracost with Brainboard has made it incredibly easy for me to analyze and optimize my cloud spending.”

Ramp

Nathan

Revenue Ops

“The team at Brainboard has been incredibly supportive and responsive to any queries I or any of my startup portfolio have had regarding their platform, which has made the entire process of migrating to Terraform, seamless.”

Time2Scale

Alexandre

Managing Partner

“Brainboard might've made the coolest tool of 2022 for me. Seriously it's phenomenal what it can do!”

Jim Curtis

Jim C.

Principal Cloud Architect

"Enterprise workloads need Brainboard."

Chris Smith

Engineering Manager

"As a cloud architect, Brainboard has allowed me to give life to my designs and architecture choices, because going from a diagram to an operational architecture is just a few clicks."

Yassir A.

Senior Cloud Architect

"Why write programming code when you can design application systems with Brainboard?"

Denis Astahov

Solution Architect

"Brainboard is my greatest cloud discovery of 2023. The CI/CD Engine is very powerful and have room to be the reference of it all! I recommend testing Brainboard's diagramming to code capabilities which are indeed very impressive."

Adrien

Senior Cloud Engineer

"Welcome to the era of Terraform-as-Diagram! Brainboard is Terraform migration made easy and visual."

Patrick Pichler

Data Analytics

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"Best graphical design tool to create terraform scripts for Azure"
Forrester Brainboard
"Best Diagramming solution specifically designed for the Cloud."
Gartner Brainboard
"The most interesting company in the DevOps visual era."
Capterra Brainboard
"The most interesting Terraform alternative in the market."

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