From Portal to Code: Your First Steps Importing Azure Resources into Terraform

If you’ve ever inherited an Azure environment, you’ll know that not everything is built with Infrastructure as Code from the start. Often, resources are created manually in the portal or with scripts, and you’re left to bring some order to the chaos. If you’re moving to Terraform (which I highly recommend for Azure), you may want to bring your existing resources under code management without having to rebuild everything from scratch. Continue reading

When to Click, When to Code: The Azure Admin’s Dilemma

When to Click, When to Code: The Azure Admin’s Dilemma We’ve all been there, staring at the Azure Portal, debating whether to click your way through a deployment or fire up your favourite IaC tool. So, how do you decide? This isn’t just a technical question; it’s a strategic one that shapes your team’s agility, reliability, and even job satisfaction. In this article, I’ll break down the strengths and weaknesses of ClickOps and Infrastructure as Code, share some real-world scenarios, and offer a practical framework for making the right choice in your Azure projects. Continue reading

Creating Your First Terraform Module for Azure

Why Use a Terraform Module? If you’ve ever copied and pasted the same Terraform resources into more than one project, you’ll know how quickly things can get messy. Modules are your way out of that mess. A module is basically a reusable bundle of Terraform config, like a function in code. You pass in some variables, and it gives you a consistent result every time. No more copy-paste chaos. Here’s what makes modules worth it: Keeps your naming and tagging tidy Saves you from repeating yourself Helps you work faster without breaking stuff If you’re working in a team, this becomes even more useful. Continue reading

Still Running Terraform Locally? Let's Talk.

There’s a good chance you’re deploying your Azure infrastructure from your own machine. Maybe it’s Terraform. Maybe it’s working… most of the time. But here’s the question I’d pose: Are you still running terraform apply locally, or have you moved your infrastructure into a pipeline? And more importantly, why? Because while running Terraform locally might feel fast and flexible, it can quietly introduce a whole stack of problems that don’t show up until you start scaling. Continue reading