2.8.3. Infrastructure as Code

IaC (Infrastructure as Code): Defines network configuration in version-controlled code files. Enables automation, repeatability, and audit trails.

Automation concepts:

• Playbooks/Templates: Reusable configuration scripts (Ansible playbooks, Terraform modules)
• Configuration drift/Compliance: Detecting when running config deviates from approved baseline
• Upgrades: Automated, consistent firmware and software updates
• Dynamic inventories: Auto-discovered device lists rather than static files

Source control concepts:

• Version control: Track every change with who, when, what
• Central repository: Single source of truth for configurations
• Conflict identification: Detect incompatible parallel changes
• Branching: Test changes in isolation before merging to production