Brainboard vs. Traditional IaC Management Comparison
Tags: brainboard, terraform, cloud, community
Published: 2024-04-22 22:54:00

When it comes to managing cloud infrastructure, the choice of tools can greatly impact the efficiency and security of operations. Brainboard introduces a novel approach to Infrastructure as Code (IaC) management, offering a suite of features designed to streamline the entire lifecycle of cloud infrastructure deployment. This comparison aims to highlight the distinctions between using Brainboard and traditional IaC management practices, specifically focusing on the areas of security and infrastructure management. 

With Brainboard, teams are equipped with advanced tools for collaboration, policy enforcement, and multi-cloud management. Conversely, without Brainboard, teams might face limitations in these critical areas. The following tables provide a side-by-side comparison to showcase how Brainboard's features can enhance and secure cloud infrastructure management:


## Cloud Infrastructure Build


![Build Azure cloud infrastructure](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/jzqxjidyxoto7qsiry6c.png)

| Feature                | [With Brainboard](https://app.brainboard.co/)                                     | Without Brainboard                              |
|------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------|
| **Code**               | Auto-generate the Terraform code from the design    | Write Terraform code manually                   |
| **Collaboration**      | Multiple users can design, edit and review the changes in real time         | No or low collaboration between DevOps & Cloud Architects |
| **Design the infrastructure** | Create the infrastructure diagram and the IaC code that match 100% the deployed infrastructure | No live diagram view of infrastructures        |
| **IaC templates catalog** | Have architectures along with their IaC configuration as templates, public or private | Not supported                                  |
| **Import existing infrastructure** | Import your existing Terraform code to visualize your resources & convert your legacy infrastructure into Terraform code - within minutes | 6-9 months of dedicated work for a cloud architect to manually write everything |
| **Modules**            | Add, delete, use and manage Terraform & OpenTofu modules, public or private. Modules catalog automatically created. | Private & public Modules supported                  |
| **Tooling**            | Brainboard (Terraform 100% coverage)                | Diagramming + IaC + CI/CD Engine + Management Solution |
| **Variables**          | Terraform variables that can be defined across organization, projects, environments and architectures | Terraform Variables                             |

## CICD Engine


![best CICD for devops](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/qivwobvktovbab1gxxa7.png)

| Feature               | [With Brainboard](https://app.brainboard.co/)                                               | Without Brainboard           |
|-----------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------|
| **CI/CD Engine**       | Visually build and run pipelines and also manage dependencies between stages (external system when a condition is met) | YAML or specific DSL Language needed           |
| **CI/CD pipelines**    | Custom runners hosted by Brainboard that will execute the pipeline | Supported                                       |
| **CI/CD templates**    | Convert any pipeline into template and use it       | Supported                                       |
| **Costs estimation**   | Estimate the cost of the infrastructure (based on code) using infracost | External tool                                   |
| **Webhooks**           | The possibility to call an external system when a condition is met | Supported                                       |

## Security


![Terraform action](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/acz0fbjgdwbniagqro0v.png)

| Feature               | [With Brainboard](https://app.brainboard.co/)                                               | Without Brainboard           |
|-----------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------|
| Approval              | Approve or reject the execution of any task with maximum granularity per task | Not supported               |
| Authentication SSO    | OIDC & SAML, Different IDP providers (Okta, Azure AD...) with federation | N/A               |
| Policy as code        | Define/codify policies used to manage the infrastructure with: OPA, AWS config rules | Not supported               |
| RBAC                  | Role Based Access Control supported                            | Not supported               |
| Remote backend        | Supports all types of backends: AWS S3, Azure blob storage, Google GCS, Terraform HTTP, GitLab, Brainboard backend, cloud endpoints, Brainboard remote backend | Limited & depending to local environment & hosted services |
| Security plugins supported | Scan the IaC code for security with: tfsec, OPA, Checkov, Terrascan | Not supported               |

## Infrastructure Management

![Terraform State Management](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/ss9w1xk91p70n4y1uuv6.png)

| Feature                    | [With Brainboard](https://app.brainboard.co/)                                               | Without Brainboard                |
|----------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------|
| Cloud providers supported  | AWS, Azure, GCP, OCI, Azure stack, Azure DevOps, Scaleway and more planned for 2024. Multicloud is supported. | Limited to one cloud provider or 2 major |
| Documentation              | Unified Readme documentation, diagram, and code for everyone. | Potential drift between the design and the code. |
| Drift detection            | Detect changes that either doesn’t match the code or doesn’t match the deployed infrastructure. The possibility to prevent drift between environments. | Manual work                    |
| Git providers supported    | Support GitLab, GitHub, Bitbucket, Azure DevOps               | Git supported                     |
| Inventory view of cloud environments | Unified view of infrastructure projects, environments and architectures | Requires a dedicated management tool. |
| Synchronize environments   | Native mechanism to synchronize environments (e.g., staging, QA and production (Terragrunt like)) | Not supported                    |
| Terraform registry         | Use modules from Terraform registry                           | Not supported                     |
| Versioning                 | Keep track of every modification you do on design / code and or go to any specific point-in-time. Native versioning or Git supported. | Not supported                     |

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## Next Steps

In the rapidly evolving landscape of cloud infrastructure, Brainboard stands out as a comprehensive solution that not only simplifies the complexities of IaC management but also provides robust security features and efficient multi-cloud support. As our comparison has shown, Brainboard's innovative tools offer a significant advantage over traditional methods, enabling teams to collaborate effectively, enforce policies seamlessly, and manage their cloud environments with greater ease and confidence.

If you're looking to enhance your cloud management capabilities, reduce operational risks, and embrace a future-proof platform for your IaC needs, consider giving Brainboard a try. Ready to transform the way you build, deploy, and manage your cloud infrastructure?

[Sign up for Brainboard today](https://app.brainboard.co/) and take the first step towards streamlined and secure cloud infrastructure management.