Unleashing GitHub Copilot for Infrastructure as Code

Introduction

In the world of managing infrastructure, things are always changing. People really want solutions that work, can handle big tasks, and won't let them down. Now, as more companies switch to using cloud-based systems and start using Infrastructure as Code (IaC), the job of folks who handle infrastructure is getting even more important. They're facing new problems in setting up and keeping everything running smoothly.

The Challenges faced by Infrastructure Professionals

1. Complexity of IaC: Managing infrastructure through code introduces a layer of complexity. Infrastructure professionals often grapple with the intricate syntax and structure required by tools like Terraform and PowerShell. This complexity can lead to errors, delays, and increased cognitive load.
2. Consistency Across Environments: Achieving consistency across multiple environments—development, testing, and production—poses a significant challenge. Maintaining uniformity in configurations is crucial for ensuring the reliability and stability of the deployed infrastructure.
3. Learning Curve: The learning curve associated with IaC tools and languages can be steep for those new to the domain. As teams grow and diversify, onboarding members with varying levels of expertise becomes a hurdle.
4. Time-Consuming Development Cycles: Crafting infrastructure code manually is a time-consuming process. Infrastructure professionals often find themselves reinventing the wheel, writing boilerplate code, and handling repetitive tasks that could be automated.

Unleashing GitHub Copilot for Infrastructure as Code

In response to these challenges, Leveraging GitHub Copilot to generate infra code specifically for infrastructure professionals is helping to revolutionize the way infrastructure is written, addressing the pain points experienced by professionals in the field.

The Significance of GH Copilot for Infra

1. Code Generation with accuracy: Copilot harnesses the power of machine learning to interpret the intent behind prompts and swiftly generate precise infrastructure code. It understands the context of infrastructure tasks, allowing professionals to express their requirements in natural language and receive corresponding code suggestions.
2. Streamlining the IaC Development Process: By automating the generation of infrastructure code, Copilot significantly streamlines the IaC development process. Infrastructure professionals can now focus on higher-level design decisions and business logic rather than wrestling with syntax intricacies.
3. Consistency Across Environments and Projects: GH Copilot ensures consistency across environments by generating standardized code snippets. Whether deploying resources in a development, testing, or production environment, GH Copilot helps maintain uniformity in configurations.
4. Accelerating Onboarding and Learning: For new team members and those less familiar with IaC, GH Copilot serves as an invaluable learning service. It provides real-time examples and best practices, fostering a collaborative environment where knowledge is shared seamlessly.
5. Efficiency and Time Savings: The efficiency gains brought about by GH Copilot are substantial. Infrastructure professionals can witness a dramatic reduction in development cycles, allowing for faster iteration and deployment of infrastructure changes.

Copilot in Action

Prerequisites

      1.Install visual studio code latest version - https://code.visualstudio.com/download

2. Have a GitHub Copilot license with a personal free trial or your company/enterprise GitHub account, install the Copilot extension, and sign in from Visual Studio Code. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/quickstart
3. Install the PowerShell extension for VS Code, as we are going to use PowerShell for our IaC sample.

Below is the PowerShell code generated using VS Code & GitHub Copilot. It demonstrates how to create a simple Azure VM.

We're employing a straightforward prompt with #, with the underlying code automatically generated within the VS Code editor.

Another example to create azure vm with vm scale set with minimum and maximum number of instance count. Prompt used with # in below example.

The PowerShell script generated above can be executed either from the local system or from the Azure Portal Cloud Shell. Similarly, we can create Terraform and devops code using this Infra Copilot.

Conclusion

In summary, GH Copilot is a big deal in the world of infrastructure as code. It helps professionals overcome challenges and brings about a more efficient and collaborative way of working. As we finish talking about GH Copilot's abilities, the examples we've looked at have shown how it works, what technologies it uses, and how it can be used in real life. This guide aims to give infrastructure professionals the info they need to improve how they do infrastructure as code.