Scripting cloud resources.
WHAT SCRIPTING SUITS
Provisioning and configuring resources Reporting on what exists and what it costs Applying tags consistently Stopping and starting non-production resources Auditing configuration
WHAT TO PREFER FOR CREATING INFRASTRUCTURE
Declarative definitions, rather than scripts.
WHY
Declarative definitions describe the desired state and can be reapplied safely.
WHAT SCRIPTS ARE BETTER FOR
Operations, reporting and one-off tasks.
WHAT TO USE FOR SCHEDULED AUTOMATION
A managed automation service, rather than a machine someone maintains.
WHY
It has no server to patch and no machine to fail.
WHAT AUTHENTICATION TO USE
A managed identity, where the automation runs on the platform.
WHY
No stored credentials at all.
WHAT TO BUILD FIRST
A script reporting resources with no tags or no owner.
WHY
It is the fastest route to understanding what you actually have.
WHAT TO AUTOMATE FOR COST
Shutting down development environments outside working hours.
WHAT TO LOG
Every action taken, with time and identity.
WHAT TO ALERT ON
Automation failing to run.