As-Code Pattern

An As-Code Pattern is a software engineering pattern that represents traditionally manual processes or document-based processes as version-controlled code, enabling automation, collaboration, and engineering discipline.

• AKA: X-as-Code Pattern, Codification Pattern, Everything as Code.
• Context:
  • It can enable version control with history tracking, branching, and merging for any domain.
  • It can facilitate peer review through pull requests and code review processes.
  • It can support automated testing and validation of configurations and policies.
  • It can provide rollback capability and disaster recovery through version history.
  • It can ensure reproducibility across different environments through declarative specification.
  • It can democratize change proposals by allowing anyone to submit pull requests.
  • ...
• Example(s):
  • Infrastructure as Code (IaC) using Terraform or CloudFormation to manage cloud resources.
  • Documentation as Code where technical documentation is written in Markdown alongside code.
  • Configuration as Code managing application configuration through YAML or JSON files.
  • Policy as Code implementing compliance rules as executable policy definitions.
  • Roadmap as Code tracking product roadmaps in version control systems.
  • ...
• Counter-Example(s):
  • Manual configuration through GUI interfaces without audit trail.
  • Word documents for technical specifications stored on shared drives.
  • Spreadsheet-based project planning without version control.
• See: Software Engineering Pattern, DevOps Practice, Infrastructure as Code, GitOps, Declarative Programming, Continuous Integration, Version Control System.

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