Infrastructure as Code: Maturity Models and Pitfalls

January 2021 • 7 min read

As Infrastructure as Code (IaC) matures, organizations increasingly treat their infrastructure the same way they treat application code. Yet not all IaC implementations are created equal. The journey to maturity includes more than just writing scripts — it involves embracing version control, policy enforcement, orchestration, and modular architecture.

Foundational Stage

Teams in the early stages of IaC often focus on scripting cloud resources using tools like AWS CLI, PowerShell, or Bash. These scripts are typically not idempotent and lack structure. There’s limited reuse, and version control may be informal or non-existent.

Key indicators of this stage include:

• Scripts copied across environments with minor changes
• Manual intervention still required post-deployment
• Frequent configuration drift

Repeatable Stage

Organizations progress by adopting configuration management tools such as Ansible, Puppet, or Chef. Scripts become playbooks, and infrastructure provisioning starts to follow patterns. Teams define parameters and use source control, making deployments more predictable.

Defined Stage

At this point, organizations use declarative tools like Terraform or CloudFormation. Environments are reproducible. Developers and operations begin to collaborate more effectively. Code reviews and testing are introduced to catch issues early.

However, pitfalls emerge:

• Too much abstraction can hinder troubleshooting
• Shared state and secrets need careful handling
• Dependency management between modules can become complex

Managed Stage

This stage includes CI/CD pipelines for infrastructure. IaC modules are published and versioned. Enforcement of tagging, cost limits, and RBAC becomes part of the deployment process. Infrastructure is not only code — it’s policy-enforced and observable.

Optimized Stage

The final stage sees feedback loops in place. Changes are validated through automated tests, policy as code (e.g., Open Policy Agent) is implemented, and infrastructure modules are built as reusable libraries across multiple teams. Systems are modular, tested, and continuously improved.

Correlating with Software Architecture

Much like application architecture, mature IaC benefits from modularity and separation of concerns. Monolithic Terraform modules are as dangerous as monolithic services. The same architectural principles — dependency inversion, abstraction, and separation — apply.

Teams moving through IaC maturity should borrow from architecture discussions. IaC codebases deserve the same design rigor and technical leadership as application stacks.

Conclusion

IaC maturity is not binary. Organizations must evolve beyond ad-hoc scripting and adopt architectural principles, automation, and policy control. Success depends not only on tooling, but on cultural adoption, collaboration, and architectural thinking.

Eduardo Wnorowski is a network infrastructure consultant and Director.
With over 26 years of experience in IT and consulting, he helps organizations maintain stable and secure environments through proactive auditing, optimization, and strategic guidance.
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