18 lines
1.3 KiB
Markdown
18 lines
1.3 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: "Packer"
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ring: adopt
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quadrant: platforms-and-aoe-services
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---
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[Hashicorp Packer](https://www.packer.io/intro/getting-started/build-image.html) is a lightweight tool which automates the creation of any type of machine images (Machine Image As A Code) for multiple platforms.
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Packer is not a replacement of configuration management tools like Ansible. Packer works with tools like ansible to install software while creating images.
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Packer uses a configuration file to create a machine image. It uses the concepts of builders to spin up an instance, run provisioners to configure applications or services.
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Once setup is done, it shuts the instance down and save new baked machine instance with any needed post-processing.
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Packer only builds images. But once you have them you can deploy your infrastructure quickly and even scale by spawning any number of instances without doing extra configuration.
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Another benefit is, that machine images can be tested to verify if they are working correctly.
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Packer supports multiple cloud providers like AWS, GCP, Digital Ocean etc.
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Machine images are important for modern deployment pipelines and fast ramp of of new infrastructure.
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We are using Packer to build so called "Golden images" that are used in our [Infrastructure as Code](/methods-and-patterns/infrastructure-as-code.html) based provisionings.
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