Terraform vs. Ansible : Key Differences and Comparison of Tools
I have always been very confused between tools which have overlapping functionalities such as these two. Both Terraform and Ansible are DevOps tools, but how do these DevOps tools differ? In short, Terraform is an open-source, Infrastructure as Code platform, while Ansible is an open-source configuration management tool focused on the configuration of that infrastructure.
Let us explore the similarities and differences and try to conclude the best way to manage infrastructure, especially on Cloud.
Similarities
At a very high level, given the capabilities of both the products, Terraform and Ansible come across as similar tools. Both of them are capable of provisioning the new cloud infrastructure and configuring the same with required application components.
Both Terraform and Ansible are capable of executing remote commands on the virtual machine that is newly created. This means, both the tools are agentless. There is no need to deploy agents on the machines for operational purposes.
Terraform uses cloud provider APIs to create infrastructure and basic configuration tasks are achieved using SSH. The same goes with Ansible – it uses SSH to perform all the required configuration tasks. The “state” information for both does not require a separate set of infrastructure to manage, thus both the tools are masterless.
Differences
Although Terraform and Ansible are capable of provisioning and configuration management, a deeper dive into them makes us realise the benefits of one over the other in certain areas. If we consider Infrastructure management, which broadly encompasses two aspects – orchestration and configuration management. Terraform and Ansible have their own ways of managing both – with strong and weak points when it comes to overlaps. Thus, it is important to delve into some details of both the tools to make a “perfect” choice or a combination with boundaries.
Should you have any queries, do let me know in the comments.
… HaPpY CoDiNg
Partha
