IDLC Framework Documentation
Apply software development best practices to infrastructure management.
What is IDLC?
IDLC stands for IaC Development Lifecycle. It is a framework that integrates software development practices into infrastructure management, enabling large distributed teams to manage infrastructure as code with consistency, collaboration, and version-controlled workflows.
The framework is built around 8 phases that mirror the software development lifecycle, adapted specifically for Infrastructure as Code (IaC):
Plan → Code → Build → Test → Release → Deploy → Operate → Monitor
Key Principles
- Zero Touch on Production — Automate deployments with zero manual intervention in production
- Modules Versioning — Semantic versioning for all infrastructure modules
- Modular Architecture — Reusable modules, opinionated solutions, declarative deployments
- Automated Compliance — Security and compliance checks built into the pipeline
- Cross-Platform — Deploy consistently across AWS, Azure, GCP, and on-premises
Core Concepts
| Concept | Description |
|---|---|
| Module | Smallest reusable unit defining a cloud resource with strong defaults |
| Solution | Opinionated composition of modules representing a complete service |
| Deployment | Environment-specific configuration that instantiates solutions |
Cloud Provider Support
The IDLC framework is cloud-agnostic by design. While the examples in this documentation primarily use AWS, the patterns and principles apply to any cloud provider:
| Provider | Status |
|---|---|
| AWS | Examples and reference implementation available |
| Azure | Framework compatible — examples coming soon |
| GCP | Framework compatible — examples coming soon |
| On-premises | Framework compatible via Terraform providers |