Best Practices for Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) in a Multi-Cloud Environment

Managing infrastructure across cloud providers used to feel like herding cats in a thunderstorm—until Infrastructure as Code (IaC) came into the picture.

In a world where businesses are spreading their workloads across AWS, Azure, GCP, and beyond, Infrastructure as Code (IaC) has become the backbone of reliable, scalable, and repeatable deployment strategies.

Whether you're deploying to AWS, Azure, GCP, or a blend of all three, mastering Infrastructure as Code best practices is essential for building and maintaining robust cloud operations.

In this blog, we’ll cover the most effective and battle-tested techniques for applying IaC in a multi-cloud setup—without sacrificing sanity, security, or scalability.

Why You Need IaC for Multi-Cloud Environments

Modern businesses rarely stick to one cloud provider. Whether it’s to reduce vendor lock-in, leverage best-of-breed services, or optimize cost and resilience, multi-cloud strategies are becoming the norm.

But managing this complexity manually? That’s a recipe for downtime and developer burnout.

Enter Infrastructure as Code, which allows teams to automate the provisioning and management of infrastructure through code, ensuring consistent and repeatable deployments across any cloud.

When done right, IaC in multi-cloud environments turns infrastructure into a competitive advantage.

1. Use Multi-Cloud IaC Tools that Scale with You

Choosing the right multi-cloud IaC tools is your first strategic decision. We recommend starting with Terraform, the de facto standard for cloud-agnostic infrastructure automation.

Terraform supports a vast range of cloud providers, making it ideal for enterprises adopting a Terraform multi-cloud setup. It allows you to manage all your infrastructure using a single language, no matter where it runs.

Other cloud-agnostic infrastructure as code tools worth exploring:

• Pulumi: For teams who want to write infrastructure in familiar programming languages.

• Crossplane: Ideal for Kubernetes-centric infrastructures and platform engineering use cases.

Avoid combining cloud-specific IaC tools like AWS CloudFormation, Azure Bicep, and GCP Deployment Manager unless you're ready for a debugging marathon.

Also Read: Aligning Cloud Platform Strategy with Business Goals

2. Modularize Your Infrastructure Code

A key Infrastructure as Code best practice is modularisation. Break your code into reusable modules—networking, IAM, storage, and compute—so they can be shared across cloud environments.

This approach not only speeds up development but also ensures consistency in your Terraform multi-cloud setup, which is crucial when you're deploying the same architecture to multiple providers.

3. Abstract Cloud-Specific Logic

To maintain truly cloud-agnostic infrastructure as code, isolate provider-specific logic using variables and conditional statements. This keeps your IaC templates portable and simplifies maintenance.

With an abstraction layer in place, teams can deploy to any provider without rewriting the base configuration, allowing you to scale your DevOps multi-cloud strategy with confidence.

4. Implement IaC Security Best Practices from Day One

Ignoring security in IaC is like skipping unit tests—until something breaks, it’s easy to pretend everything’s fine.

The best IaC security best practices include:

• Storing secrets securely (hint: not in .tfvars files)

• Running static code analysis with tools like Checkov, Bridgecrew, or tfsec

• Enforcing least privilege policies through code

Security shouldn't be an afterthought. In a multi-cloud IaC environment, misconfigurations can quickly spiral into major vulnerabilities. Managing vulnerabilities in cloud environments is a must.

5. Version Control Everything

Version control is the heartbeat of any strong DevOps multi-cloud strategy. Store all infrastructure code in Git, using pull requests, branching strategies, and tags to manage releases and track changes.

This ensures that your IaC in multi-cloud deployments are not only consistent but also auditable and rollback-friendly.

6. Test Before You Deploy—Always

Testing infrastructure is non-negotiable. Use:

• Terraform Plan to preview changes

• Terratest or kitchen-terraform for infrastructure testing

• Policy-as-Code tools like OPA or Sentinel to enforce governance

Thorough testing is one of the most underutilized yet powerful Infrastructure as Code best practices, especially in dynamic multi-cloud environments.

7. Monitor for Drift and Cost Overruns

Once your infrastructure is deployed, the work isn't done. Implement monitoring to detect:

• Configuration drift

• Failed deployments

• Security misconfigurations

• Cost anomalies across providers

Tools like Prometheus, Datadog, and Cloud-specific billing dashboards can help maintain control over your infrastructure and keep your multi-cloud IaC tools aligned.

Conclusion: Build with Confidence in a Multi-Cloud World

Deploying infrastructure across clouds doesn’t have to be chaotic. By following these Infrastructure as Code best practices, selecting the right multi-cloud IaC tools, and building with security in mind, you can scale confidently and consistently across any environment.

At VivaOps, we help enterprises leverage the power of cloud-agnostic Infrastructure as Code, backed by expert consulting, smart automation, and a team that truly cares. Our engineers live and breathe this stuff—and they’re here to make your IaC journey seamless, secure, and surprisingly enjoyable.

Need help leveling up your multi-cloud setup or designing a secure DevOps multi-cloud strategy? Talk to us. No fluff, no jargon—just people who know how to ship great infrastructure.