Massdriver FAQ
Do you generate IaC?
We do not generate IaC. We use IaC modules managed by your operations team. Wrapped with the Massdriver Bundle Spec, your operations team enables self-service and interoperability between IaC tools.
Do you do drift detection?
We do not support drift detection because we aim to eliminate drift at it's source. Drift occurs when developers work around your processes and tools. It is a sign that developers are not well served by your current toolchain. Massdriver provides a simple interface with your organization's guardrails that is easier than using the cloud console. When you cut the red tape from your DevOps process, you eliminate drift at the source.
What happens if you go down?
Your IaC modules and the resultant infrastructure exist in your VCS and cloud. While we hold ourselves to a very high standard at Massdriver, we make it easy for operations engineers to take manual action when absolutely necessary
Where is state managed?
Your state is managed wherever you configure it to be managed in your modules. We want to make sure customers use Massdriver because they love it, not because they are locked in. If you don't want to manage your own state storage, we have you covered. If you want to store it in your cloud, you are free to do so.
How do you enable developer self-service?
With the Massdriver Bundle Spec, Operations engineers wrap their modules, creating a rich UI for developers to self-serve infrastructure. Our State Aware JSON Schema allows operations professionals to be proactive and prevent outages and misconfigurations before they happen.
How do you version IaC modules?
In order to service large development teams, Massdriver believes in making sure everyone gets the latest updates. When publishing an update, everyone using the module has new changes available to deploy. In the event of a breaking change, we strongly suggest publishing a new version of the module providing the ability for devs to cutover with zero down time leading to the self-service of day 2 operations.
How does this compare to Port/Backstage/Cortex?
When purchasing these tools, you are making a build and buy decision. These technologies require engineers to build frontends and backends for the functionality of the platform. Massdriver empowers operations engineers by allowing them to continue to build IaC with the tools they know and use every day. The UI layer is managed by Massdriver and optimized for self-service with minimal extra code.
How does this compare to Env0/Spacelift/Terraform Cloud
This class of tools provides additional gatekeeping features for operations teams. At Massdriver we believe catching issues in review and CI is already too late. Massdriver puts operations engineers in the position to be proactive, restricting the range of inputs to their modules to only preapproved values. Misconfigurations are prevented instead of caught after paying the cost of CI and code review.
