Infrastructure Architecture

An approach to solving infrastructure challenges through strategic tool selection and proven patterns.

The Challenge

Modern enterprises face complex infrastructure challenges that require different tools, compliance patterns, and operational approaches. Rather than forcing one tool for all problems, this architecture demonstrates strategic tool selection based on specific requirements and constraints.

This portfolio showcases a regulated environment pattern designed for organizations requiring centralized security governance, audit trails, and operational excellence while maintaining development team velocity.

Architecture Philosophy

Multi-Tool Strategy by Design

Each tool is selected for its strengths rather than forcing inappropriate usage:

CloudFormation: Immutable foundation resources requiring AWS-native stability
Terraform: Dynamic application infrastructure with complex logic and modularity
Bash: Operational automation and integration between tools

Separation of Concerns

The architecture separates infrastructure concerns by lifecycle and risk profile:

Foundation Layer: Deploy-once, immutable infrastructure
Access Control Layer: Centralized IAM governance with distributed consumption
Application Layer: Self-contained projects with independent lifecycles

The Four-Project Foundation

Foundation Bootstrap

CloudFormation

Solves the Terraform backend bootstrap circular dependency by creating S3 state storage, DynamoDB locking, and OIDC provider using CloudFormation. Establishes the immutable foundation that all subsequent projects depend on.

View Project GitHub

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IAM Deploy Roles

Terraform

Eliminates credential management through OIDC trust relationships. Creates repository-scoped IAM roles for secure GitHub Actions deployment without long-lived credentials. Provides centralized security governance with audit trails.

View Project GitHub

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Website Infrastructure

Terraform

Multi-domain static website hosting with automated SSL certificate management, comprehensive security headers, and global CDN distribution. Demonstrates scalable infrastructure patterns with dynamic domain discovery and service integration.

View Project GitHub

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Professional Website

Astro + AWS

This website demonstrates the complete integration - using the foundation's OIDC authentication, deployment roles, and hosting infrastructure to deliver a professional portfolio platform with automated CI/CD workflows.

View Project GitHub

Patterns Demonstrated

Regulated Environment Compliance

Centralized IAM role management for audit trails
Immutable foundation preventing configuration drift
OIDC authentication eliminating credential sprawl
Comprehensive resource tagging for governance

Operational Excellence

Separation of concerns (foundation vs application)
Tool selection based on strengths and requirements
Automated prerequisite validation and error handling
Self-contained projects enabling independent lifecycles

Security by Design

No long-lived credentials in CI/CD pipelines
Repository-scoped trust policies preventing cross-contamination
Least privilege IAM policies generated from actual usage
Configuration distribution via secure parameter store

Scalability Architecture

Foundation supports unlimited consuming projects
Modular Terraform design for reusable patterns
Service discovery eliminating hardcoded dependencies
Multi-account ready with consistent naming conventions

Problem Solutions

Bootstrap Circular Dependencies

Uses CloudFormation to create Terraform backend resources, avoiding the chicken-and-egg problem of Terraform managing its own state infrastructure.

Credential Management at Scale

Implements OIDC trust relationships enabling secure CI/CD without managing, rotating, or storing long-lived access keys across multiple repositories.

Regulatory Compliance Requirements

Provides centralized IAM governance while maintaining project autonomy, satisfying both security team oversight and development team velocity needs.

Multi-Tool Integration

Demonstrates when and how to combine CloudFormation, Terraform, and operational scripts to leverage each tool's strengths rather than forcing inappropriate tool usage.

Target Audience

This architecture addresses requirements common in regulated and enterprise environments:

Financial Services

Regulatory compliance with operational efficiency

Healthcare

HIPAA compliance with development agility

Government

Security requirements with audit capabilities

Enterprise

Governance needs with team autonomy

The portfolio demonstrates technical competency and architectural judgment in solving complex infrastructure challenges.

Cost-Effective Architecture

This infrastructure foundation is completely serverless, scales automatically with demand, and currently costs approximately $3 per month to operate for all hosting infrastructure. This demonstrates how modern cloud architecture can deliver capabilities at cost-effective pricing.

Serverless Architecture

No servers to manage, patch, or scale - all services are fully managed AWS offerings

Automatic Scaling

Infrastructure scales from zero to enterprise load without configuration changes

Pay-Per-Use Pricing

Costs scale with actual usage - supporting both experimentation and production workloads

Extensible Foundation

Additional projects leverage existing infrastructure without duplicating foundational costs

Building on This Foundation

With these four foundational projects in place, new projects can be created that leverage the established patterns:

Observability platforms using the same OIDC authentication and deployment patterns
Data processing pipelines with consistent IAM governance and state management
API services following the same security and operational excellence principles
Compliance frameworks building on the established audit and governance patterns

Each new project benefits from the foundation's security, operational excellence, and architectural consistency while maintaining independence and focused scope.