From 711a38bdd447f83176444ab8fca8d61dffc186fa Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: trujillo-adam Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2025 11:02:12 -0800 Subject: [PATCH] intro articles --- website/content/docs/debugging.mdx | 6 ++--- website/content/docs/intro/index.mdx | 22 +++++++--------- website/content/docs/intro/use-cases.mdx | 32 +++++++++--------------- website/content/docs/intro/why.mdx | 30 ++++++++-------------- 4 files changed, 34 insertions(+), 56 deletions(-) diff --git a/website/content/docs/debugging.mdx b/website/content/docs/debugging.mdx index 0adad6c9d..88b92ca63 100644 --- a/website/content/docs/debugging.mdx +++ b/website/content/docs/debugging.mdx @@ -1,9 +1,7 @@ --- description: | - Packer strives to be stable and bug-free, but issues inevitably arise where - certain things may not work entirely correctly, or may not appear to work - correctly. -page_title: Debugging - Other + Learn how to debug issues with Packer builds and plugins using `packer build`, logs, and other troubleshooting tools. +page_title: Debugging Packer --- # Debugging Packer Builds diff --git a/website/content/docs/intro/index.mdx b/website/content/docs/intro/index.mdx index d6fb56902..81d1e0f50 100644 --- a/website/content/docs/intro/index.mdx +++ b/website/content/docs/intro/index.mdx @@ -1,19 +1,11 @@ --- -page_title: Introduction -description: |- - Welcome to the world of Packer! This introduction guide will show you what - Packer is, explain why it exists, the benefits it has to offer, and how you - can get started with it. If you're already familiar with Packer, the - documentation provides more of a reference for all available features. +page_title: Introduction to Packer +description: Packer is a community tool for creating identical machine images for multiple platforms from a single source configuration. Learn about Packer benefits and how to get started. --- # Introduction to Packer -Welcome to the world of Packer! This introduction guide will show you what -Packer is, explain why it exists, the benefits it has to offer, and how you can -get started with it. If you're already familiar with Packer, the -[documentation](/packer/docs) provides more of a reference for all available -features. +This introduction describes Packer benefits and how you can get started with it. ## What is Packer? @@ -27,5 +19,9 @@ use tools like Chef or Puppet to install software onto the image. A _machine image_ is a single static unit that contains a pre-configured operating system and installed software which is used to quickly create new running machines. Machine image formats change for each platform. Some examples -include [AMIs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_Machine_Image) for EC2, -VMDK/VMX files for VMware, OVF exports for VirtualBox, etc. +include AMIs for EC2, VMDK and VMX files for VMware, and OVF exports for VirtualBox. + +## HCP Packer + +For information about using HCP Packer to store metadata about build artifacts, refer to the +[HCP Packer documentation](/hcp/docs/packer) or [sign into HCP](https://portal.cloud.hashicorp.com/sign-in) to explore HCP Packer features. diff --git a/website/content/docs/intro/use-cases.mdx b/website/content/docs/intro/use-cases.mdx index e6e3c63c6..6b4a22cc1 100644 --- a/website/content/docs/intro/use-cases.mdx +++ b/website/content/docs/intro/use-cases.mdx @@ -1,22 +1,14 @@ --- -page_title: Use Cases - Introduction +page_title: Packer use cases description: |- - By now you should know what Packer does and what the benefits of image - creation are. In this section, we'll enumerate *some* of the use cases for - Packer. Note that this is not an exhaustive list by any means. There are - definitely use cases for Packer not listed here. This list is just meant to - give you an idea of how Packer may improve your processes. + Learn about use cases for Packer, such as continuous delivery, dev/prod parity, and appliance and demo creation. --- -# Use Cases +# Packer use cases -By now you should know what Packer does and what the benefits of image creation -are. In this section, we'll enumerate _some_ of the use cases for Packer. Note -that this is not an exhaustive list by any means. There are definitely use cases -for Packer not listed here. This list is just meant to give you an idea of how -Packer may improve your processes. +In this topic describes some of the use cases for Packer. This is a partial list of use cases intended to give you an idea of how Packer may improve your processes. -### Continuous Delivery +## Continuous delivery Packer is lightweight, portable, and command-line driven. This makes it the perfect tool to put in the middle of your continuous delivery pipeline. Packer @@ -28,12 +20,12 @@ tested, verifying the infrastructure changes work. If the tests pass, you can be confident that the image will work when deployed. This brings a new level of stability and testability to infrastructure changes. -### Dev/Prod Parity +## Environment parity -Packer helps [keep development, staging, and production as similar as -possible](http://www.12factor.net/dev-prod-parity). Packer can be used to -generate images for multiple platforms at the same time. So if you use AWS for -production and VMware (perhaps with [Vagrant](https://www.vagrantup.com/)) for +Packer helps keep development, staging, and production as similar as +possible. Refer to the following external article to learn more about parity between environments: ["X. Dev/prod parity"](http://www.12factor.net/dev-prod-parity). + +You can use Packer to generate images for multiple platforms at the same time. So if you use AWS for production and VMware, perhaps with [Vagrant](https://www.vagrantup.com/), for development, you can generate both an AMI and a VMware machine using Packer at the same time from the same template. @@ -41,9 +33,9 @@ Mix this in with the continuous delivery use case above, and you have a pretty slick system for consistent work environments from development all the way through to production. -### Appliance/Demo Creation +## Appliance and demo creation -Since Packer creates consistent images for multiple platforms in parallel, it is +Because Packer creates consistent images for multiple platforms in parallel, it is perfect for creating [appliances](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software_appliance) and disposable product demos. As your software changes, you can automatically create appliances diff --git a/website/content/docs/intro/why.mdx b/website/content/docs/intro/why.mdx index ff8a31756..39ddf78fc 100644 --- a/website/content/docs/intro/why.mdx +++ b/website/content/docs/intro/why.mdx @@ -1,19 +1,18 @@ --- -page_title: Why Packer - Introduction +page_title: Why use Packer description: |- - Pre-baked machine images have a lot of advantages, but most have been unable - to benefit from them because images have been too tedious to create and - manage. There were either no existing tools to automate the creation of - machine images or they had too high of a learning curve. The result is that, - prior to Packer, creating machine images threatened the agility of operations - teams, and therefore aren't used, despite the massive benefits. + Learn about the advantages of using Packer to automate the creation of machine images and artifacts. --- -# Why Use Packer? +# Why use Packer -Pre-baked machine images have a lot of advantages, but most have been unable to +This topic describes why you should use Packer to automate the creation of machine images over traditional _pre-baked_ images, which are pre-configured digital images that include the necessary software, settings, and data. + +## Pre-baked images + +Pre-baked machine images have a lot of advantages, but most people have been unable to benefit from them because images have been too tedious to create and manage. -There were either no existing tools to automate the creation of machine images +There are either no existing tools to automate the creation of machine images or they had too high of a learning curve. The result is that, prior to Packer, creating machine images threatened the agility of operations teams, and therefore aren't used, despite the massive benefits. @@ -23,10 +22,7 @@ any type of machine image. It embraces modern configuration management by encouraging you to use a framework such as Chef or Puppet to install and configure the software within your Packer-made images. -In other words: Packer brings pre-baked images into the modern age, unlocking -untapped potential and opening new opportunities. - -## Advantages of Using Packer +## Advantages of using Packer **_Super fast infrastructure deployment_**. Packer images allow you to launch completely provisioned and configured machines in seconds, rather than several @@ -48,8 +44,4 @@ launched. **_Greater testability_**. After a machine image is built, that machine image can be quickly launched and smoke tested to verify that things appear to be working. If they are, you can be confident that any other machines launched from -that image will function properly. - -Packer makes it extremely easy to take advantage of all these benefits. - -What are you waiting for? Let's get started! +that image will function properly. \ No newline at end of file