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* Add documentation for configuring Packer for HCP Packer This change works to document the two configuration options for setting up Packer to publish build artifacts to an active HCP Packer registry. Currently the HashiCorp Cloud Platform documents the process for configuring Packer via a HCL template, which is the preferred route. This documentation focuses more on the use of environment variables for configuring Packer for HCP Packer, which is necessary for legacy JSON template users looking to publish to HCP Packer. In light of the new HCP Packer documentation page we've opted for a shorter version of the HCP Packer introduction section. * Applying the first round of suggestions to tighten up the documentation. * Move HCP Packer side bar to top * Move intro into docs * Add redirects for intro pages Co-authored-by: Laura Pacilio <83350965+laurapacilio@users.noreply.github.com>
55 lines
2.7 KiB
Text
55 lines
2.7 KiB
Text
---
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page_title: Why Packer - Introduction
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description: |-
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Pre-baked machine images have a lot of advantages, but most have been unable
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to benefit from them because images have been too tedious to create and
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manage. There were either no existing tools to automate the creation of
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machine images or they had too high of a learning curve. The result is that,
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prior to Packer, creating machine images threatened the agility of operations
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teams, and therefore aren't used, despite the massive benefits.
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---
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# Why Use Packer?
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Pre-baked machine images have a lot of advantages, but most have been unable to
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benefit from them because images have been too tedious to create and manage.
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There were either no existing tools to automate the creation of machine images
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or they had too high of a learning curve. The result is that, prior to Packer,
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creating machine images threatened the agility of operations teams, and
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therefore aren't used, despite the massive benefits.
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Packer changes all of this. Packer automates the creation of
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any type of machine image. It embraces modern configuration management by
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encouraging you to use a framework such as Chef or Puppet to install and
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configure the software within your Packer-made images.
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In other words: Packer brings pre-baked images into the modern age, unlocking
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untapped potential and opening new opportunities.
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## Advantages of Using Packer
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**_Super fast infrastructure deployment_**. Packer images allow you to launch
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completely provisioned and configured machines in seconds, rather than several
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minutes or hours. This benefits not only production, but development as well,
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since development virtual machines can also be launched in seconds, without
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waiting for a typically much longer provisioning time.
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**_Multi-provider portability_**. Because Packer creates identical images for
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multiple platforms, you can run production in AWS, staging/QA in a private cloud
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like OpenStack, and development in desktop virtualization solutions such as
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VMware or VirtualBox. Each environment is running an identical machine image,
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giving ultimate portability.
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**_Improved stability_**. Packer installs and configures all the software for a
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machine at the time the image is built. If there are bugs in these scripts,
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they'll be caught early, rather than several minutes after a machine is
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launched.
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**_Greater testability_**. After a machine image is built, that machine image
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can be quickly launched and smoke tested to verify that things appear to be
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working. If they are, you can be confident that any other machines launched from
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that image will function properly.
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Packer makes it extremely easy to take advantage of all these benefits.
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What are you waiting for? Let's get started!
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