As enterprise cloud footprints expand exponentially, IT leaders are grappling with runaway cloud costs which risk de-railing migration initiatives. Cloud FinOps has emerged as a framework for managing cloud spend through improved visibility, optimisation and governance. But implementing organisation-wide policies and controls is difficult without centralised enforcement. This is where tools like Infracost, a leading cloud cost management tool, provides unique capabilities for embedding guardrails directly into cloud development pipelines.
Infracost is an open-source tool that estimates cloud resource costs early in the development lifecycle and checks for cost threshold breaches. Recently, Infracost launched policy-based cost governance that allows organisations to encode FinOps guardrails around cost, performance and security directly into CI/CD pipelines. This enables automatic enforcement of financial policies across distributed engineering teams.
Shift Left on Cloud Governance
In traditional approaches, governance happens too late once resources are already deployed and racking up charges. Infracost shifts left, applying guardrails during pre-deployment stages when policies can prevent waste. Teams configure organisational policies like:
“No single resource can cost more than $5,000/month”
“Total staging environment cost cannot exceed $15,000/month”
These policies then embed as code-level controls across infrastructure as code blueprints. Now as developers assemble cloud architectures, Infracost automatically checks for policy violations. This fail-fast approach stops exploding cloud bills further down the pipeline.
Curb Over-provisioning with Precision Controls
Easy access to endless cloud capacity leads teams to over-provision resources which get forgotten over time. Broad policies to curb costs often force blanket limits that feel restrictive for developers.
Infracost offers precision guardrails tuned to each team’s specific needs. Policies can target nuanced use cases like:
“GPU-optimised EC2 instances require FinOps approval”
“Deprecated storage types are disallowed”
These nimble controls avoid restrictive budgets while preventing runaway resource configurations that are easy to miss.
Empower Developers as Cloud FinOps Champions
Historically, FinOps was a siloed function requiring specialised expertise. By embedding guardrails directly into existing developer workflows, Infracost makes policy adherence a shared responsibility.
With push-button policy feedback, developers now continuously optimise architectures for cost-efficiency. They become the frontline defenders for avoiding cloud waste through designs. This maintains high cloud velocity while aligning broader FinOps incentives.
Central FinOps teams can track policy adherence metrics across environments to drive further adoption. Most importantly, policy guardrails shift cloud spending culture to value efficiency alongside innovation.
Mobilising the Enterprise for Cloud Success
For enterprises undertaking cloud transformation, bringing consistency in cloud governance is pivotal. Adopting Infracost’s policy framework provides this harmonisation by propagating FinOps guardrails across distributed teams early within development lifecycles.
To leverage Infracost’s full impact, here are some best practices:
- Start with production safeguards – Prevent “blast radius” by protecting high-value environments first
- Cascade policies downstream – Replicate controls across lower environments to maintain consistency
- Avoid false positives – Fine-tune policies to balance diligence with developer experience and trust
- Socialise repeatedly – Workshop policies with teams to drive understanding
- Monitor policy coverage – Analyse enforcement reach across resources
- Spot check alerts – Verify team responses to policy violation notifications
With strong cloud management challenges ahead, Infracost policies enable a shift left on governance. This fail-fast approach delivers the necessary cloud guardrails for cost-conscious innovation at scale. The time for FinOps is yesterday – ensure that your organisation is implementing policy-based mechanisms for driving financial efficiency without choking your cloud transformation journey.
It doesn’t stop here…
FinOps within the development pipeline is just one element of an effective FinOps portfolio. Find out more about the FinOps Foundation and how to address the technological, reporting and cultural requirements for effective use of cloud.
Further reading
The FinOps Foundation: https://www.finops.org
InfraCost and FinOps: https://www.infracost.io/finops/
AWS joins the FinOps Foundation as a Premier Member: https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws-cloud-financial-management/aws-joins-finops-foundation/
