Business requirements/scenarios
Process Control: Customers require integration of cloud resource requests with the enterprise's internal OA processes.
Cost Control: Define resource prices clearly during the request process and link with the budget system for approval.
Operations Automation: Automate the entire process from request to delivery for common resource request scenarios and specification adjustments.
Unified Framework: Manage cloud products using templates to create a standard frontend framework and add templates in a configurable manner.
Technical challenges
Cloud vendors offer a diverse range of products with complex and inconsistent APIs. Direct integration with openAPIs cannot keep pace with updates, leading to high maintenance costs.
When using open-source Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools, additional capabilities must be supplemented, such as pricing inquiries and pulling specifications and parameters for each cloud product, while ensuring stability independently.
Solution overview
This solution leverages the Yida low-code platform to create a general Alibaba Cloud request form, utilizing the template capabilities of the Alibaba Cloud CADT product to facilitate applications for a wide array of Alibaba Cloud products.
Universality: A single form enables requests for all Alibaba Cloud resources.
Extensibility: New products can be added by modifying the frontend configuration and adding CADT templates on the backend without altering the code.
Automation: Supports the automatic creation of deployments triggered after the approval process concludes.
Cost Accounting: Enables real-time price inquiries, providing current and discounted prices on the application form during resource requests.
Pre-validation: Allows for pre-validation of product purchases during resource requests.
Core advantages
Separation of Concerns Architecture
This solution offers a general integration approach for approval process systems with Alibaba Cloud API. It allows approval process system developers to focus on providing a general approval process page, while operations personnel customize Alibaba Cloud product models through CADT. This division of labor enables both developers and operations personnel to concentrate on their areas of expertise, fostering collaboration and enhancing the stability of the approval process.
Unified Pricing Capability
For cost control scenarios, the CADT API provides a unified pricing interface for various cloud products, offering detailed cost information such as original and discounted prices for the current account, aiding in accurate cost estimation before approval.
Pre-validation Capability
Prior to cloud resource deployment, a unified API validates the legality of deployment parameters, inventory, permissions, and configuration compliance for each product. This minimizes the likelihood of deployment failures by preventing progression if validation is unsuccessful.
Stable Support for 200+ Alibaba Cloud Products
CADT currently supports lifecycle management for over 200 Alibaba Cloud products. It regularly checks the availability of APIs for core products and promptly addresses any changes.