Convert an Excel template to a ROS template

Syntax of an Excel template

Enter parameters, resource types, and property values in the first sheet of an Excel workbook.

Note the following items:

• Column A: parameters, resource types, and their properties.

  Resource type	Required	Description
  ROS::Parameters	No	Parameters in the ROS template. Enter parameter names under ROS::Parameters. In Columns B to N, enter !Ref to reference parameters.
  ROS::Resources	Yes	Resources in the ROS template. Under ROS::Resources, enter resource types and their property names to define resources for templates. For more information about resource types, see Resource type index.

• Columns B to N: parameter values and resource property values. Each column generates one template.

The Excel template supports comments:

• A row starting with # is treated as a comment.

• If a commented cell contains a resource type, all wrapped content in that cell is also commented.

Step 1: Modify the Excel template file

Modify the Excel template file based on the syntax above. Download the sample EcsInstance.xlsx for reference.

In this example, Columns B and C contain values, so two templates are generated.

Step 2: Convert the template

Run the following command to convert the Excel template to a ROS template. The output file template-{number}.json is generated in the same directory as the Excel file.

rostran transform templates/excel/EcsInstance.xlsx --target-path tests/template.json

Step 3: View the ROS template

This example generates template-0.json and template-1.json:

• template-0.json

  {
      "ROSTemplateFormatVersion": "2015-09-01",
      "Parameters": {
          "ZoneId": {
              "Type": "String",
              "Default": "cn-beijing-h"
          },
          "SystemDiskSize": {
              "Type": "Number",
              "Default": 100
          }
      },
      "Resources": {
          "MyInstance": {
              "Type": "ALIYUN::ECS::InstanceGroup",
              "Properties": {
                  "RegionId": "cn-beijing",
                  "ZoneId": "cn-beijing-h",
                  "ChargeType": "PostPaid",
                  "InstanceType": "ecs.g5.large",
                  "Amount": 200,
                  "SystemDiskCategory": "cloud_efficiency",
                  "SystemDiskSize": 100,
                  "DiskMappings": [{
                      "Category": "cloud_ssd",
                      "Size": 200
                  }],
                  "ImageId": "EasyShopLinux2019****",
                  "Password": "pass****",
                  "VpcId": {
                      "Ref": "MyVpc"
                  },
                  "VSwitchId": {
                      "Ref": "MyVSwitch"
                  },
                  "InternetMaxBandwidthOut": 0,
                  "SecurityGroupId": "sg-2zej2g9ep36k3yhh****"
              }
          },
          "MyVpc": {
              "Type": "ALIYUN::ECS::Vpc",
              "Properties": {
                  "VpcName": "MyVpcName"
              }
          },
          "MyVSwitch": {
              "Type": "ALIYUN::ECS::VSwitch",
              "Properties": {
                  "VpcId": {
                      "Ref": "MyVpc"
                  },
                  "ZoneId": "cn-beijing-h",
                  "VSwitchName": "MyVSwitchName"
              }
          }
      }
  }

• template-1.json

  {
      "ROSTemplateFormatVersion": "2015-09-01",
      "Parameters": {
          "ZoneId": {
              "Type": "String"
          },
          "SystemDiskSize": {
              "Type": "Number"
          }
      },
      "Resources": {
          "MyInstance": {
              "Type": "ALIYUN::ECS::InstanceGroup",
              "Properties": {
                  "RegionId": "cn-beijing",
                  "ZoneId": {
                      "Ref": "ZoneId"
                  },
                  "ChargeType": "PostPaid",
                  "InstanceType": "ecs.r5.6xlarge",
                  "Amount": 50,
                  "SystemDiskCategory": "cloud_ssd",
                  "SystemDiskSize": 100,
                  "DiskMappings": [{
                      "Category": "cloud_ssd",
                      "Size": 200
                  }],
                  "ImageId": "EasyShopLinux2019****",
                  "Password": "password",
                  "VpcId": "vpc-bp1397wjfjjzlck86****",
                  "VSwitchId": "vsw-bp1apypxlcxdao9w7****",
                  "InternetMaxBandwidthOut": 0,
                  "SecurityGroupId": "sg-2zej2g9ep36k3yhh****"
              }
          }
      }
  }