Templating custom cloud servers with UpCloud Packer builder

Templating your server configurations can be a huge time saver, but creating and managing server images manually can quickly become tedious. The way to avoid pitfalls in many tasks is to get the right tools for the right job. One of the best options for templating is Packer the open-source, easy to use, automation solution for custom cloud servers. It is a lightweight, modern way for managing server images on multiple platforms in parallel.

Introducing the UpCloud Packer builder

On UpCloud, you have the options to deploy servers from the provided public templates, CD images, as well as from private custom server images. Helping to create private templates faster, we are proud to highlight the UpCloud Packer builder. It works as a plugin for Packer to streamline template configuration and makes deploying custom cloud servers easier.
Using Packer to build private templates provides many advantages:

• Fast infrastructure deployment that allows you to launch ready provisioned and configured servers in seconds.
• Portability between multiple platforms from local virtual machines to the cloud.
• Improved stability when any possible issues in the configuration scripts can be caught already at the build stage.
• Easy testing thanks to fast deployment from the private templates to verify everything is working as it should.

With Packer, you can boost your workflow through development, staging, and deployment.
You can find the UpCloud Packer builder plugin at our GitHub:
https://github.com/UpCloudLtd/upcloud-packer
The repository includes quick instructions for installing and running Packer on UpCloud as well as example configuration files that will help you get up to speed.

Getting started with Packer

If you would like to learn more about Packer and the builder plugin for UpCloud, head over to our support pages. We’ve written an in-depth guide to installing Packer and the UpCloud builder plugin straight from the source. Follow the linked page below to get started.