[AG.DEP.7] Utilize metadata for scalable environment management

Category: OPTIONAL

Effective environment management at scale requires the collection and maintenance of key information about each environment, such as ownership, purpose, criticality, lifespan, and more. These details can offer visibility and clarity which reduces potential confusion and misuse of environments and assists with setting up proper controls based on specific details associated with the environment.

Adopt techniques like resource tagging to track and maintain this metadata. Not only does this allow platform teams to track and optimize costs by accurately attributing resource usage to specific environments, but it also supports the management of access controls and security measures, aligning governance and compliance needs with individual environments.

For implementation, use available tagging features and APIs for resource management and metadata tracking. Where additional metadata capture is required, consider creating or integrating with a custom tracking system tailored to your specific needs, such as existing configuration management database (CMDB) or IT service management (ITSM) tools, providing a holistic view of all environments, thus empowering platform teams to better govern and manage environments based on their metadata.

Although this practice is marked as optional, it is strongly recommended for organizations operating in complex and large-scale environments, where managing resources and configurations based on metadata can significantly improve efficiency, governance, and compliance. This indicator focuses on leveraging metadata for active environment management, distinguishing it from the broader scope of configuration item management.

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