Is Terragrunt free?

Yes, Terragrunt is free.

Terragrunt is an open-source tool that can be used without any licensing fees or costs. This makes it an accessible option for individuals and organizations looking to enhance their infrastructure-as-code workflows.

Terragrunt's Open-Source Nature and Licensing

Terragrunt operates under an open-source model, meaning its source code is publicly available for anyone to inspect, use, modify, and distribute. Specifically, Terragrunt is licensed under the MIT License.

What the MIT License Means for Users:

The MIT License is known for being one of the most permissive open-source licenses, offering significant freedom to users. Key implications include:

• Free to Use: You can utilize Terragrunt for any purpose, including commercial projects, personal endeavors, or internal company tools, without incurring any financial cost.
• Free to Modify: You are permitted to make changes to the Terragrunt source code to adapt it to your specific requirements or to integrate it more deeply with your existing systems.
• Free to Distribute: You can distribute copies of Terragrunt, whether in its original form or with modifications, without royalty payments or complex legal agreements.
• Minimal Restrictions: The license primarily requires that the copyright notice and the license text itself are included in all copies or substantial portions of the software. It places very few restrictions on how the software is used.

Why Terragrunt is Valued in DevOps

Terragrunt extends the capabilities of Terraform by providing a thin wrapper that helps manage and deploy Terraform code. Its free and open-source nature, combined with its utility, makes it a popular choice for:

• DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself) Configuration: It helps avoid redundant Terraform code across multiple environments or services.
• Managing Remote State: Simplifies the configuration and management of Terraform remote state.
• Environment-Specific Deployments: Facilitates deploying the same Terraform code across different environments (e.g., development, staging, production) with distinct configurations.
• Dependency Management: Enables defining dependencies between Terraform modules, ensuring resources are deployed in the correct order.

Getting Started with Terragrunt

To leverage Terragrunt for your infrastructure deployments, you typically:

1. Installation: Download the Terragrunt binary, which is available for various operating systems.
2. Configuration: Define your infrastructure setup using terragrunt.hcl files alongside your standard Terraform .tf files. These files specify how Terragrunt should execute your Terraform code, handle remote state, and manage variables.
3. Execution: Use Terragrunt commands (e.g., terragrunt plan, terragrunt apply, terragrunt destroy) in place of standard Terraform commands. Terragrunt then handles the underlying Terraform calls, applying the configured logic.

For comprehensive documentation and guides on using Terragrunt, you can visit the Terragrunt Official Website.