excelascode v1.3

The bridge between "Right Click -> Deploy" and "Infrastructure as Code."

ExcelAsCode is a zero-dependency macro toolkit that turns standard Excel spreadsheets into a powerful cloud orchestrator. Scaffold virtual machines in rows and columns, check your quota limits instantly, and then choose your path: Deploy directly to Azure via REST API, or Export to Terraform/Bicep for your DevOps pipeline.

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📖 The Backstory

ExcelAsCode wasn't born in an ivory tower. It was born in the trenches of enterprise migration.

While helping on-prem sysadmins move legacy workloads to the cloud, we kept hitting a wall: The "Cloud First" mandate required complex DevOps tooling (Terraform, CLI, Git), but the Ops teams lived and breathed in Excel. They didn't hate the cloud; they hated the friction of learning a new language just to spin up a server.

We built ExcelAsCode to meet them where they were.

It started as a hack to let admins define VMs in a spreadsheet and click "Go." It evolved into a strategic bridge—allowing teams to move at the speed of Excel while automatically generating the IaC artifacts needed for compliance and governance.

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🚀 Why ExcelAsCode?

Most "low-code" tools require heavy installation or complex prerequisites. ExcelAsCode is different.

• Zero Dependencies: No Azure CLI. No PowerShell modules. No Python venv. The macro speaks directly to the Azure REST API. If you have Excel and an internet connection, you are ready to deploy.
• The "Bridge" Workflow: Use Excel for rapid prototyping and scaffolding. Once the architecture is agreed upon, hit "Export" to generate clean Terraform or Bicep code to hand off to your DevOps team.
• Safety First: Includes a built-in Quota Checker. The tool checks your subscription limits before trying to deploy, saving you from failed pipelines and half-baked resource groups.

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📥 Installation & Security Setup

Important: Because this tool uses powerful VBA automation, Microsoft Excel's default security settings will likely block the macros if you simply download and double-click the file (due to the "Mark of the Web").

Follow these steps to run the tool successfully:

1. Download the latest excelascode-v1.3.xlsm from the Releases page.
2. Unblock the File (Critical Step):
   • Navigate to your download folder.
   • Right-click the excelascode-v1.3.xlsm file and select Properties.
   • At the bottom of the General tab, check the box labeled Unblock.
   • Click Apply and OK.
   • (Note: If you do not see this checkbox, the file is already safe to open.)
3. Open in Excel:
   • Open the file.
   • Click "Enable Content" in the yellow bar at the top to allow the macros to initialize.

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✨ Features (v1.3)

Feature	Description
Direct API Deployment	Deploys resources directly to Azure using native REST API calls. No CLI installation required.
Quota Pre-Flight	Checks available vCPU capacity in your target region before deployment attempts.
IaC Export	Generates valid main.tf (Terraform), .bicep, or ARM templates based on your spreadsheet rows.
Region-Aware	Validates SKU availability against Azure regions to prevent "SKU not found" errors.
Traceability	Generates a metadata map linking spreadsheet rows to deployed Resource IDs.

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🛠️ Tested Configuration

• Software: Microsoft Excel 2016, 2019, or O365 Desktop on Windows
• Network: Outbound HTTPS (Port 443) access to management.azure.com.
• Identity: A Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) account with Contributor (or equivalent) rights on the target Subscription.

Note: You do not need the Azure CLI installed. The tool handles authentication via standard OAuth interactive prompts.

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⚡ Quick Start

1. Open the unblocked excelascode-v1.3.xlsm file.
2. Authenticate:
   • When you run your first action, the tool will prompt for an interactive login via Microsoft Entra ID (standard OAuth flow).
3. Fill out the Grid:
   • Define your Resource Group, VM Name, Image (Ubuntu/Windows), Size (SKU), and Region.
4. Execute:
   • Click [Validate Quota] to ensure you have space in the region.
   • Click [Deploy to Azure] to build immediately via API.
   • Click [Export Terraform] to generate .tf files in your working directory.

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🔒 Security & Governance

We take security seriously. Because this tool runs in a corporate environment, we adhere to the following principles:

1. Local Execution: Logic runs locally on your machine. No data is sent to any third-party SaaS.
2. No Embedded Secrets: The workbook does not store client secrets or passwords in cells. Authentication is handled via session tokens or secure prompts at runtime.
3. Least Privilege: The tool can only do what you can do. It inherits your user permissions via the API token.

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🗺️ Roadmap

• v1.4 (Planned):
  • Service Principal (Headless) Authentication for automated pipelines.
  • Integration with Azure Key Vault for admin password handling.
• Future:
  • Multi-Cloud Support (AWS EC2 / GCP Compute exports).
  • Reverse Engineering: Import existing Azure Resource Groups into Excel.

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🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Whether you're fixing a VBA bug, adding a new Bicep template export, or improving the documentation.

1. Fork the Project
2. Create your Feature Branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Commit your Changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
4. Push to the Branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
5. Open a Pull Request

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📄 License

Distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for more information.

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Built with ❤️ (and VBA) by RaisingCode