| name | iac-scaffold |
| description | Scaffold new AWS infrastructure-as-code projects using CDK, Terraform, SAM, or CloudFormation. Use when creating new IaC projects, adding new stacks/modules, or setting up deployment pipelines for AWS infrastructure. |
| disable-model-invocation | true |
| argument-hint | <framework> <project-description> |
Scaffold a new AWS IaC project.
Framework: $ARGUMENTS[0] (cdk, terraform, sam, or cfn)
Description: $ARGUMENTS[1]
Process
- Ask clarifying questions if the framework or description is unclear
- Use the
aws-iac MCP tools to validate resource configurations and check for security issues
- Use the
awsknowledge MCP tools (mcp__plugin_aws-dev-toolkit_awsknowledge__aws___search_documentation, mcp__plugin_aws-dev-toolkit_awsknowledge__aws___read_documentation, mcp__plugin_aws-dev-toolkit_awsknowledge__aws___recommend) to look up current best practices for the chosen framework
- Generate the project structure following the patterns in templates/
Framework-Specific Guidance
CDK (TypeScript default)
- Use
cdk init app --language typescript patterns
- Separate stacks by lifecycle (networking, data, compute)
- Use
cdk-nag for compliance checks
- Outputs for cross-stack references
Terraform
- Module-per-service structure
- Remote state in S3 + DynamoDB locking
- Use
terraform-aws-modules where they exist
- Separate tfvars per environment
SAM
- template.yaml at root
- Globals section for shared Lambda config
- Use SAM Accelerate for fast iteration
CloudFormation
- Nested stacks for reuse
- Parameters with AllowedValues for guardrails
- Conditions for multi-environment templates
Gotchas
- Always include a
.gitignore appropriate for the framework
- CDK: don't put secrets in context — use SSM Parameter Store or Secrets Manager
- Terraform: never commit
.tfstate — configure remote backend first
- SAM:
sam local needs Docker — mention this in the README
- All frameworks: tag everything with at minimum
Environment, Project, Owner
- Include a Makefile or justfile with common commands (deploy, destroy, diff, synth)
Output
Generate the complete project structure with:
- Entry point / main config file
- At least one example resource
- Environment-specific configuration
- README with setup instructions
- CI/CD pipeline config (GitHub Actions default, ask if different)
