Visualize, import, and forge Terraform infrastructure — your Forges — directly inside VS Code, powered by CloudForge.
Compatible with VS Code, Kiro, and any VS Code-based IDE.
What's New
2.9 — Documentation refresh
- The release notes below now cover 2.5 through 2.8, which shipped without the README catching up.
- Corrected: a CloudForge account is no longer required to use the extension — that changed in 2.7 but the docs still said otherwise.
2.8 — One visual language, and more CloudForge inside the editor
- Drift decorations — drift on your live infrastructure now shows up inline on the
.tf file itself, not only in the panel.
- Terraform CodeLens — actions appear directly above the HCL block they apply to.
- Plan diff — plan output is rendered as a readable add/change/destroy diff instead of raw text.
- New icon set — every icon is now Phosphor, the same set the CloudForge web app and CloudLens use, so the three products read as one. Icons still take their colour from your VS Code theme.
- A touch of CloudForge colour — the Vani pill and primary action carry CloudForge's accent. Surfaces, text, inputs and borders still follow whatever theme you have chosen, including dark and high-contrast. Cloud provider logos and the Google/Microsoft sign-in marks are unchanged — those are their marks, not our icons.
2.7 — Use CloudForge without an account
- Continue without signing in. Open a
.tf file and it still renders on the Forge Canvas. Browsing the 90 Molds, editing the canvas, chatting with Vani and running the Assay on your own Copilot / Claude Code / Codex, and @cloudforge /apply + /destroy all work with no account at all.
- Server-backed actions — saving, The Rack, The Foundry, Live Import, Terraform generation, image → diagram — show an inline "needs an account" prompt with a Sign in button, rather than silently doing nothing.
- Signed-out parsing is rate-limited by IP and capped at 256 KB per file; sign in for larger files and whole-folder imports.
2.6 — Vani is free for everyone
- Vani chat runs on your AI engine (Copilot, Claude Code or Codex), so it is free and uncapped in the extension. If your engine does the work, you should not pay us for it.
2.5 — Free, uncapped canvas
- The canvas and Terraform generation in the extension are free and uncapped — no 20-resource limit here, unlike the free tier on the web.
Earlier highlights (2.1 – 2.4)
- Live Cloud Import (2.4) — pull existing Azure/AWS resources in through your CloudForge cloud connections, with live discovery progress, proper identities and relationships, and category layout. Replace or append to the current forge. (GCP discovery coming.)
- The Mold Library (2.3) — 90 curated architecture templates, 30 per cloud, across Web Apps, Microservices, Serverless, Data & Analytics, Networking, Security, AI & ML and DevOps. Fetched at runtime so new Molds arrive without an extension update; an offline copy ships as fallback.
- Bring Your Own AI (2.2) — Vani, the Assay and plan analysis run on Copilot, the
claude CLI or the codex CLI. Apply and Undo drive the terminal directly and need no AI at all.
- The Foundry (2.1) — browse your organisation's Forges without leaving VS Code, plus session-expiry detection, generation batching, resilient Copilot model selection and a self-host URL fix.
- Designer refresh — compact 90×90 resource cards matching the web designer, four-side connectors, Bezier edges with on-path handles, and modernised provider/new-diagram modals.
Copilot & Deploy Features
- @cloudforge /plan — Copilot analyses your Terraform and streams a full plan summary: resources to create, cost estimate, and any issues. If errors are found, it generates a corrected HCL and pushes it back into the modal automatically.
- @cloudforge /apply — Opens a terminal, authenticates with your cloud provider, and runs
terraform apply — no manual steps.
- @cloudforge /destroy — Undoes the last apply by running
terraform destroy in the same working directory.
- @cloudforge /check — Runs an Assay: Copilot analyses your resources and streams a cost breakdown, policy violations, and recommendations — no backend required.
- Assay (Check Policy & Cost) button — Appears in the toolbar as soon as you have resources on the canvas.
- Validate / Plan / Apply / Undo buttons — Available in the Generate Terraform modal footer once code is generated.
- Status bar — Shows live violation count and cost estimate after a
/check run. Click to re-run the Assay.
- Auto-fix loop — When
/plan finds errors, Copilot fixes the code and re-runs the plan automatically.
- Your model, your choice — Uses the model you've selected in the Copilot Chat model picker, falling back to any available Copilot model.
Features
- Import Terraform folders — Open any folder of
.tf files and instantly see an interactive Forge
- Generate Terraform — Draw a Forge and export production-ready HCL across multiple files (
main.tf, providers.tf, variables.tf, outputs.tf)
- Bidirectional sync — Edit
.tf files and watch the Forge update live
- Multi-cloud — Azure, AWS, and GCP resource support out of the box
- Modern visual canvas — Compact resource cards, four-side connectors, smooth Bezier edges, draggable connection waypoints, and polished provider modals
- @cloudforge Copilot Chat — Manipulate your Forge, plan, apply, and get expert advice using natural language
- Save & load Forges — Persist Forges to your CloudForge account and reload them from The Rack across sessions
- The Foundry — Browse your organization's Forges from The Rack's Foundry tab
- Free tier — No credit card required
Getting Started
- Install the extension and click the CloudForge icon in the Activity Bar
- Sign in with your CloudForge account (free tier available)
- Open a Terraform file or use Import Folder to load an existing project
- Your Forge appears live alongside your code
- Drag resources from the palette and connect them from any side of a resource card
@cloudforge Copilot Chat
Requires GitHub Copilot Chat. Type @cloudforge in the chat panel to chat with Vani, your Forgemaster — CloudForge's AI infrastructure architect — about your Forge using natural language.
Slash Commands
| Command |
What it does |
@cloudforge /check |
Runs an Assay — policy violations and estimated monthly cost. Updates the status bar. |
@cloudforge /plan |
Copilot analyses the generated HCL and streams a full plan: resources, cost, warnings. Auto-fixes errors and pushes corrected code back to the modal. |
@cloudforge /apply |
Authenticates with your cloud provider and runs terraform apply in a local terminal. |
@cloudforge /destroy |
Undoes the last apply — authenticates and runs terraform destroy in the same directory. |
Apply — Cloud Authentication
/apply and /destroy handle authentication automatically per provider:
| Provider |
Auth flow |
| Azure |
az login → select subscription → terraform init → terraform apply |
| AWS |
aws configure → terraform init → terraform apply |
| GCP |
gcloud auth login → gcloud auth application-default login → terraform init → terraform apply |
Diagram Manipulation
These commands directly modify the canvas:
| Example prompt |
What happens |
@cloudforge add a Linux VM |
Adds the resource to the diagram |
@cloudforge add a storage account called my_storage |
Adds with a specific label |
@cloudforge connect web_vm to my_storage |
Draws a connection between two nodes |
@cloudforge remove web_vm |
Deletes the node and its edges |
@cloudforge clear the diagram |
Wipes the entire canvas |
@cloudforge build a 3-tier web app |
Forges a full architecture pattern |
@cloudforge what's on the diagram |
Describes current resources and connections |
Advisory — Pricing, Security & Validation
| Topic |
Example prompt |
| Pricing / cost |
@cloudforge what will this infrastructure cost per month? |
| Security review |
@cloudforge review this for security issues |
| Compliance |
@cloudforge is this architecture CIS-benchmark compliant? |
| High availability |
@cloudforge how do I make this setup highly available? |
| Optimization |
@cloudforge how can I reduce cost on this architecture? |
| Architecture advice |
@cloudforge what's the difference between App Service and AKS here? |
| Networking |
@cloudforge explain the network topology |
| Best practices |
@cloudforge any recommendations for this setup? |
- Check Policy & Cost (amber) — Runs an Assay via
@cloudforge /check. Appears when resources are on the canvas.
- Providers — Opens the provider picker for Azure, AWS, GCP, and on-premises resources.
- Generate TF — Generates Terraform files from the current Forge.
- Upload TF / Image — Imports Terraform files or architecture images into the canvas.
- Save / Recent — Saves Forges to CloudForge and reopens them from The Rack, including your organization's Forges via the Foundry tab.
Canvas Editing
- Drag resources from the palette onto the canvas.
- Connect resources from top, right, bottom, or left handles.
- Click an edge to reveal its on-path edit handle; drag it to adjust the connection curve.
- Double-click a waypoint handle to reset that connector.
- Select a resource to edit its name, resource ID, and attributes.
| Button |
Action |
| Download ZIP |
Downloads all generated .tf files as a zip |
| Validate |
Runs @cloudforge /check — an Assay of policy and cost |
| Plan |
Runs @cloudforge /plan — Copilot plan analysis with auto-fix |
| Apply |
Runs @cloudforge /apply — authenticates and deploys |
| Undo |
Runs @cloudforge /destroy — tears down last apply |
Status Bar
The CloudForge status bar item shows live policy and cost state after a /check run:
☁ CloudForge — no check run yet☁ 2 violations · $43/mo — violations found (amber background)☁ $43/mo — clean, cost estimated
Click the status bar item to open Copilot Chat pre-filled with @cloudforge /check.
Commands
| Command |
Description |
CloudForge: Sign Out |
Sign out of your CloudForge account |
CloudForge: Refresh Forge from Current File |
Re-parse the current Terraform file |
Extension Settings
| Setting |
Default |
Description |
cloudforge.apiUrl |
https://cloudforge.cloud |
API base URL — change only if self-hosting |
cloudforge.aiEngine |
auto |
AI engine for Vani, Assay & plan analysis: auto (Copilot → Claude Code → Codex), copilot, claude-code, or codex |
Pricing
CloudForge plans (all prices USD). Paid plans include a 14-day free trial — cancel anytime before it ends.
| Plan |
Price |
Highlights |
| Free |
$0 |
Visual designer, community support. In this extension the canvas and Terraform generation are uncapped — the 20-resource web free-tier limit does not apply here, and Vani runs free on your own AI engine. |
| Pro |
US$9.99/mo or US$99/yr |
14-day free trial · live Azure/AWS import, full Terraform & Pulumi generation, AI review, cost/drift/compliance |
| Team |
US$12/user/mo (3-seat min) |
14-day free trial · shared workspaces, templates, admin controls, priority support |
| Business |
Contact us |
Volume/annual pricing, invoice procurement, everything in Team |
See cloudforge.cloud/pricing.
Requirements
- No account required to open
.tf files, browse Molds, edit the canvas, or use Vani/Assay on your own AI engine. A free CloudForge account unlocks the server-backed features: saving, The Rack, The Foundry, Live Import, Terraform generation and image → diagram.
- An AI engine for Vani/Assay features — any ONE of: GitHub Copilot Chat, the Claude Code CLI, or the Codex CLI (
@cloudforge slash commands specifically need Copilot Chat; the in-panel Vani chat and Assay work with all three)
- Terraform CLI installed locally (for Apply/Undo and
/apply /destroy)
- Azure CLI / AWS CLI / gcloud CLI (for the relevant cloud provider)
Feedback & Support
| |
