How Policy as Code Simplifies Private Cloud Management

Managing private clouds is challenging. UK organisations face dynamic environments, strict regulations, and cost pressures. Traditional governance methods - manual reviews and static policies - can't keep up. Policy as Code offers a solution by automating governance rules for security, compliance, and cost control, directly within CI/CD pipelines.

Key takeaways:

• Automation reduces errors and ensures consistent enforcement of policies.
• Regulatory compliance becomes easier with codified rules aligned to UK standards (e.g., GDPR, NHS, FCA).
• Cost controls are built-in, flagging oversized or idle resources.
• Tools like Open Policy Agent (OPA) and Kyverno integrate policies into Kubernetes, OpenStack, and VMware environments.

What is Policy as Code in Private Clouds?

Defining Policy as Code

Policy as Code is all about turning governance, security, compliance, and operational rules into readable, executable code. This allows these rules to be automatically enforced and tested across infrastructure and applications [2]. Instead of relying on static documents, this approach translates requirements into logic that evaluates every resource change automatically.

In private cloud setups - whether you're using Kubernetes on-premises, OpenStack, or VMware-based infrastructure - Policy as Code ensures resources are created, configured, and used according to specified rules. For example, policies might require encrypted storage volumes, non-root container execution, or mandatory labels for cost centres and data classification.

What sets Policy as Code apart is its automation. Policies are written in declarative or domain-specific languages, stored in version control systems like Git, and evaluated by a policy engine. This engine checks resource definitions, whether they are Kubernetes YAML files, Terraform plans, or API requests. If something doesn't comply, it's blocked with clear feedback before deployment [2].

This approach is particularly useful for UK organisations in regulated sectors. Financial services, NHS trusts, and government departments can codify requirements like ensuring data stays in specific UK datacentres, meeting encryption standards, or enforcing network segmentation. By enforcing these policies at deployment time, teams no longer rely solely on manual reviews or post-deployment audits to stay compliant with UK GDPR, FCA guidelines, or NHS data standards [2].

With this foundation, we can dive into the key components that make Policy as Code work.

Core Components and Tools

A Policy as Code setup in private clouds typically involves four main components:

• Policy Definitions: These are the rules written in a readable format, often using languages like Rego (for Open Policy Agent) or YAML (used by Kyverno). For instance, a policy might require Kubernetes pods to include "runAsNonRoot": true, or that namespaces carry labels for owner, environment, and cost-centre [2].

• Policy Engine: This is the tool that evaluates resources against the defined policies. Popular choices include Open Policy Agent (OPA) and Kyverno. OPA, a CNCF-graduated project, uses Rego to enforce policies across platforms like Kubernetes and API gateways. Kyverno, being Kubernetes-native and YAML-focused, is especially user-friendly for teams familiar with Kubernetes [2].

• Integration Points: These are the moments where policies are automatically checked. In Kubernetes-based private clouds, tools like OPA Gatekeeper or Kyverno act as admission controllers, intercepting commands like kubectl apply or GitOps synchronisations to block non-compliant resources. Similarly, in CI/CD pipelines, tools like conftest or the Kyverno CLI validate manifests and Terraform plans during pull requests [2].

• Version Control and Monitoring: Policies are stored in Git, with changes reviewed via pull requests and versioned alongside application code. Policy evaluation results are logged and monitored, creating an auditable trail for internal and regulatory reviews [2].

For example, imagine a developer submits a pull request with Kubernetes YAML for a new microservice. A CI pipeline step uses OPA to check the manifests against organisational policies, such as banning public LoadBalancer services in production. If a violation is found, the build fails with a clear error message, preventing a non-compliant deployment. For UK organisations embracing DevOps, consultancies like Hokstad Consulting can help design a Policy as Code framework tailored to local regulations and team expertise.

These components allow UK organisations to meet regulatory requirements efficiently and consistently.

Policy as Code vs Infrastructure as Code

Now that we've covered the basics, it's important to understand how Policy as Code differs from Infrastructure as Code.

While both are key to modern cloud practices, they serve different purposes. Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools like Terraform, Ansible, or Pulumi focus on defining what infrastructure to provision - whether that's virtual machines, networks, storage, or Kubernetes clusters - and how to configure them.

On the other hand, Policy as Code sets the rules and guardrails to validate and control changes made through IaC or other processes. It ensures compliance and governance before changes are deployed.

While IaC provisions resources, Policy as Code enforces the rules that govern them. IaC evolves rapidly to meet changing infrastructure needs, while policies remain more stable, aligning with risk, legal, and compliance requirements. In the UK, this means policies must reflect obligations like UK GDPR, industry-specific standards (e.g., FCA, NHS), or internal risk frameworks. Changes to these policies often require careful approval from security, compliance, and legal teams.

Policy as Code doesn't replace Infrastructure as Code - it complements it. Together, they create a robust system where infrastructure delivery is automated, and security, compliance, and governance are built in from the start. This transforms private clouds into well-automated, well-governed platforms that meet both operational and regulatory needs.

Policy-as-Code for Infrastructure-as-Code with OPA and OpenTofu - Colin Lacy, Cisco

How Policy as Code Improves Private Cloud Management

Policy as Code helps tackle common challenges in private cloud management, such as misconfigurations, weak access controls, compliance gaps, and inefficiencies. By automating rule enforcement across environments, it reshapes how UK organisations secure, govern, and optimise their infrastructure. These automated processes strengthen security, ensure compliance, and help control costs.

Improving Security and Access Control

Misconfigurations are a leading cause of cloud security breaches. Issues like exposed storage, unsecured databases, or overly broad access permissions are frequent culprits - problems that Policy as Code can systematically address [1].

In private cloud environments, Policy as Code allows teams to define security rules once and enforce them consistently. For example, policies might mandate that all data‐at‐rest must be encrypted with approved keys, admin roles cannot be assigned to service accounts, or databases must not be exposed directly to the internet. These rules are automatically assessed during resource provisioning and continuously monitored, ensuring non-compliant resources are blocked before going live.

Role-based access control (RBAC) policies are codified to ensure consistent enforcement. For instance, policies can prevent assigning high-privilege roles - like cluster-admin in Kubernetes - to unauthorised users, while maintaining an auditable log of access decisions. Similarly, network segmentation rules can be expressed as code to control communication between specific subnets, security groups, or namespaces. For example, a policy might require that all traffic to payment systems or clinical applications is routed through designated firewalls or service meshes, limiting lateral movement in case of a breach.

Platforms like OpenStack, VMware, or Kubernetes enable these policies to be applied centrally, ensuring consistent encryption, access, and network rules across all tenants or projects. UK organisations can rely on Hokstad Consulting to design policy sets that align with their security models - striking the right balance between protecting data and supporting fast-paced development.

Automating Compliance for UK Regulations

Beyond security, automated compliance is essential for meeting regulatory standards specific to the UK. Manual compliance processes are labour-intensive and prone to errors, especially as infrastructure scales. Policy as Code simplifies this by translating technical controls from frameworks like PCI DSS, ISO 27001, and NHS DSPT into machine-enforceable rules that operate automatically in CI/CD pipelines and live environments.

For PCI DSS, policies can enforce encryption standards, network segmentation, robust logging, and restrictions on privileged access. Similarly, ISO 27001's Annex A requirements - spanning access control, cryptography, logging, and change management - can be codified, with automated logs capturing details like who initiated a change, which policy applied, and the outcome. In healthcare, Policy as Code ensures clinical systems meet data protection standards by controlling access to sensitive patient data and verifying that backups are properly configured.

Many commercial tools now offer prebuilt policy packs tailored to frameworks like PCI DSS. These can be customised to reflect local UK requirements and an organisation's specific risk profile. This approach allows organisations to generate evidence packs - complete with logs, compliance dashboards, and detailed policy reports - for regulatory assessments without relying on time-consuming manual audits. Some organisations have reported reducing manual security review cycles from weeks to automated checks that run in seconds, freeing up teams to focus on more strategic tasks while maintaining or improving compliance.

Reducing Costs and Resource Waste

Policy as Code isn't just about security and compliance - it also helps manage costs effectively. In private clouds, resource sprawl is a common issue, with oversized compute instances, idle resources, and untagged assets driving up expenses. Policy as Code combats these inefficiencies by flagging or blocking deployments that exceed cost, size, or utilisation limits.

Cost-focused policies might include:

• Blocking oversized instances: For example, a UK retailer could enforce a rule preventing development teams from deploying nodes costing more than £250 per month. If a team tries to deploy 40 large nodes - totalling around £10,000 per month - the system blocks the request and suggests smaller or fewer nodes [3].
• Mandatory tagging: Policies can require tagging for accurate cost tracking and chargeback.
• Automatic shutdown schedules: Resources in test or development environments can be set to shut down between 19:00 and 07:00 UK time, cutting runtime and internal costs by up to 50% [3].
• Preventing idle resources: Deployments without scheduled shutdowns or those exceeding monthly cost thresholds can be denied based on internal pricing data.

By enforcing these rules across all tenants and projects, UK organisations can avoid unexpected cloud bills and improve private cloud utilisation. These measures can reduce infrastructure costs by 30–50%, with some businesses saving over £40,000 annually on infrastructure alone [4].

For organisations needing expert guidance, Hokstad Consulting offers support in cloud cost engineering and DevOps automation. They help UK businesses encode governance, cost, and compliance rules directly into automated pipelines, translating financial goals into actionable policies that curb overspending while maintaining operational flexibility.

How to Implement Policy as Code: Step-by-Step

Implementing Policy as Code can seem daunting, but breaking it down into manageable steps helps build confidence and deliver results early. Start by mapping your existing policies, choose tools that suit your environment, and embed policy checks into your deployment process.

Review Current Policies and Infrastructure

Before diving into writing policy code, take a step back to map out your current policies. Begin by listing all your policy sources, such as security standards (e.g., ISO 27001 or NCSC guidance), data protection requirements like GDPR, change management procedures, and cost-control guidelines. Then, identify where these policies are currently enforced - whether through firewalls, identity and access management systems, Kubernetes admission controllers, manual reviews, or ticket-based workflows.

Once you have this inventory, create a matrix that links each policy to its relevant infrastructure components. For example, encryption requirements might apply to storage classes, virtual machine templates, and database instances, while network segmentation rules could affect subnets, security groups, and Kubernetes namespaces. This process often highlights gaps, such as policies enforced inconsistently or left entirely to manual processes.

Next, prioritise your efforts by analysing monitoring data, configuration management databases, and cost reports. Look for patterns like oversized instances, long-running development environments that should be retired, or frequent misconfigurations causing incidents. Rank policies by their potential business impact and ease of implementation. Focus on high-risk or high-cost areas first, and select three to five straightforward policies that can be automated quickly to demonstrate value to stakeholders.

With this groundwork laid, you’re ready to choose tools that align with your environment.

Choose Tools and Define Policy Scope

Selecting the right tools depends on the gaps identified during your policy review, as well as your existing platforms and team expertise. For Kubernetes-heavy environments, popular options include Open Policy Agent (OPA) with Gatekeeper and Kyverno. OPA uses its own policy language, Rego, offering flexibility, while Kyverno allows you to write policies directly in YAML, which may feel more familiar to Kubernetes users.

If your environment includes virtual machines, containers, and multiple cloud platforms, tools like Cloud Custodian or HashiCorp Sentinel can help. Cloud Custodian handles cost, security, and governance across varied setups, while Sentinel integrates well with Terraform Enterprise or Cloud. Additionally, private cloud platforms like OpenStack, VMware, and Red Hat OpenShift often come with built-in policy frameworks that integrate directly with their control planes.

When evaluating tools, consider factors like the platforms and resources you need to govern, how policies will be enforced (e.g., admission controllers, APIs, or CI/CD pipelines), your team's familiarity with the tools, and how well they integrate with Git-based workflows. Start with a narrow but impactful scope. Instead of trying to cover every regulatory requirement immediately, focus on a few high-value controls - like image provenance, namespace labelling, resource limits, or network egress rules - that apply broadly across projects or clusters.

Make sure your Policy as Code approach aligns with your existing Infrastructure as Code practices. This ensures policies act as safeguards, validating the desired state against your rules without duplicating efforts.

Integrate Policies into Pipelines and Platforms

Once you’ve chosen your tools and defined the scope, the next step is embedding these policies into your deployment workflows. Policy as Code adds value at two critical points: during deployment (to prevent non-compliant changes) and at runtime (to catch drift and unauthorised changes). Both are essential for thorough governance.

Integrate policy checks as mandatory steps in your CI/CD pipelines. When engineers propose infrastructure changes - via Terraform plans, Kubernetes manifests, Helm charts, or Ansible playbooks - ensure these configurations are validated against your policies before deployment. Use pre-merge checks on pull requests to provide immediate compliance feedback and pre-deployment gates to block non-compliant changes from reaching staging or production environments.

Automating policy checks in CI/CD pipelines ensures quick feedback on compliance. Critical violations should halt the build, while less urgent issues can generate warnings or tickets for follow-up.

At runtime, enforcement mechanisms address changes made outside CI/CD pipelines or configuration drift over time. Admission controllers can enforce policies in real-time. Start in audit mode to monitor violations without blocking changes, then gradually transition critical policies to enforcement mode.

For virtual machine-based private clouds, scheduled scans or API webhooks can enforce policies. Combine soft enforcement methods like alerts and dashboards with hard controls that block non-compliant changes, phasing in stricter rules over time.

UK organisations with complex regulatory needs or limited in-house expertise may benefit from external support. Companies like Hokstad Consulting specialise in DevOps transformation and cloud infrastructure services, helping design policy architectures, choose tools, and embed policies into CI/CD workflows and runtime platforms. This can significantly reduce risk and simplify compliance.

Managing policies like software is key to successful implementation. Store policy definitions in Git, review changes through pull requests, and automate testing. Unit tests ensure individual rules work as intended, while integration tests - using valid and invalid configurations - verify the entire policy set functions correctly. Tag and release policy versions, and document which versions apply to each environment. This is particularly important for regulated industries like finance and healthcare, where auditability is critical.

Maintaining Policy-Driven Cloud Automation

Once policies are in place, the work doesn’t stop there. Regular updates and monitoring are essential to prevent governance gaps as systems evolve and regulations shift. Think of Policy as Code as an ongoing process, not a one-and-done solution. Policies need to be tested, refined, and adjusted to stay effective without becoming roadblocks.

Version Control and Testing for Policies

Policies should be treated with the same care as application code. Store them in Git, and enforce pull request reviews to maintain quality and accountability. Use descriptive branch names like policy/security-update-dec2025 to make audits easier. When changes are proposed, have both security and operations teams review them to validate logic and assess any potential impact. For organisations in the UK, this process is particularly valuable for demonstrating compliance with GDPR or specific sector regulations, such as FCA guidelines.

Testing policies is equally critical. Automated unit tests, using tools like opa test for Open Policy Agent or Kyverno’s built-in frameworks, help ensure individual rules work as intended. These tests should cover both compliant and non-compliant scenarios to confirm that valid configurations are allowed while invalid ones are blocked.

Integration testing takes this a step further by examining how policies interact with real infrastructure. Before rolling out new policies to production, test them in staging environments to catch any issues early. A dry-run approach lets you see the impact of changes without risking live systems.

To streamline this process, automate tests for every commit. If a test fails, block the merge - just like you would with application code. Use semantic versioning (e.g., v2.1.0) to tag and release policy updates, and clearly document which version applies to each environment. This approach also makes it easy to roll back changes by reverting to a previous Git tag if needed.

Monitoring and Updating Policies

To keep policies effective, you need visibility into how they perform in real-world scenarios. Tools like Open Policy Agent and Kyverno generate decision logs that record every policy evaluation, including inputs and results. Export these logs to your observability platform and use dashboards to track policy violations.

Your dashboards should highlight trends, such as the frequency and types of violations by environment or team. If a particular policy generates hundreds of violations weekly, it might be too restrictive or misaligned with actual usage. Set alerts for high-severity violations - like public-facing databases or unencrypted storage - so your security team can act quickly.

Some tools, like OPA Gatekeeper and Kyverno, offer an audit mode that scans resources periodically and reports violations without blocking deployments. This feature is helpful for catching configuration drift, whether it’s caused by changes outside your CI/CD pipelines or by resources that were compliant at deployment but have since been altered.

Policies should evolve in step with your business needs and regulatory requirements. Schedule regular reviews - monthly or quarterly - with teams from security, compliance, platform, and application development. Use these sessions to analyse violation trends, gather feedback on productivity-impacting policies, and address new risks or regulatory updates. For instance, when UK regulations change - like updates to GDPR guidance from the ICO or new NCSC principles - update your policies promptly. Document the reasons for each change, including effective dates and the regulatory or business drivers behind them. Your version control system will automatically create an audit trail, showing continuous compliance.

If your organisation lacks in-house expertise, external consultants like Hokstad Consulting can help. They can assist with designing Git workflows, setting up CI testing pipelines, and building dashboards for monitoring violations. They can also develop cost-control policies, such as shutting down idle private cloud VMs or flagging oversized instances.

Balancing Strict and Flexible Policies

Not all policies need to be enforced with the same level of rigidity. Striking the right balance between security and developer productivity involves categorising policies based on risk and impact.

• Strict, blocking policies should handle non-negotiable security and compliance requirements, such as preventing public database access, enforcing encryption, or mandating multi-factor authentication for privileged accounts.
• Flexible, advisory policies can guide best practices without blocking deployments. For example, they might flag missing resource tags or sub-optimal instance sizes but allow the deployment to proceed with a documented justification.

Monitor how policies affect deployment speed. If certain policies cause frequent delays or failed builds, consider relaxing them or moving them from blocking to advisory. For instance, a strict tagging policy could be softened if it’s consistently blocking legitimate deployments.

Create an exception process for cases where business needs conflict with policies. This process should include a risk assessment, justification, stakeholder approval, and a time limit for the exception. Track these exceptions separately - if a policy generates frequent exceptions, it likely needs revision.

When introducing new policies, start in audit or dry-run mode to collect data and fine-tune thresholds. After observing the policy for a few weeks and making any necessary adjustments, switch it to enforce mode.

As your cloud environment grows, manual enforcement becomes impractical. Automating policy checks within your CI/CD pipelines catches violations early, reducing configuration drift and minimising the need for post-deployment fixes. By shifting governance earlier in the process, you ensure policies are evaluated at every critical stage - commit, pull request, and build - rather than relying solely on manual audits.

Conclusion

Policy as Code transforms private cloud management by embedding security, compliance, and cost controls directly into everyday operations. Instead of relying on manual checks or spreadsheets, UK organisations can enforce rules automatically at every stage - from initial setup to runtime. This automation not only reduces risk but also lightens the workload for teams.

The benefits are tangible. Misconfigurations are stopped before they reach deployment, cost inefficiencies are addressed, and compliance is integrated into every step of the process. For UK businesses navigating GDPR, FCA guidelines, or NHS data requirements, Policy as Code translates regulatory demands into actionable technical controls, potentially saving thousands of pounds each year.

Beyond these practical advantages, Policy as Code encourages smoother collaboration between teams. Security, operations, and development can all work from the same version-controlled policies, reducing friction and speeding up delivery. Developers can catch issues early during CI/CD processes, while security teams can rest assured that safeguards are firmly in place.

To get started, focus on a handful of impactful policies - like encryption, access controls, or mandatory tagging. Gradually expand as teams grow more comfortable. Even a small-scale implementation can lower risks and streamline operations, making private cloud management more efficient and predictable.

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