Glossary
The key concepts behind Fractal Cloud
A
Application-Driven Cloud Management
A way to manage cloud infrastructure that starts from application needs, not from provider resources. Infrastructure teams own the patterns; application teams declare what they need and never build it.
B
Blueprints
The fixed part of a Fractal. A Blueprint lists the infrastructure pieces a system needs and how those pieces connect. A Blueprint is a template with a version number, not a running system.
C
Cloud Agents
Agent that run inside the customer's cloud account. The agents use that account's login, so Fractal Cloud never stores cloud credentials. The agents keep comparing the real infrastructure with the setup the team asked for, and fix any difference.
Compliance Built In
A delivery model where security, operational standards and governance rules are encoded into reusable platform patterns before teams deploy. Compliance becomes part of the design rather than a late-stage review.
Compliant by Design
A system is compliant because the pattern it comes from is already compliant. The team deploys through an approved Fractal and gets the security and network rules of that Fractal. There is no review to pass.
Control Plane
The part of Fractal Cloud that coordinates the work. It stores the setup each team asked for and checks every request against the Fractal before anything is built. It also records which version of each piece runs where.
D
Developer Self-Service
The ability for application teams to deploy approved infrastructure without waiting for manual tickets or direct cloud access. Fractal Cloud makes self-service practical by keeping governance embedded in every pattern.
F
Fractal
A reusable pattern a team can deploy as a running system. A Fractal joins a Blueprint with an Interface, which lists the changes teams may make. Any allowed change keeps the system compliant, and Fractals can sit inside other Fractals.
G
Golden Paths
Approved paths that help teams ship faster with fewer decisions to revisit. In Fractal Cloud, Golden Paths are expressed as reusable Fractals, Blueprints and Interfaces.
Governed Delivery
A delivery model where teams move quickly while staying inside policies defined by the organization. Fractal Cloud gives platform teams control without turning every deployment into a manual approval process.
I
Infrastructure Patterns
Repeatable combinations of compute, storage, network, observability and security capabilities. Fractal Cloud turns these patterns into reusable assets that can be shared across teams.
L
Live Systems
A running system built from a Fractal. The platform keeps the Live System matched to that Fractal. Teams change a Live System by asking for a new setup, not by editing the cloud directly.
M
Multi-Cloud Delivery
The same pattern deployed on different cloud providers. The Blueprint says which kind of service a system needs, for example a container platform. Only the Offer picks the actual product from one provider.
P
Platform Engineering
The practice of giving teams paved, reusable paths for software delivery. Fractal Cloud supports platform engineering by turning cloud standards into self-service infrastructure products.
R
Reusable Building Blocks
Approved pieces that teams combine into a working system. An atom is a single resource, for example a firewall rule. A molecule groups atoms into something useful, for example a database cluster. A Fractal groups molecules into a full system.
S
Self-Service Infrastructure
Infrastructure that teams can request, deploy and update through approved interfaces. Fractal Cloud enables self-service while keeping access, standards and lifecycle control in the platform.
Standardized Operations
Common operational practices embedded into infrastructure patterns. Examples include tagging, monitoring, backup policies, secure defaults and controlled emergency override.