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Hack4Impact Cloud & Source Code Handoff Guide Signed-off-by: Mahyar <42976936+mahyareb@users.noreply.github.com>
jfathi
reviewed
Oct 14, 2026
| Before writing a line of code or spinning up a cloud console, keep these common failure modes in mind: | ||
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| - **The Credit Cliff**: It's easy to build using credits that expire in 12 months. If your architecture relies on services with high fixed base fees, the partner gets stuck with an unsustainable bill once those credits dry up. Design for long-term baseline affordability, not just the initial grant runway. | ||
| - **Fragile Setup Scripts**: Loose terminal commands and unverified shell scripts tend to backfire. When a command fails midway, re-running it often crashes on resources that already exist. Aim for simple, modular Infrastructure as Code (IaC) or clean, repeatable steps anyone can re-run without fear of bad commands / lack of permissions mid-way leaving them stranded, etc. |
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NIT: 100% agree, but almost none of our students have experience in this space. We should be providing/telegraphing IaC resources as part of the education program + our global documentation
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Are you suggesting removing it? or what would you recommend?
| - **Be Intentional with Datastores and Review the Base Cost**: Open the pricing calculator before provisioning any database or storage engine. Avoid enterprise-tier managed databases that charge hundreds of dollars a month just to sit idle. Lean toward lightweight managed databases with minimal baseline configurations, burstable tiers, or serverless pay-per-request options. | ||
| - **Set Up Spending Alerts Early**: Configure billing alerts at sensible thresholds (50%, 75%, 90%, 100% of the expected monthly budget) so both the team and the partner's contact get warned well before a surprise. Where supported, wire up automation that can pause non-essential workloads if spending spikes. | ||
| - **Understand compliance constraints upfront**: ask early about legal and regulatory requirements, health information privacy, student records, customer-managed encryption keys, geographic data residency. Catching these early avoids fundamental re-architecture later. | ||
| - **Start Grant Applications Immediately**: Cloud non-profit programs (Google for Nonprofits, AWS Non-Profit Credit Program, Microsoft Tech for Social Impact) usually require verification through bodies like TechSoup, which can take 3–6 weeks. Help the partner kick this off on **Day 1**, not during handoff week. |
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This is something that the students won't have the resources/documentation to guide NPOs through. We should think about whether we want to require this/offer at the nationals level.
jfathi
approved these changes
Oct 17, 2026
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Hack4Impact Cloud & Source Code Handoff Guide
Overview
Adding cloud and source code handoff guide to use with H4I and other university projects. This is just meant to be a helpful guide (and not comprehensive)
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