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Multiple Inheritance

Atmos Design Pattern

The Multiple Inheritance pattern allows a component to inherit from multiple abstract base components, combining their configurations. This lets you compose components from reusable building blocks.

Use-cases​

Use Multiple Inheritance when:

  • You have reusable configuration "traits" that apply to multiple components

  • You want to compose configuration from independent concerns (e.g., logging + monitoring + security)

  • Different teams own different aspects of component configuration

How It Works​

A component lists multiple base components in metadata.inherits. Configuration is merged in order—later entries override earlier ones:

metadata:
  inherits:
    - base/defaults      # Applied first
    - base/logging       # Applied second, overrides conflicts
    - base/production    # Applied last, highest precedence

Example: Composing from Traits​

Define abstract base components that represent different configuration concerns:

stacks/catalog/base/defaults.yaml

components:
  terraform:
    base/defaults:
      metadata:
        type: abstract
      vars:
        enabled: true
        tags:
          managed_by: atmos

stacks/catalog/base/logging.yaml

components:
  terraform:
    base/logging:
      metadata:
        type: abstract
      vars:
        logging_enabled: true
        log_retention_days: 30

stacks/catalog/base/production.yaml

components:
  terraform:
    base/production:
      metadata:
        type: abstract
      vars:
        multi_az: true
        deletion_protection: true
        tags:
          environment: production

Now compose a concrete component by inheriting from multiple bases:

stacks/deploy/prod.yaml

import:
  - catalog/base/defaults
  - catalog/base/logging
  - catalog/base/production

components:
  terraform:
    rds:
      metadata:
        component: rds
        inherits:
          - base/defaults
          - base/logging
          - base/production
      vars:
        name: my-database
        instance_class: db.r6g.large

The resulting rds component has:

# From base/defaults
enabled: true
tags:
  managed_by: atmos
  environment: production  # Merged from base/production

# From base/logging
logging_enabled: true
log_retention_days: 30

# From base/production
multi_az: true
deletion_protection: true

# From inline vars
name: my-database
instance_class: db.r6g.large

Example: Environment + Size Traits​

Combine environment settings with sizing presets:

stacks/catalog/size/small.yaml

components:
  terraform:
    size/small:
      metadata:
        type: abstract
      vars:
        instance_class: db.t3.small
        storage_size: 20
        max_connections: 100

stacks/catalog/size/large.yaml

components:
  terraform:
    size/large:
      metadata:
        type: abstract
      vars:
        instance_class: db.r6g.xlarge
        storage_size: 500
        max_connections: 1000

stacks/catalog/env/dev.yaml

components:
  terraform:
    env/dev:
      metadata:
        type: abstract
      vars:
        deletion_protection: false
        multi_az: false

stacks/catalog/env/prod.yaml

components:
  terraform:
    env/prod:
      metadata:
        type: abstract
      vars:
        deletion_protection: true
        multi_az: true
        backup_retention_period: 30

Compose different combinations:

stacks/deploy/dev.yaml

import:
  - catalog/size/small
  - catalog/env/dev

components:
  terraform:
    rds:
      metadata:
        component: rds
        inherits:
          - size/small
          - env/dev
      vars:
        name: dev-database

stacks/deploy/prod.yaml

import:
  - catalog/size/large
  - catalog/env/prod

components:
  terraform:
    rds:
      metadata:
        component: rds
        inherits:
          - size/large
          - env/prod
      vars:
        name: prod-database

Merge Behavior​

When the same key exists in multiple base components:

Data TypeBehavior
Scalars (strings, numbers, bools)Later value wins
Maps/ObjectsDeep merged, later values override
Lists/ArraysLater list replaces entirely

Example with maps:

# base/defaults
tags:
  managed_by: atmos
  team: platform

# base/production
tags:
  environment: production

# Result (deep merged)
tags:
  managed_by: atmos      # from defaults
  team: platform         # from defaults
  environment: production # from production

References​