find vpc by name

vpc_by_name.rb

require 'aws-sdk'
def lookup_vpc_by_name(vpc_name)
 
 client=Aws::EC2::Client.new # Uses your local credentials or default iam role. Modify as needed if you get creds from a different source.
 resp = client.describe_vpcs({ filters: [{ name: "tag:Name", values: [ vpc_name ]}]})
 if resp['vpcs'].empty? 
    raise "No vpc by #{vpc_name} found"
 elsif resp['vpcs'].length > 1
    raise 'received too many responses, should be 1.'
 else 
    resp['vpcs'].first['vpc_id']
 end 
end 

Use this by getting the id for a name, storing it in a local variable, and then referencing that vpc-id with any vpc resources you use with chef-provisioning.