CI/CD pipelines with Terraform Cloud

Introduction

This tutorial provides a step-by-step guide on utilizing CI/CD pipelines with Terraform Cloud, based on insights from Sam Lee, a Solutions Engineer at HashiCorp. By integrating Terraform with CI/CD practices, you can accelerate your Terraform development workflows, enhance automation, and streamline your infrastructure management processes.

Step 1: Sign Up for Terraform Cloud

1. Visit the Terraform Cloud website at hashicorp.com/products/terraform.
2. Click on the sign-up button for a free account.
3. Fill out the necessary details to create your account.

Step 2: Familiarize Yourself with Terraform Cloud Interface

1. Log in to your Terraform Cloud account.
2. Explore the dashboard to understand its layout and available features.
3. Review the documentation and tutorials available on the platform to get accustomed to its functionalities.

Step 3: Create a New Workspace

1. Navigate to the 'Workspaces' section in the Terraform Cloud dashboard.
2. Click on ‘Create a new workspace’.
3. Provide a name for your workspace, which will contain your Terraform configurations.
4. Select the appropriate version control system (VCS) for your workspace (e.g., GitHub, GitLab).
5. Authorize Terraform Cloud to access your repository.

Step 4: Configure VCS Integration

1. In the workspace settings, find the VCS settings section.
2. Connect your VCS by following the prompts to authenticate and authorize.
3. Choose the repository containing your Terraform code.
4. Set up the branch you want Terraform to monitor for changes.

Step 5: Define Your Terraform Configuration

1. Create a new file in your repository for your Terraform code (e.g., main.tf).
2. Write your Terraform configuration, defining the resources you want to manage.

   provider "aws" {
     region = "us-west-2"
   }
   
   resource "aws_instance" "example" {
     ami           = "ami-0c55b159cbfafe1f0"
     instance_type = "t2.micro"
   }
   

Step 6: Set Up CI/CD Pipeline

1. In your workspace, navigate to the 'Settings' tab.
2. Enable the automatic plan and apply options:
   • Enable 'Auto Apply' to automatically apply changes after a successful plan.
   • Configure notification settings to alert your team about deployments.
3. Test the pipeline by committing a change to your repository.

Step 7: Monitor Pipeline Execution

1. Once changes are pushed, return to your Terraform Cloud dashboard.
2. Monitor the pipeline execution for the new commit:
   • Review the plan output for any errors or warnings.
   • Confirm that the apply step completes successfully.

Conclusion

By following these steps, you can successfully set up a CI/CD pipeline with Terraform Cloud to streamline your infrastructure management. Key takeaways include signing up for Terraform Cloud, creating workspaces, integrating version control, and configuring pipelines for automated deployments. As a next step, consider exploring more advanced Terraform features and best practices to further enhance your infrastructure automation.