HashiCorp Terraform Associate (003) Exam Guide: Prepare to pass the Terraform Associate exam on your first attempt

HashiCorp Terraform Associate (003) Exam Guide
Contributors
About the Authors
Preface
   Who This Book Is For
   What This Book Covers
   Online Practice Resources
   Download the Example Code Files
   Download the Color Images
   Conventions Used
   Get in Touch
   Setting up the Environment
      Components of Terraform
      Terraform Installation
         macOS
      Pre-Compiled Binary Download
         Linux
         Ubuntu
         Amazon Linux
         Ubuntu
         Compile from Source
      Windows
      Pre-Compiled Binary Download
      Configure Terraform for AWS
   Share Your Thoughts
   Download a Free PDF Copy of This Book
Introduction to Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and Concepts
   Making the Most Out of This Book – Your Certification and Beyond
   Technical Requirements
   What Is IaC?
      Scenario
   Basic Concepts of IaC
      Declarative Approach versus Imperative Approach
      Version Control
      Idempotency
      Infrastructure Provisioning and Configuration Management
   IaC Tools in the Market
      How to Choose the Right IaC Tool
      HashiCorp Terraform
      Progress Chef
      Creating Your First Recipe
      Puppet
      Pulumi
      AWS CloudFormation
   IaC Use Cases
      Multi-Cloud Deployments
      Application Deployments, Scaling, and Monitoring Tools
      Policy Compliance and Management
      Testing Environments and Software Demos
   Benefits of IaC
      Rapid Deployments and Tool Integration
      Lower Costs and Error Reduction
      Configuration Drift Elimination
      Improved Infrastructure Consistency
      DevOps and CI/CD
      Don’t Repeat Yourself (DRY)
      Creating a Simple AWS DynamoDB Table Using a CloudFormation Template
      Creating an AWS S3 Bucket Using Terraform
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Why Do We Need Terraform?
   History of Infrastructure Provisioning
      Why Is the Cloud Model a Good Fit for Infrastructure Automation?
   Infrastructure Automation Using IaC
      Advantages of IaC
      Various Options for Implementing IaC
         Ad Hoc Scripts
         Configuration Management Tools
         Cloud-Based IaC Services
         Cloud-Agnostic IaC Tools
   What Is Terraform?
      Features of Terraform
         Cloud/Vendor Agnostic
         A Pioneer in IaC
         Wide Partner Integration
         Declarative
         Idempotent
         Easy Learning Curve
         Version Controlled
         Automation
         Documentation
         Community Support
   Licensing Change from Version 1.5.5 (Aug 2023)
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Basics of Terraform and Core Workflow
   Technical Requirements
   How Terraform Works
   Getting Started with Terraform
      Terraform CLI Installation Check
      AWS CLI Installation Check
      Creating Your First Terraform Resource – AWS IAM User
         Setting up AWS Credentials
         Terraform Configuration
         Creating the AWS IAM User
   Terraform Settings
      HCP Terraform Configuration Using the cloud {} block
      Terraform Backend Configuration Using the backend {} Block
         Initialization
         Partial Configuration
      The required_version Setting
      The required_providers {} Block
      Experimental Features
      Provider Metadata
   Terraform Providers
      Types of Terraform Providers
         Official Providers
         Partner Providers
         Community Providers
         Archived Providers
      Provider Requirements
         Local Names
         Source Addresses
         Version Constraints
      Provider Configuration
         Provider Meta-Arguments
   Dependency lock file (.terraform.lock.hcl)
   Resources and Data Sources
      Resources Syntax
      Resources Meta-Arguments
         depends_on
         count
         for_each
         provider
         lifecycle
      Data Sources
   Variables and Outputs
      Input Variables
         Declaring Input Variables
         Supported Arguments
         Input Variables Assignment
         Input Variables Precedence
      Output Values
      Local Values
   Core Workflow
      Write – Creating the Configuration Script
         Plan – Previewing the Changes
         Apply – Provisioning the Infrastructure
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Terraform Commands and State Management
   Technical Requirements
   Basic Workflow Commands
      The init Command
      The plan Command
      The apply Command
      The destroy Command
   Commands for Code Management
      The fmt Command
      The validate Command
   Special Commands
      The login Command
      The logout Command
      The console Command
      The output Command
      The show Command
      The graph Command
      The import Command
   State Management and the terraform state Command
      The state Command
   Subcommands of terraform state
      The terraform state list Command
      The terraform state show Command
      The terraform state mv Command
      The terraform state rm Command
      The terraform state replace-provider Command
      The terraform state pull Command
      The terraform state push Command
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Terraform Modules
   Technical Requirements
   Why Do We Need Modules?
      Complexity
      Duplication of Code
      Segregation
      Misconfiguration
   What Is a Terraform Module?
   Advantages of Modules
      Reduces Complexity
      Reduces Code Duplication
      Segregation
      Reduces Misconfigurations
      Self-Service
   Types of Modules
      The Root Module
      The Child Module
      Local Modules
      Remote Modules
         Private Modules
         Public Modules
   Module Structure
   The Module Block’s Syntax
   Key Points to Consider When You Create a Module
   Key Points to Consider While Using a Module
   Drawbacks of Modules
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Terraform Backends and Resource Management
   What Are Backends?
   Backend Configuration
      Configuring the backend {} Block
      Partial Configuration
   Supported Backends
      local
      remote
      s3
      http
         Environment Variable Support
      pg
         Environment Variable Support
      Kubernetes
      Consul
      azurerm
      cos
         Environment Variable Support
      gcs
      oss
   Resource Addressing and Dependencies
      Resource Addressing
         Module Path
         Resource Specifications
         Addressing Resources with the for_each {} Block
      Resource Dependencies
         Implicit Dependency
         Explicit Dependency
   Expressions and Constraints
      Data Types
      Operators
      Conditional Expressions
      for Expressions
      splat Expressions
      Type Constraints
         The any Type
         “optional”
      Version Constraints
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Debugging and Troubleshooting Terraform
   Configuration Errors
      override.tf File-Related Issues
      terraform validate
   Variable-Related Issues
      Type Constraint
      Input Validation
      Variable Precedence
   State-Related Issues
      Configuration Drift
      State Conflict
      Migrating the State from One Backend to Another
   Core and Provider-Related Issues
   Module-Related Issues
      Missing Features
      Output-Related Issues
      Unsupported Argument
      Version-Related Issues
   Taking Help from the Forum
   Bug Reporting
   Gotchas
      Avoid Lists Where Possible
      Using -target in Terraform Runs
      General Tips
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Terraform Functions
   Technical Requirements
   Function Syntax
   Numeric Functions
      The abs() Function
      The ceil() Function
      The floor() Function
      The max() Function
      The min() Function
      The pow() Function
      The log() Function
      The signum() Function
      The parseint() Function
   String Functions
      The split() Function
      The join() Function
      The endswith() Function
      The startswith() Function
      The chomp() Function
      The substr() Function
      The strrev() Function
      The lower() Function
      The upper() Function
      The trim() Function
      The trimprefix() and trimsuffix() Functions
      The trimspace() Function
      The indent() Function
      The replace() Function
      The strcontains() Function
      The title() Function
      The format() Function
      The formatlist() Function
      The regex() Function
      The regexall() Function
   Date and Time Functions
      The timestamp() Function
      The formatdate() Function
      The plantimestamp() Function
      The timeadd() Function
      The timecmp() Function
   Collection Functions
      The alltrue() Function
      The anytrue() Function
      The chunklist() Function
      The coalesce() and coalescelist() Functions
      The compact() Function
      The concat() Function
      The contains() Function
      The distinct() Function
      The element() Function
      The flatten() Function
      The keys() and values() Functions
      The index() Function
      The length() Function
      The lookup() Function
      The matchkeys() Function
      The merge() Function
      The one() Function
      The range() Function
      The reverse() Function
      Set Functions
         The setintersection() Method
         The setproduct() Method
         The setunion() Method
         The setsubtract() Method
      The slice() Function
      The sort() Function
      The sum() Function
      The transpose() Function
      The zipmap() Function
   Type Conversion Functions
      The can() Function
      The sensitive() and nonsensitive() Functions
      The try() Function
      The type() Function
      Conversion Functions
   Filesystem Functions
      The abspath() Function
      The dirname() and basename() Functions
      The pathexpand() Function
      The file() and filebase64() Functions
      The fileexists() Function
      The fileset() Function
      The templatefile() Function
   IP Network Functions
      The cidrhost() Function
      The cidrnetmask() Function
      The cidrsubnet() Function
      The cidrsubnets() Function
   Encoding Functions
      The base64encode() and base64decode() Functions
      The base64gzip() Function
      The csvdecode() Function
      The jsonencode() and jsondecode() Functions
      The textencodebase64() Function
      The textdecodebase64() Function
      The urlencode() Function
      The yamlencode() and yamldecode() Functions
   Hash and Crypto Functions
      The uuid() Function
      The uuidv5() Function
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Understanding HCP Terraform’s Capabilities
   Terraform Editions
      Shortcomings of Terraform Community Edition
   HCP Terraform Features
      Remote State Management
      Multiple Workflows
      Multiple Execution Modes
      Version Control System Integration
      Private Registry
      Notifications
      Run Tasks
      Role-Based Access Control
      Policy Enforcement
      Cost Estimation
   HCP Terraform Pricing
   Key Concepts of HCP Terraform
      Workspaces
      Projects
      Users
      Teams
      Permissions
      Organizations
      Locking Workspaces
      Sentinel Policies
      Explorer
   HCP Terraform Sign-Up
      Creating an Account with HCP Terraform
      Creating an Account with HCP
   Exercises on Workflows and Execution Modes
      Remote Execution Mode Using the CLI-Driven Workflow
      Local Execution Mode Using the CLI-Driven Workflow
   Remote Execution Mode Using the VCS/UI Workflow
      Creating a Public GitHub Repository and Adding Configuration Files
      Integrating the VCS Repository with HCP Terraform
      Testing the VCS/UI Workflow in HCP Terraform
      Cost Estimation Feature
   Migrating to HCP Terraform or Terraform Enterprise
   Terraform Enterprise Features
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Miscellaneous Topics
   Technical Requirements
   Input Validations
   Preconditions and Postconditions
   The check {} block
   Workspaces
   The dynamic {} block
   Provisioners
      The file provisioner
      The local-exec provisioner
      The remote-exec provisioner
   Handling Sensitive Data
      AWS Access Keys or Admin Credentials
      Variables
      Output Values
   Next Steps
   Summary
   Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions
      Exam Readiness Drill
         ATTEMPT 1
         ATTEMPT 2
         ATTEMPT 3
   Working On Timing
Accessing the Online Practice Resources
   How to Access These Resources
      Purchased from Packt Store (packtpub.com)
      Packt+ Subscription
      Purchased from Amazon and Other Sources
         STEP 1
         STEP 2
         STEP 3
         STEP 4
         STEP 5
   Troubleshooting Tips
      Share Feedback
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