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Advanced Terraform

Course Summary

This Advanced Terraform training course is designed to demonstrate a rounded knowledge and experience with managing infrastructure with Terraform, specifically in AWS.

The course begins with a review of basic and intermediate topics of highly complex use-cases and practices. Next, it explores approaches to working with Hashicorp Configuration Language (HCL) and Terraform projects and modules in practical, advanced ways. The course concludes by explaining how to automate Terraform in continuous integration pipelines, ensure reliability and security, as well as design and architect at scale.

Prerequisites: A solid foundation with Terraform code in practice is expected.

Purpose
 Learn how to use Terraform to build and scale highly reliable infrastructure.
Audience
 Developers, System Administrators and DevOps Engineers wanting to learn how to utilize Terraform to manage AWS applications.
Role
DevOps Engineer - System Administrator
Skill Level
Advanced
Style
Workshops
Duration
2 Days
Related Technologies
AWS | DevOps Training | Terraform

 

Productivity Objectives
  • Develop and maintain Terraform projects at scale
  • Demonstrate expertise with HCL and some of the more-advanced expression language capabilities and practices
  • Utilize various automation tools and processes for managing Terraform ops in continuous integration and delivery pipelines, including testing and quality assurance tools and processes
  • Act as an expert in any existing or new Terraform project or module

What You'll Learn:

In the Advanced Terraform training course, you'll learn:
  • Terraform Core Concepts Review
    • The CLI and all available sub-commands
    • The flow of Terraform operations
    • State and its importance (as well as fragility)
    • Hashicorp Configuration Language (HCL), pre 0.12 and post 0.12
  • Designing More Complex Terraform Projects and Modules
    • Approaches to Modularization
      • Single-project, multi-module scenarios
      • Multi-project related infrastructure, single and hybrid cloud or platform
      • Root module decomposition
        • Working with new and legacy monolithic projects alike, approaches to thoughtful Terraform project organization
  • Developing and Managing More Complex Terraform Projects and Modules
    • Comprehensive best practices
    • Module versions
    • Share and focus on DRY
    • Complex provider scenarios across projects and modules
    • Introduce Terraform Null Label and its utility
  • An Introduction to Make + Makefile
    • Automate repetitive tasks in Terraform projects using a reliable, standard linux tool
  • Advanced Terraform tool and CLI understanding
    • Understand state and the state file
    • State migration, management in complex scenarios
    • Terraform import approaches in complex scenarios
    • Approach mistakes and messes
      • Drift that's gotten out of hand
      • Corrupted or irreparable state
      • Know what can't be fixed
      • Proactively ensure that you don't end up in this position with Terraform
  • HCL Advanced Topics
    • Advanced configuration language expression features:
      • Re-usability approaches
      • Loops, meta-arguments
      • For expressions
      • Types in the context of expressions
  • Hardening Security for Terraform
    • Shift left Terraform security, defense in depth
    • State files and security
    • Manage credentials and secrets: least privilege, rotation, protection
    • Where and how security can break down in Terraform workflows
  • Reliability of Infrastructure and Testing
    • What automated and manual testing frameworks and methods are available currently?
      • The current state of affairs leaves a lot to be desired, e.g. terratest
    • Drift and mitigate unexpected consequences in realistic scenarios
    • Developer responsibility vs automated testing, git hooks for validation, terraform-pre-commit, etc.
  • Automating Terraform, Terraform in Pipelines
    • Terraform with Spinnaker
    • Use automated delivery pipelines to improve quality assurance, stability, and reliability of infrastructure and Terraform deployments
    • Terraform and GitOps: approaches to adopting GitOps in Terraform workflows
    • Terraform Cloud and Enterprise overview, a look at how these offerings improve Terraform workflows and what other tools/processes exist out there to serve the same need: custom CI/CD pipelines for Terraform, tools like Atlantis, etc.
  • Complex AWS infrastructure with Terraform
    • Case studies and interactive real examples
real world content

Real-World Content

Project-focused demos and labs using your tool stack and environment, not some canned "training room" lab.
expert practitioners

Expert Practitioners

Industry experts that bring their battle scars into the classroom.
experiential learning

Experiential Learning

More coding than lecture, coupled with architectural and design discussions.
tailored outlines

Tailored Outlines

One-size-fits-all doesn't apply to training teams. That's where we come in!
“I appreciated the instructor's technique of writing live code examples rather than using fixed slide decks to present the material.”

VMware

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By filling out this form and clicking submit, you acknowledge our privacy policy.