Do I have to learn Terraform to get a DevOps job?

As the intersection between development (Dev) and operations (Ops) continues to blend more seamlessly, the tools that facilitate this integration have become pivotal in the IT industry. Terraform, developed by HashiCorp, is one of these tools – a declarative coding tool that allows users to automate the setup of infrastructure. The question then arises: do you need to master Terraform to land a job in DevOps? This tutorial aims to explore Terraform’s role in DevOps to help you answer this question.

Understanding Terraform

Terraform is an “Infrastructure as Code” (IaC) tool that enables you to build, change, and version infrastructure safely and efficiently. This includes both low-level components such as compute instances, storage, and networking, as well as high-level components including DNS entries, SaaS features, etc. Terraform uses a declarative configuration language known as HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL) to describe the desired “end-state” of cloud or on-premises resources.

Does Terraform Equate to DevOps?

Terraform is a significant asset in the DevOps toolkit, but it’s not the sole skill required. DevOps encompasses a broad range of practices, tools, and cultural philosophies aimed at shortening the software development lifecycle and delivering features, fixes, and updates frequently in close alignment with business objectives.

Learning Terraform will significantly boost your ability to provision and manage infrastructure, which is a big part of DevOps. However, expertise in continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines, containerization, orchestration tools, and scripting are also pivotal. Knowledge of system administration, cloud services, and cybersecurity further complement a DevOps skill set.

Getting Started with Terraform

Before diving into code examples, let’s install Terraform. You can download Terraform from the official HashiCorp website. After downloading, unzip the package and add the Terraform binary to your PATH.

$ unzip terraform_0.12.0_darwin_amd64.zip
$ export PATH=$PATH:$(pwd)/terraform

Basic Configuration

Let’s start with a simple Terraform configuration that provisions a single AWS EC2 instance.

terraform {
  required_providers {
    aws = {
      source  = "hashicorp/aws"
      version = "~> 3.0"
    }
  }
}

provider "aws" {
  region = "us-east-1"
}

resource "aws_instance" "example" {
  ami           = "ami-0c55b159cbfafe1f0"
  instance_type = "t2.micro"
}

After creating this file, initialize your Terraform workspace:

$ terraform init

This command prepares your directory for Terrform operations and installs necessary plugins.

Applying Configuration

To create the resources described in your configuration, use:

$ terraform apply

Terraform will show a plan and ask for your confirmation before proceeding.

The above commands show the basic cycle of editing Terraform configurations, initializing the workspace, and applying the changes to create or modify resources.

Advanced Use: Networking and Security

Let’s enhance our initial setup by incorporating networking and security features.

resource "aws_vpc" "example_vpc" {
  cidr_block = "10.0.0.0/16"
}

resource "aws_subnet" "example_subnet" {
  vpc_id     = aws_vpc.example_vpc.id
  cidr_block = "10.0.1.0/24"
  availability_zone = "us-east-1a"
}

resource "aws_security_group" "example_sg" {
  name   = "example_sg"
  vpc_id = aws_vpc.example_vpc.id

  egress {
    from_port   = 0
    to_port     = 0
    protocol    = "-1"
    cidr_blocks = ["0.0.0.0/0"]
  }

  ingress {
    from_port   = 22
    to_port     = 22
    protocol    = "tcp"
    cidr_blocks = ["your_ip_address/32"]
  }
}

This configuration introduces a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), a subnet within the VPC, and a security group for our EC2 instance. Each resource is linked to one another, showcasing Terraform’s ability to manage complex dependencies.

Best Practices

As you dive deeper into Terraform, keep these best practices in mind:

• Use modules to organize resources.
• Employ providers for multiple infrastructure services.
• Version control your configurations to track changes and collaborate.

Conclusion

While mastering Terraform is beneficial and often sought after in DevOps roles, it is only one tool among many in the DevOps arsenal. Focusing on a broad skill set that includes Terraform along with other tools and practices is more likely to ensure success in a DevOps career.