Deploy a Terraform IBM Module using Terraform CLI

Objectives

By the end of this tutorial, you will be able to:

• Configure and manage variables in modules using terraform.tfvars.
• Use Terraform CLI commands to deploy and manage resources.

While this tutorial uses the Cloud Object Storage module as an example, the skills gained here will be transferable to all Terraform modules.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following:

• Git CLI installed.
• Terraform CLI.
• IBM Cloud apikey to access the IBM Cloud.

Clone the repository

Start by cloning the GitHub repository containing the Terraform module.

You can use git clone command as follows:

git clone https://github.com/terraform-ibm-modules/terraform-ibm-cos.git

Understand the code

In the root of the cloned project, there exists a folder called examples. The examples directory contains working demonstrations of how to use the module. Each example is a complete, runnable Terraform configuration. This tutorial uses the basic example. Navigate to this example directory as follows:

cd terraform-ibm-cos/examples/basic

This example provisions the following resources:

• A new resource group (if an existing one is not provided)
• An IBM Cloud Object Storage instance
• Two buckets in the newly provisioned Object Storage instance

Configure the variables

Create a new file named terraform.tfvars in the basic folder. This file is used to provide values for the input variables in the variables.tf file.

In the basic example, the module defines various input variables in variables.tf. Some variables such as ibmcloud_api_key, prefix and region, don't have default values, making them required. Terraform needs the values for the required variables. Defining them in terraform.tfvars enables automatic loading. The prefix variable is a string added to the beginning of resource names to keep them organized and easily identifiable.

Add these required variables in the file:

ibmcloud_api_key = "<your-api-key>"
prefix = "tf-demo" # you can choose a prefix of your choice
region = "us-south"

Review the variables.tf file and update terraform.tfvars to override any default values do not meet your requirements.

Initialize Terraform

Initialize Terraform in the working directory (examples/basic) using the following command:

terraform init

This command downloads and installs plugins for the required providers as specified in providers.tf.

Generate execution plan

Run the following command:

terraform plan

This command displays the execution plan, which provides a preview of the changes Terraform intends to make to your infrastructure based on your configuration files, allowing you to review and verify the proposed changes.

For this basic example, the command output shows that:

• A new resource group called <your-prefix>-resource-group will be created
• A Cloud Object Storage instance will be created
• Two buckets will be created in the chosen region

Deploy the resources

Run the following command to begin the deployment:

terraform apply

Approve the deployment when prompted, by typing yes. Alternatively, you may use terraform apply -auto-approve to automatically approve the changes. Once confirmed, Terraform will begin provisioning all resources defined in the execution plan. This step make take some time depending on the configuration.

Verify the deployed resources

After Terraform completes applying the configuration, verify that the resources have been successfully created in your IBM Cloud account. To verify the resources:

• Go to the IBM Cloud dashboard.
• Navigate to Resource List in the left panel.
• Check under the appropriate category (Storage in this case), or you can search for the prefix that was used for the deployment.

The module has been deployed successfully, and you can now see the resources on the dashboard. You’re all set to start using them.

Clean-up the resources

When the resources deployed are no longer needed, you can clean up your environment by removing everything Terraform created. Use the following command to perform this step:

terraform destroy

This will show a summary of the resources that will be removed. Once you confirm, Terraform will initiate delete requests for all resources managed by the module.

Cleaning up is important to avoid unnecessary charges for cloud resources and keeps your IBM Cloud account organized. Even small resources, like storage buckets, can accumulate costs over time.

What you learned

By completing this tutorial, you have:

• Learned how to provide values for input variables using the terraform.tfvars file.
• Practiced using essential Terraform CLI commands such as init, plan and apply to provision cloud resources using a terraform-ibm-module.

Although this tutorial used the Cloud Object Storage module as an example, these learnings apply to any Terraform IBM module, providing a reusable pattern you can apply across your infrastructure projects.