# Exercise: Creating a Configuration with Variables and Outputs

# Objective

Participants will create a Terraform configuration that uses variables to define a Resource Group and outputs to display its name and location. This exercise will help participants understand how to use variables for flexible configurations and outputs to extract useful information.

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# Steps

# Step 1: Create a variables.tf File with Input Variables

1. Create a variables.tf File:

   • Open your code editor (e.g., VS Code or IntelliJ).
   • In your project directory, create a new file named variables.tf.

2. Define Variables for Resource Group Name and Location:

   • In variables.tf, add the following code to define the resource_group_name and location variables:

     variable "resource_group_name" {
       description = "The name of the resource group"
       type        = string
       default     = "myResourceGroup"
     }
     
     variable "location" {
       description = "The Azure region to deploy resources"
       type        = string
       default     = "East US"
     }

   • These variables allow the configuration to dynamically set the Resource Group name and location, making it easy to reuse the code for different projects or environments.

3. Save the variables.tf File.

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# Step 2: Create a main.tf File that Uses the Variables

1. Create a main.tf File:

   • In the same project directory, create a new file named main.tf.

2. Add Resource Group Configuration Using Variables:

   • In main.tf, define a Resource Group resource and use the variables defined in variables.tf to set its name and location:

     resource "azurerm_resource_group" "example" {
       name     = var.resource_group_name
       location = var.location
     }

   • Here, var.resource_group_name and var.location reference the values of the variables, making the configuration flexible.

3. Save the main.tf File.

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# Step 3: Create an outputs.tf File to Display Resource Information

1. Create an outputs.tf File:

   • In your project directory, create a new file named outputs.tf.

2. Define Output Values for Resource Group Name and Location:

   • In outputs.tf, add the following code to define outputs that display the Resource Group’s name and location:

     output "resource_group_name" {
       description = "The name of the resource group"
       value       = azurerm_resource_group.example.name
     }
     
     output "resource_group_location" {
       description = "The location of the resource group"
       value       = azurerm_resource_group.example.location
     }

   • These output values will provide useful information about the provisioned resources when terraform apply completes.

3. Save the outputs.tf File.

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# Step 4: Run terraform plan and terraform apply to Provision the Resource Group and Display Outputs

1. Initialize the Terraform Project:

   • In the terminal, navigate to the project directory and run:

     terraform init

   • This command will download necessary provider plugins and prepare the project for deployment.

2. Run terraform plan to Preview the Changes:

   • Use terraform plan to verify the configuration and preview the changes Terraform will make:

     terraform plan

   • Review the output to ensure that Terraform will create a Resource Group with the specified name and location.

3. Run terraform apply to Create the Resource Group:

   • Apply the configuration to create the Resource Group on Azure:

     terraform apply

   • Type yes when prompted to confirm the apply operation.

4. Review the Output Values:

   • After terraform apply completes, check the terminal output to see the values for resource_group_name and resource_group_location.
   • Example output:

     Apply complete! Resources: 1 added, 0 changed, 0 destroyed.
     
     Outputs:
     
     resource_group_name = "myResourceGroup"
     resource_group_location = "East US"

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# Verification

• Check the Azure Portal:

  • Go to the Azure Portal and navigate to Resource Groups.
  • Verify that the Resource Group named myResourceGroup was created in the specified location (e.g., "East US").

• Confirm Output Values:

  • Ensure that the output values for resource_group_name and resource_group_location displayed in the terminal match the values in the Azure Portal.

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