Terraform Certified Associate with AWS — Lesson 2: Building AWS Networking and Compute with Reusable Inputs

Lesson Overview

This lesson focuses on Building AWS Networking and Compute with Reusable Inputs and its role in the wider combining Terraform Associate preparation with practical AWS networking, compute, identity, storage, modules, remote state, and change-control workflows workflow.

Learners work with the actual design choices, dependencies, controls, and failure modes that distinguish this topic from a generic Terraform exercise.

Technical Scope

VPC, subnets, route tables, gateways, and security groups
EC2 instances, AMIs, instance profiles, and user data
for_each, maps, conditionals, and dynamic resource patterns
Outputs, dependencies, and connectivity verification

Instructor Demonstration

Deploy a two-tier network and compute instance from typed maps.

Applied Workshop

Create public and private subnet variants without duplicating resource blocks.

Translate the scenario into configuration, access, state, pipeline, or module decisions.
Implement the change in a controlled workspace or repository.
Capture the plan, logs, outputs, policy results, and post-change checks.
Explain one safer or more maintainable alternative and its trade-off.

Validation Standard

Routing and security align with the design and resource addressing remains stable.

The intended target, identity, environment, and state boundary are confirmed.
The plan or execution evidence contains no unexplained destructive action.
Security, reliability, maintainability, and operational ownership are reviewed.
The final result can be reproduced from version-controlled inputs.

Failure Analysis

Resolve CIDR overlap, route errors, AMI mismatch, failed user data, and unstable keys.

Learners isolate the smallest verified cause, correct it, rerun the relevant validation step, and record the preventive action in the course improvement log.

Terraform Certified Associate with AWS 1 Section4 Lessons32 Hours

Curriculum