Terraform:Use Terraform to Quickly Create Resources

Create resources using custom parameters

To configure parameters based on your needs, follow these steps:

1. Log on to Terraform Explorer. Select a product and a resource type. Fill in parameters using the resource documentation. Click Start debugging.

   The main parameters for creating a VPC are listed below. For more parameter details, see alicloud_vpc.

   Parameter Name	Description	Example value
   vpc_name	VPC name	tf-test-vpc
   cidr_block	Private CIDR block for the VPC	192.168.0.0/16
   description	Description of the VPC	The VPC was created using Terraform.

   

2. In the Template details tab, confirm your parameters are correct. Click Preview to view the execution plan.

   

3. In the Preview details tab, review the resources to be created. Click Execute.

   

4. In the Execution details tab, check the result. A successful execution returns "Apply complete! Resources: 1 added, 0 changed, 0 destroyed.". If it fails, adjust your parameters and debug again.

   

5. In the Resource details tab, view information about the created resource.

   

6. (Optional) Modify the resource: Adjust parameters and click Preview and execute. Repeat steps 2–4. A successful update returns "Apply complete! Resources: 0 added, 1 changed, 0 destroyed.".

   

7. (Optional) Release the resource: In the Execution details tab, click Destroy resources. Then in the Preview details tab, click Execute.

   

Create resources using a sample template

If you are unfamiliar with resource parameters or want a quick start, use a sample template from Terraform Explorer.

1. Log on to Terraform Explorer. Select a product, a resource type, and a sample template. Click Start debugging. View the template details in the Sample template tab on the right.

   

2. In the Template details tab, click Preview and execute.

   

3. In the Execution details tab, view the execution result.

   

4. (Optional) To release the created resource, click the Execution details tab, click Destroy resources. Then in the Preview details tab, click Execute.

   

Alibaba Cloud Cloud Shell is a free operations and maintenance tool. It comes pre-installed with Terraform and configured with identity credentials. You can run Terraform commands directly.

Verify the installation

Run this command to confirm Terraform is installed correctly:

terraform version

If the command runs successfully and displays the version number, the installation is complete.

This example creates an ECS instance to show the full Terraform orchestration workflow: create a VPC → create a vSwitch → create a security group → create an ECS instance.

1. Create a working directory and write the Terraform configuration file main.tf:

   mkdir tf-demo && cd tf-demo
   vim main.tf

   Copy the following code into main.tf:

   provider "alicloud" {
     region = var.region
   }
   
   # Region for resource creation
   variable "region" {
     default = "cn-beijing"
   }
   
   # ECS instance name
   variable "instance_name" {
     default = "tf-cloudshell-test"
   }
   
   # ECS instance type
   variable "instance_type" {
     default = "ecs.n2.small"
   }
   
   # Outbound public bandwidth, value 0 means no public network access
   variable "internet_bandwidth" {
     default = 10
   }
   
   # ECS OS image
   variable "image_id" {
     default = "ubuntu_18_04_64_20G_alibase_20190624.vhd"
   }
   
   # ECS system disk type
   variable "disk_category" {
     default = "cloud_efficiency"
   }
   # ECS instance logon password
   variable "password" {
     default = "TF-test@1234"
   }
   
   # Create a VPC
   resource "alicloud_vpc" "vpc" {
     vpc_name   = "tf_test_foo"
     cidr_block = "172.16.0.0/12"
   }
   
   # Query available zones based on instance type and disk category
   data "alicloud_zones" "default" {
     available_disk_category     = var.disk_category
     available_resource_creation = "VSwitch"
     available_instance_type     = var.instance_type
   }
   
   # Create a vSwitch
   resource "alicloud_vswitch" "vsw" {
     vpc_id     = alicloud_vpc.vpc.id
     cidr_block = "172.16.0.0/21"
     zone_id    = data.alicloud_zones.default.zones.0.id
   }
   
   # Create a security group
   resource "alicloud_security_group" "default" {
     security_group_name   = "default"
     vpc_id = alicloud_vpc.vpc.id
   }
   
   # Create an inbound rule for the security group
   resource "alicloud_security_group_rule" "allow_all_tcp" {
     type              = "ingress"
     ip_protocol       = "tcp"
     nic_type          = "intranet"
     policy            = "accept"
     port_range        = "1/65535"
     priority          = 1
     security_group_id = alicloud_security_group.default.id
     cidr_ip           = "0.0.0.0/0"
   }
   
   resource "alicloud_instance" "instance" {
     # Attach security group
     security_groups = alicloud_security_group.default.*.id
     instance_type = var.instance_type
     system_disk_category = var.disk_category
     image_id = var.image_id
     instance_name = var.instance_name
     # vSwitch
     vswitch_id = alicloud_vswitch.vsw.id
     internet_max_bandwidth_out = var.internet_bandwidth
     password  = var.password
   }

   Important

   The security group rule in this example opens all TCP ports (1–65535) and allows traffic from any IP address (0.0.0.0/0). Use this only in test environments. In production, restrict ports and source IP addresses as needed.

2. Initialize the Terraform working directory:

   terraform init

3. Preview the execution plan to confirm which resources will be created:

   terraform plan

   

4. Create the resources. The output "Apply complete!" means success:

   terraform apply

   

5. To release these resources, run:

   terraform destroy