Terraform Writeup 1

Preparing for Terraform Automation

Writeup 1

Overview

This writeup details the initial steps and preparations for implementing Terraform automation in my homelab environment.

Primary Uses for Terraform Automation

  • Provisioning VMs on Proxmox
  • Managing networking resources like VLANs and firewall rules
  • Automating updates and scaling of resources

Steps Taken

  • Reviewed and cleaned up my Unifi Controller VM to ensure it is minimal and usable for the future.
    • Disabled unused services to reduce overhead and improve security.
    • Confirmed and optimized network configurations to ensure correct VLAN tagging and firewall rules.
    • Cleared out unnecessary files and logs to minimize disk usage.
    • Checked for updates and applied patches to ensure a stable environment.
  • Created a Proxmox template from the clean VM to use as a golden image for future deployments.
    • Set up template configuration in Proxmox to automate deployment.
    • Tested the template by deploying a VM to ensure correct configuration.
  • Set up and initialized Terraform on Proxmox.
    • Installed Terraform on the Proxmox host and configured the provider for Proxmox.
    • Validated the installation by running a simple test to ensure connectivity to the Proxmox API.

Future Plans

I plan to expand the Terraform automation to include additional network components, automated backups, and golden images for the VMs I use and deploy in my environment. The goal is to make my homelab management as automated and efficient as possible.