Overview

Updated in May 2025. This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as you progress through the course. This course is designed to supercharge your Terraform development workflow using GitHub Copilot and AI tools. You will learn how to harness the power of GitHub Copilot to streamline the process of writing, managing, and enhancing Terraform configurations. By the end, you will be able to leverage Copilot's AI-driven code suggestions, automate mundane tasks, and improve your productivity. You’ll begin with an introduction to GitHub Copilot, exploring its capabilities and limitations, and how it can elevate your coding experience. The course also covers Terraform basics, including how it works with Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and offers hands-on demos to solidify your understanding of its core functionality. Next, you will dive into the setup process, learning how to integrate Copilot into your IDE and configure Terraform on both MacOS and Windows. With these tools in place, you’ll start a new Terraform project using Copilot’s guidance, refining your code, and utilizing Copilot’s features like documentation generation and test creation. The course concludes with a focus on advanced Copilot features such as Copilot Chat for real-time assistance and Copilot’s role in code management, including automating .gitignore file creation and commit message drafting. By the end, you will have a fully functional Terraform development environment optimized with GitHub Copilot.

Syllabus

Introduction

In this module, we will introduce the core purpose and structure of the course, offering a high-level overview of how GitHub Copilot can be used to enhance Terraform development. You'll get familiar with feedback mechanisms and dive into the basics of AI-assisted coding. We'll also examine the constraints and responsible use of generative AI tools.

Introduction to HashiCorp Terraform

In this module, we will lay the groundwork for working with Terraform by exploring its role in Infrastructure as Code. You'll gain a conceptual understanding of how Terraform operates and see it in action through a hands-on demo. This section prepares you for more advanced applications in later modules.

Setting Up Your Environment

In this module, we will walk through the complete environment setup required for the course, ensuring you're equipped with the right tools and access. You'll subscribe to GitHub Copilot, install VSCode, and configure essential extensions. Additionally, we’ll guide you through installing Terraform on both MacOS and Windows, and setting up your AWS credentials for secure cloud interactions.

Terraform Development

In this module, we will dive into hands-on Terraform development powered by GitHub Copilot. You’ll learn how to generate, expand, and optimize infrastructure code with AI assistance. From writing your first configuration to modularizing your codebase, this section equips you to build scalable and maintainable Terraform projects.

GitHub Copilot Chat

In this module, we will explore GitHub Copilot Chat and how it enhances the development experience through conversational AI. You'll learn to access and navigate chat features, use threads and agents efficiently, and improve Copilot’s output by adjusting context. This section also shows how to ask questions directly in your code editor to get quick, targeted assistance.

Using Copilot to Improve and Manage Our Code

In this module, we will focus on using GitHub Copilot to handle essential but repetitive development tasks. You'll learn how Copilot can automatically generate a .gitignore file and assist with writing clear, concise commit messages. These practices help improve code quality, organization, and version management efficiency.

Cleaning Up Your Environment!

In this module, we will guide you through the process of cleaning up your development environment after working with Terraform. You’ll learn how to deprovision resources, uninstall tools, and tidy up configurations. This ensures a secure and optimized workspace for future projects.

Course Wrap-Up!

In this module, we will review the major insights gained during the course and highlight how GitHub Copilot and Terraform can transform your development workflow. You'll also receive guidance on where to go next to deepen your skills and stay current in the evolving DevOps and AI tooling landscape.