8. Challenges

Challenges

After completing all the labs, try tackling the following challenges from scratch, without relying on existing Terraform code. Each challenge is independent—pick the one that interests you most!

Challenge #1: Upgrade Provider Version (Entry Level)

In the Azure Workshop, an outdated versions has been used. In this challenge, you’ll modernize the code whole base.

Objectives

Using Terraform, complete the following tasks:

• Upgrade the Terraform code to use the latest version of the azurerm provider
• Identify any deprecated or removed resources and either migrate them to supported alternatives or re-provision the components
• Update Kubernetes specific versions for used software as well

Challenge #2: Azure Key Vault + External Secrets Operator (Advanced)

Kubernetes applications often require access to sensitive credentials. Rather than passing them during deployment, this challenge uses External Secrets Operator to securely replicate secrets from Azure Key Vault into Kubernetes.

Objectives

Using Terraform, implement the following:

• Use the existing “Azure Workshop” Terraform stack at $LAB_ROOT/azure
• Create an Azure Key Vault instance
• Add a new secret to Key Vault
  • Manually modify the secret later via the Azure Portal
• Configure AKS OIDC (OpenID Connect) to enable Federated Identity for workload authentication
• Deploy the External Secrets Operator to the AKS cluster
  • Grant permissions to the operator via an Azure User-Assigned Managed Identity
• Manually create an ExternalSecret custom resource to sync the Key Vault secret into a target Kubernetes namespace