Skip to main content
Welcome — this lesson prepares the machine you’ll use for hands-on Terraform labs and exercises. We’ll make sure your workstation has Terraform, a suitable code editor, and authenticated cloud provider access so you can run examples without interruption.
A man is speaking on camera with a purple banner above him that reads "Preparing Your Environment." Behind him is a shelving unit holding books, plants, and assorted decorative items, giving an office or studio feel.
In this lesson you’ll complete three primary setup tasks:
  • Install Terraform on macOS, Linux, or Windows — platform-specific instructions are provided so you can follow the steps for your OS.
  • Install Visual Studio Code (VS Code) or another code editor if you don’t already have one.
  • Configure cloud provider credentials so Terraform can authenticate for examples. Coverage includes AWS, Azure, and GitHub providers with links and best practices.
Why these steps matter:
  • Terraform needs to be installed and on your PATH to initialize working directories and download providers.
  • A code editor with syntax highlighting and extensions improves productivity and reduces errors.
  • Properly configured credentials prevent authentication failures and avoid exposing secret keys in your configuration.
Before you begin, confirm your machine has basic developer tools: command-line access (Terminal or PowerShell), an unzip utility, and sufficient permissions to install software. A stable internet connection is required to download packages and provider plugins.
To help you follow along, this table summarizes the topics with recommended reference links:
Keep credentials and secret keys secure: avoid committing secrets to version control, use environment variables or credential files with proper permissions, and consider using a secrets manager or workspaces for team environments.
That’s the scope for this introduction. Next, we’ll walk through installing Terraform on your operating system, then set up VS Code and configure provider credentials so you’re ready to run the hands-on labs.

Watch Video