Create & Connect EKS Cluster using Terraform

In this Blog, we’ll explore the seamless integration of Terraform and Amazon EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service). Learn how to efficiently set up your environment, create EKS clusters, connect to them, deploy applications, and troubleshoot common issues. Whether you’re new to Kubernetes or a seasoned pro, this article will equip you with the skills to optimize your infrastructure management on AWS. Let’s get started!

In this article, we will discuss:

1. Introduction to EKS
2. Overview of Terraform
3. Setting up an AWS account
4. Installing Terraform
5. Writing Terraform configuration files
6. Running the Terraform Code
7. Install & Configure KubeCTL
8. Destroy the EKS Cluster
9. Conclusion
10. FAQs

Introduction to EKS

Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) is a managed Kubernetes service offered by Amazon Web Services (AWS). It simplifies the process of deploying, managing, and scaling containerized applications using Kubernetes. With EKS, users can leverage the power of Kubernetes without the hassle of managing the underlying infrastructure.

Benefits of using EKS

EKS offers several advantages, including:

• Fully managed Kubernetes control plane
• Seamless integration with AWS services
• Automatic scaling and high availability
• Enhanced security features

To Know More: Amazon EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service)

Overview of Terraform

Terraform is an open-source infrastructure as code (IaC) tool developed by HashiCorp. It allows users to define and provision infrastructure resources using a declarative configuration language. Terraform supports multiple cloud providers, including AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud Platform, making it a versatile choice for managing cloud infrastructure.

What is Terraform?

Terraform uses a simple, human-readable syntax called HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL) to describe the desired state of infrastructure resources. It then automates the process of provisioning and managing those resources, ensuring consistency and reproducibility.

To Know More: Terraform

Setting up an AWS account

Before getting started with EKS and Terraform, you’ll need an AWS account. If you don’t have one already, you can sign up for a free tier account on the AWS website. Once you have an account, you’ll need to set up an IAM user with the necessary permissions for managing AWS resources.

1. To create an AWS account, visit the AWS website and follow the instructions for creating a new account. You’ll need to provide some basic information, such as your email address, phone number, and payment method.
2. After creating your AWS account, you’ll need to set up an IAM user with programmatic access and the necessary permissions for managing EKS clusters. This includes permissions to create and manage EC2 instances, IAM roles, and other resources required by EKS.

To Know More: Get Started with AWS

Installing Terraform

To use Terraform for provisioning infrastructure, you’ll need to install it on your local machine.

Installing Terraform on your local machine

Terraform provides precompiled binaries for various operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux. You can download the appropriate binary from the Terraform website and install it using the provided installation instructions.

Verifying Terraform installation

Once Terraform is installed, you can verify the installation by running the terraform command in your terminal. If the installation was successful, you should see the Terraform version number printed to the console.

To Know More: Install Terraform on Windows, MAC, Linux

Writing Terraform configuration files

Terraform uses configuration files to define the desired state of infrastructure resources.

Provider.tf

Create provider.tf file to specify aws terraform provider.

Copy-paste the provider file form below GitHub Link

eks-cluster.tf

Create a new file named eks-cluster.tf. In this file we will add the code to create all the required Policies, Master nodes, and worker nodes.

The following arguments we are using for eks cluster:

• name – Name of the
• role_arn – ARN of the IAM role that provides permissions for the Kubernetes control plane to make calls to AWS API operations on your
• vpc_config – Configuration block for the VPC associated with your
• tags – Key-value map of resource

The following arguments we are using for eks node group:

• cluster_name – Name of the EKS
• node_group_name – Name of the EKS Node
• node_role_arn – Amazon Resource Name (ARN) of the IAM Role that provides permissions for the EKS Node
• subnet_ids – Identifiers of EC2 Subnets to associate with the EKS Node
• scaling_config – Configuration block with scaling settings.

The following argument is for the policy attachment resource block:

• policy_arn – The ARN of the policy you want to apply

Copy-paste the cluster creation file form below GitHub Link

Note: Replace the Subnet ID’s with your default VPC’s subnet ID’s in both the “aws_eks_node_group” and “aws_eks_cluster” resource blocks.

• To do so, open the AWS console and go to VPC

• Open Subnet, make sure the eu-west-3 region is selected as in the above code we have used the eu-west-3 region. If you are using a different region, use the subnet ID according to your region.

• Copy the subnet IDs and paste them in the terraform.

Outputs.tf

At last, we will create an output.tf file to show us the required output after the cluster is created.

Note: After creating the EKS cluster this will give you the cluster name and resource group name which we will be using in the next section.

Copy-paste the output creation file form below GitHub Link

Running the Terraform Code

1. For that open the command prompt and go to the folder in which you have the above code file and run the below It will install all the required plugins needed.

terraform init

2. Run the following command. This will do the dry run and tell what all resources it will build, without actually building.

terraform plan

3. At last, run the below command it will build all the infrastructure required.

terraform apply

Note: It can take 10-15 minutes to create the cluster.

4. Now, we can check the EKS cluster has been To check follow the below steps:

• Login to AWS
• Search for EKS from the search bar

• Look for eks-cluster-demo cluster that we created

• To check the worker node, click on the cluster > configuration > compute.

Now we have successfully created our EKS cluster using Terraform.

Install & Configure KubeCTL

Note: The kubectl command-line tool lets you control Kubernetes clusters.

1. To install kubectl utility the refer to the below link and download it according to your Operating System:

Download KubeCTL

2. Check your Cluster Name & Region Name where the EKS Master node is running from the console

3. Check the status of the Cluster as

aws eks --region [EKS_Region] describe-cluster --name [EKS_Cluster_Name] --query cluster.status

Note: Change [EKS_Region]  & [EKS_Cluster_Name] values according to your values.

4. Configure kubectl with EKS API Server credential

aws eks --region [EKS_Region] update-kubeconfig --name [EKS_Cluster_Name]

5. Validate kubectl configuration to master node

kubectl get svc

6. Watch the status of your nodes and wait for them to reach the Ready.

kubectl get nodes --watch

Note: After creating the cluster if you are no longer using that clusteí then teíminate/delete the clusteí to avoid the changes.

Destroy the EKS Cluster

To destroy the whole infrastructure created use the below command. It will destroy all the above-created.

terraform destroy

All the created resources will be deleted. We can check on the AWS console as well.

• Log in to the console and search for EKS and you will see all the resources of EKS Cluster have been deleted.

Conclusion

In conclusion, creating and connecting an EKS cluster using Terraform is a straightforward process that allows you to leverage the power of Kubernetes in a managed AWS environment. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can quickly deploy and manage containerized applications on EKS with ease.

FAQs

Related/References

• Terraform Installation Overview
• HashiCorp Infrastructure Automation Certification: Terraform Associate
• Resource Manager In Oracle Cloud Infrastructure
• HashiCorp Certified Terraform Associate
• How to Provision AWS Infrastructure with Terraform?
• Terraform Cheat Sheet
• Why Choose Terraform Over Chef, Ansible, Puppet or CloudFormation?

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