Stop Running `terraform apply` From Your Laptop: Building Your First Terraform CI/CD Pipeline with GitHub Actions

Short summary

A beginner-friendly guide to building a Terraform CI/CD pipeline with GitHub Actions, replacing manual laptop-based deployments. Covers two separate workflows: CI for fmt/validate/plan checks and deployment for apply after manual approval. Includes repository structure, step-by-step explanations, and a comparison of manual vs automated deployment risks.

• •Two-workflow design: CI validates code, deployment applies after approval
• •Manual deployment risks include untracked changes, credential exposure, and inconsistent environments
• •Covers terraform fmt, init, validate, plan, and apply stages with rationale for each

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