Terraform Associate

Last checked October 22, 2026 against the official HashiCorp exam page.

1. Question 1Read, generate, and modify configuration

   Which meta-argument creates one resource instance for each key in a map or set of strings?

   1. Acount, which creates instances indexed by number and works with integer values only
   2. Bdepends_on, which sets an explicit dependency between resources so that the graph orders them
   3. Cfor_each, which creates one instance per key in a map or set of strings
   4. Dlifecycle, which controls create-before-destroy and prevent_destroy behavior for a resource
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   Correct answer: C

   for_each creates instances keyed by map keys or set members, which gives stable addresses when items are added or removed. count indexes by number, depends_on orders resources, and lifecycle changes replacement behavior.

2. Question 2Implement and maintain state

   Two engineers start terraform apply at nearly the same time against the same remote backend. What prevents conflicting writes to the state?

   1. AState locking supplied by the backend, so the second run waits until the first run releases the lock
   2. BBucket versioning merges the two state files automatically at the end of each run
   3. CEach engineer's run writes to a separate state, so the two runs never share any state data at all
   4. DTerraform reads the state during apply but never writes to it, so concurrent applies cannot conflict
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   Correct answer: A

   Remote backends that support locking hold a lock during a run, so a second run waits or fails rather than overwriting the state. Versioning does not merge states, and Terraform writes state during apply.

3. Question 3Use the Terraform CLI

   Which command rewrites configuration files in the working directory into the canonical formatting style?

   1. Aterraform validate, which checks the configuration for syntax errors and internal consistency
   2. Bterraform fmt, which rewrites configuration files into the canonical formatting style
   3. Cterraform show, which prints the current state or a saved plan in a human-readable form
   4. Dterraform plan with the -out flag, which saves the execution plan to a file for later use
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   Correct answer: B

   terraform fmt applies the standard HCL formatting to files, which keeps code consistent across a team. Validate checks correctness, plan writes a plan file and show displays state or plans without changing formatting.

4. Question 4Interact with Terraform modules

   Which block calls a child module from a root configuration and passes input values to it?

   1. AA resource block, which declares a managed infrastructure object together with its arguments
   2. BA data block, which reads an existing object without managing its lifecycle in the configuration
   3. CA provider block, which sets the credentials and the region that are used for API calls
   4. DA module block, which names a source and passes input variables to the child module
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   Correct answer: D

   A module block references the child module's source and supplies its input variables. Resource, data and provider blocks do not call child modules.

5. Question 5Understand Terraform Cloud

   Which Terraform Cloud feature evaluates a run's plan against organization-wide rules before the apply step?

   1. APrivate registry, which stores and versions reusable modules for the organization's teams to share
   2. BVCS connection, which starts runs automatically when commits are pushed to the linked repository
   3. CPolicy as code, such as Sentinel or OPA policies that evaluate the plan before it is applied
   4. DVariable sets, which share environment variables and Terraform variables across many workspaces
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   Correct answer: C

   Policy as code evaluates the plan against rules, such as allowed regions or tag requirements, and can block the apply. The registry, variable sets and VCS integration support sharing and triggering runs rather than enforcing plan rules.