14 - Nginx Automation

Working Code: terraform/exercise-14-nginx/

The Problem: The server from Exercise 13 is empty. You have to SSH in and install software manually.

The Solution: Use user_data to run a shell script automatically on first boot.

How-to

1. Write the Script

#!/bin/bash
apt update
apt install -y nginx
systemctl start nginx
systemctl enable nginx

2. Pass to Terraform

resource "hcloud_server" "web" {
  user_data = file("nginx_setup.sh")
}

3. Apply

terraform apply
# Wait ~60 seconds for apt update
curl http://<server_ip>  # Welcome to Nginx!

Problems & Learnings

Common Issues

• nginx not running after apply — user_data only runs on first boot. If you applied without destroying first, the script won't re-run. Destroy and re-apply to trigger it.

Key Takeaways

• user_data runs once on first boot — it is not re-executed on terraform apply if the server already exists
• Use systemctl status nginx and curl http://localhost to confirm nginx is both running and serving

Related Exercises

• 15 - Cloud-init