Terraform Cloud Terraform Enterprise Remote Operations Collaboration DevOps

Terraform Cloud and Terraform Enterprise: A Complete Guide

Published on: November 10, 2023 | Author: DevOps Engineering Team

Master Terraform's collaboration platforms - from free-tier Terraform Cloud to enterprise-grade solutions. Learn remote operations, team workflows, and security features.

What You'll Learn

• TFC vs TFE Overview
• Key Features Comparison
• Getting Started with TFC
• Remote Operations
• Team Collaboration
• Security & Governance

Terraform Cloud vs Terraform Enterprise

Understand the differences between HashiCorp's managed and self-managed Terraform platforms.

🚀 Terraform Cloud

Fully managed SaaS platform for teams and individuals.

• Free tier available
• Remote state storage
• Remote operations
• VCS integration
• Team management
• Private registry

🏢 Terraform Enterprise

Self-managed platform for enterprise requirements.

• All TFC features
• Private installation
• Enhanced security
• Audit logging
• SAML/SSO integration
• Premium support

Choosing the Right Platform

Terraform Cloud is ideal for most teams needing collaboration features. Terraform Enterprise is for organizations requiring private deployment, enhanced security, and compliance features.

Key Features Comparison

Detailed comparison of capabilities across both platforms.

Feature	Terraform Cloud	Terraform Enterprise
Pricing Model	Free + Paid Tiers	Annual Subscription
Deployment	SaaS (Managed)	Self-Hosted
Remote Operations	✓	✓
Private Module Registry	✓	✓
SAML/SSO	Team & Governance Tiers	✓
Audit Logging	Governance Tier	✓
Sentinel Policies	Team & Governance Tiers	✓

Getting Started with Terraform Cloud

Set up your first workspace and configure remote operations.

1

Create Terraform Cloud Account

# Sign up at https://app.terraform.io
# Verify email and create organization
# Generate user API token for CLI

2

Configure CLI Backend

# terraform.tf
terraform {
  cloud {
    organization = "your-org-name"
    
    workspaces {
      name = "production-network"
    }
  }
}

# Then run:
terraform login
terraform init

3

Set Workspace Variables

# In TFC UI, set environment variables:
# - AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID (sensitive)
# - AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY (sensitive)
# - TF_VAR_environment = "production"

# Or configure in workspace:
terraform {
  cloud {
    organization = "your-org"
    
    workspaces {
      name = "production"
    }
  }
}

Terraform Cloud Setup Helper

Select a setup scenario to see configuration examples:

Select a setup scenario to see configuration examples...

Remote Operations

Execute Terraform runs remotely with enhanced capabilities.

Remote Plan and Apply

# With TFC backend configured:
terraform plan   # Runs remotely
terraform apply  # Runs remotely

# Monitor in TFC UI
# View logs and outputs
# Cost estimation available

Run Triggers

# Automatic runs on VCS changes
# Manual runs via CLI/API
# Scheduled runs (cron)

# Example: Auto-apply on merge
# - VCS branch: main
# - Auto-apply: enabled
# - Trigger: pull request merge

Remote Operations Benefits

✅ Consistent execution environment ✅ Shared state locking ✅ Enhanced security ✅ Cost estimation ✅ Run history and auditing

Team Collaboration Features

Enable effective teamwork with Terraform Cloud's collaboration tools.

Team Workflow Architecture

Developer

→

VCS Pull Request

→

TFC Plan

→

Team Review

→

TFC Apply

→

Infrastructure

Collaboration Feature	Description	Benefit
Team Permissions	Role-based access control	Granular security
Run Policies	Manual apply vs auto-apply	Change control
Notifications	Slack, email, webhooks	Team awareness
State Versions	State file history	Audit and rollback
Private Registry	Share modules/providers	Code reuse

Security & Governance

Enterprise-grade security features for compliance and control.

Sentinel Policies

# sentinel.hcl
import "tfplan"

main = rule {
  all tfplan.resources.aws_s3_bucket as _, buckets {
    all buckets as bucket {
      bucket.applied.server_side_encryption_configuration is not null
    }
  }
}

# Policy checks:
# - Require S3 encryption
# - Restrict instance types
# - Enforce tagging
# - Limit resource counts

Variable Security

# Secure variable handling:
# - Mark sensitive variables
# - Environment-specific values
# - HCL variable definitions

variable "database_password" {
  type      = string
  sensitive = true
}

# In TFC:
# - Set as sensitive variable
# - Encrypted at rest
# - Never shown in UI/logs

Enterprise Security Features

🔐 SAML/SSO integration 🔐 Audit logging 🔐 Private network connectivity 🔐 Custom CA certificates 🔐 Compliance certifications

Terraform Cloud

$0 - $70/user/month

• Free: Individuals & small teams
• Team: $20/user/month
• Governance: $70/user/month
• Pay-as-you-go available

Terraform Enterprise

Contact Sales

• Annual subscription
• Based on usage/nodes
• Premium support included
• Volume discounts available

Migration Tips

• Start with Terraform Cloud Free tier for evaluation
• Use remote state migration for existing infrastructure
• Implement Sentinel policies gradually
• Train teams on collaboration workflows
• Establish naming conventions early

← Previous: Testing and Debugging Terraform

This is Part 11 of The Ultimate Terraform Mastery Series.

Next: Terraform Modules Deep Dive →