Azure DevOps Tutorial: Automate Windows VM Deployment Using Terraform

Introduction

Deploying infrastructure as code (IaC) is a modern and scalable way to manage your cloud resources. In this guide, we’ll walk you step-by-step on how to create a Windows Virtual Machine in Azure using Terraform.

This tutorial is ideal for beginners and intermediate users who want a repeatable and automated way to spin up Windows VMs in Azure.

What You Will Learn

✔ Install and configure Terraform
✔ Write Terraform code to deploy a Windows VM
✔ Output VM details after deployment
✔ Set up Azure Service Principal

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:
✔ An Azure Subscription
✔ Terraform installed on your machine
✔ Azure CLI installed (optional but recommended)
✔ Basic understanding of IaC and Azure resources

1. Install Terraform

Download Terraform from the official website:
➡ https://www.terraform.io/downloads
After installation, verify with:

terraform version

2. Configure Azure CLI & Login

Login to Azure using Azure CLI:

az login

(Optional) Set your desired subscription:

az account set --subscription "YOUR_SUBSCRIPTION_NAME"

3. Create Azure Service Principal

A Service Principal gives Terraform permission to provision resources in Azure.

Run:

az ad sp create-for-rbac --name "TerraformSP" --role="Contributor" --sdk-auth

4. Create Terraform Project Folder

Create a new folder:

mkdir azure-windows-vm
cd azure-windows-vm

Create the following files:

✔ main.tf
✔ variables.tf
✔ outputs.tf

5. Define Provider — main.tf

First, lets configure the provider. In Terraform, a provider is a plugin that acts as the bridge between terraform and the target platform. In today's demo the target platform is azure.