Azure Automation in Terraform DSC Configuration vs Node Configuration

Question

Background

I am trying to use Azure Automation to configure some Azure Windows VMs as DNS servers.

I would like to use Terraform to configure the Automation Account, DSC Configuration and DSC Node Configuration, but I'm stuck on the DSC Node Configuration.

I have the following, which works, but only if I manually compile it by clicking in the Portal:

resource "azurerm_automation_dsc_configuration" "configuration" {
    name                    = "DNSConfig"
    resource_group_name     = "my_rg"
    location                = "uksouth"
    automation_account_name = "my_aa_account"
    content_embedded = <<-CONTENT
        Configuration DNSConfig
        {
            Node 'localhost'
            {
                WindowsFeature DNS
                {
                    Ensure = 'Present'
                    Name   = 'DNS'
                }

                # plus some more stuff

            }
        }

    CONTENT
}

I want to automate the compilation, so I tried:

resource "azurerm_automation_dsc_nodeconfiguration" "node" {
    automation_account_name = "my_aa_account"
    resource_group_name     = "my_rg"
    name                    = "DNSConfig.localhost"
    content_embedded        = "# what goes here?"
}

Problem

I don't have a strong background with this, so am not sure I have understood it properly. I don't know what content_embedded for the nodeconfiguration is supposed to contain.

Should I remove the Node block from the dsc_configuration and move it into the dsc_nodeconfiguration? Or perhaps the contents of the node block (i.e. excluding the Node 'localhost' {} wrapper)?

(I am not really sure if "localhost" is even a good name for what the node represents).

For example, something like:

resource "azurerm_automation_dsc_nodeconfiguration" "node" {
    content_embedded = "Node 'localhost' { WindowsFeature DNS {...} }"
    ...
}

or

resource "azurerm_automation_dsc_nodeconfiguration" "node" {
    content_embedded = "WindowsFeature DNS {...}"`
    ...
}

or something else?

I feel like I have tried a few of these options but the feedback loop is pretty slow so it's possible I hit the right answer and got tripped up by another mistake whilst I was debugging!

Does anyone have a working example please or can perhaps explain how it works?

Have since come across this Github issue. Perhaps want I want to do is not yet possible. — Paul J

Tony Tang Tony Tang · Accepted Answer · 2020-12-09T06:08:40

Inside content_embedded you should include the content of MOF file, see an example from azurerm_automation_dsc_nodeconfiguration document.
Or you can use terraform file function to load the MOF content and use it your script. Remember to have the MOF content encoded in either Unicode or UTF-8 format.

Azure Automation in Terraform DSC Configuration vs Node Configuration

Background

Problem

1 Answers