HashiCorp Sentinel 101
Learn HashiCorp Sentinel for policy as code, covering fundamentals, language features, testing, and integration with Terraform Cloud for governance and compliance.
Why This Course is Different
Get everything you need to master platform engineering and advance your career
Certificate of Completion
Earn a certificate while gaining real-world skills that go beyond traditional certification prep
Hands-on Labs
0 practical labs with real-world scenarios in pre-configured cloud environments
Expert-Led
Learn from Sam Gabrail, Former HashiCorp Sr. Solutions Engineer with 18+ years experience
Community Support
Join our community where members help each other and collaborate on learning
What You'll Master
Understand policy as code concepts and benefits
Master Sentinel language fundamentals
Write and test Sentinel policies
Integrate Sentinel with Terraform Cloud
Implement governance and compliance controls
Create reusable policy modules
Debug and test policies effectively
Apply Sentinel in real-world scenarios
Course Curriculum
SECTION 1 – COURSE INTRODUCTION
Learn about course introduction
- •Important Note on Lab Environments
- •Sentinel Course Introduction
- •Code Repository
- •Community
- •AWS Account Setup [If you're using your own AWS account]
- •Terraform Cloud Setup
SECTION 2 – SENTINEL BASICS
Learn about sentinel basics
- •Intro to Sentinel Testing
- •Sentinel Playground
- •Sentinel CLI
- •First Policy
- •Sentinel Commands
- •Sentinel Basics QuizQuiz
SECTION 3 – THE SENTINEL LANGUAGE
Learn about the sentinel language
- •Variables
- •Lists
- •Maps
- •Rules
- •Imports
- •Operators and Conditionals
- •Filtering
- •Terraform Example
- •Real-World Example with TFC 2 of 2
- •Real-World Example with TFC 2 of 2
- •The Sentinel Language QuizQuiz
SECTION 4 – SENTINEL TESTING
Learn about sentinel testing
- •Intro to Sentinel Testing
- •Mocks
- •Testing in a Real-World Example
- •Policy Sets in VCS
- •Policies in the Terraform Registry
- •Sentinel Testing QuizQuiz
SECTION 5 – CLOSING REMARKS
Learn about closing remarks
- •Closing Remarks
Course Features
Hands-on Labs
Lots of hands-on labs to learn by doing
Join our Community
Community support to ask questions and collaborate
Test Your Knowledge
Quizzes to help you grasp the material well
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Sentinel and why should I learn it?
Sentinel is HashiCorp's policy-as-code framework that enforces governance rules on Terraform runs before any infrastructure is provisioned. Instead of relying on post-deployment audits or manual reviews, Sentinel lets you define rules like 'all EC2 instances must be t3.micro or smaller' or 'S3 buckets must never be public' and enforce them automatically in your CI/CD pipeline via Terraform Cloud. It is the standard governance layer for organizations running Terraform at scale.
Do I need a Terraform background to take this course?
Yes. Sentinel integrates directly with Terraform Cloud so you need to be comfortable with Terraform fundamentals — HCL syntax, the Terraform workflow, and basic Terraform Cloud setup. If you are new to Terraform, complete the Terraform Associate 004 course first.
How long does this course realistically take?
Sentinel 101 is a focused 27-lesson course rated at 5 hours of content. Most students complete it in 1-2 weeks studying 3-5 hours per week. It is intentionally scoped — Sentinel itself is a focused language and the course covers it comprehensively without padding.
Are there hands-on labs in this course?
The course uses Terraform Cloud's built-in Sentinel simulator and policy set integration for hands-on practice, as well as the Sentinel CLI for local testing. There are no separate TeKanAid academy labs for this course — the exercises run directly in Terraform Cloud using a free account.
Do I need a paid Terraform Cloud account?
No. The Sentinel features used in this course are available on the Terraform Cloud free tier. You will need a Terraform Cloud account (free to create at app.terraform.io) and a GitHub account for the VCS integration exercises.
What happens when I cancel my subscription?
You lose access to course lessons and future content updates. Your progress and quiz scores are saved so you can resume if you resubscribe. A Lifetime plan is available at academy.tekanaid.com for permanent access without a subscription.
What is the difference between Pro and Premium for this course?
Since Sentinel 101 does not use the TeKanAid academy lab system, the course content is the same for Pro and Premium subscribers. Premium adds priority support and access to the broader TeKanAid lab library for other courses in your learning path.
See what others are saying about our Courses
“I like the Crossplane 101 course a lot. I think it is one of the best online courses I have taken (and I've taken a lot in the last 2 years, transitioning into DevOps). The labs are phenomenal – every task has a long tutorial with lots of explanations, gotchas, and recaps, and you always provide the reasoning for implementing a certain solution.”
“I just completed the Crossplane 101 course! Managing infrastructure as Kubernetes resources is a total game-changer. A huge thanks to TeKanAid and Sam Gabrail for the incredible training and insights.”
“Although I've worked with Crossplane in real production environments, I always felt there were gaps in my understanding. Completing this course filled those gaps perfectly. I had to unlearn and relearn quite a few things, especially around Crossplane v2.0 concepts. Well structured and thoughtfully put together. Highly recommended for building a strong, foundational understanding of Crossplane.”
“Dear Sam, I hope this email finds you well. If you remember before the end of last year I register for one your courses Terraform 101 – Certified Terraform Associate, I must admit that I learned a lot even though I was not patient enough for all videos to be available. All in all I enjoy the way you structured the course and how you went through it. The main reason of this email, to send you my gratitude for the content you created and to let you know that I passed my exam/test last week.”
“This course was a perfect introduction to Terraform and Infrastructure as Code. Loved the gitpod, saving me a lot of time for developer environment setup. We have a project at work where we want to go from a click-ops version of server-deploy to a more automated flow using ci/cd and terraform for deploying virtual servers.”
“I want to thank you for such wonderful courses. They are more comprehensive than other courses I have taken in the past. You take the time to explain every detail of the code and what it does exactly, further enforcing your student's understanding and confidence in what they are learning. Your methods are very effective and set you apart from other instructors.”
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Prefer just this course?
Purchase HashiCorp Sentinel 101 for a one-time fee of $79. Full access to course content, quizzes, certificates, and community features, lab access is not included.
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Hi there, I'm Sam
I'm a husband and father of two wonderful boys. I'm also very passionate 🔥 about all things technology. From when I was 10, I had a dream to become a computer 💻 engineer one day. Here I am today living the dream!
Thanks for visiting TeKanAid Academy. My goal is to teach you all things DevOps. Below are some of the things I've done over the years. I'm confident that I can help you achieve your dreams too.
- 18+ years of experience in various Information Technology fields from Telecommunications, Computer Networks, Digital Transformation, DevOps, Cybersecurity, and IoT
- President of TeKanAid Solutions Inc. building online content in the DevOps space
- Previous – Sr. Solutions Engineer at HashiCorp
View my Certifications
Terraform: Authorized HashiCorp Instructor
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HashiCorp Authorized Instructors are experienced DevOps professionals who deliver official HashiCorp training courses in person and virtually.
Issued by HashiCorp Partner Network (HPN)
Vault: Authorized HashiCorp Instructor
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HashiCorp Authorized Instructors are experienced DevOps professionals who deliver official HashiCorp training courses in person and virtually.
Issued by HashiCorp Partner Network (HPN)
HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate (002)
Verify my certificate
Earners of the HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate certification know the basic concepts, skills, and use cases associated with open source HashiCorp Terraform.
Issued by HashiCorp
HashiCorp Certified: Vault Associate (002)
Verify my certificate
Earners of the HashiCorp Certified: Vault Associate certification know the basic concepts, skills, and use cases associated with open source HashiCorp Vault.
Issued by HashiCorp
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