/terraform-search-import

name: terraform-search-import
description: Discover existing cloud resources using Terraform Search queries and bulk import them into Terraform management. Use when bringing unmanaged infrastructure under Terraform control, auditing cloud resources, or migrating to IaC.
metadata:
  copyright: Copyright IBM Corp. 2026
  version: "0.1.0"
compatibility: Requires Terraform >= 1.14 and providers with list resource support (always use latest provider version)

Terraform Search and Bulk Import

Discover existing cloud resources using declarative queries and generate configuration for bulk import into Terraform state.

**References:**

• [Terraform Search - list block](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/language/block/tfquery/list)
• [Bulk Import](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/language/import/bulk)

When to Use

• Bringing unmanaged resources under Terraform control
• Auditing existing cloud infrastructure
• Migrating from manual provisioning to IaC
• Discovering resources across multiple regions/accounts

IMPORTANT: Check Provider Support First

**BEFORE starting, you MUST verify the target resource type is supported:**

# Check what list resources are available
./scripts/list_resources.sh aws      # Specific provider
./scripts/list_resources.sh          # All configured providers

Decision Tree

1. **Identify target resource type** (e.g., aws_s3_bucket, aws_instance) 2. **Check if supported**: Run `./scripts/list_resources.sh <provider>` 3. **Choose workflow**:

• ** If supported**: Check for terraform version available.
• ** If terraform version is above 1.14.0** Use Terraform Search workflow (below)
• ** If not supported or terraform version is below 1.14.0 **: Use Manual Discovery workflow (see [references/MANUAL-IMPORT.md](references/MANUAL-IMPORT.md))

**Note**: The list of supported resources is rapidly expanding. Always verify current support before using manual import.

Prerequisites

Before writing queries, verify the provider supports list resources for your target resource type.

Discover Available List Resources

Run the helper script to extract supported list resources from your provider:

# From a directory with provider configuration (runs terraform init if needed)
./scripts/list_resources.sh aws      # Specific provider
./scripts/list_resources.sh          # All configured providers

Or manually query the provider schema:

terraform providers schema -json | jq '.provider_schemas | to_entries | map({key: (.key | split("/")[-1]), value: (.value.list_resource_schemas // {} | keys)})'

Terraform Search requires an initialized working directory. Ensure you have a configuration with the required provider before running queries:

# terraform.tf
terraform {
  required_providers {
    aws = {
      source  = "hashicorp/aws"
      version = "~> 6.0"
    }
  }
}

Run `terraform init` to download the provider, then proceed with queries.

Terraform Search Workflow (Supported Resources Only)

1. Create `.tfquery.hcl` files with `list` blocks defining search queries 2. Run `terraform query` to discover matching resources 3. Generate configuration with `-generate-config-out=<file>` 4. Review and refine generated `resource` and `import` blocks 5. Run `terraform plan` and `terraform apply` to import

Query File Structure

Query files use `.tfquery.hcl` extension and support:

• `provider` blocks for authentication
• `list` blocks for resource discovery
• `variable` and `locals` blocks for parameterization

# discovery.tfquery.hcl
provider "aws" {
  region = "us-west-2"
}

list "aws_instance" "all" {
  provider = aws
}

List Block Syntax

list "<list_type>" "<symbolic_name>" {
  provider = <provider_reference>  # Required

  # Optional: filter configuration (provider-specific)
  # The `config` block schema is provider-specific. Discover available options using `terraform providers schema -json | jq '.provider_schemas."registry.terraform.io/hashicorp/<provider>".list_resource_schemas."<resource_type>"'`

  config {
    filter {
      name   = "<filter_name>"
      values = ["<value1>", "<value2>"]
    }
    region = "<region>"  # AWS-specific
  }
  # Optional: limit results
  limit = 100
}

Supported List Resources

Provider support for list resources varies by version. **Always check what's available for your specific provider version using the discovery script.**

Query Examples

Basic Discovery

# Find all EC2 instances in configured region
list "aws_instance" "all" {
  provider = aws
}

Filtered Discovery

# Find instances by tag
list "aws_instance" "production" {
  provider = aws

  config {
    filter {
      name   = "tag:Environment"
      values = ["production"]
    }
  }
}

# Find instances by type
list "aws_instance" "large" {
  provider = aws

  config {
    filter {
      name   = "instance-type"
      values = ["t3.large", "t3.xlarge"]
    }
  }
}

Multi-Region Discovery

provider "aws" {
  region = "us-west-2"
}

locals {
  regions = ["us-west-2", "us-east-1", "eu-west-1"]
}

list "aws_instance" "all_regions" {
  for_each = toset(local.regions)
  provider = aws

  config {
    region = each.value
  }
}

Parameterized Queries

variable "target_environment" {
  type    = string
  default = "staging"
}

list "aws_instance" "by_env" {
  provider = aws

  config {
    filter {
      name   = "tag:Environment"
      values = [var.target_environment]
    }
  }
}

Running Queries

# Execute queries and display results
terraform query

# Generate configuration file
terraform query -generate-config-out=imported.tf

# Pass variables
terraform query -var='target_environment=production'

Query Output Format

list.aws_instance.all   account_id=123456789012,id=i-0abc123,region=us-west-2   web-server

Columns: `<query_address> <identity_attributes> <name_tag>`

Generated