Terraform Advanced — state mv & Refactoring

Rename resources, move them between modules, or split states — without destroying infrastructure.

---

Rename a Resource

# Renaming in code: aws_instance.web → aws_instance.app
# Without state mv: Terraform destroys web, creates app

# With state mv:
terraform state mv aws_instance.web aws_instance.app
# Now plan shows no changes

---

Move Into a Module

# Moving a resource into a module
terraform state mv aws_vpc.main module.networking.aws_vpc.main

---

Move Between State Files

# Pull resource from source state
terraform state mv \
  -state=networking/terraform.tfstate \
  -state-out=compute/terraform.tfstate \
  aws_security_group.app aws_security_group.app

---

moved Block (Terraform 1.1+)

Declarative refactoring — no manual state commands:

# Tell Terraform you renamed a resource
moved {
  from = aws_instance.web
  to   = aws_instance.app
}

# Tell Terraform you moved into a module
moved {
  from = aws_vpc.main
  to   = module.networking.aws_vpc.main
}

$ terraform plan
# aws_instance.app will be moved from aws_instance.web
# No destroy/create!

💡 Production Tip: Prefer moved blocks over terraform state mv. They’re version-controlled, reviewable, and work in CI/CD.

---

List and Show State

# List all resources in state
terraform state list

# Show details of a specific resource
terraform state show aws_instance.app

# Pull entire state to local file
terraform state pull > backup.tfstate

---

What’s Next?

Recover from deleted state files.

← Resource Taint & Replace Recovering Deleted State →