How to Import an AWS API Gateway Method into Terraform

Import AWS API Gateway Method with Terraback (recommended)

Terraback reverse-engineers your live infrastructure: it reads the Amazon API Gateway resource with read-only credentials, generates the HCL, and produces the exact import block. Two commands take you from a live AWS API Gateway Method to managed Terraform.

terraback scan all aws --region us-east-1

terraback aws import --method bulk

The Terraform import block

Terraback emits a Terraform 1.5+ import block like the one below. Because the block lives in your configuration, the import is reviewable in a pull request and repeatable across environments.

import {
  to = aws_api_gateway_method.users_get
  id = "12abcde345/a1b2c3/GET"
}

Example aws_api_gateway_method configuration

Here is a realistic AWS API Gateway Method block. Terraback generates a fuller version from your actual resource attributes; this is a minimal, valid starting point.

resource "aws_api_gateway_method" "users_get" {
  rest_api_id   = "12abcde345"
  resource_id   = "a1b2c3"
  http_method   = "GET"
  authorization = "NONE"
}

Gotchas when importing a AWS API Gateway Method

• The HTTP method in the import ID must be upper-case (GET, POST, ANY); it is part of the composite key.
• A method is meaningless without its aws_api_gateway_integration; import the matching integration too or the API will not respond.
• authorization defaults to NONE but is required in the block; copy the real value (NONE, AWS_IAM, CUSTOM, COGNITO_USER_POOLS) from the console.
• request_parameters and request_models are maps that the provider returns inconsistently; verify them after import to avoid a perpetual diff.

Doing it manually with terraform import

The native approach is to write the aws_api_gateway_method block by hand, then run terraform import aws_api_gateway_method.example <import-id> for every resource, one at a time. That works for a handful of resources, but it does not scale: you author all the HCL yourself and repeat the command for each item. Terraback generates the HCL and the import blocks for your whole account in one pass.

Import other AWS resources