How to Import an AWS EFS File System into Terraform

Import AWS EFS File System with Terraback (recommended)

Terraback reverse-engineers your live infrastructure: it reads the Amazon EFS resource with read-only credentials, generates the HCL, and produces the exact import block. Two commands take you from a live AWS EFS File System 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_efs_file_system.shared
  id = "fs-0a1b2c3d4e5f6a7b8"
}

Example aws_efs_file_system configuration

Here is a realistic AWS EFS File System block. Terraback generates a fuller version from your actual resource attributes; this is a minimal, valid starting point.

resource "aws_efs_file_system" "shared" {
  creation_token   = "shared-app-data"
  performance_mode = "generalPurpose"
  throughput_mode  = "bursting"
  encrypted        = true

  tags = {
    Name = "shared-app-data"
  }
}

Gotchas when importing a AWS EFS File System

• Mount targets (aws_efs_mount_target), access points (aws_efs_access_point), the file system policy, and the backup policy are all separate resources not imported with the file system.
• performance_mode and encryption are immutable; a mismatch forces replacement and data loss.
• creation_token is generated by AWS if you did not set one; copy the returned value so Terraform does not try to replace the file system.
• A file system cannot be deleted while mount targets still exist, so the generated config often sets prevent_destroy.

Doing it manually with terraform import

The native approach is to write the aws_efs_file_system block by hand, then run terraform import aws_efs_file_system.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