How to Import an AWS SSM Parameter into Terraform

Import AWS SSM Parameter with Terraback (recommended)

Terraback reverse-engineers your live infrastructure: it reads the AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store resource with read-only credentials, generates the HCL, and produces the exact import block. Two commands take you from a live AWS SSM Parameter 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_ssm_parameter.db_host
  id = "/prod/db/host"
}

Example aws_ssm_parameter configuration

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

resource "aws_ssm_parameter" "db_host" {
  name  = "/prod/db/host"
  type  = "String"
  value = "db.internal.example.com"
  tier  = "Standard"
}

Gotchas when importing a AWS SSM Parameter

• The import ID is the full parameter name including the leading slash for hierarchical parameters (for example /prod/db/host).
• For SecureString parameters AWS returns the encrypted value, so the generated config sources value from a variable and ignores changes to it.
• type (String, StringList, SecureString) and the KMS key_id for SecureString must match the live parameter or apply fails.
• Standard versus Advanced tier affects size and policy limits; set tier explicitly to avoid an unexpected change.

Doing it manually with terraform import

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