How to Import an Azure Automation Account into Terraform

Import Azure Automation Account with Terraback (recommended)

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

terraback scan all azure --subscription-id YOUR_ID

terraback azure 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 = azurerm_automation_account.main
  id = "/subscriptions/00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000/resourceGroups/prod-rg/providers/Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/prod-automation"
}

Example azurerm_automation_account configuration

Here is a realistic Azure Automation Account block. Terraback generates a fuller version from your actual resource attributes; this is a minimal, valid starting point.

resource "azurerm_automation_account" "main" {
  name                = "prod-automation"
  resource_group_name = "prod-rg"
  location            = "eastus"
  sku_name            = "Basic"
}

Gotchas when importing a Azure Automation Account

• Runbooks, schedules, variables, modules, and credentials are separate azurerm_automation_* resources and are not imported with the account.
• sku_name is either Basic or Free; the API may report it under a different shape than the provider expects.
• DSC and Update Management configurations attached to the account are managed through their own resources.
• Encryption keys and the system-assigned identity are computed; review the identity block after import.

Doing it manually with terraform import

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