How to Import an Azure Log Analytics Workspace into Terraform

Import Azure Log Analytics Workspace with Terraback (recommended)

Terraback reverse-engineers your live infrastructure: it reads the Azure Monitor resource with read-only credentials, generates the HCL, and produces the exact import block. Two commands take you from a live Azure Log Analytics Workspace 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_log_analytics_workspace.main
  id = "/subscriptions/00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000/resourceGroups/prod-rg/providers/Microsoft.OperationalInsights/workspaces/prod-law"
}

Example azurerm_log_analytics_workspace configuration

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

resource "azurerm_log_analytics_workspace" "main" {
  name                = "prod-law"
  resource_group_name = "prod-rg"
  location            = "eastus"
  sku                 = "PerGB2018"
  retention_in_days   = 30
}

Gotchas when importing a Azure Log Analytics Workspace

• The ARM type is Microsoft.OperationalInsights/workspaces, not 'logAnalytics'.
• Solutions, data sources, saved searches, and linked services are separate azurerm_log_analytics_* resources.
• The primary/secondary shared keys and workspace_id (the customer ID GUID) are sensitive computed outputs.
• Older pricing tiers (Free, Standalone, PerNode) are largely retired; new workspaces use PerGB2018.

Doing it manually with terraform import

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