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aRustyDev merged 1 commit into from
Jan 31, 2026
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feat(iac-terraform-provider-dev): improve skill documentation #801

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177 changes: 41 additions & 136 deletions components/skills/iac-terraform-provider-dev/SKILL.md
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -7,6 +7,35 @@ description: Develop custom Terraform and OpenTofu providers using the Plugin Fr

Build production-quality Terraform and OpenTofu providers using the Plugin Framework. This skill covers the complete provider development lifecycle from design through testing and release.

## Quick Start

For newcomers to Terraform provider development:

1. **Start with TDD**: Always write tests before implementation
2. **Use Plugin Framework**: Modern replacement for SDKv2
3. **Follow the structure**: Use the recommended directory layout
4. **Test thoroughly**: Acceptance tests are crucial for reliability

### 5-Minute Setup

```bash
# 1. Create provider structure
mkdir terraform-provider-{name}
cd terraform-provider-{name}

# 2. Initialize Go module
go mod init terraform-provider-{name}

# 3. Add dependencies
go get github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-framework
go get github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-testing

# 4. Create basic structure (see Provider Structure below)
# 5. Write your first test (see Acceptance Testing)
```

See [Getting Started Guide](references/getting-started.md) for a complete walkthrough.

## Purpose

Guide the development of custom Terraform providers following HashiCorp's best practices, with emphasis on Test-Driven Development (TDD), proper resource lifecycle management, and comprehensive acceptance testing.
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -331,20 +360,19 @@ func (r *ThingResource) ImportState(ctx context.Context, req resource.ImportStat

## Acceptance Testing

### Test Setup
Terraform providers require comprehensive acceptance testing to ensure reliability in production.

```go
package provider
| Test Pattern | Purpose | Reference |
|-------------|---------|-----------|
| Basic CRUD | Resource lifecycle testing | [Testing Patterns](references/testing-patterns.md#basic-crud) |
| Import State | Verify import functionality | [Testing Patterns](references/testing-patterns.md#import-state) |
| Plan Checks | Validate plan actions | [Testing Patterns](references/testing-patterns.md#plan-checks) |
| State Checks | Modern assertion framework | [Testing Patterns](references/testing-patterns.md#state-checks) |
| Drift Detection | Out-of-band change handling | [Testing Patterns](references/testing-patterns.md#drift-detection) |

import (
"os"
"testing"

"github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-framework/providerserver"
"github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-go/tfprotov6"
"github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-testing/helper/resource"
)
### Essential Test Setup

```go
var testAccProtoV6ProviderFactories = map[string]func() (tfprotov6.ProviderServer, error){
"example": providerserver.NewProtocol6WithError(New("test")()),
}
Expand All @@ -356,150 +384,27 @@ func testAccPreCheck(t *testing.T) {
}
```

### Resource Test with State Checks
### Basic Test Structure

```go
func TestAccThingResource_basic(t *testing.T) {
resource.Test(t, resource.TestCase{
PreCheck: func() { testAccPreCheck(t) },
ProtoV6ProviderFactories: testAccProtoV6ProviderFactories,
Steps: []resource.TestStep{
// Create and Read
{
Config: testAccThingResourceConfig("test-thing"),
Check: resource.ComposeAggregateTestCheckFunc(
resource.TestCheckResourceAttr("example_thing.test", "name", "test-thing"),
resource.TestCheckResourceAttrSet("example_thing.test", "id"),
resource.TestCheckResourceAttrSet("example_thing.test", "status"),
),
},
// ImportState
{
ResourceName: "example_thing.test",
ImportState: true,
ImportStateVerify: true,
},
// Update
{
Config: testAccThingResourceConfig("updated-thing"),
Check: resource.ComposeAggregateTestCheckFunc(
resource.TestCheckResourceAttr("example_thing.test", "name", "updated-thing"),
),
},
},
})
}

func testAccThingResourceConfig(name string) string {
return fmt.Sprintf(`
resource "example_thing" "test" {
name = %[1]q
}
`, name)
}
```

### Plan Checks (terraform-plugin-testing v1.13.3+)

```go
import (
"github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-testing/plancheck"
)

func TestAccThingResource_planChecks(t *testing.T) {
resource.Test(t, resource.TestCase{
PreCheck: func() { testAccPreCheck(t) },
ProtoV6ProviderFactories: testAccProtoV6ProviderFactories,
Steps: []resource.TestStep{
{
Config: testAccThingResourceConfig("test"),
ConfigPlanChecks: resource.ConfigPlanChecks{
PreApply: []plancheck.PlanCheck{
plancheck.ExpectResourceAction("example_thing.test", plancheck.ResourceActionCreate),
},
},
},
{
Config: testAccThingResourceConfig("updated"),
ConfigPlanChecks: resource.ConfigPlanChecks{
PreApply: []plancheck.PlanCheck{
plancheck.ExpectResourceAction("example_thing.test", plancheck.ResourceActionUpdate),
},
},
},
},
})
}
```

### State Checks (Modern Assertion Framework)

```go
import (
"github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-testing/statecheck"
"github.com/hashicorp/terraform-plugin-testing/compare"
)

func TestAccThingResource_stateChecks(t *testing.T) {
resource.Test(t, resource.TestCase{
PreCheck: func() { testAccPreCheck(t) },
ProtoV6ProviderFactories: testAccProtoV6ProviderFactories,
Steps: []resource.TestStep{
{
Config: testAccThingResourceConfig("test"),
ConfigStateChecks: []statecheck.StateCheck{
statecheck.ExpectKnownValue(
"example_thing.test",
tfjsonpath.New("name"),
knownvalue.StringExact("test"),
),
statecheck.ExpectKnownValue(
"example_thing.test",
tfjsonpath.New("id"),
knownvalue.NotNull(),
),
},
},
},
})
}
```

### Drift Detection

```go
func TestAccThingResource_drift(t *testing.T) {
var thingID string

resource.Test(t, resource.TestCase{
PreCheck: func() { testAccPreCheck(t) },
ProtoV6ProviderFactories: testAccProtoV6ProviderFactories,
Steps: []resource.TestStep{
{
Config: testAccThingResourceConfig("original"),
Check: resource.ComposeAggregateTestCheckFunc(
resource.TestCheckResourceAttrWith("example_thing.test", "id", func(value string) error {
thingID = value
return nil
}),
),
},
{
PreConfig: func() {
// Simulate drift by modifying resource outside Terraform
client := getTestClient()
client.UpdateThing(context.Background(), thingID, "drifted", "")
},
Config: testAccThingResourceConfig("original"),
Check: resource.ComposeAggregateTestCheckFunc(
// Verify Terraform corrected the drift
resource.TestCheckResourceAttr("example_thing.test", "name", "original"),
),
},
},
})
}
```
See [Testing Patterns Reference](references/testing-patterns.md) for advanced patterns, plan checks, state checks, and drift detection examples.

## Best Practices

Expand Down