Terraform & OpenTofu Skill for AI Agents

Terraform and OpenTofu best-practices skill for AI coding agents (Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Codex, and others). Covers testing strategies, module patterns, CI/CD workflows, and production infrastructure code.

What this skill provides

Testing frameworks

• Decision matrix for native tests vs Terratest
• Testing workflows (static, integration, E2E)
• Examples and patterns

Module development

• Structure and naming conventions
• Versioning strategies
• Public vs private module patterns

State management

• Remote backends (S3, Azure, GCS, Terraform Cloud)
• Locking and security
• Multi-team state isolation
• Migration and recovery procedures

CI/CD integration

• GitHub Actions workflows
• GitLab CI examples
• Cost optimization
• Compliance automation

Security and compliance

• Trivy and Checkov integration
• Policy-as-code patterns
• Compliance scanning workflows

Quick reference

• Decision flowcharts
• Common patterns (DO vs DON'T)
• Cheat sheets

Installation

This plugin is distributed via Claude Code marketplace using .claude-plugin/marketplace.json.

Quick install (any agent)

Universal installer via skills.sh — works with any Agent Skills-compatible tool:

npx skills add https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill

Per-host instructions

/plugin marketplace add antonbabenko/terraform-skill
/plugin install terraform-skill@antonbabenko

gemini extensions install https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill

git clone https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill.git ~/.cursor/skills/terraform-skill

/plugin install https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill
# or
git clone https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill.git ~/.copilot/skills/terraform-skill

git clone https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill.git ~/.agents/skills/terraform-skill

git clone https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill.git ~/.agents/skills/terraform-skill

git clone https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill.git ~/.antigravity/skills/terraform-skill

git clone https://github.com/antonbabenko/terraform-skill
mkdir -p ~/.claude/plugins
ln -s "$(pwd)/terraform-skill" ~/.claude/plugins/terraform-skill

Verify installation

After installation, try:

"Create a Terraform module with testing for an S3 bucket"

Claude picks up the skill automatically when working with Terraform or OpenTofu code.

Quick start examples

Create a module with tests:

"Create a Terraform module for AWS VPC with native tests"

Set up remote state:

"Configure S3 backend with DynamoDB locking for Terraform state"

Review existing code:

"Review this Terraform configuration following best practices"

Generate CI/CD workflow:

"Create a GitHub Actions workflow for Terraform with cost estimation"

Testing strategy:

"Help me choose between native tests and Terratest for my modules"

State management:

"How should I organize state files for a multi-team environment?"

What it covers

Testing strategy

Decision matrices for native tests (Terraform 1.6+) vs Terratest (Go-based), plus multi-environment testing patterns.

Module development

Naming conventions (terraform-<PROVIDER>-<NAME>), directory structure, input/output design, version constraints, and documentation standards.

CI/CD workflows

GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Atlantis, Infracost cost estimation, Trivy/Checkov scanning, and compliance checks.

Security and compliance

Static analysis, policy-as-code, secrets management, state file security, backend encryption, and compliance scanning workflows.

Patterns and anti-patterns

Side-by-side DO vs DON'T examples for variable naming, resource naming, module composition, state management, and provider configuration.

Why this skill

Sources:

• Patterns from terraform-best-practices.com
• Approaches used across the terraform-aws-modules collection
• AWS Hero experience with enterprise IaC

Version-specific guidance:

• Terraform 1.0+ features
• OpenTofu 1.6+ compatibility
• Native test framework (1.6+)
• Current tooling ecosystem (2024-2026)

Decision frameworks: not just "what to do" but "when and why".

Requirements

• An AI agent with skill support: Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Codex, or any Agent Skills-compatible host
• Terraform 1.0+ or OpenTofu 1.6+
• Optional: Terraform MCP server for registry integration

Contributing

See CLAUDE.md for skill development guidelines, content structure, how to propose improvements, and the validation approach.

Report bugs or request features via GitHub Issues.

Related resources

Official documentation

• Terraform Language
• Terraform Testing - native test framework
• OpenTofu Documentation
• HashiCorp Recommended Practices

Community resources

• Terraform compliance-as-code docs - Compliance frameworks, controls, implementation guides, remediations, etc
• Awesome Terraform
• Awesome Terraform Compliance
• Terraform Best Practices - the guide this skill is based on
• terraform-aws-modules - AWS modules collection
• Terratest - Go testing framework for Terraform
• Google Cloud Best Practices
• AWS Terraform Best Practices

Development tools

• pre-commit-terraform - pre-commit hooks for Terraform
• terraform-docs - generate documentation from modules
• terraform-switcher - Terraform version manager
• TFLint - Terraform linter
• Trivy - IaC security scanner

License

Apache 2.0