building-terraform-modules

name	building-terraform-modules
description	Execute this skill empowers AI assistant to build reusable terraform modules based on user specifications. it leverages the terraform-module-builder plugin to generate production-ready, well-documented terraform module code, incorporating best practices for sec... Use when appropriate context detected. Trigger with relevant phrases based on skill purpose.
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Edit, Grep, Glob, Bash(cmd:*)
version	1.23.0
author	Jeremy Longshore <[e-mail]>
license	MIT
tags	["devops","terraform","terraform-modules"]
compatibility	Designed for Claude Code, also compatible with Codex and OpenClaw

Building Terraform Modules

Overview

Build reusable, production-ready Terraform modules with proper variable definitions, outputs, validation rules, documentation, and examples. Generate modules following HashiCorp's standard module structure for AWS, GCP, and Azure resources with security best practices, tagging conventions, and lifecycle management.

Prerequisites

• Terraform 1.0+ installed (terraform version)
• Cloud provider credentials configured for the target platform
• Understanding of the infrastructure resources the module will manage
• Familiarity with HCL syntax and Terraform module conventions
• terraform-docs installed for automated documentation generation (optional)

Instructions

1. Define the module scope: determine which cloud resources the module manages and its input/output contract
2. Create the standard module file structure: main.tf, variables.tf, outputs.tf, versions.tf, locals.tf
3. Write versions.tf with required_version and required_providers blocks pinned to stable versions
4. Define input variables in variables.tf with descriptions, types, defaults, and validation rules
5. Implement resources in main.tf using variables for all configurable values; use locals for computed values
6. Add meaningful outputs in outputs.tf for resource IDs, ARNs, endpoints, and connection strings
7. Implement security defaults: encryption enabled, public access blocked, least-privilege IAM, logging enabled
8. Create an examples/ directory with at least one complete usage example showing module invocation
9. Generate documentation with terraform-docs markdown table . > README.md
10. Validate the module with terraform init && terraform validate and test with terraform plan using the example

Output

• Module files: main.tf, variables.tf, outputs.tf, versions.tf, locals.tf
• Example usage in examples/basic/main.tf with realistic variable values
• Auto-generated with inputs, outputs, and usage documentation