What is State Management?

State File (terraform.tfstate) = Terraform's memory of what it created

Stores:

• Resource IDs
• Current configuration
• Resource relationships

Local vs Remote State

Local State (Default)

project/
└── terraform.tfstate  # Stored on your computer

Problems:

• Lost if computer crashes
• Can't share with team
• No backup
• Risk of conflicts if multiple people work

Remote State (S3 Backend)

State file → Stored in S3 bucket (cloud)

Benefits:

• Safe in cloud (won't lose it)
• Team can access