macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install terracognitalocal Homebrew formula metadata
brew
Install terracognita with Homebrew, Nix
Reads from existing Cloud Providers and generates Terraform code. Version 0.8.4 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#terracognitanixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/te/terracognita/package.nix · source: api.github.com
overview
Package summary
Reads from existing Cloud Providers and generates Terraform code
Project links
Commands and aliases
- terracognita
history
Project history and usage
TerraCognita is Cycloid's reverse-Terraform tool: it reads existing cloud infrastructure and generates Terraform HCL and/or Terraform state. Its history tracks the practical DevOps problem of bringing already-existing AWS, Google Cloud, AzureRM, and vSphere resources under infrastructure-as-code management.
Project history
The repository was created in February 2019. In the README, Cycloid explains that infrastructure as code was part of the company's practice and that TerraCognita was built to help customers convert existing cloud infrastructure into Terraform code automatically, relying on community Terraform providers.
Early releases expanded the importer beyond its initial AWS-oriented base. Release notes show v0.3.0 adding multiple Google resources, v0.4.0 adding AzureRM support and targeted import, and v0.6.0 adding AWS profile/config support, session-token authentication, interpolation controls, HCL2 work, and Homebrew support.
Later development focused on keeping pace with provider APIs and larger resource catalogs. The changelog documents broad Azure additions, Terraform 1.1.9 and provider updates in the 0.7.x line, vSphere support and many GCP/AWS resources in v0.8.0, and AzureRM fixes and additions through v0.8.4.
Adoption history
The README documents binary releases, source builds, AUR packages, Homebrew installation, and Docker usage through the `cycloid/terracognita` image. It also describes InfraImport inside Cycloid as the visual representation of TerraCognita, making the CLI both a standalone package and part of Cycloid's platform workflow.
How it is used
The main CLI form is `terracognita [TERRAFORM_PROVIDER] [--flags]`, where users choose a provider such as `aws`, pass provider-specific flags, and emit Terraform HCL, modules, and/or state files. The README documents include/exclude filters by Terraform resource name, module generation, Docker execution with cloud credentials passed through the environment, and follow-up `terraform init` and `terraform plan` checks.
Why package nerds care
For infrastructure package nerds, TerraCognita is notable because it packages a moving target: it embeds assumptions about Terraform, provider versions, cloud SDK behavior, generated HCL, and state output. Package managers expose it as a single CLI, but maintainers care about the bundled provider matrix and how quickly it tracks Terraform ecosystem churn.
Timeline
- 2019: GitHub repository created.
- 2019: v0.1.6 release added version reporting, CI/CD, prebuilt binaries, and automated GitHub/Docker releases.
- 2019: v0.2.0 moved TFState output to Terraform 0.12 format.
- 2020: v0.4.0 added AzureRM provider support.
- 2020: v0.6.0 added AWS profile/config support, session-token authentication, HCL2-related fixes, and Homebrew support.
- 2022: v0.8.0 added vSphere provider support and expanded AWS/GCP/Azure resource coverage.
- 2023: v0.8.4 added AzureRM resources and fixes for generated HCL maps and cyclic dependencies.
Related projects
- The README lists TerraCognita alongside Cycloid's InfraMap, which reads Terraform state or HCL to generate provider-specific graphs, and TerraCost, a Terraform-oriented cloud cost estimation CLI.
- It is adjacent to Terraform import workflows and tools that inventory existing cloud accounts before migrating to infrastructure as code.
Sources
- https://api.github.com/repos/cycloidio/terracognita
- https://api.github.com/repos/cycloidio/terracognita/releases?per_page=100
- https://github.com/cycloidio/terracognita
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cycloidio/terracognita/master/CHANGELOG.md
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cycloidio/terracognita/master/README.md
- source_facts.package-manager
security posture
Risk level: orange
infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal.
Risk classifier
orange risk · medium confidence · infrastructure
Why
- infrastructure mutation or orchestration signal
Signals
- text:cloud
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 12 platform targets.
- Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
terracognita | cli | global executable |
freshness
Version and freshness
These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.
page generated2026-07-08
manager version0.8.4
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamcurrent
latest detectedv0.8.4
https://github.com/cycloidio/terracognita
- infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:terracognita |
|---|---|
| Version | 0.8.4 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/terracognita |
| Homepage | https://github.com/cycloidio/terracognita |
| Repository | https://github.com/cycloidio/terracognita |
| Upstream docs | https://github.com/cycloidio/terracognita#readme |
| License | MIT |
| Source archive | https://github.com/cycloidio/terracognita/archive/refs/tags/v0.8.4.tar.gz |
| Build dependencies | go |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_big_sur, arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, monterey, sonoma, ventura, x86_64_linux) |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew formula API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/core |
| Full Name | terracognita |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Head Version | HEAD |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
Nix95%
terracognita
nix profile install nixpkgs#terracognita- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Terracognita
source trail
Generated from repository data
This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.
Combined YAML source
View the package source record on GitHub.
Used sources
- Geiger risk classifier
- Nucleus package database
- av.db category and tag curation
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated package history
- external package-manager database matches
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment