How to fix Error: Invalid data source in Terraform

Check the Terraform provider documentation for the exact data source name. Common mistakes include:

# Wrong - typo in data source name
data "aws_ec2_instance" "example" {
  filter {
    name   = "tag:Name"
    values = ["my-instance"]
  }
}

# Correct - correct data source name
data "aws_instance" "example" {
  filter {
    name   = "tag:Name"
    values = ["my-instance"]
  }
}

Visit the [Terraform AWS Provider documentation](https://registry.terraform.io/providers/hashicorp/aws/latest/docs) and search for your data source to confirm the exact name.

If you haven't already, run terraform init to download and initialize the required providers:

terraform init

This command downloads the provider plugins specified in your required_providers block and creates the necessary working directory structure. Without initialization, Terraform cannot find any data sources.

Ensure the provider is declared in your Terraform configuration with the correct source:

terraform {
  required_providers {
    aws = {
      source  = "hashicorp/aws"
      version = "~> 5.0"
    }
  }
}

provider "aws" {
  region = "us-east-1"
}

If using a third-party provider, use the full source path (e.g., examplecorp/examplecloud).

Some data sources are only available in certain provider versions. Update your provider to the latest compatible version:

terraform init -upgrade

Then check the provider changelog or documentation to confirm the data source is available in your version. If not, update the version constraint:

terraform {
  required_providers {
    aws = {
      source  = "hashicorp/aws"
      version = "~> 5.0"  # Update to a newer version if needed
    }
  }
}

Use terraform validate to check for syntax errors in your configuration:

terraform validate

This command validates the configuration without accessing any remote services and will report all syntax and reference errors, including invalid data sources.

Ensure all required arguments for the data source are provided. Some data sources have specific requirements:

# Example: aws_ami requires specific filters or owner/name pattern
data "aws_ami" "example" {
  most_recent = true

  filter {
    name   = "name"
    values = ["amzn2-ami-hvm-*"]
  }

  filter {
    name   = "virtualization-type"
    values = ["hvm"]
  }

  owners = ["137112412989"]  # Amazon's account ID
}

Check the provider documentation for all required and optional arguments.