How to fix Error: state snapshot was created by Terraform vX.X.X, which is newer than current in Terraform

First, determine what version of Terraform you're currently running:

terraform version

This will show you your current Terraform version. Note the version number for comparison.

Upgrade Terraform to match or exceed the version that created your state file. The error message will tell you which version is required (e.g., v1.7.0).

On macOS (with Homebrew):

brew upgrade terraform

On Linux (with apt):

wget https://apt.releases.hashicorp.com/gpg | sudo apt-key add -
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install terraform

Using tfenv (recommended for version management):

tfenv install 1.X.X
tfenv use 1.X.X

Replace 1.X.X with the version shown in your error message or a newer version.

After upgrading, verify you're running the correct version:

terraform version

Confirm it now shows a version equal to or newer than the one that created the state. Then retry your terraform command:

terraform plan

To prevent this issue in the future, add a version constraint to your Terraform configuration that all team members must follow:

terraform {
  required_version = ">= 1.X.X"
}

Or if you want to pin to a specific major version:

terraform {
  required_version = "~> 1.7"
}

When teammates run terraform init, Terraform will fail if their version is too old, preventing the version mismatch issue at the source.

Ensure your CI/CD environment uses the same or newer Terraform version. For example, in GitHub Actions:

name: Terraform
on: [push]

jobs:
  terraform:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - uses: hashicorp/setup-terraform@v2
        with:
          terraform_version: 1.7.0
      - run: terraform init
      - run: terraform plan

Pin the version to match your required_version constraint. Check your specific CI/CD provider's documentation for the exact syntax.