How to fix Error: Unsupported attribute - This object has no argument, nested block, or exported attribute named in Terraform

Carefully review the attribute name in your configuration. Common mistakes include:

# Wrong
resource "aws_instance" "example" {
  availabilty_zone = "us-east-1a"  # typo: availabilty
}

# Correct
resource "aws_instance" "example" {
  availability_zone = "us-east-1a"
}

Double-check against the official provider documentation for the exact spelling.

Terraform distinguishes between arguments (use =) and nested blocks (no =). Check if your attribute should be a block:

# Wrong: treating a block as an argument
resource "aws_security_group" "example" {
  ingress = {    # This is a nested block, not an argument
    from_port = 80
  }
}

# Correct: nested block syntax
resource "aws_security_group" "example" {
  ingress {      # No equals sign
    from_port = 80
  }
}

Consult your provider documentation to determine if something should be a block or argument.

The attribute might not exist in your current provider version. Check what version you're using:

terraform providers

Or view it in your state file. Then compare against your provider's changelog to see if:
- The attribute was renamed
- The attribute was removed
- The attribute is only available in newer versions

If upgrading, run terraform init to download the new provider version.

For a specific resource, you can list all available arguments and blocks:

terraform providers schema -json | jq '.provider_schemas["provider[registry.terraform.io/hashicorp/aws]"].resource_schemas["aws_instance"].block.attributes'

This shows exactly what your current provider version supports. Look for the attribute name in the output.

If an attribute was removed, check the provider changelog for the recommended replacement:

# Old (removed in provider v5.0)
resource "aws_instance" "example" {
  security_groups = ["default"]  # Removed
}

# New (use vpc_security_group_ids instead)
resource "aws_instance" "example" {
  vpc_security_group_ids = [aws_security_group.example.id]
}

Replace the old attribute with the new one recommended in the changelog.

Once you've corrected the attribute name and syntax, validate your Terraform configuration:

terraform validate

If validation passes, you can safely run:

terraform plan

to see what changes Terraform wants to make.