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Before deploymentterraform-plan-review

Production Plan Review Checklist

10 items ·8 critical ·2 warn ·0 info

Purpose

This checklist verifies the plan output is correct before applying. The plan is the operational artefact. The review is the safety net.

Checklist

  • The summary line matches the change ticket. (critical)
  • For each create, the resource is expected and the configuration is correct. (critical)
  • For each update in-place, the change is expected and the diff is reviewed. (critical)
  • For each replace, the attribute that triggers the replacement is identified and the impact is assessed. (critical)
  • For each destroy, the destruction is expected and the data is recoverable from backup. (critical)
  • No unexpected resources are in the plan. (critical)
  • No attributes with sensitive values are exposed in the plan output. (critical)
  • The plan is saved to a file (not just -auto-approve). (warn)
  • A second engineer has reviewed the plan. (critical)
  • The saved plan is archived as a build artefact. (warn)

Verification

The checklist is complete when every item is checked. A critical item unchecked is a blocker. The plan is not safe to apply.

Escalation

If a critical item cannot be satisfied, escalate to the engineering manager or the change manager.

Critical8 items

Warning2 items