If a Terraform run creates a VM in a shared cloud account and the state contains only that VM, what is the correct way to delete it with Terraform?

If a Terraform run creates a VM in a shared cloud account and the state contains only that VM, what is the correct way to delete it with Terraform?

• A. The Terraform state file contains all 16 VMs in the team account. Execute terraform destroy and select the newly-created VM.
• B. Delete the Terraform state file and execute Terraform apply.
• C. The Terraform state file only contains the one new VM. Execute terraform destroy.
• D. Delete the VM using the cloud provider console and terraform apply to apply the changes to the Terraform state file.

Answer: (C)

The test is about using Terraform’s state as the source of truth and how to remove resources that Terraform manages. When you want to delete a resource, you should rely on Terraform to perform the deletion based on what’s in its state. If the state contains only that one VM, running terraform destroy will target and remove exactly that VM, leaving nothing else to manage. This keeps Terraform in control of the lifecycle and ensures the state stays consistent with real resources. Deleting the state file would break Terraform’s ability to manage anything, and running apply afterward would either fail or attempt to recreate resources because Terraform wouldn’t know what to destroy. Removing the VM via the cloud console creates drift between the real world and Terraform’s state. A subsequent terraform apply would typically plan to recreate the VM to match the state, not reflect the removal. The proper approach is to let Terraform destroy handle the deletion so the state remains accurate.

The test is about using Terraform’s state as the source of truth and how to remove resources that Terraform manages. When you want to delete a resource, you should rely on Terraform to perform the deletion based on what’s in its state. If the state contains only that one VM, running terraform destroy will target and remove exactly that VM, leaving nothing else to manage. This keeps Terraform in control of the lifecycle and ensures the state stays consistent with real resources.

Deleting the state file would break Terraform’s ability to manage anything, and running apply afterward would either fail or attempt to recreate resources because Terraform wouldn’t know what to destroy.

Removing the VM via the cloud console creates drift between the real world and Terraform’s state. A subsequent terraform apply would typically plan to recreate the VM to match the state, not reflect the removal. The proper approach is to let Terraform destroy handle the deletion so the state remains accurate.