Multiple Providers

Prerequisites
Defining Multiple Resources
Initializing Providers
Planning and Applying Changes
Example Execution Output
Chaining Resources Across Providers
References

In this guide, we’ll show you how to use multiple Providers in a single OpenTofu (a Terraform-compatible tool) configuration. By combining Providers, you can provision resources across different platforms—local files, random data generators, AWS, and more—all within one main.tf.

Prerequisites

OpenTofu CLI installed (see OpenTofu Installation).
A working directory with an existing main.tf and an initialized backend.

Defining Multiple Resources

Extend your main.tf by adding a random_pet resource alongside the existing local_file:

resource "local_file" "pet" {
  filename = "/root/pets.txt"
  content  = "We love pets!"
}

resource "random_pet" "my-pet" {
  prefix    = "Mrs"
  separator = "."
  length    = 1
}

Whenever you introduce a new Provider (e.g., the random provider here), you must reinitialize your configuration so OpenTofu can download or reuse the required plugin.

Initializing Providers

Run:

tofu init

Sample output:

Initializing the backend...

Initializing provider plugins...
- Reusing hashicorp/local from .terraform.lock.hcl
- Finding latest version of hashicorp/random...
- Installing hashicorp/random v3.6.0...
- Installed hashicorp/random v3.6.0

OpenTofu has been successfully initialized!

Review changes in your .terraform.lock.hcl after tofu init. Commit updates only if they match your intended dependency versions.

Planning and Applying Changes

First, generate and inspect the execution plan:

tofu plan

Then apply the proposed changes:

tofu apply

Table: Common OpenTofu Commands

Command	Purpose	Example
tofu init	Initialize backend & providers	`tofu init`
tofu plan	Preview changes without applying	`tofu plan -out=tfplan`
tofu apply	Apply changes to reach desired state	`tofu apply tfplan`

Example Execution Output

local_file.pet: Refreshing state... [id=...]
random_pet.my-pet: Creating...
random_pet.my-pet: Creation complete after 0s [id=Mrs.hen]

Apply complete! Resources: 1 added, 0 changed, 0 destroyed.

The random_pet resource simply generates a random name, exposed as its id attribute—no real infrastructure is provisioned.

Chaining Resources Across Providers

You can reference one resource’s attribute in another, even if they come from different Providers. For example, generate a random string to tag an AWS EC2 instance:

resource "random_string" "server-suffix" {
  length  = 6
  upper   = false
  special = false
}

resource "aws_instance" "web" {
  ami           = "ami-06178cf087598769c"
  instance_type = "m5.large"
  tags = {
    Name = "web-${random_string.server-suffix.id}"
  }
}

When you run tofu apply, OpenTofu will:

Create the random string.
Launch an EC2 instance tagged with web-<generated-suffix>.

Linking resources in this way lets you orchestrate complex, multi-provider deployments from a single .tf file.

References

Watch Video

Demo OpenTofu Providers

Multiple Providers Part 2Aliases

⌘I

Course Introduction

Introduction to Infrastructure as Code

Remote State

Course Conclusion

Getting Started with Open Tofu

Open Tofu Basics

Open Tofu Beyond Basics

Open Tofu Functions and Conditional Expressions

Open Tofu Import Tainting Resources and Deubugging

Open Tofu Modules

Open Tofu Provisioners

Open Tofu State

Working with Open Tofu

Multiple Providers

Prerequisites

Defining Multiple Resources

Initializing Providers

Planning and Applying Changes

Example Execution Output

Chaining Resources Across Providers

References

Watch Video

Course Introduction

Introduction to Infrastructure as Code

Remote State

Course Conclusion

Getting Started with Open Tofu

Open Tofu Basics

Open Tofu Beyond Basics

Open Tofu Functions and Conditional Expressions

Open Tofu Import Tainting Resources and Deubugging

Open Tofu Modules

Open Tofu Provisioners

Open Tofu State

Working with Open Tofu

​Prerequisites

​Defining Multiple Resources

​Initializing Providers

​Planning and Applying Changes

​Example Execution Output

​Chaining Resources Across Providers

​References

Watch Video

Prerequisites

Defining Multiple Resources

Initializing Providers

Planning and Applying Changes

Example Execution Output

Chaining Resources Across Providers

References