> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://notes.kodekloud.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Demo OpenTofu Workspaces
> This guide explains how to create and manage OpenTofu workspaces for separate state files in multiple deployments.
In this guide, you'll learn how to create, select, and manage OpenTofu workspaces to maintain separate state files for multiple deployments of the same configuration. By the end, you'll deploy a payroll application across three regions—US, UK, and India—using a single Terraform-compatible codebase.
## Prerequisites
* OpenTofu CLI installed and available in your `PATH`.
* A sample project directory named `project-sapphire`.
* Access to an S3-like backend (e.g., LocalStack) for state storage.
***
## 1. List the Default Workspace
Navigate to your project directory and list available workspaces. By default, OpenTofu starts with the `default` workspace.
```bash theme={null}
cd ~/opentofu-projects/project-sapphire/
tofu workspace list
```
Expected output:
```bash theme={null}
* default
```
***
## 2. Create New Workspaces
Isolate state per region by creating three workspaces: `us-payroll`, `uk-payroll`, and `india-payroll`.
```bash theme={null}
tofu workspace new us-payroll
tofu workspace new uk-payroll
tofu workspace new india-payroll
```
Verify:
```bash theme={null}
tofu workspace list
```
| Workspace | Description |
| ------------- | ---------------------------------- |
| default | Default environment |
| us-payroll | State for US payroll deployment |
| uk-payroll | State for UK payroll deployment |
| india-payroll | State for India payroll deployment |
***
## 3. Select a Workspace
Switch to the `us-payroll` workspace before running any commands:
```bash theme={null}
tofu workspace select us-payroll
# Switched to workspace "us-payroll".
```
***
## 4. Understand Workspace State Location
OpenTofu stores each workspace’s state under `terraform.tfstate.d/`. For example:
```text theme={null}
terraform.tfstate.d/india-payroll/terraform.tfstate
```
Do not manually edit files in the `terraform.tfstate.d/` directory—always use OpenTofu commands to manage state.
***
## 5. Review the Configuration Files
Your `project-sapphire` folder should include:
* **variables.tf**
* **provider.tf**
### variables.tf
```hcl theme={null}
variable "region" {
type = map(string)
default = {
"us-payroll" = "us-east-1"
"uk-payroll" = "eu-west-2"
"india-payroll" = "ap-south-1"
}
}
variable "ami" {
type = map(string)
default = {
"us-payroll" = "ami-24e140119877avm"
"uk-payroll" = "ami-351e40119877avm"
"india-payroll" = "ami-55140119877avm"
}
}
```
Quiz:
* **Type of `region`?** A `map(string)`.
* **`region["india-payroll"]` default?** `"ap-south-1"`.
* **`ami["india-payroll"]` default?** `"ami-55140119877avm"`.
### provider.tf
```hcl theme={null}
terraform {
required_providers {
aws = {
source = "hashicorp/aws"
version = "5.38.0"
}
}
}
provider "aws" {
region = lookup(var.region, terraform.workspace)
skip_credentials_validation = true
skip_requesting_account_id = true
s3_use_path_style = true
endpoints {
ec2 = "http://aws:4566"
dynamodb = "http://aws:4566"
s3 = "http://aws:4566"
}
}
```
***
## 6. Update `main.tf` to Invoke the Module
Add a module block in `main.tf` that points to your shared payroll application:
```hcl theme={null}
module "payroll_app" {
source = "/root/opentofu-projects/modules/payroll-app"
app_region = lookup(var.region, terraform.workspace)
ami = lookup(var.ami, terraform.workspace)
}
```
***
## 7. Initialize OpenTofu
Download providers and modules:
```bash theme={null}
tofu init
```
***
## 8. Apply Configuration Across All Workspaces
Deploy the payroll app in each region:
1. US Payroll
```bash theme={null}
tofu workspace select us-payroll
tofu apply
# Enter "yes" to confirm
```
2. UK Payroll
```bash theme={null}
tofu workspace select uk-payroll
tofu apply
# Enter "yes" to confirm
```
3. India Payroll
```bash theme={null}
tofu workspace select india-payroll
tofu apply
# Enter "yes" to confirm
```
***
### Workspace-State Mapping
| Workspace | AWS Region | AMI ID | State File Location |
| ------------- | ---------- | ------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| us-payroll | us-east-1 | ami-24e140119877avm | terraform.tfstate.d/us-payroll/terraform.tfstate |
| uk-payroll | eu-west-2 | ami-351e40119877avm | terraform.tfstate.d/uk-payroll/terraform.tfstate |
| india-payroll | ap-south-1 | ami-55140119877avm | terraform.tfstate.d/india-payroll/terraform.tfstate |
***
## References
* [OpenTofu Documentation](https://github.com/opentofu/opentofu)
* [Terraform Workspaces](https://www.terraform.io/language/state/workspaces)
* [AWS Provider](https://registry.terraform.io/providers/hashicorp/aws/latest/docs)