Recommended guideline to change attribute from optional to computed in the data source

Terraform Providers Plugin Development
1

I have to change one of the optional attributes to a computed attribute. Just want to know if there are any recommended guidelines.
Dont see any process documented here

2

Hi @akashgs,

Each data source instance is only read each time with the current configuration, and without any regard for the prior state, so there is no upgrade process to consider in regard to schema changes.

As for user experience, changing what was essentially an input value to an output value would be a breaking change for users’ configuration, so it may be wise to consider that for a major version change.

3

Hi @jbardin

Thanks for the response. If we decide to go ahead with this change in major release, would it be appropriate to give a deprecation message in minor releases (releases planned before major release)?

4

IMO it’s not useful to give a deprecation warning to a user when there is no non-deprecated alternative to consider. Changing something from being a input field for the user to an output field for the provider is an unusual case, so it’s something to document carefully.

Alternatively you could choose to ignore the input if it does not make sense for the API, and name the new computed field something slightly different to ensure that users are all using the new field correctly.