CRITICAL SUCCESS REQUIREMENTS

The migration output MUST meet all of the following:

Complete Resource Coverage
- Every CloudFormation resource synthesized by CDK MUST:
  - Be represented in the Pulumi program OR
  - Be explicitly justified in the final report.
Successful Deployment
- The produced Pulumi program must be structurally valid and capable of a successful
```
pulumi up
```
  (assuming proper config).
Final Migration Report
- Always output a formal migration report suitable for a Pull Request.
- Include:
  - CDK → Pulumi resource mapping
  - Provider decisions (aws-native vs aws)
  - Behavioral differences
  - Missing or manually required steps
  - Validation instructions

WHEN INFORMATION IS MISSING

If a user-provided CDK project is incomplete, ambiguous, or missing artifacts (such as

cdk.out

), ask targeted questions before generating Pulumi code.

MIGRATION WORKFLOW

Follow this workflow exactly and in this order:

1. INFORMATION GATHERING

1.1 Verify AWS Credentials (ESC)

Running AWS commands (e.g.,

aws cloudformation list-stack-resources

) and CDK commands (e.g.

cdk synth

) requires credentials loaded via Pulumi ESC.

If the user has already provided an ESC environment, use it.
If no ESC environment is specified, ask the user which ESC environment to use before proceeding with AWS commands.

You MUST confirm the AWS region with the user. The

cdk synth

results may be incorrect if ran with the wrong AWS Region.

1.2 Synthesize CDK

Run/inspect:

bash

npx cdk synth --quiet

ALWAYS run
```
synth
```
with
```
--quiet
```
to prevent the template from being output on stdout.

If failing, inspect

cdk.json

package.json

for custom synth behavior.

1.3 Identify CDK Stacks & Environments

Read

cdk.out/manifest.json

bash

jq '.artifacts | to_entries | map(select(.value.type == "aws:cloudformation:stack") | {displayName: .key, environment: .value.environment}) | .[]' cdk.out/manifest.json

Example output:

json

{
  "displayName": "DataStack-dev",
  "environment": "aws://616138583583/us-east-2"
}
{
  "displayName": "AppStack-dev",
  "environment": "aws://616138583583/us-east-2"
}

In the Pulumi stack you create you MUST set both the

aws:region

and

aws-native:region

config variables. For example:

bash

pulumi config set aws-native:region us-east-2 --stack dev
pulumi config set aws:region us-east-2 --stack dev

1.4 Build Resource Inventory

For each stack:

bash

aws cloudformation list-stack-resources \
  --region <region> \
  --stack-name <stack> \
  --output json

1.5 Analyze CDK Structure

Extract:

Environment-specific conditionals
Stack dependencies & cross-stack references
Runtime config (context/env vars)
Construct types (L1, L2, L3)

2. CODE CONVERSION (CDK → PULUMI)

Perform the initial conversion using the
```
cdk2pulumi
```
tool. Follow cdk-convert.md to perform the conversion.
Read the conversion report and fill in any gaps. For example, if the conversion fails to convert a resource you have to convert it manually yourself.

2.1 Custom Resources Handling

CDK uses Lambda-backed Custom Resources for functionality not available in CloudFormation. In synthesized CloudFormation, these appear as:

Resource type:

AWS::CloudFormation::CustomResource

Custom::<name>

Metadata contains

aws:cdk:path

with the handler name (e.g.,

aws-s3/auto-delete-objects-handler

)

Default behavior:

cdk2pulumi

rewrites custom resources to

aws-native:cloudformation:CustomResourceEmulator

, which invokes the original Lambda. This works but has tradeoffs (Lambda dependency, cold starts, eventual consistency).

Migration strategies by handler type:

Handler	Strategy
`aws-certificatemanager/dns-validated-certificate-handler`	Replace with `aws.acm.Certificate` , `aws.route53.Record` , and `aws.acm.CertificateValidation`
`aws-ec2/restrict-default-security-group-handler`	Replace with `aws.ec2.DefaultSecurityGroup` resource with empty ingress/egress rules
`aws-ecr/auto-delete-images-handler`	Replace `aws-native:ecr:Repository` with `aws.ecr.Repository` with `forceDelete: true`
`aws-s3/auto-delete-objects-handler`	Replace `aws-native:s3:Bucket` with `aws.s3.Bucket` with `forceDestroy: true`
`aws-s3/notifications-resource-handler`	Replace with `aws.s3.BucketNotification`
`aws-logs/log-retention-handler`	Replace with `aws.cloudwatch.LogGroup` with explicit `retentionInDays`
`aws-iam/oidc-handler`	Replace with `aws.iam.OpenIdConnectProvider`
`aws-route53/delete-existing-record-set-handler`	Replace with `aws.route53.Record` with `allowOverwrite: true`
`aws-dynamodb/replica-handler`	Replace with `aws.dynamodb.TableReplica`

Cross-account/region handlers:

aws-cloudfront/edge-function

→ Use

aws.lambda.Function

with

region: "us-east-1"

```
aws-route53/cross-account-zone-delegation-handler
```
→ Use separate aws provider with cross-account role assumption

Graceful degradation for unknown handlers:

Keep the
```
CustomResourceEmulator
```
(default behavior)
Document the custom resource in the migration report with:
- Original handler name and purpose (if discernible from CDK path)
- Note that it uses Lambda invocation at runtime
- Recommend user review for potential native replacement

2.2 Provider Strategy

Default: Use
```
aws-native
```
whenever the resource type is available.
Fallback: Use
```
aws
```
when aws-native does not support equivalent features.

2.3 Assets & Bundling

CDK uses Assets and Bundling to handle deployment artifacts. These are processed by the CDK CLI before CloudFormation deployment and appear in the

cdk.out

directory alongside

*.assets.json

metadata files. CloudFormation templates contain hard-coded references to asset locations (S3 bucket/key or ECR repo/tag).

bash

# Inspect asset definitions
jq '.files, .dockerImages' cdk.out/*.assets.json

Migration strategies by asset type:

Asset Type	Detection	Pulumi Migration
Docker Image	`dockerImages` in assets.json	Use `docker-build.Image` to build and push. Replace hard-coded ECR URI with image output.
File with build command	`files` with `executable` field	Flag to user - build command needs setup in Pulumi
Static file	`files` without `executable` , no bundling in CDK source	Use `pulumi.FileArchive` or `pulumi.FileAsset`
Bundled file	`files` without `executable` , but CDK source uses bundling	Flag to user - bundling needs setup in Pulumi

Detecting Bundling in CDK Source:

Check the CDK source code for bundling constructs (

NodejsFunction

PythonFunction

GoFunction

, or resources using the

bundling

option). If bundling is used, the build step needs to be replicated in Pulumi for ongoing development - otherwise source changes would require manually re-running

cdk synth

When bundling is detected, inform the user:

Build Step Detected: This CDK application uses <BUNDLING_TYPE> which builds deployable artifacts during synthesis. This build step needs to be replicated in Pulumi for ongoing development.

Options:
CI/CD Pipeline (Recommended): Move the build step to your CI pipeline and reference the pre-built artifact in Pulumi
Pulumi Command Provider: Use
command.local.Command
to run the build command during
pulumi up
Pre-build Script: Create a build script that runs before
pulumi up
and outputs to a known location
Each option has tradeoffs around caching, reproducibility, and deployment speed. For production workloads, option 1 is typically preferred.

2.4 TypeScript Handling for aws-native

aws-native outputs often include undefined. Avoid

non-null assertions. Always safely unwrap with

.apply()

// ❌ WRONG - Will cause TypeScript errors
functionName: lambdaFunction.functionName!,

// ✅ CORRECT - Handle undefined safely
functionName: lambdaFunction.functionName.apply(name => name || ""),

2.5 Environment Logic Preservation

Carry forward all conditional behaviors:

if (currentEnv.createVpc) {
  // create resources
} else {
  const vpcId = pulumi.output(currentEnv.vpcId);
}

3. Resource Import (optional)

After conversion you can optionally import the existing resources to now be managed by Pulumi. If the user does not request this you should suggest this as a follow up step to conversion.

Always start with automated import using the
```
cdk-importer
```
tool. Follow cdk-importer.md to perform the automated import.
For any resources that fail to import with the automated tool, import them manually.

If you need to manually import resources:

Follow cloudformation-id-lookup.md to look up CloudFormation import identifiers.
Use the web-fetch tool to get content from the official Pulumi documentation.
Finding AWS import IDs -> https://www.pulumi.com/docs/iac/guides/migration/aws-import-ids/
Manual migration approaches -> https://www.pulumi.com/docs/iac/guides/migration/migrating-to-pulumi/migrating-from-cdk/migrating-existing-cdk-app/#approach-b-manual-migration

3.1 Running preview after import

After performing an import you need to run

pulumi preview

to ensure there are no changes. No changes means:

NO updates
NO replaces
NO creates
NO deletes

If there are changes you must investigate and update the program until there are no changes.

Working with the User

If the user asks for help planning or performing a CDK to Pulumi migration use the information above to guide the user towards the automated migration approach.

For Detailed Documentation

When the user wants to deviate from the recommended path detailed above, use the web-fetch tool to get content from the official Pulumi documentation -> https://www.pulumi.com/docs/iac/guides/migration/migrating-to-pulumi/migrating-from-cdk/migrating-existing-cdk-app

This documentation covers topics:

Migration Strategy
- Convert vs. Rewrite
- Import vs. Rehydrate
- Best Practices
Handling Multiple CDK Stacks
Handling CDK Stages
Code organization
Converting CDK Constructs
Execution Strategies
- Automated Migration (recommended)
- Manual Migration

OUTPUT FORMAT (REQUIRED)

When performing a migration, always produce:

Overview (high-level description)
Migration Plan Summary
Pulumi Code Outputs (TypeScript; structured by file)
Resource Mapping Table (CDK → Pulumi)
Custom Resources Summary (if any):
- Handlers migrated to native Pulumi resources
- Handlers kept as
```
CustomResourceEmulator
```
  with rationale
- Any handlers requiring user attention
Assets & Bundling Summary (if any):
- Migrated: Assets successfully converted (e.g., Docker images →
```
docker-build.Image
```
  , static files →
```
pulumi.FileArchive
```
  )
- Requires attention: Assets with bundling steps, options presented, and decision if made
Final Migration Report (PR-ready)
Next Steps (optional refactors)

Keep code syntactically valid and clearly separated by files.

pulumi-cdk-to-pulumi

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

CRITICAL SUCCESS REQUIREMENTS

WHEN INFORMATION IS MISSING

MIGRATION WORKFLOW

1. INFORMATION GATHERING

1.1 Verify AWS Credentials (ESC)

1.2 Synthesize CDK

1.3 Identify CDK Stacks & Environments

1.4 Build Resource Inventory

1.5 Analyze CDK Structure

2. CODE CONVERSION (CDK → PULUMI)

2.1 Custom Resources Handling

2.2 Provider Strategy

2.3 Assets & Bundling

2.4 TypeScript Handling for aws-native

2.5 Environment Logic Preservation

3. Resource Import (optional)

3.1 Running preview after import

Working with the User

For Detailed Documentation

OUTPUT FORMAT (REQUIRED)