Prerequisites to use the AWS CLI version 2 - AWS Command Line Interface
Step 1: Sign up to AWSStep 2: Create an IAM accountStep 3: Create an access key ID and secret access keyNext steps

Prerequisites to use the AWS CLI version 2

To access AWS services with the AWS CLI, you need an AWS account, IAM credentials, and an IAM access key pair. When running AWS CLI commands, the AWS CLI needs to have access to those AWS credentials.

To increase the security of your AWS account, we recommend that you do not use your root account credentials. You should create an IAM user to provide access credentials to the tasks you'll be running in AWS.

Step 1: Sign up to AWS

If you do not have an AWS account, complete the following steps to create one.

To sign up for an AWS account

  1. Open https://portal.aws.amazon.com/billing/signup.

  2. Follow the online instructions.

    Part of the sign-up procedure involves receiving a phone call and entering a verification code on the phone keypad.

    When you sign up for an AWS account, an AWS account root user is created. The root user has access to all AWS services and resources in the account. As a security best practice, assign administrative access to an administrative user, and use only the root user to perform tasks that require root user access.

Step 2: Create an IAM account

To create an administrator user, choose one of the following options.

Choose one way to manage your administrator To By You can also
In IAM Identity Center

(Recommended)

 Use short-term credentials to access AWS.

This aligns with the security best practices. For information about best practices, see Security best practices in IAM in the IAM User Guide.

 Following the instructions in Getting started in the AWS IAM Identity Center (successor to AWS Single Sign-On) User Guide. Configure programmatic access by Configuring the AWS CLI to use AWS IAM Identity Center (successor to AWS Single Sign-On) in the AWS Command Line Interface User Guide.
In IAM

(Not recommended)

 Use long-term credentials to access AWS. Following the instructions in Creating your first IAM admin user and user group in the IAM User Guide. Configure programmatic access by Managing access keys for IAM users in the IAM User Guide.

Step 3: Create an access key ID and secret access key

For CLI access, you need an access key ID and a secret access key. Use temporary credentials instead of long-term access keys when possible. Temporary credentials include an access key ID, a secret access key, and a security token that indicates when the credentials expire. For more information, see Best practices for managing AWS access keys in the AWS General Reference.

Users need programmatic access if they want to interact with AWS outside of the AWS Management Console. The way to grant programmatic access depends on the type of user that's accessing AWS:

  • If you manage identities in IAM Identity Center, the AWS APIs require a profile, and the AWS Command Line Interface requires a profile or an environment variable.

  • If you have IAM users, the AWS APIs and the AWS Command Line Interface require access keys. Whenever possible, create temporary credentials that consist of an access key ID, a secret access key, and a security token that indicates when the credentials expire.

To grant users programmatic access, choose one of the following options.

Which user needs programmatic access? To By

Workforce identity

(Users managed in IAM Identity Center)

 Use short-term credentials to sign programmatic requests to the AWS CLI or AWS APIs (directly or by using the AWS SDKs).

Following the instructions for the interface that you want to use:
IAM Use short-term credentials to sign programmatic requests to the AWS CLI or AWS APIs (directly or by using the AWS SDKs). Following the instructions in Using temporary credentials with AWS resources in the IAM User Guide.
IAM Use long-term credentials to sign programmatic requests to the AWS CLI or AWS APIs (directly or by using the AWS SDKs).

(Not recommended)

 Following the instructions in Managing access keys for IAM users in the IAM User Guide.

Next steps

After creating an AWS account, IAM credentials, and an IAM access key pair, to use the AWS CLI you can do one of the following: