Installing the AWS Encryption SDK command line interface

This topic explains how to install the AWS Encryption CLI. For detailed information, see the aws-encryption-sdk-cli repository on GitHub and Read the Docs.

Installing the prerequisites

The AWS Encryption CLI is built on the AWS Encryption SDK for Python. To use the AWS Encryption CLI, you need Python and pip, the Python package management tool. Python and pip are available on all supported platforms.

Before you install the AWS Encryption CLI, be sure that you have the following prerequisites.

Python

The AWS Encryption CLI requires Python 2.7, or Python 3.4 or later. Python is included in most Linux and macOS installations, although you might need to upgrade to one of the required versions. However, you have to install Python on Windows, if it is not already installed. To download Python, see Python downloads.

To determine whether Python is installed, at the command line, type the following.

python

To check the Python version, use the -V (uppercase V) parameter.

python -V

On Windows, you need to install Python. Then, add the path to the Python.exe file to the value of the Path environment variable.

By default, Python is installed in the all users directory or in a user profile directory ($home or %userprofile%) in the AppData\Local\Programs\Python subdirectory. To find the location of the Python.exe file on your system, check one of the following registry keys. You can use PowerShell to search the registry.

PS C:\> dir HKLM:\Software\Python\PythonCore\version\InstallPath
# -or-
PS C:\> dir HKCU:\Software\Python\PythonCore\version\InstallPath

pip

pip is the Python package manager. To install the AWS Encryption CLI and its dependencies, you need pip 8.1 or later.

For help installing or upgrading pip, see Installation in the pip documentation.

AWS Command Line Interface

The AWS Command Line Interface (AWS CLI) is required only if you are using AWS Key Management Service (AWS KMS) customer master keys (CMKs) with the AWS Encryption CLI. If you are using a different master key provider, the AWS CLI is not required.

To use AWS KMS CMKs with the AWS Encryption CLI, you need to install and configure the AWS CLI. The configuration makes the credentials that you use to authenticate to AWS KMS available to the AWS Encryption CLI.

Installing the AWS Encryption CLI

Use pip to install the AWS Encryption CLI and the Python cryptography library that it requires.

The AWS Encryption CLI requires the cryptography library on all platforms. All versions of pip install and build the cryptography library on Windows and OS X.

On Linux, pip 8.1 and later installs and builds the cryptography library. If you are using an earlier version of pip and your Linux environment doesn't have the tools needed to build the cryptography library, you must install them. For more information, see Building cryptography on Linux.

To install the latest version

pip install aws-encryption-sdk-cli

To upgrade to the latest version

pip install --upgrade aws-encryption-sdk-cli

To find the version number of your AWS Encryption CLI and AWS Encryption SDK

aws-encryption-cli --version

aws-encryption-sdk-cli/1.1.0 aws-encryption-sdk/1.3.2

To install the version of the AWS Encryption CLI currently in development, see the aws-encryption-sdk-cli repository on GitHub.

For more details about using pip to install and upgrade Python packages, see the pip documentation.