AWS Documentation » AWS Systems Manager » User Guide » AWS Systems Manager Shared Resources » AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store » Working with Systems Manager Parameters » Creating Systems Manager Parameters » Create a Systems Manager Parameter (AWS CLI)

Create a Systems Manager Parameter (AWS CLI)

You can use the AWS CLI to create a parameter that uses the String, StringList, or SecureString data type.

For more information about using the AWS CLI to create parameters, see Walkthrough: Create and Use a Parameter in a Command (AWS CLI).

Note

Parameters are only available in the Region where they were created.

Create a String or StringList Parameter (AWS CLI)

1. Open the AWS CLI and run the following command to specify your credentials and a Region. You must either have administrator privileges in Amazon EC2, or you must have been granted the appropriate permission in AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM).

   aws configure

   The system prompts you to specify the following.

   AWS Access Key ID [None]: key_name
   AWS Secret Access Key [None]: key_name
   Default region name [None]: region
   Default output format [None]: ENTER

2. Execute the following command to create a parameter.

   aws ssm put-parameter --name "parameter_name" --value "a parameter value, or a comma-separated list of values" --type String or StringList 

   If successful, the command returns the version number of the parameter.

   Here is an example that uses the StringList data type.

   aws ssm put-parameter --name /IAD/ERP/Oracle/addUsers --value "Milana,Mariana,Mark,Miguel" --type StringList

   Note

   Items in a StringList must be separated by a comma (,). You can't use other punctuation or special character to escape items in the list. If you have a parameter value that requires a comma, then use the String data type.

3. Execute the following command to verify the details of the parameter.

   aws ssm get-parameters --name "the_parameter_name_you_specified"

   Here is an example that uses the name specified in the earlier example.

   aws ssm get-parameters --name "/IAD/ERP/Oracle/addUsers"

Create a SecureString Parameter (AWS CLI)

Before you create a SecureString parameter, read about the requirements for this type of parameter. For more information, see Using Secure String Parameters.

1. Open the AWS CLI and run the following command to specify your credentials and a Region. You must either have administrator privileges, or you must have been granted the appropriate permission in IAM. For more information, see Systems Manager Prerequisites.

   aws configure

   The system prompts you to specify the following.

   AWS Access Key ID [None]: key_name
   AWS Secret Access Key [None]: key_name
   Default region name [None]: region
   Default output format [None]: ENTER

2. Execute the following command to create a parameter.

   aws ssm put-parameter --name "parameter_name" --value "parameter value" --type SecureString  --key-id "a KMS CMK ID, a KMS CMK ARN, an alias name, or an alias ARN"

   Note

   To use the default AWS KMS CMK assigned to your account, remove the key-id parameter from the command.

   Here is an example that uses an obfuscated name (elixir3131) for a password parameter and a custom AWS KMS key.

   aws ssm put-parameter --name /Finance/Payroll/elixir3131 --value "P@sSwW)rd" --type SecureString --key-id arn:aws:kms:us-east-2:123456789012:key/1a2b3c4d-1a2b-1a2b-1a2b-1a2b3c4d5e

3. Execute the following command to verify the details of the parameter.

   aws ssm get-parameters --name "the_parameter_name_you_specified" --with-decryption

   Note

   If you don't specify the with-decryption parameter, or if you specify the no-with-decryption parameter, the command returns an encrypted GUID.