The walk-through assumes you already have the following set up:
- AWS account: If you do not have an account, visit the AWS console page and follow the instructions to set up an account. The instructions are available at https://aws.amazon.com/free/.
- Root accounts with Multi-Factor Authorization (MFA) active: This is essential for security purposes. If you have not turned on MFA, do it right away. Download an app on your phone such as Google Authenticator and set up MFA on your account. The instructions are available at https://aws.amazon.com/iam/details/mfa/.
- IAM users with administrative rights and MFA active: Set up an IAM user for yourself with administrator rights to use for day-to-day operations. For security purposes, avoid using the root to log in. Also set up MFA for the IAM user.
- Follow all other recommended steps on the IAM welcome screen to secure your account: Your security status on the page should be all green checkmarks and look like the following screenshot:
Now, we will begin the initial steps for the walk-through:
- Start the walk-through by logging into the AWS management console using your IAM user ID. If the login screen asks for an email address, you are at the root user login and not the IAM user login. You will need to go to the IAM user login screen. If you are having trouble getting to the page, the trick is to type in the URL in this format https://[AccountName].signin.aws.amazon.com/console, where you replace [AccountName] with your own account name. This link can also be found on the IAM start page after you log in.
- Make sure the AWS region is set to the one where you want to create the environment. It is best to set it to the region closest to your geographic location for most use cases. You can check the region by looking in the upper right of the management console. If necessary, you can change it by the clicking the little arrow to the right of the name:
