Getting Started with AWS CloudShell

Overview

AWS CloudShell is a fully managed command-line environment that allows you to quickly access the AWS CLI directly from your browser—without the need to install or configure anything on your local machine. With just one click in the AWS Management Console, you can instantly open a secure terminal session with full access permissions inherited from your current IAM role or IAM user.

CloudShell comes preloaded with the AWS CLI, AWS SDKs, and several essential command-line tools. You can use CloudShell to run commands for managing AWS resources, quickly test APIs, write scripts, or work with files in a temporary storage directory (with 1 GB of pre-allocated space at the $HOME directory).

Because it runs directly in the browser, CloudShell offers great convenience for performing lab exercises, demos, or quick AWS operations without needing to prepare a local environment. It will be a time-saving tool throughout your lab activities.