AWS CloudShell Cheat Sheet

AWS CloudShell is a browser-based shell, accessible directly from the AWS Management Console. It provides command-line access to your AWS resources, with a pre-configured environment that includes common tools and authenticated AWS credentials.

Core Features

• Browser-Based Access: Launch a terminal session directly in your web browser without needing to install or configure any software on your local machine.

• Pre-Authenticated Environment: CloudShell automatically uses the same IAM credentials as the user signed in to the AWS Management Console, simplifying authentication.

• Pre-Installed Tools: The environment comes with the AWS CLI, AWS SDKs (for Python, Node.js, etc.), and other essential utilities like Git, tar, make, and more.

• Persistent Storage: You get 1 GB of persistent storage in your $HOME directory per AWS Region. This allows you to store scripts, configuration files, and other data between sessions.

• Session Management: CloudShell uses tmux under the hood, allowing you to restore sessions even if you close and reopen the browser tab.

Environment Specifications

• Operating System: Amazon Linux 2

• Compute: 1 vCPU and 2 GiB of RAM

• Available Shells:

  • Bash (bash)

  • PowerShell (pwsh)

  • Z shell (zsh)

• Storage:

  • Persistent: 1 GB in the /home/cloudshell-user directory.

  • Temporary: Storage outside the home directory is recycled after each session ends.

Key Operations and Customization

• File Upload/Download: You can upload and download files (up to 1 GB) between your local machine and the CloudShell environment. This can be done via the "Actions" menu in the CloudShell interface.

• Customization: The CloudShell interface allows for customization of:

  • Tabs and Layout: Split the terminal into multiple rows and columns.

  • Font Size: Adjust the text size for readability.

  • Color Theme: Switch between light and dark themes.

Security

• IAM Integration: Access to CloudShell and the actions a user can perform within it are controlled by IAM policies attached to the user.

• Safe Paste: This feature is enabled by default to protect against pasting malicious multi-line scripts. It requires you to confirm the paste operation, giving you a chance to review the code first.

Pricing

• AWS CloudShell is available at no additional charge.

• You only pay for the AWS resources that you create or run using CloudShell (e.g., launching an EC2 instance, storing data in S3).