☁️ Getting Started with AWS: S3, IAM, and AWS CLI
I’ve been exploring AWS, and three services stood out to me: S3, IAM, and AWS CLI. At first, the names sounded too technical, but once I tried them out, they made sense.
S3 (Simple Storage Service)
S3 is like an online folder where you can keep files safely. You can upload photos, documents, backups, or even host a simple website.
What I tried: I created a private bucket and adjusted its settings so I could still access the files without making everything public. It showed me how AWS takes security seriously.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
IAM (Identity and Access Management)
IAM is all about who can do what in your AWS account.
Users = people
Groups = team of people
Roles = temporary permissions
Policies = rules about what’s allowed or not
Example: A new teammate, Alex, joins the company.
Alex should be able to see EC2 servers but not change them.
Alex should also be able to create new S3 buckets.
IAM makes this easy. You just give Alex the right permissions instead of sharing your own account.
AWS CLI (Command Line Interface)
The AWS CLI is a tool that lets you use AWS from the terminal. Instead of clicking around in the console, you just type commands.
Why I liked it:
It’s faster once you know the commands
You can automate tasks
It feels powerful to launch servers with just one line of code
What I did: Installed AWS CLI on my Ubuntu system and launched an EC2 instance with it. Felt like magic!
What I Learned
S3 is for safe online storage.
IAM controls access securely.
AWS CLI is a shortcut for speed and automation.
These three together form the basics of AWS, and they already make me feel more confident working with cloud services.
That’s a bit of my AWS journey so far. Next, I’ll dive into other services and share what I learn along the way.