AWS Archives - Page 2 of 3

How to get the AWS Region where Node.js Lambda Function is running

To get the AWS Region where your Lambda Function is running we need to access the Environment Variable AWS_REGION.

To access the environment variable AWS_REGION using Node.js Lambda Function we can use process.env.AWS_REGION.

Access AWS Lambda Environment Variables using Node.js

If you want to get the values of Environment Variables in AWS Lambda using Node.js runtime follow the instructions below.

Node.js Code to Access Environment Variables

To access the Environment Variables of Lambda Functions using Node.js or javascript simply use the code below.

const environmentVariable = process.env.ENVIRONMENT_VARIABLE

Let’s say that my environment variable has a name of DB_USER, I will use the code below to get its value.

How to access the C: Drive in Amazon Workspaces

The C: Drive or root volume in AWS Workspaces cannot be seen if you open File Explorer.

This post will show how you can access the C: Drive when it is not shown.

If you want the C: Drive to be shown permanently then reading my post about it here will help.

Below are three ways you can access the C: Drive.

Access C: Drive with Windows File Explorer

To access C: Drive with Windows File Explorer, go to the address bar and enter C:. This will bring you to the C: Drive.

How to show C: Drive in Amazon Workspaces

If you have been using AWS Workspaces then you might have noticed that the C: Drive cannot be seen when you open Windows File Explorer.

File Explorer not showing C: Drive in an Amazon Workspace

The reason why the C: Drive is hidden in Workspaces is because it is the root volume. Users are discouraged from storing files in the root volume because when you need to Rebuild a workspace any changes that you made in the C: Drive will be wiped out. Only the D: Drive or the User Volume will be restored to what its previous snapshot.

There are some use cases when you need to access the C: Drive. It might also be possible that you just want to have the C: Drive visible.

Follow the steps below to make the C: Drive visible in Windows File Explorer in your Amazon Workspaces.

Steps in showing the C: Drive in Amazon Workspaces

Click on Search icon and type regedit. Then click on regedit.

Require Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) for IAM User in AWS

As a Security Best Practice we should always require IAM Users to have Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) enabled when accessing the AWS Console.

The problem is how do we require users to configure MFA?

The IAM policy below can be used to require users to enable their MFA. If they do not have MFA, all their permissions will be denied. This will make access to your AWS Account more secure.

IAM Policy that requires IAM Users to have Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [
        {
            "Sid": "AllowViewAccountInfo",
            "Effect": "Allow",
            "Action": [
                "iam:ListUsers",
                "iam:ListMFADevices",
                "iam:GetAccountPasswordPolicy",
                "iam:GetAccountSummary"
            ],
            "Resource": "*"
        },
        {
            "Sid": "AllowChangeOwnPasswordsOnFirstLogin",
            "Effect": "Allow",
            "Action": [
                "iam:ChangePassword",
                "iam:GetUser"
            ],
            "Resource": "arn:aws:iam::*:user/${aws:username}"
        },
        {
            "Sid": "AllowChangeOwnPasswordsAfterMFAEnabled",
            "Effect": "Allow",
            "Action": [
                "iam:GetLoginProfile",
                "iam:UpdateLoginProfile"
            ],
            "Resource": "arn:aws:iam::*:user/${aws:username}"
        },
        {
            "Sid": "AllowManageOwnVirtualMFADevice",
            "Effect": "Allow",
            "Action": [
                "iam:CreateVirtualMFADevice",
                "iam:DeleteVirtualMFADevice"
            ],
            "Resource": "arn:aws:iam::*:mfa/${aws:username}"
        },
        {
            "Sid": "AllowManageOwnUserMFA",
            "Effect": "Allow",
            "Action": [
                "iam:DeactivateMFADevice",
                "iam:EnableMFADevice",
                "iam:ListMFADevices",
                "iam:ResyncMFADevice"
            ],
            "Resource": "arn:aws:iam::*:user/${aws:username}"
        },
        {
            "Sid": "DenyAllExceptListedIfNoMFA",
            "Effect": "Deny",
            "NotAction": [
                "iam:ListUsers",
                "iam:ChangePassword",
                "iam:GetUser",
                "iam:CreateVirtualMFADevice",
                "iam:DeleteVirtualMFADevice",
                "iam:DeactivateMFADevice",
                "iam:EnableMFADevice",
                "iam:ListMFADevices",
                "iam:ResyncMFADevice"
            ],
            "Resource": "*",
            "Condition": {
                "BoolIfExists": {
                    "aws:MultiFactorAuthPresent": "false"
                }
            }
        }
    ],
    "Id": "RadishLogic.com MFA Required IAM Policy"
}

The name of my IAM Policy is MFA-Required, you may use whatever name you desire to use.

How to install ChefDK in Amazon Linux 2

The ChefDK is a package that includes everything you need to start using Chef. You will need this if you want to develop using chef.

Since I always use Amazon Web Services (AWS) EC2, I tend to choose Amazon Linux 2 even for projects using Chef.

Below is a step-by-step tutorial on how to install ChefDK in an EC2 instance running Amazon Linux 2.

Installation via shell commands

SSH to your Amazon Linux 2 EC2 Instance and run the command below.

curl https://omnitruck.chef.io/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- -c current -P chefdk

This will install the latest version of ChefDK.

For production systems we should specify the specific version of ChefDK or else this will install the version. To do this we need to add the -v option in the end of the command.

Below is an example where we install ChefDK version 4.7.73.

curl https://omnitruck.chef.io/install.sh | sudo bash -s -- -c current -P chefdk -v 4.7.73

Next is to check if chef was installed properly. Go to the Verification section of this post.

Installation via ChefDK Download Page

Go to https://downloads.chef.io/chefdk.

You may select your desired version for ChefDK. Default is the latest stable version.

Copy the URL for the latest version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

How to get the AWS Account ID in Lambda Python

There are use cases where the need to get the AWS Account ID of the Lambda Function during runtime is required. I thought it was easy as getting the AWS Region but it was not. Luckily there is a way to get it, use the step-by-step instructions below.

To get the AWS Account ID where the Lambda Function is running use the code below.

def lambda_handler(event, context):

    aws_account_id = context.invoked_function_arn.split(":")[4]

    print(aws_account_id)

How does the code work?

The context object that is being passed to the lambda_handler function provides different methods and properties about the lambda function, like invocation and execution environment.

Copying a Key Pair Generated by AWS to Another Region (with Screenshots)

I have an existing key pair that was generated via AWS Console. Since I do not want to create another set of Key Pair for the other regions, I would like to use the same Key Pair. Is it possible to copy the Key Pair to another Region? How can I do this?
Dany

Hi Dany, the short answer to your question is yes, it is possible to copy your existing AWS generated Key Pair to another region and even copy this to another AWS account.

The Challenge with AWS Generated Key Pairs

Generating the Key Pairs via AWS Console is easy, it gives you the Private Key and you can launch EC2 instances and associate it with your instance by adjusting the settings during EC2 Instance Launch. Then you can SSH to your EC2 Instance via the Private Key.

The issue here is the Public Key. AWS does not provide the Public Key during creation or any time after that.

Do not worry, we can still get the Public Key. It is not easy as clicking on the console then selecting copy to other region, but it is still doable.

See the steps below.

Step-by-step guide on copying a Key Pair to another region.

For this tutorial, I have created an AWS Key Pair in N. Virginia Region (us-east-1) – radishlogic_key.

The goal is to copy the Key Pair to Oregon Region (us-west-2).

Here are screenshots of my Key Pair.

1. Retrieving the Private Key in N. Virginia Region (us-east-1)

Launch a temporary Linux EC2 Instance in where the Key Pair is located (us-east-1). Any Linux Image will do.

Running Minikube in AWS EC2 (Ubuntu)

If you are studying Kubernetes and having a hard time running Minikube on an EC2 Instance, you are not alone. I had a hard time doing it when it was my first time.

Below are the steps (and some comments) that I took to help me run Minikube on my EC2 Instance.

Installation of Minikube on EC2 Ubuntu

1. Run a public EC2 Server with the following setup

AMI	Ubuntu Server 18.04 LTS (HVM), SSD Volume Type
Instance Type	t3.micro (2 vCPU, 1GB Memory)
Storage	8 GB (gp2)
Tags	– Key: Name – Value: Minikube
Security Group	Name: Minikube Security Group – SSH, `0.0.0.0/0` Later we will be editing this.
Key Pair	Create your own keypair. You will need this to SSH to your EC2 Instance

Update: I changed the Instance Type from t2.micro (1 vCPU) to t3.micro (2 vCPU). An update to Minikube required a minimum of 2 vCPUs. The error when running with t2.micro was Requested cpu count 1 is less than the minimum allowed of 2.

t3.micro is no longer in the Free Tier, make sure to stop or terminate the instance after you are done testing to avoid a huge AWS bill.

Thank you to everyone in the comments section who pointed this change.

2. SSH into your created EC2 Instance using your keypair.

ssh [email protected]<ipv4_public_ip> -i <keypair>.pem

3. Install kubectl

curl -LO https://storage.googleapis.com/kubernetes-release/release/`curl -s https://storage.googleapis.com/kubernetes-release/release/stable.txt`/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl

chmod +x ./kubectl

sudo mv ./kubectl /usr/local/bin/kubectl

4. Install Docker

sudo apt-get update && \
    sudo apt-get install docker.io -y

Minikube requires Docker. Continue reading Running Minikube in AWS EC2 (Ubuntu)

How to Fix Network Error on AWS Cognito

When I encountered the Network Error when developing with AWS Cognito I panicked. I was connected to the internet so why am I getting a Network Error? Even the Console output was not helpful.

This happened to me during User Registration and Login.

Why is the `Network Error` happening?

By default, a type=submit in a form element will automatically refresh the page when it is clicked or triggered.