Chapter 2. Setting Up the AWS Environment

When you’re just getting started with AWS, the first step is creating your account—but that process involves more than just filling out a form and choosing a password. In this chapter, we’ll see what the signup experience looks like, what to expect with billing, and how to take advantage of AWS’s Free Tier without running into surprises later. We’ll also go over a few basic but important security steps that are easy to overlook when you’re in a hurry to get going.

Once your account is in place, the next focus is access—who can use the account, and what they’re allowed to do. Even if you're the only person using it right now, it’s worth setting things up the right way from the start. AWS offers a built-in service called IAM (short for Identity and Access Management) that helps you manage this. You’ll see how to create individual users, group them by role, and give each one the right set of permissions—nothing more, nothing less. These are the building blocks that keep your environment secure as your needs grow.

If this all feels new, don’t worry—we’ll take it one step at a time. Each section is designed to help you move forward with confidence, knowing that your AWS setup is on solid ground.