Prerequisites

To use Amazon CloudWatch Logs you need an AWS account. Your AWS account allows you to use services (for example, Amazon EC2) to generate logs that you can view in the CloudWatch console, a web-based interface. In addition, you can install and configure the AWS Command Line Interface (AWS CLI).

Sign up for an AWS account

To get started with AWS, you need an AWS account. There are two ways to sign up for AWS. If you want complete control over account configuration and where your content is stored, or if you have regulated workloads such as HIPAA or FedRAMP, use Sign up for AWS (advanced). If you are a new user and want to use a login you already own to sign in to AWS and create an AWS environment with preconfigured defaults in select AWS Regions, use Sign up for AWS.

Set up the Command Line Interface

You can use the AWS CLI to perform CloudWatch Logs operations.

For information about how to install and configure the AWS CLI, see Getting Set Up with the AWS Command Line Interface in the AWS Command Line Interface User Guide.