# Setting a default view in an AWS Region
Setting a default view

In AWS Resource Explorer, you can define many views in an AWS Region, where each view addresses different search requirements. We recommend that you set ***one*** view in each Region as the *default view* for that Region.

Resource Explorer automatically creates default user-owned views during setup that include Tags for enhanced search functionality. If no user-owned view exists in a Region, Resource Explorer automatically falls back to using a Resource Explorer-owned view to ensure search functionality remains available. Resource Explorer-owned views are service-managed and cannot be modified or deleted, and they do not include resource tags in search results.

Resource Explorer uses the default view whenever a user performs a search and doesn't explicitly specify which view to use. The [Unified Search](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/awsconsolehelpdocs/latest/gsg/using-search.html) bar at the top of every AWS Management Console page uses the default view in the aggregator Region if an aggregator index exists, or the default view in the current Region if no aggregator is configured. This provides regional search results without requiring cross-region setup.

You can select only a view that exists in the Region to be that Region's default view. If another Region has a view that you want to use, you must first create a copy of that view in the Region in which you want to make it the default view.

**Tip**  
There is no *copy view* operation. You must create a view in the target Region and then copy the settings from the existing view to the new view.

You can specify a view as the default for its Region by using the AWS Management Console or by running AWS CLI commands or their equivalent API operations in an AWS SDK.

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#### [ AWS Management Console ]

**To set a default view**

1. On the Resource Explorer **[Views](https://console.aws.amazon.com/resource-explorer/home#/views)** page, choose the option button next to the view that you want to make the default for its Region.

1. Choose **Actions**, then choose **Set as default** or set as default in the **Default** column.

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#### [ AWS CLI ]

**To set a default view**  
Run the following command to set the specified view as the default for its Region. The following example sets the specified view to be the default for all searches performed in the us-east-1 Region. That view must exist in the Region in which you run the command.

```
$ aws resource-explorer-2 associate-default-view \
    --region us-east-1 \
    --view-arn arn:aws:resource-explorer-2:us-east-1:123456789012:view/MyViewName/1a2b3c4d-5d6e-7f8a-9b0c-abcd11111111
{
    "ViewArn": "arn:aws:resource-explorer-2:us-east-1:123456789012:view/MyViewName/1a2b3c4d-5d6e-7f8a-9b0c-abcd11111111"
}
```

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