# Authenticating with Amazon using Amazon SDK for Ruby
<a name="credentials"></a>

You must establish how your code authenticates with Amazon when developing with Amazon Web Services services. You can configure programmatic access to Amazon resources in different ways depending on the environment and the Amazon access available to you. 

To choose your method of authentication and configure it for the SDK, see [Authentication and access](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/access.html) in the *Amazon SDKs and Tools Reference Guide*. 

## Using console credentials
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For local development, we recommend that new users use their existing Amazon Management Console sign-in credentials for programmatic access to Amazon services. After browser-based authentication, Amazon generates temporary credentials that work with local development tools like the Amazon Command Line Interface (Amazon CLI) and the Amazon SDK for Ruby.

If you choose this method, follow the instructions to [Login for Amazon local development using console credentials using the Amazon CLI](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/cli/latest/userguide/cli-configure-sign-in.html).

The Amazon SDK for Ruby does not need additional gems (such as `aws-sdk-signin`) to be added to your application to use login with console credentials.

## Using IAM Identity Center authentication
<a name="using-iam-auth"></a>

If you choose this method, complete the procedure for [IAM Identity Center authentication](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/access-sso.html) in the *Amazon SDKs and Tools Reference Guide*. Afterwards, your environment should contain the following elements:
+ The Amazon CLI, which you use to start an Amazon access portal session before you run your application.
+ A [shared Amazon`config` file](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/file-format.html) having a `[default]` profile with a set of configuration values that can be referenced from the SDK. To find the location of this file, see [Location of the shared files](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/file-location.html) in the *Amazon SDKs and Tools Reference Guide*.
+  The shared `config` file sets the [https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/feature-region.html](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/feature-region.html) setting. This sets the default Amazon Web Services Region that the SDK uses for Amazon requests. This Region is used for SDK service requests that aren't specified with a Region to use. 
+  The SDK uses the profile's [SSO token provider configuration](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/feature-sso-credentials.html#feature-sso-credentials-profile) to acquire credentials before sending requests to Amazon. The `sso_role_name` value, which is an IAM role connected to an IAM Identity Center permission set, allows access to the Amazon Web Services services used in your application.

  The following sample `config` file shows a default profile set up with SSO token provider configuration. The profile's `sso_session` setting refers to the named [`sso-session` section](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/file-format.html#section-session). The `sso-session` section contains settings to initiate an Amazon access portal session.

  ```
  [default]
  sso_session = my-sso
  sso_account_id = 111122223333
  sso_role_name = SampleRole
  region = us-east-1
  output = json
  
  [sso-session my-sso]
  sso_region = us-east-1
  sso_start_url = https://provided-domain.awsapps.com/start
  sso_registration_scopes = sso:account:access
  ```

The Amazon SDK for Ruby does not need additional gems (such as `aws-sdk-sso` and `aws-sdk-ssooidc`) to be added to your application to use IAM Identity Center authentication.

### Start an Amazon access portal session
<a name="accessportal"></a>

Before running an application that accesses Amazon Web Services services, you need an active Amazon access portal session for the SDK to use IAM Identity Center authentication to resolve credentials. Depending on your configured session lengths, your access will eventually expire and the SDK will encounter an authentication error. To sign in to the Amazon access portal, run the following command in the Amazon CLI.

```
aws sso login
```

If you followed the guidance and have a default profile setup, you do not need to call the command with a `--profile` option. If your SSO token provider configuration is using a named profile, the command is `aws sso login --profile named-profile`.

To optionally test if you already have an active session, run the following Amazon CLI command.

```
aws sts get-caller-identity
```

If your session is active, the response to this command reports the IAM Identity Center account and permission set configured in the shared `config` file.

**Note**  
If you already have an active Amazon access portal session and run `aws sso login`, you will not be required to provide credentials.   
The sign-in process might prompt you to allow the Amazon CLI access to your data. Because the Amazon CLI is built on top of the SDK for Python, permission messages might contain variations of the `botocore` name.

## More authentication information
<a name="credother"></a>

Human users, also known as *human identities*, are the people, administrators, developers, operators, and consumers of your applications. They must have an identity to access your Amazon environments and applications. Human users that are members of your organization - that means you, the developer - are known as *workforce identities*. 

Use temporary credentials when accessing Amazon. You can use an identity provider for your human users to provide federated access to Amazon accounts by assuming roles, which provide temporary credentials. For centralized access management, we recommend that you use Amazon IAM Identity Center (IAM Identity Center) to manage access to your accounts and permissions within those accounts. For more alternatives, see the following:
+ To learn more about best practices, see [Security best practices in IAM](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/IAM/latest/UserGuide/best-practices.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ To create short-term Amazon credentials, see [Temporary Security Credentials](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_credentials_temp.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ To learn about the Amazon SDK for Ruby credential provider chain, and how different authentication methods are attempted automatically by the SDK in a sequence, see [Credential provider chain](credential-providers.md#credchain). 
+ For Amazon SDK credential provider configuration settings, see [Standardized credential providers](https://docs.amazonaws.cn/sdkref/latest/guide/standardized-credentials.html) in the *Amazon SDKs and Tools Reference Guide*.