# Identity and Access Management for Amazon CloudFront
AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) is an AWS service that helps an administrator securely control access to AWS resources. IAM administrators control who can be *authenticated* (signed in) and *authorized* (have permissions) to use CloudFront resources. IAM is an AWS service that you can use with no additional charge.
**Topics**
+ [Audience](#security_iam_audience)
+ [Authenticating with identities](#security_iam_authentication)
+ [Managing access using policies](#security_iam_access-manage)
+ [How Amazon CloudFront works with IAM](security_iam_service-with-iam.md)
+ [Identity-based policy examples for Amazon CloudFront](security_iam_id-based-policy-examples.md)
+ [AWS managed policies for Amazon CloudFront](security-iam-awsmanpol.md)
+ [Use service-linked roles for CloudFront](using-service-linked-roles.md)
+ [Troubleshoot Amazon CloudFront identity and access](security_iam_troubleshoot.md)
## Audience
How you use AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) differs based on your role:
+ **Service user** - request permissions from your administrator if you cannot access features (see [Troubleshoot Amazon CloudFront identity and access](security_iam_troubleshoot.md))
+ **Service administrator** - determine user access and submit permission requests (see [How Amazon CloudFront works with IAM](security_iam_service-with-iam.md))
+ **IAM administrator** - write policies to manage access (see [Identity-based policy examples for Amazon CloudFront](security_iam_id-based-policy-examples.md))
## Authenticating with identities
Authentication is how you sign in to AWS using your identity credentials. You must be authenticated as the AWS account root user, an IAM user, or by assuming an IAM role.
You can sign in as a federated identity using credentials from an identity source like AWS IAM Identity Center (IAM Identity Center), single sign-on authentication, or Google/Facebook credentials. For more information about signing in, see [How to sign in to your AWS account](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/signin/latest/userguide/how-to-sign-in.html) in the *AWS Sign-In User Guide*.
For programmatic access, AWS provides an SDK and CLI to cryptographically sign requests. For more information, see [AWS Signature Version 4 for API requests](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_sigv.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
### AWS account root user
When you create an AWS account, you begin with one sign-in identity called the AWS account *root user* that has complete access to all AWS services and resources. We strongly recommend that you don't use the root user for everyday tasks. For tasks that require root user credentials, see [Tasks that require root user credentials](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_root-user.html#root-user-tasks) in the *IAM User Guide*.
### Federated identity
As a best practice, require human users to use federation with an identity provider to access AWS services using temporary credentials.
A *federated identity* is a user from your enterprise directory, web identity provider, or Directory Service that accesses AWS services using credentials from an identity source. Federated identities assume roles that provide temporary credentials.
For centralized access management, we recommend AWS IAM Identity Center. For more information, see [What is IAM Identity Center?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/singlesignon/latest/userguide/what-is.html) in the *AWS IAM Identity Center User Guide*.
### IAM users and groups
An *[IAM user](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_users.html)* is an identity with specific permissions for a single person or application. We recommend using temporary credentials instead of IAM users with long-term credentials. For more information, see [Require human users to use federation with an identity provider to access AWS using temporary credentials](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/best-practices.html#bp-users-federation-idp) in the *IAM User Guide*.
An [https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_groups.html](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_groups.html) specifies a collection of IAM users and makes permissions easier to manage for large sets of users. For more information, see [Use cases for IAM users](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/gs-identities-iam-users.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
### IAM roles
An *[IAM role](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles.html)* is an identity with specific permissions that provides temporary credentials. You can assume a role by [switching from a user to an IAM role (console)](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles_use_switch-role-console.html) or by calling an AWS CLI or AWS API operation. For more information, see [Methods to assume a role](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles_manage-assume.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
IAM roles are useful for federated user access, temporary IAM user permissions, cross-account access, cross-service access, and applications running on Amazon EC2. For more information, see [Cross account resource access in IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies-cross-account-resource-access.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Managing access using policies
You control access in AWS by creating policies and attaching them to AWS identities or resources. A policy defines permissions when associated with an identity or resource. AWS evaluates these policies when a principal makes a request. Most policies are stored in AWS as JSON documents. For more information about JSON policy documents, see [Overview of JSON policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies.html#access_policies-json) in the *IAM User Guide*.
Using policies, administrators specify who has access to what by defining which **principal** can perform **actions** on what **resources**, and under what **conditions**.
By default, users and roles have no permissions. An IAM administrator creates IAM policies and adds them to roles, which users can then assume. IAM policies define permissions regardless of the method used to perform the operation.
### Identity-based policies
Identity-based policies are JSON permissions policy documents that you attach to an identity (user, group, or role). These policies control what actions identities can perform, on which resources, and under what conditions. To learn how to create an identity-based policy, see [Define custom IAM permissions with customer managed policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_create.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
Identity-based policies can be *inline policies* (embedded directly into a single identity) or *managed policies* (standalone policies attached to multiple identities). To learn how to choose between managed and inline policies, see [Choose between managed policies and inline policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies-choosing-managed-or-inline.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
### Resource-based policies
Resource-based policies are JSON policy documents that you attach to a resource. Examples include IAM *role trust policies* and Amazon S3 *bucket policies*. In services that support resource-based policies, service administrators can use them to control access to a specific resource. You must [specify a principal](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_elements_principal.html) in a resource-based policy.
Resource-based policies are inline policies that are located in that service. You can't use AWS managed policies from IAM in a resource-based policy.
### Other policy types
AWS supports additional policy types that can set the maximum permissions granted by more common policy types:
+ **Permissions boundaries** – Set the maximum permissions that an identity-based policy can grant to an IAM entity. For more information, see [Permissions boundaries for IAM entities](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_boundaries.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ **Service control policies (SCPs)** – Specify the maximum permissions for an organization or organizational unit in AWS Organizations. For more information, see [Service control policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/organizations/latest/userguide/orgs_manage_policies_scps.html) in the *AWS Organizations User Guide*.
+ **Resource control policies (RCPs)** – Set the maximum available permissions for resources in your accounts. For more information, see [Resource control policies (RCPs)](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/organizations/latest/userguide/orgs_manage_policies_rcps.html) in the *AWS Organizations User Guide*.
+ **Session policies** – Advanced policies passed as a parameter when creating a temporary session for a role or federated user. For more information, see [Session policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies.html#policies_session) in the *IAM User Guide*.
### Multiple policy types
When multiple types of policies apply to a request, the resulting permissions are more complicated to understand. To learn how AWS determines whether to allow a request when multiple policy types are involved, see [Policy evaluation logic](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_evaluation-logic.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
# How Amazon CloudFront works with IAM
Before you use IAM to manage access to CloudFront, learn what IAM features are available to use with CloudFront.
**IAM features you can use with Amazon CloudFront**
| IAM feature | CloudFront support |
| --- | --- |
| [Identity-based policies](#security_iam_service-with-iam-id-based-policies) | Yes |
| [Resource-based policies](#security_iam_service-with-iam-resource-based-policies) | No |
| [Policy actions](#security_iam_service-with-iam-id-based-policies-actions) | Yes |
| [Policy resources](#security_iam_service-with-iam-id-based-policies-resources) | Yes |
| [Policy condition keys (service-specific)](#security_iam_service-with-iam-id-based-policies-conditionkeys) | Yes |
| [ACLs](#security_iam_service-with-iam-acls) | No |
| [ABAC (tags in policies)](#security_iam_service-with-iam-tags) | Partial |
| [Temporary credentials](#security_iam_service-with-iam-roles-tempcreds) | Yes |
| [Forward access sessions (FAS)](#security_iam_service-with-iam-principal-permissions) | No |
| [Service roles](#security_iam_service-with-iam-roles-service) | No |
| [Service-linked roles](#security_iam_service-with-iam-roles-service-linked) | Yes |
To get a high-level view of how CloudFront and other AWS services work with most IAM features, see [AWS services that work with IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_aws-services-that-work-with-iam.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Identity-based policies for CloudFront
**Supports identity-based policies:** Yes
Identity-based policies are JSON permissions policy documents that you can attach to an identity, such as an IAM user, group of users, or role. These policies control what actions users and roles can perform, on which resources, and under what conditions. To learn how to create an identity-based policy, see [Define custom IAM permissions with customer managed policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_create.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
With IAM identity-based policies, you can specify allowed or denied actions and resources as well as the conditions under which actions are allowed or denied. To learn about all of the elements that you can use in a JSON policy, see [IAM JSON policy elements reference](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_elements.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
### Identity-based policy examples for CloudFront
To view examples of CloudFront identity-based policies, see [Identity-based policy examples for Amazon CloudFront](security_iam_id-based-policy-examples.md).
## Resource-based policies within CloudFront
**Supports resource-based policies:** No
Resource-based policies are JSON policy documents that you attach to a resource. Examples of resource-based policies are IAM *role trust policies* and Amazon S3 *bucket policies*. In services that support resource-based policies, service administrators can use them to control access to a specific resource. For the resource where the policy is attached, the policy defines what actions a specified principal can perform on that resource and under what conditions. You must [specify a principal](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_elements_principal.html) in a resource-based policy. Principals can include accounts, users, roles, federated users, or AWS services.
To enable cross-account access, you can specify an entire account or IAM entities in another account as the principal in a resource-based policy. For more information, see [Cross account resource access in IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies-cross-account-resource-access.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Policy actions for CloudFront
**Supports policy actions:** Yes
Administrators can use AWS JSON policies to specify who has access to what. That is, which **principal** can perform **actions** on what **resources**, and under what **conditions**.
The `Action` element of a JSON policy describes the actions that you can use to allow or deny access in a policy. Include actions in a policy to grant permissions to perform the associated operation.
To see a list of CloudFront actions, see [Actions defined by Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/service-authorization/latest/reference/list_amazoncloudfront.html#amazoncloudfront-actions-as-permissions) in the *Service Authorization Reference*.
Policy actions in CloudFront use the following prefix before the action:
```
cloudfront
```
To specify multiple actions in a single statement, separate them with commas.
```
"Action": [
"cloudfront:action1",
"cloudfront:action2"
]
```
To view examples of CloudFront identity-based policies, see [Identity-based policy examples for Amazon CloudFront](security_iam_id-based-policy-examples.md).
## Policy resources for CloudFront
**Supports policy resources:** Yes
Administrators can use AWS JSON policies to specify who has access to what. That is, which **principal** can perform **actions** on what **resources**, and under what **conditions**.
The `Resource` JSON policy element specifies the object or objects to which the action applies. As a best practice, specify a resource using its [Amazon Resource Name (ARN)](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference-arns.html). For actions that don't support resource-level permissions, use a wildcard (\$1) to indicate that the statement applies to all resources.
```
"Resource": "*"
```
To see a list of CloudFront resource types and their ARNs, see [Resources defined by Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/service-authorization/latest/reference/list_amazoncloudfront.html#amazoncloudfront-resources-for-iam-policies) in the *Service Authorization Reference*. To learn with which actions you can specify the ARN of each resource, see [Actions defined by Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/service-authorization/latest/reference/list_amazoncloudfront.html#amazoncloudfront-actions-as-permissions).
To view examples of CloudFront identity-based policies, see [Identity-based policy examples for Amazon CloudFront](security_iam_id-based-policy-examples.md).
## Policy condition keys for CloudFront
**Supports service-specific policy condition keys:** Yes
Administrators can use AWS JSON policies to specify who has access to what. That is, which **principal** can perform **actions** on what **resources**, and under what **conditions**.
The `Condition` element specifies when statements execute based on defined criteria. You can create conditional expressions that use [condition operators](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_elements_condition_operators.html), such as equals or less than, to match the condition in the policy with values in the request. To see all AWS global condition keys, see [AWS global condition context keys](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_condition-keys.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
To see a list of CloudFront condition keys, see [Condition keys for Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/service-authorization/latest/reference/list_amazoncloudfront.html#amazoncloudfront-policy-keys) in the *Service Authorization Reference*. To learn with which actions and resources you can use a condition key, see [Actions defined by Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/service-authorization/latest/reference/list_amazoncloudfront.html#amazoncloudfront-actions-as-permissions).
To view examples of CloudFront identity-based policies, see [Identity-based policy examples for Amazon CloudFront](security_iam_id-based-policy-examples.md).
## ACLs in CloudFront
**Supports ACLs:** No
Access control lists (ACLs) control which principals (account members, users, or roles) have permissions to access a resource. ACLs are similar to resource-based policies, although they do not use the JSON policy document format.
## ABAC with CloudFront
**Supports ABAC (tags in policies):** Partial
Attribute-based access control (ABAC) is an authorization strategy that defines permissions based on attributes called tags. You can attach tags to IAM entities and AWS resources, then design ABAC policies to allow operations when the principal's tag matches the tag on the resource.
To control access based on tags, you provide tag information in the [condition element](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_elements_condition.html) of a policy using the `aws:ResourceTag/key-name`, `aws:RequestTag/key-name`, or `aws:TagKeys` condition keys.
If a service supports all three condition keys for every resource type, then the value is **Yes** for the service. If a service supports all three condition keys for only some resource types, then the value is **Partial**.
For more information about ABAC, see [Define permissions with ABAC authorization](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/introduction_attribute-based-access-control.html) in the *IAM User Guide*. To view a tutorial with steps for setting up ABAC, see [Use attribute-based access control (ABAC)](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/tutorial_attribute-based-access-control.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
CloudFront supports ABAC for CloudFront resources that support tags, such as distributions, tenants, or trust stores.
## Using temporary credentials with CloudFront
**Supports temporary credentials:** Yes
Temporary credentials provide short-term access to AWS resources and are automatically created when you use federation or switch roles. AWS recommends that you dynamically generate temporary credentials instead of using long-term access keys. For more information, see [Temporary security credentials in IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_credentials_temp.html) and [AWS services that work with IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_aws-services-that-work-with-iam.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Forward access sessions for CloudFront
**Supports forward access sessions (FAS):** No
Forward access sessions (FAS) use the permissions of the principal calling an AWS service, combined with the requesting AWS service to make requests to downstream services. For policy details when making FAS requests, see [Forward access sessions](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_forward_access_sessions.html).
## Service roles for CloudFront
**Supports service roles:** No
A service role is an [IAM role](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles.html) that a service assumes to perform actions on your behalf. An IAM administrator can create, modify, and delete a service role from within IAM. For more information, see [Create a role to delegate permissions to an AWS service](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles_create_for-service.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
**Warning**
Changing the permissions for a service role might break CloudFront functionality. Edit service roles only when CloudFront provides guidance to do so.
## Service-linked roles for CloudFront
**Supports service-linked roles:** Yes
A service-linked role is a type of service role that is linked to an AWS service. The service can assume the role to perform an action on your behalf. Service-linked roles appear in your AWS account and are owned by the service. An IAM administrator can view, but not edit the permissions for service-linked roles.
CloudFront uses service-linked roles to performs actions for you. For more information about creating or managing CloudFront service-linked roles, see [Use service-linked roles for CloudFront](using-service-linked-roles.md). For more information about creating or managing Lambda@Edge service-linked roles, see [Service-linked roles for Lambda@Edge](lambda-edge-permissions.md#using-service-linked-roles-lambda-edge).
For details about creating or managing service-linked roles, see [AWS services that work with IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_aws-services-that-work-with-iam.html). Find a service in the table that includes a `Yes` in the **Service-linked role** column. Choose the **Yes** link to view the service-linked role documentation for that service.
# Identity-based policy examples for Amazon CloudFront
By default, users and roles don't have permission to create or modify CloudFront resources. To grant users permission to perform actions on the resources that they need, an IAM administrator can create IAM policies.
To learn how to create an IAM identity-based policy by using these example JSON policy documents, see [Create IAM policies (console)](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_create-console.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
For details about actions and resource types defined by CloudFront, including the format of the ARNs for each of the resource types, see [Actions, resources, and condition keys for Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/service-authorization/latest/reference/list_amazoncloudfront.html) in the *Service Authorization Reference*.
**Topics**
+ [Policy best practices](#security_iam_service-with-iam-policy-best-practices)
+ [Allow users to view their own permissions](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-view-own-permissions)
+ [Permissions to access CloudFront programmatically](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-programmatic-access-all)
+ [Permissions required to use the CloudFront console](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-console-required-permissions)
+ [Customer managed policy examples](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-sdk-cli)
## Policy best practices
Identity-based policies determine whether someone can create, access, or delete CloudFront resources in your account. These actions can incur costs for your AWS account. When you create or edit identity-based policies, follow these guidelines and recommendations:
+ **Get started with AWS managed policies and move toward least-privilege permissions** – To get started granting permissions to your users and workloads, use the *AWS managed policies* that grant permissions for many common use cases. They are available in your AWS account. We recommend that you reduce permissions further by defining AWS customer managed policies that are specific to your use cases. For more information, see [AWS managed policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_managed-vs-inline.html#aws-managed-policies) or [AWS managed policies for job functions](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_job-functions.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ **Apply least-privilege permissions** – When you set permissions with IAM policies, grant only the permissions required to perform a task. You do this by defining the actions that can be taken on specific resources under specific conditions, also known as *least-privilege permissions*. For more information about using IAM to apply permissions, see [ Policies and permissions in IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ **Use conditions in IAM policies to further restrict access** – You can add a condition to your policies to limit access to actions and resources. For example, you can write a policy condition to specify that all requests must be sent using SSL. You can also use conditions to grant access to service actions if they are used through a specific AWS service, such as CloudFormation. For more information, see [ IAM JSON policy elements: Condition](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_elements_condition.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ **Use IAM Access Analyzer to validate your IAM policies to ensure secure and functional permissions** – IAM Access Analyzer validates new and existing policies so that the policies adhere to the IAM policy language (JSON) and IAM best practices. IAM Access Analyzer provides more than 100 policy checks and actionable recommendations to help you author secure and functional policies. For more information, see [Validate policies with IAM Access Analyzer](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access-analyzer-policy-validation.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ **Require multi-factor authentication (MFA)** – If you have a scenario that requires IAM users or a root user in your AWS account, turn on MFA for additional security. To require MFA when API operations are called, add MFA conditions to your policies. For more information, see [ Secure API access with MFA](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_credentials_mfa_configure-api-require.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
For more information about best practices in IAM, see [Security best practices in IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/best-practices.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Allow users to view their own permissions
This example shows how you might create a policy that allows IAM users to view the inline and managed policies that are attached to their user identity. This policy includes permissions to complete this action on the console or programmatically using the AWS CLI or AWS API.
```
{
"Version": "2012-10-17",
"Statement": [
{
"Sid": "ViewOwnUserInfo",
"Effect": "Allow",
"Action": [
"iam:GetUserPolicy",
"iam:ListGroupsForUser",
"iam:ListAttachedUserPolicies",
"iam:ListUserPolicies",
"iam:GetUser"
],
"Resource": ["arn:aws:iam::*:user/${aws:username}"]
},
{
"Sid": "NavigateInConsole",
"Effect": "Allow",
"Action": [
"iam:GetGroupPolicy",
"iam:GetPolicyVersion",
"iam:GetPolicy",
"iam:ListAttachedGroupPolicies",
"iam:ListGroupPolicies",
"iam:ListPolicyVersions",
"iam:ListPolicies",
"iam:ListUsers"
],
"Resource": "*"
}
]
}
```
## Permissions to access CloudFront programmatically
The following shows a permissions policy. The `Sid`, or statement ID, is optional.
------
#### [ JSON ]
****
```
{
"Version":"2012-10-17",
"Statement": [
{
"Sid": "AllowAllCloudFrontPermissions",
"Effect": "Allow",
"Action": ["cloudfront:*"],
"Resource": "*"
}
]
}
```
------
The policy grants permissions to perform all CloudFront operations, which is sufficient to access CloudFront programmatically. If you're using the console to access CloudFront, see [Permissions required to use the CloudFront console](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-console-required-permissions).
For a list of actions and the ARN that you specify to grant or deny permission to use each action, see [Actions, resources, and condition keys for Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/service-authorization/latest/reference/list_amazoncloudfront.html) in the *Service Authorization Reference*.
## Permissions required to use the CloudFront console
To grant full access to the CloudFront console, you grant the permissions in the following permissions policy:
------
#### [ JSON ]
****
```
{
"Version":"2012-10-17",
"Statement":[
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"acm:ListCertificates",
"cloudfront:*",
"cloudwatch:DescribeAlarms",
"cloudwatch:PutMetricAlarm",
"cloudwatch:GetMetricStatistics",
"elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers",
"iam:ListServerCertificates",
"sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
"sns:ListTopics",
"waf:GetWebACL",
"waf:ListWebACLs"
],
"Resource":"*"
},
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"s3:ListAllMyBuckets",
"s3:PutBucketPolicy"
],
"Resource":"arn:aws:s3:::*"
}
]
}
```
------
Here's why the permissions are required:
**`acm:ListCertificates`**
When you're creating and updating distributions by using the CloudFront console and you want to configure CloudFront to require HTTPS between the viewer and CloudFront or between CloudFront and the origin, lets you view a list of ACM certificates.
This permission isn't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`cloudfront:*`**
Lets you perform all CloudFront actions.
**`cloudwatch:DescribeAlarms` and `cloudwatch:PutMetricAlarm`**
Let you create and view CloudWatch alarms in the CloudFront console. See also `sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic` and `sns:ListTopics`.
These permissions aren't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`cloudwatch:GetMetricStatistics`**
Lets CloudFront render CloudWatch metrics in the CloudFront console.
This permission isn't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers`**
When creating and updating distributions, lets you view a list of Elastic Load Balancing load balancers in the list of available origins.
This permission isn't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`iam:ListServerCertificates`**
When you're creating and updating distributions by using the CloudFront console and you want to configure CloudFront to require HTTPS between the viewer and CloudFront or between CloudFront and the origin, lets you view a list of certificates in the IAM certificate store.
This permission isn't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`s3:ListAllMyBuckets`**
When you're creating and updating distributions, lets you perform the following operations:
+ View a list of S3 buckets in the list of available origins
+ View a list of S3 buckets that you can save access logs in
This permission isn't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`S3:PutBucketPolicy`**
When you're creating or updating distributions that restrict access to S3 buckets, lets a user update the bucket policy to grant access to the CloudFront origin access identity. For more information, see [Use an origin access identity (legacy, not recommended)](private-content-restricting-access-to-s3.md#private-content-restricting-access-to-s3-oai).
This permission isn't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic` and `sns:ListTopics`**
When you create CloudWatch alarms in the CloudFront console, lets you choose an SNS topic for notifications.
These permissions aren't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
**`waf:GetWebACL` and `waf:ListWebACLs`**
Lets you view a list of AWS WAF web ACLs in the CloudFront console.
These permissions aren't required if you aren't using the CloudFront console.
### Permission-only actions for the CloudFront console
You can perform the following CloudFront actions on the [CloudFront Security Savings Bundle](https://console.aws.amazon.com//cloudfront/v3/home#/savings-bundle/overview) page. The following API actions are not intended to be called by your code, and are not included in the AWS CLI and AWS SDKs.
****
| Action | Description |
| --- | --- |
| `CreateSavingsPlan` | Grants permission to create a new savings plan. |
| `GetSavingsPlan` | Grants permission to get a savings plan. |
| `ListRateCards` | Grants permission to list CloudFront rate cards for the account. |
| `ListSavingsPlans` | Grants permission to list savings plans in the account. |
| `ListUsages` | Grants permission to list CloudFront usage. |
| `UpdateSavingsPlan` | Grants permission to update a savings plan. |
**Notes**
For more information about CloudFront savings plans, see the CloudFront Security Savings Bundle section of the [Amazon CloudFront FAQs](https://aws.amazon.com/cloudfront/faqs/).
If you create a savings plan for CloudFront and then want to delete it later, contact [AWS Support](https://console.aws.amazon.com/support/home#/case/create?issueType=customer-service).
## Customer managed policy examples
You can create your own custom IAM policies to allow permissions for CloudFront API actions. You can attach these custom policies to the IAM users or groups that require the specified permissions. These policies work when you are using the CloudFront API, the AWS SDKs, or the AWS CLI. The following examples show permissions for a few common use cases. For the policy that grants a user full access to CloudFront, see [Permissions required to use the CloudFront console](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-console-required-permissions).
**Topics**
+ [Example 1: Allow read access to all distributions](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-allow-read-all-distributions)
+ [Example 2: Allow creating, updating, and deleting distributions](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-allow-create-update-delete-distributions)
+ [Example 3: Allow creating and listing invalidations](#security_iam_id-based-policy-examples-allow-create-list-invalidations)
+ [Example 4: Allow creating a distribution](#create-distribution-iam-policy)
### Example 1: Allow read access to all distributions
The following permissions policy grants the user permissions to view all distributions in the CloudFront console:
------
#### [ JSON ]
****
```
{
"Version":"2012-10-17",
"Statement":[
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"acm:ListCertificates",
"cloudfront:GetDistribution",
"cloudfront:GetDistributionConfig",
"cloudfront:ListDistributions",
"cloudfront:ListCloudFrontOriginAccessIdentities",
"elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers",
"iam:ListServerCertificates",
"sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
"sns:ListTopics",
"waf:GetWebACL",
"waf:ListWebACLs"
],
"Resource":"*"
},
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"s3:ListAllMyBuckets"
],
"Resource":"arn:aws:s3:::*"
}
]
}
```
------
### Example 2: Allow creating, updating, and deleting distributions
The following permissions policy allows users to create, update, and delete distributions by using the CloudFront console:
------
#### [ JSON ]
****
```
{
"Version":"2012-10-17",
"Statement":[
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"acm:ListCertificates",
"cloudfront:CreateDistribution",
"cloudfront:DeleteDistribution",
"cloudfront:GetDistribution",
"cloudfront:GetDistributionConfig",
"cloudfront:ListDistributions",
"cloudfront:UpdateDistribution",
"cloudfront:ListCloudFrontOriginAccessIdentities",
"elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers",
"iam:ListServerCertificates",
"sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
"sns:ListTopics",
"waf:GetWebACL",
"waf:ListWebACLs"
],
"Resource":"*"
},
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"s3:ListAllMyBuckets",
"s3:PutBucketPolicy"
],
"Resource":"arn:aws:s3:::*"
}
]
}
```
------
The `cloudfront:ListCloudFrontOriginAccessIdentities` permission allows users to automatically grant to an existing origin access identity the permission to access objects in an Amazon S3 bucket. If you also want users to be able to create origin access identities, you also need to allow the `cloudfront:CreateCloudFrontOriginAccessIdentity` permission.
### Example 3: Allow creating and listing invalidations
The following permissions policy allows users to create and list invalidations. It includes read access to CloudFront distributions because you create and view invalidations by first displaying settings for a distribution:
------
#### [ JSON ]
****
```
{
"Version":"2012-10-17",
"Statement":[
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"acm:ListCertificates",
"cloudfront:GetDistribution",
"cloudfront:GetStreamingDistribution",
"cloudfront:GetDistributionConfig",
"cloudfront:ListDistributions",
"cloudfront:ListCloudFrontOriginAccessIdentities",
"cloudfront:CreateInvalidation",
"cloudfront:GetInvalidation",
"cloudfront:ListInvalidations",
"elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers",
"iam:ListServerCertificates",
"sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
"sns:ListTopics",
"waf:GetWebACL",
"waf:ListWebACLs"
],
"Resource":"*"
},
{
"Effect":"Allow",
"Action":[
"s3:ListAllMyBuckets"
],
"Resource":"arn:aws:s3:::*"
}
]
}
```
------
### Example 4: Allow creating a distribution
The following permission policy grants the user permission to create and list distributions in the CloudFront console. For the `CreateDistribution` action, specify the wildcard (\$1) character for the `Resource` instead of a wildcard for the distribution ARN (`arn:aws:cloudfront::123456789012:distribution/*`). For more information about the `Resource` element, see [IAM JSON policy elements: Resource](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_policies_elements_resource.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
------
#### [ JSON ]
****
```
{
"Version":"2012-10-17",
"Statement": [
{
"Sid": "VisualEditor0",
"Effect": "Allow",
"Action": "cloudfront:CreateDistribution",
"Resource": "*"
},
{
"Sid": "VisualEditor1",
"Effect": "Allow",
"Action": "cloudfront:ListDistributions",
"Resource": "*"
}
]
}
```
------
# AWS managed policies for Amazon CloudFront
To add permissions to users, groups, and roles, it’s easier to use AWS managed policies than to write policies yourself. It takes time and expertise to [create IAM customer managed policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_create-console.html) that provide your users with only the permissions they need. To get started quickly, you can use our AWS managed policies. These policies cover common use cases and are available in your AWS account. For more information about AWS managed policies, see [AWS managed policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_managed-vs-inline.html#aws-managed-policies) in the *IAM User Guide*.
AWS services maintain and update AWS managed policies. You can’t change the permissions in AWS managed policies. Services occasionally add additional permissions to an AWS managed policy to support new features. This type of update affects all identities (users, groups, and roles) where the policy is attached. Services are most likely to update an AWS managed policy when a new feature is launched or when new permissions become available. Services do not remove permissions from an AWS managed policy, so policy updates won’t break your existing permissions.
Additionally, AWS supports managed policies for job functions that span multiple services. For example, the **ReadOnlyAccess** AWS managed policy provides read-only access to all AWS services and resources. When a service launches a new feature, AWS adds read-only permissions for new operations and resources. For a list and descriptions of job function policies, see [AWS managed policies for job functions](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies_job-functions.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
**Topics**
+ [AWS managed policy: CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-read-only)
+ [AWS managed policy: CloudFrontFullAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-full-access)
+ [AWS managed policy: AWSCloudFrontLogger](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-logger)
+ [AWS managed policy: AWSLambdaReplicator](#security-iam-awsmanpol-lambda-replicator)
+ [AWS managed policy: AWSCloudFrontVPCOriginServiceRolePolicy](#security-iam-awsmanpol-vpc-origin)
+ [CloudFront updates to AWS managed policies](#security-iam-awsmanpol-updates)
## AWS managed policy: CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess
You can attach the **CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess** policy to your IAM identities. This policy allows read-only permissions to CloudFront resources. It also allows read-only permissions to other AWS service resources that are related to CloudFront and that are visible in the CloudFront console.
**Permissions details**
This policy includes the following permissions.
+ `cloudfront:Describe*` – Allows principals to get information about metadata about CloudFront resources.
+ `cloudfront:Get*` – Allows principals to get detailed information and configurations for CloudFront resources.
+ `cloudfront:List*` – Allows principals to get lists of CloudFront resources.
+ `cloudfront-keyvaluestore:Describe*` - Allows principals to get information about the key value store.
+ `cloudfront-keyvaluestore:Get*` - Allows principals to get detailed information and configurations for the key value store.
+ `cloudfront-keyvaluestore:List*` - Allows principals to get lists of the key value stores.
+ `acm:DescribeCertificate` – Allows principals to get details about an ACM certificate.
+ `acm:ListCertificates` – Allows principals to get a list of ACM certificates.
+ `iam:ListServerCertificates` – Allows principals to get a list of server certificates stored in IAM.
+ `route53:List*` – Allows principals to get lists of Route 53 resources.
+ `waf:ListWebACLs` – Allows principals to get a list of web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `waf:GetWebACL` – Allows principals to get detailed information about web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `wafv2:ListWebACLs` – Allows principals to get a list of web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `wafv2:GetWebACL` – Allows principals to get detailed information about web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `pricingplanmanager:GetSubscription` – Allows principals read-only access to get details about pricing plan subscriptions.
+ `pricingplanmanager:ListSubscriptions` – Allows principals read-only access to list pricing plan subscriptions.
+ `ec2:DescribeIpamPools` – Allows principals to get detailed information about your IPAM pools.
+ `ec2:GetIpamPoolCidrs` – Allows principals to get the CIDRs provisioned to an IPAM pool.
To view the permissions for this policy, see [CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/aws-managed-policy/latest/reference/CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess.html) in the *AWS Managed Policy Reference*.
## AWS managed policy: CloudFrontFullAccess
You can attach the **CloudFrontFullAccess** policy to your IAM identities. This policy allows administrative permissions to CloudFront resources. It also allows read-only permissions to other AWS service resources that are related to CloudFront and that are visible in the CloudFront console.
**Permissions details**
This policy includes the following permissions.
+ `s3:ListAllMyBuckets` – Allows principals to get a list of all Amazon S3 buckets.
+ `acm:DescribeCertificate` – Allows principals to get details about an ACM certificate.
+ `acm:ListCertificates` – Allows principals to get a list of ACM certificates.
+ `acm:RequestCertificate` – Allows principals to request managed certificates from ACM.
+ `cloudfront:*` – Allows principals to perform all actions on all CloudFront resources.
+ `cloudfront-keyvaluestore:*` - Allows principals to perform all actions on the key value store.
+ `iam:ListServerCertificates` – Allows principals to get a list of server certificates stored in IAM.
+ `waf:ListWebACLs` – Allows principals to get a list of web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `waf:GetWebACL` – Allows principals to get detailed information about web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `waf:CreateWebACLs` – Allows principals to create a web ACL in AWS WAF.
+ `wafv2:ListWebACLs` – Allows principals to get a list of web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `wafv2:GetWebACL` – Allows principals to get detailed information about web ACLs in AWS WAF.
+ `kinesis:ListStreams` – Allows principals to get a list of Amazon Kinesis streams.
+ `elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers` - Allows principals to get detailed information about load balancers in Elastic Load Balancing.
+ `kinesis:DescribeStream` – Allows principals to get detailed information about a Kinesis stream.
+ `iam:ListRoles` – Allows principals to get a list of roles in IAM.
+ `pricingplanmanager:AssociateResourcesToSubscription` - Allows principals to associate resources to a subscription. This enables the resources to be covered by the subscription's pricing plan.
+ `pricingplanmanager:CancelSubscription` - Allows principals to cancel an existing subscription.
+ `pricingplanmanager:CancelSubscriptionChange` - Allows principals to cancel a pending change to an existing subscription, such as a plan upgrade, before the change is applied.
+ `pricingplanmanager:CreateSubscription` - Allows principals to create a subscription to a pricing plan.
+ `pricingplanmanager:DisassociateResourcesFromSubscription` - Allows principals to remove the association between resources and an existing subscription.
+ `pricingplanmanager:UpdateSubscription` - Allows principals to modify an existing subscription, such as changing the pricing plan.
+ `pricingplanmanager:GetSubscription` – Allows principals read-only access to get details about pricing plan subscriptions.
+ `pricingplanmanager:ListSubscriptions` – Allows principals read-only access to list pricing plan subscriptions.
+ `ec2:DescribeInstances` - Allows principals to get detailed information about instances in Amazon EC2.
+ `ec2:DescribeInternetGateways` - Allows principals to get detailed information about internet gateways in Amazon EC2.
+ `ec2:DescribeIpamPools` – Allows principals to get detailed information about your IPAM pools.
+ `ec2:GetIpamPoolCidrs` – Allows principals to get the CIDRs provisioned to an IPAM pool.
To view the permissions for this policy, see [CloudFrontFullAccess](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/aws-managed-policy/latest/reference/CloudFrontFullAccess.html) in the *AWS Managed Policy Reference*.
**Important**
If you want CloudFront to create and save access logs, you need to grant additional permissions. For more information, see [Permissions](standard-logging-legacy-s3.md#AccessLogsBucketAndFileOwnership).
## AWS managed policy: AWSCloudFrontLogger
You can’t attach the **AWSCloudFrontLogger** policy to your IAM identities. This policy is attached to a service-linked role that allows CloudFront to perform actions on your behalf. For more information, see [Service-linked roles for Lambda@Edge](lambda-edge-permissions.md#using-service-linked-roles-lambda-edge).
This policy allows CloudFront to push log files to Amazon CloudWatch. For details about the permissions included in this policy, see [Service-linked role permissions for CloudFront logger](lambda-edge-permissions.md#slr-permissions-cloudfront-logger).
To view the permissions for this policy, see [AWSCloudFrontLogger](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/aws-managed-policy/latest/reference/AWSCloudFrontLogger.html) in the *AWS Managed Policy Reference*.
## AWS managed policy: AWSLambdaReplicator
You can’t attach the **AWSLambdaReplicator** policy to your IAM identities. This policy is attached to a service-linked role that allows CloudFront to perform actions on your behalf. For more information, see [Service-linked roles for Lambda@Edge](lambda-edge-permissions.md#using-service-linked-roles-lambda-edge).
This policy allows CloudFront to create, delete, and disable functions in AWS Lambda to replicate Lambda@Edge functions to AWS Regions. For details about the permissions included in this policy, see [Service-linked role permissions for Lambda replicator](lambda-edge-permissions.md#slr-permissions-lambda-replicator).
To view the permissions for this policy, see [AWSLambdaReplicator](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/aws-managed-policy/latest/reference/AWSLambdaReplicator.html) in the *AWS Managed Policy Reference*.
## AWS managed policy: AWSCloudFrontVPCOriginServiceRolePolicy
You can't attach the **AWSCloudFrontVPCOriginServiceRolePolicy** policy to your IAM entities. This policy is attached to a service-linked role that allows CloudFront to perform actions on your behalf. For more information, see [Use service-linked roles for CloudFront](using-service-linked-roles.md).
This policy allows CloudFront to manage EC2 elastic network interfaces and security groups on your behalf. For details about the permissions included in this policy, see [Service-linked role permissions for CloudFront VPC Origins](using-service-linked-roles.md#slr-permissions).
To view the permissions for this policy, see [AWSCloudFrontVPCOriginServiceRolePolicy](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/aws-managed-policy/latest/reference/AWSCloudFrontVPCOriginServiceRolePolicy.html) in the *AWS Managed Policy Reference*.
## CloudFront updates to AWS managed policies
View details about updates to AWS managed policies for CloudFront since this service began tracking these changes. For automatic alerts about changes to this page, subscribe to the RSS feed on the CloudFront [Document history](WhatsNew.md) page.
| Change | Description | Date |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-read-only) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added new permissions for Amazon EC2. The new permissions allow principals to use the `ec2:DescribeIpamPools` and `ec2:GetIpamPoolCidrs` actions. | November 24, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontFullAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-full-access) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added new permissions for Amazon EC2. The new permissions allow principals to use the `ec2:DescribeIpamPools` and `ec2:GetIpamPoolCidrs` actions. | November 24, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontFullAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-full-access) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added a new permission to create an AWS WAF ACL resource, and added create, update, delete, and read permissions to AWS Pricing Plan Manager. | November 18, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontFullAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-full-access) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added a new permission to create an AWS WAF ACL resource, and added create, update, delete, and read permissions to AWS Pricing Plan Manager. | November 18, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-read-only) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added new permissions for read-only access to AWS Pricing Plan Manager. | November 18, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-read-only) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added new permissions for read-only access to AWS Pricing Plan Manager. | November 18, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-read-only) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added new permission for ACM. The new permission allows principals to get details about an ACM certificate. | April 28, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontFullAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-full-access) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added new permissions for ACM. The new permissions allow principals to get details about an ACM certificate and to request a managed certificate from ACM. | April 28, 2025 |
| [CloudFrontFullAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-full-access) – Update to existing policy | CloudFront added new permissions for Amazon EC2 and Elastic Load Balancing. The new permissions allow CloudFront to get detailed information about load balancers in Elastic Load Balancing and instances and internet gateways in Amazon EC2. | November 20, 2024 |
| [AWSCloudFrontVPCOriginServiceRolePolicy](#security-iam-awsmanpol-vpc-origin) – New policy | CloudFront added a new policy. This policy allows CloudFront to manage EC2 elastic network interfaces and security groups on your behalf. | November 20, 2024 |
| [CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-read-only) and [CloudFrontFullAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-full-access) - Update to two existing policies. | CloudFront added new permissions for key value stores. The new permissions allow users to get information about, and take action on, key value stores. | December 19, 2023 |
| [CloudFrontReadOnlyAccess](#security-iam-awsmanpol-cloudfront-read-only) – Update to an existing policy | CloudFront added a new permission to describe CloudFront Functions. This permission allows the user, group, or role to read information and metadata about a function, but not the function’s code. | September 8, 2021 |
| CloudFront started tracking changes | CloudFront started tracking changes for its AWS managed policies. | September 8, 2021 |
# Use service-linked roles for CloudFront
Amazon CloudFront uses AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) [service-linked roles](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles_terms-and-concepts.html#iam-term-service-linked-role). A service-linked role is a unique type of IAM role that is linked directly to CloudFront. Service-linked roles are predefined by CloudFront and include all the permissions that the service requires to call other AWS services on your behalf.
A service-linked role makes setting up CloudFront easier because you don’t have to manually add the necessary permissions. CloudFront defines the permissions of its service-linked roles, and unless defined otherwise, only CloudFront can assume its roles. The defined permissions include the trust policy and the permissions policy, and that permissions policy cannot be attached to any other IAM entity.
You can delete a service-linked role only after first deleting their related resources. This protects your CloudFront resources because you can't inadvertently remove permission to access the resources.
For information about other services that support service-linked roles, see [AWS services that work with IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/reference_aws-services-that-work-with-iam.html) and look for the services that have **Yes** in the **Service-linked roles** column. Choose a **Yes** with a link to view the service-linked role documentation for that service.
## Service-linked role permissions for CloudFront VPC Origins
CloudFront VPC Origins uses the service-linked role named **AWSServiceRoleForCloudFrontVPCOrigin** – Allows CloudFront to manage EC2 elastic network interfaces and security groups on your behalf.
The AWSServiceRoleForCloudFrontVPCOrigin service-linked role trusts the following services to assume the role:
+ `vpcorigin.cloudfront.amazonaws.com`
The role permissions policy named AWSCloudFrontVPCOriginServiceRolePolicy allows CloudFront VPC Origins to complete the following actions on the specified resources:
+ Action: `ec2:CreateNetworkInterface` on `arn:aws:ec2:*:*:network-interface/*`
+ Action: `ec2:CreateNetworkInterface` on `arn:aws:ec2:*:*:subnet/*` and `arn:aws:ec2:*:*:security-group/*`
+ Action: `ec2:CreateSecurityGroup` on `arn:aws:ec2:*:*:security-group/*`
+ Action: `ec2:CreateSecurityGroup` on `arn:aws:ec2:*:*:vpc/*`
+ Action: `ec2:ModifyNetworkInterfaceAttribute`, `ec2:DeleteNetworkInterface`, `ec2:DeleteSecurityGroup`, `ec2:AssignIpv6Addresses`, and `ec2:UnassignIpv6Addresses` on `supported AWS resources that have the aws:ResourceTag/aws.cloudfront.vpcorigin tag enabled`
+ Action: `ec2:DescribeNetworkInterfaces`, `ec2:DescribeSecurityGroups`, `ec2:DescribeInstances`, `ec2:DescribeInternetGateways`, `ec2:DescribeSubnets`, `ec2:DescribeRegions`, and `ec2:DescribeAddresses` on `all AWS resources that the actions support`
+ Action: `ec2:CreateTags` on `arn:aws:ec2:*:*:security-group/*` and `arn:aws:ec2:*:*:network-interface/*`
+ Action: `elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers`, `elasticloadbalancing:DescribeListeners`, and `elasticloadbalancing:DescribeTargetGroups` on `all AWS resources that the actions support`
You must configure permissions to allow your users, groups, or roles to create, edit, or delete a service-linked role. For more information, see [Service-linked role permissions](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/using-service-linked-roles.html#service-linked-role-permissions) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Create a service-linked role for CloudFront VPC Origins
You don't need to manually create a service-linked role. When you create a VPC origin in the AWS Management Console, the AWS CLI, or the AWS API, CloudFront VPC Origins creates the service-linked role for you.
If you delete this service-linked role, and then need to create it again, you can use the same process to recreate the role in your account. When you create a VPC origin, CloudFront VPC Origins creates the service-linked role for you again.
## Edit a service-linked role for CloudFront VPC Origins
CloudFront VPC Origins does not allow you to edit the AWSServiceRoleForCloudFrontVPCOrigin service-linked role. After you create a service-linked role, you cannot change the name of the role because various entities might reference the role. However, you can edit the description of the role using IAM. For more information, see [Editing a service-linked role](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/using-service-linked-roles.html#edit-service-linked-role) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Delete a service-linked role for CloudFront VPC Origins
If you no longer need to use a feature or service that requires a service-linked role, we recommend that you delete that role. That way you don’t have an unused entity that is not actively monitored or maintained. However, you must clean up the resources for your service-linked role before you can manually delete it.
**Note**
If the CloudFront service is using the role when you try to delete the resources, then the deletion might fail. If that happens, wait for a few minutes and try the operation again.
**To delete CloudFront VPC Origins resources used by the AWSServiceRoleForCloudFrontVPCOrigin**
+ Delete the VPC origin resources in your account.
+ It might take some time for CloudFront to finish deleting the resources from your account. If you can't delete the service-linked role right away, wait and try again.
**To manually delete the service-linked role using IAM**
Use the IAM console, the AWS CLI, or the AWS API to delete the AWSServiceRoleForCloudFrontVPCOrigin service-linked role. For more information, see [Deleting a service-linked role](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/using-service-linked-roles.html#delete-service-linked-role) in the *IAM User Guide*.
## Supported Regions for CloudFront VPC Origins service-linked roles
CloudFront VPC Origins does not support using service-linked roles in every Region where the service is available. You can use the AWSServiceRoleForCloudFrontVPCOrigin role in the following Regions.
| Region name | Region identity | Support in CloudFront |
| --- | --- | --- |
| US East (N. Virginia) | us-east-1 | Yes |
| US East (Ohio) | us-east-2 | Yes |
| US West (N. California) | us-west-1 (except AZ usw1-az2) | Yes |
| US West (Oregon) | us-west-2 | Yes |
| Africa (Cape Town) | af-south-1 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Hong Kong) | ap-east-1 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Jakarta) | ap-southeast-3 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Melbourne) | ap-southeast-4 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Mumbai) | ap-south-1 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Hyderabad) | ap-south-2 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Osaka) | ap-northeast-3 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Seoul) | ap-northeast-2 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Singapore) | ap-southeast-1 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Sydney) | ap-southeast-2 | Yes |
| Asia Pacific (Tokyo) | ap-northeast-1 (except AZ apne1-az3) | Yes |
| Canada (Central) | ca-central-1 (except AZ cac1-az3) | Yes |
| Canada West (Calgary) | ca-west-1 | Yes |
| Europe (Frankfurt) | eu-central-1 | Yes |
| Europe (Ireland) | eu-west-1 | Yes |
| Europe (London) | eu-west-2 | Yes |
| Europe (Milan) | eu-south-1 | Yes |
| Europe (Paris) | eu-west-3 | Yes |
| Europe (Spain) | eu-south-2 | Yes |
| Europe (Stockholm) | eu-north-1 | Yes |
| Europe (Zurich) | eu-central-2 | Yes |
| Israel (Tel Aviv) | il-central-1 | Yes |
| Middle East (Bahrain) | me-south-1 | Yes |
| Middle East (UAE) | me-central-1 | Yes |
| South America (São Paulo) | sa-east-1 | Yes |
# Troubleshoot Amazon CloudFront identity and access
Use the following information to help you diagnose and fix common issues that you might encounter when working with CloudFront and IAM.
**Topics**
+ [I'm not authorized to perform an action in CloudFront](#security_iam_troubleshoot-no-permissions)
+ [I'm not authorized to perform iam:PassRole](#security_iam_troubleshoot-passrole)
+ [I want to allow people outside of my AWS account to access my CloudFront resources](#security_iam_troubleshoot-cross-account-access)
## I'm not authorized to perform an action in CloudFront
If you receive an error that you're not authorized to perform an action, your policies must be updated to allow you to perform the action.
The following example error occurs when the `mateojackson` IAM user tries to use the console to view details about a fictional `my-example-widget` resource but doesn't have the fictional `cloudfront:GetWidget` permissions.
```
User: arn:aws:iam::123456789012:user/mateojackson is not authorized to perform: cloudfront:GetWidget on resource: my-example-widget
```
In this case, the policy for the `mateojackson` user must be updated to allow access to the `my-example-widget` resource by using the `cloudfront:GetWidget` action.
If you need help, contact your AWS administrator. Your administrator is the person who provided you with your sign-in credentials.
## I'm not authorized to perform iam:PassRole
If you receive an error that you're not authorized to perform the `iam:PassRole` action, your policies must be updated to allow you to pass a role to CloudFront.
Some AWS services allow you to pass an existing role to that service instead of creating a new service role or service-linked role. To do this, you must have permissions to pass the role to the service.
The following example error occurs when an IAM user named `marymajor` tries to use the console to perform an action in CloudFront. However, the action requires the service to have permissions that are granted by a service role. Mary does not have permissions to pass the role to the service.
```
User: arn:aws:iam::123456789012:user/marymajor is not authorized to perform: iam:PassRole
```
In this case, Mary's policies must be updated to allow her to perform the `iam:PassRole` action.
If you need help, contact your AWS administrator. Your administrator is the person who provided you with your sign-in credentials.
## I want to allow people outside of my AWS account to access my CloudFront resources
You can create a role that users in other accounts or people outside of your organization can use to access your resources. You can specify who is trusted to assume the role. For services that support resource-based policies or access control lists (ACLs), you can use those policies to grant people access to your resources.
To learn more, consult the following:
+ To learn whether CloudFront supports these features, see [How Amazon CloudFront works with IAM](security_iam_service-with-iam.md).
+ To learn how to provide access to your resources across AWS accounts that you own, see [Providing access to an IAM user in another AWS account that you own](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles_common-scenarios_aws-accounts.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ To learn how to provide access to your resources to third-party AWS accounts, see [Providing access to AWS accounts owned by third parties](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles_common-scenarios_third-party.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ To learn how to provide access through identity federation, see [Providing access to externally authenticated users (identity federation)](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/id_roles_common-scenarios_federated-users.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.
+ To learn the difference between using roles and resource-based policies for cross-account access, see [Cross account resource access in IAM](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/access_policies-cross-account-resource-access.html) in the *IAM User Guide*.