Install AWS IoT Greengrass Core software with automatic resource provisioning

To set up a Linux device for AWS IoT Greengrass V2

1. Install the Java runtime, which AWS IoT Greengrass Core software requires to run. We recommend that you use Amazon Corretto or OpenJDK long-term support versions. Version 8 or higher is required. The following commands show you how to install OpenJDK on your device.

   • For Debian-based or Ubuntu-based distributions:

     sudo apt install default-jdk

   • For Red Hat-based distributions:

     sudo yum install java-11-openjdk-devel

   • For Amazon Linux 2:

     sudo amazon-linux-extras install java-openjdk11

   • For Amazon Linux 2023:

     sudo dnf install java-11-amazon-corretto -y

   When the installation completes, run the following command to verify that Java runs on your Linux device.

   java -version

   The command prints the version of Java that runs on the device. For example, on a Debian-based distribution, the output might look similar to the following sample.

   openjdk version "11.0.9.1" 2020-11-04
   OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 11.0.9.1+1-post-Debian-1deb10u2)
   OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM (build 11.0.9.1+1-post-Debian-1deb10u2, mixed mode)

2. (Optional) Create the default system user and group that runs components on the device. You can also choose to let the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software installer create this user and group during installation with the --component-default-user installer argument. For more information, see Installer arguments.

   sudo useradd --system --create-home ggc_user
   sudo groupadd --system ggc_group

3. Verify that the user that runs the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software (typically root), has permission to run sudo with any user and any group.

   1. Run the following command to open the /etc/sudoers file.

      sudo visudo

   2. Verify that the permission for the user looks like the following example.

      root    ALL=(ALL:ALL) ALL

4. (Optional) To run containerized Lambda functions, you must enable cgroups v1, and you must enable and mount the memory and devices cgroups. If you don't plan to run containerized Lambda functions, you can skip this step.

   To enable these cgroups options, boot the device with the following Linux kernel parameters.

   cgroup_enable=memory cgroup_memory=1 systemd.unified_cgroup_hierarchy=0

   For information about viewing and setting kernel parameters for your device, see the documentation for your operating system and boot loader. Follow the instructions to permanently set the kernel parameters.

5. Install all other required dependencies on your device as indicated by the list of requirements in Device requirements.

To set up a Windows device for AWS IoT Greengrass V2

1. Install the Java runtime, which AWS IoT Greengrass Core software requires to run. We recommend that you use Amazon Corretto or OpenJDK long-term support versions. Version 8 or higher is required.

2. Check whether Java is available on the PATH system variable, and add it if not. The LocalSystem account runs the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software, so you must add Java to the PATH system variable instead of the PATH user variable for your user. Do the following:

   1. Press the Windows key to open the start menu.

   2. Type environment variables to search for the system options from the start menu.

   3. In the start menu search results, choose Edit the system environment variables to open the System properties window.

   4. Choose Environment variables... to open the Environment Variables window.

   5. Under System variables, select Path, and then choose Edit. In the Edit environment variable window, you can view each path on a separate line.

   6. Check if the path to the Java installation's bin folder is present. The path might look similar to the following example.

      C:\\Program Files\\Amazon Corretto\\jdk11.0.13_8\\bin

   7. If the Java installation's bin folder is missing from Path, choose New to add it, and then choose OK.

3. Open the Windows Command Prompt (cmd.exe) as an administrator.

4. Create the default user in the LocalSystem account on the Windows device. Replace password with a secure password.

   net user /add ggc_user password

   Tip

   Depending on your Windows configuration, the user's password might be set to expire at a date in the future. To ensure your Greengrass applications continue to operate, track when the password expires, and update it before it expires. You can also set the user's password to never expire.

   • To check when a user and its password expire, run the following command.

     net user ggc_user | findstr /C:expires

   • To set a user's password to never expire, run the following command.

     wmic UserAccount where "Name='ggc_user'" set PasswordExpires=False

   • If you’re using Windows 10 or later where the wmic command is deprecated, run the following PowerShell command.

     Get-CimInstance -Query "SELECT * from Win32_UserAccount WHERE name = 'ggc_user'" | Set-CimInstance -Property @{PasswordExpires="False"}

5. Download and install the PsExec utility from Microsoft on the device.

6. Use the PsExec utility to store the user name and password for the default user in the Credential Manager instance for the LocalSystem account. Replace password with the user's password that you set earlier.

   psexec -s cmd /c cmdkey /generic:ggc_user /user:ggc_user /pass:password

   If the PsExec License Agreement opens, choose Accept to agree to the license and run the command.

   Note

   On Windows devices, the LocalSystem account runs the Greengrass nucleus, and you must use the PsExec utility to store the default user information in the LocalSystem account. Using the Credential Manager application stores this information in the Windows account of the currently logged on user, instead of the LocalSystem account.

To provide AWS credentials to the device

• Provide your AWS credentials to the device so that the installer can provision the AWS IoT and IAM resources for your core device. To increase security, we recommend that you get temporary credentials for an IAM role that allows only the minimum permissions necessary to provision. For more information, see Minimal IAM policy for installer to provision resources.

  Note

  The installer doesn't save or store your credentials.

  On your device, do one of the following to retrieve credentials and make them available to the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software installer:

  • (Recommended) Use temporary credentials from AWS IAM Identity Center

    1. Provide the access key ID, secret access key, and session token from the IAM Identity Center. For more information, see Manual credential refresh in Getting and refreshing temporary credentials in the IAM Identity Center user guide.

    2. Run the following commands to provide the credentials to the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software.

       Linux or Unix

       export AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE
       export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY
       export AWS_SESSION_TOKEN=AQoDYXdzEJr1K...o5OytwEXAMPLE=

       Windows Command Prompt (CMD)

       set AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE
       set AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY
       set AWS_SESSION_TOKEN=AQoDYXdzEJr1K...o5OytwEXAMPLE=

       PowerShell

       $env:AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID="AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
       $env:AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY"
       $env:AWS_SESSION_TOKEN="AQoDYXdzEJr1K...o5OytwEXAMPLE="

  • Use temporary security credentials from an IAM role:

    1. Provide the access key ID, secret access key, and session token from an IAM role that you assume. For more information about how to retrieve these credentials, see Requesting temporary security credentials in the IAM User Guide.

    2. Run the following commands to provide the credentials to the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software.

       Linux or Unix

       export AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE
       export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY
       export AWS_SESSION_TOKEN=AQoDYXdzEJr1K...o5OytwEXAMPLE=

       Windows Command Prompt (CMD)

       set AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE
       set AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY
       set AWS_SESSION_TOKEN=AQoDYXdzEJr1K...o5OytwEXAMPLE=

       PowerShell

       $env:AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID="AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
       $env:AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY"
       $env:AWS_SESSION_TOKEN="AQoDYXdzEJr1K...o5OytwEXAMPLE="

  • Use long-term credentials from an IAM user:

    1. Provide the access key ID and secret access key for your IAM user. You can create an IAM user for provisioning that you later delete. For the IAM policy to give the user, see Minimal IAM policy for installer to provision resources. For more information about how to retrieve long-term credentials, see Managing access keys for IAM users in the IAM User Guide.

    2. Run the following commands to provide the credentials to the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software.

       Linux or Unix

       export AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE
       export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY

       Windows Command Prompt (CMD)

       set AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE
       set AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY

       PowerShell

       $env:AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID="AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
       $env:AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="wJalrXUtnFEMI/K7MDENG/bPxRfiCYEXAMPLEKEY"

    3. (Optional) If you created an IAM user to provision your Greengrass device, delete the user.

    4. (Optional) If you used the access key ID and secret access key from an existing IAM user, update the keys for the user so that they are no longer valid. For more information, see Updating access keys in the AWS Identity and Access Management user guide.

To download the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software

1. On your core device, download the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software to a file named greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip.

   Linux or Unix

   curl -s https://d2s8p88vqu9w66.cloudfront.net/releases/greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip > greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

   Windows Command Prompt (CMD)

   curl -s https://d2s8p88vqu9w66.cloudfront.net/releases/greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip > greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

   PowerShell

   iwr -Uri https://d2s8p88vqu9w66.cloudfront.net/releases/greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip -OutFile greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

   By downloading this software, you agree to the Greengrass Core Software License Agreement.

2. (Optional) To verify the Greengrass nucleus software signature

   Note

   This feature is available with Greengrass nucleus version 2.9.5 and later.

   1. Use the following command to verify your Greengrass nucleus artifact's signature:

      Linux or Unix

      jarsigner -verify -certs -verbose greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

      Windows Command Prompt (CMD)

      The file name might look different depending on the JDK version you install. Replace jdk17.0.6_10 with the JDK version you installed.

      "C:\\Program Files\\Amazon Corretto\\jdk17.0.6_10\\bin\\jarsigner.exe" -verify -certs -verbose greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

      PowerShell

      The file name might look different depending on the JDK version you install. Replace jdk17.0.6_10 with the JDK version you installed.

      'C:\\Program Files\\Amazon Corretto\\jdk17.0.6_10\\bin\\jarsigner.exe' -verify -certs -verbose greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

   2. The jarsigner invocation yields output that indicates the results of the verification.

      1. If the Greengrass nucleus zip file is signed, the output contains the following statement:

         jar verified.

      2. If the Greengrass nucleus zip file isn't signed, the output contains the following statement:

         jar is unsigned.

   3. If you provided the Jarsigner -certs option along with -verify and -verbose options, the output also includes detailed signer certificate information.

3. Unzip the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software to a folder on your device. Replace GreengrassInstaller with the folder that you want to use.

   Linux or Unix

   unzip greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip -d GreengrassInstaller && rm greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

   Windows Command Prompt (CMD)

   mkdir GreengrassInstaller && tar -xf greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip -C GreengrassInstaller && del greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

   PowerShell

   Expand-Archive -Path greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip -DestinationPath .\\GreengrassInstaller
   rm greengrass-nucleus-latest.zip

4. (Optional) Run the following command to see the version of the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software.

   java -jar ./GreengrassInstaller/lib/Greengrass.jar --version

To install the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software

1. Run the AWS IoT Greengrass Core installer. Replace argument values in your command as follows.

   Note

   Windows has a path length limitation of 260 characters. If you are using Windows, use a root folder like C:\greengrass\v2 or D:\greengrass\v2 to keep the Greengrass components paths under the 260 character limit.

   1. /greengrass/v2 or C:\greengrass\v2: The path to the root folder to use to install the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software.

   2. GreengrassInstaller. The path to the folder where you unpacked the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software installer.

   3. region. The AWS Region in which to find or create resources.

   4. MyGreengrassCore. The name of the AWS IoT thing for your Greengrass core device. If the thing doesn't exist, the installer creates it. The installer downloads the certificates to authenticate as the AWS IoT thing. For more information, see Device authentication and authorization for AWS IoT Greengrass.

      Note

      The thing name can't contain colon (:) characters.

   5. MyGreengrassCoreGroup. The name of AWS IoT thing group for your Greengrass core device. If the thing group doesn't exist, the installer creates it and adds the thing to it. If the thing group exists and has an active deployment, the core device downloads and runs the software that the deployment specifies.

      Note

      The thing group name can't contain colon (:) characters.

   6. GreengrassV2IoTThingPolicy. The name of the AWS IoT policy that allows the Greengrass core devices to communicate with AWS IoT and AWS IoT Greengrass. If the AWS IoT policy doesn't exist, the installer creates a permissive AWS IoT policy with this name. You can restrict this policy's permissions for you use case. For more information, see Minimal AWS IoT policy for AWS IoT Greengrass V2 core devices.

   7. GreengrassV2TokenExchangeRole. The name of the IAM role that allows the Greengrass core device to get temporary AWS credentials. If the role doesn't exist, the installer creates it and creates and attaches a policy named GreengrassV2TokenExchangeRoleAccess. For more information, see Authorize core devices to interact with AWS services.

   8. GreengrassCoreTokenExchangeRoleAlias. The alias to the IAM role that allows the Greengrass core device to get temporary credentials later. If the role alias doesn't exist, the installer creates it and points it to the IAM role that you specify. For more information, see Authorize core devices to interact with AWS services.

   Linux or Unix

   sudo -E java -Droot="/greengrass/v2" -Dlog.store=FILE \
     -jar ./GreengrassInstaller/lib/Greengrass.jar \
     --aws-region region \
     --thing-name MyGreengrassCore \
     --thing-group-name MyGreengrassCoreGroup \
     --thing-policy-name GreengrassV2IoTThingPolicy \
     --tes-role-name GreengrassV2TokenExchangeRole \
     --tes-role-alias-name GreengrassCoreTokenExchangeRoleAlias \
     --component-default-user ggc_user:ggc_group \
     --provision true \
     --setup-system-service true

   Windows Command Prompt (CMD)

   java -Droot="C:\greengrass\v2" "-Dlog.store=FILE" ^
     -jar ./GreengrassInstaller/lib/Greengrass.jar ^
     --aws-region region ^
     --thing-name MyGreengrassCore ^
     --thing-group-name MyGreengrassCoreGroup ^
     --thing-policy-name GreengrassV2IoTThingPolicy ^
     --tes-role-name GreengrassV2TokenExchangeRole ^
     --tes-role-alias-name GreengrassCoreTokenExchangeRoleAlias ^
     --component-default-user ggc_user ^
     --provision true ^
     --setup-system-service true

   PowerShell

   java -Droot="C:\greengrass\v2" "-Dlog.store=FILE" `
     -jar ./GreengrassInstaller/lib/Greengrass.jar `
     --aws-region region `
     --thing-name MyGreengrassCore `
     --thing-group-name MyGreengrassCoreGroup `
     --thing-policy-name GreengrassV2IoTThingPolicy `
     --tes-role-name GreengrassV2TokenExchangeRole `
     --tes-role-alias-name GreengrassCoreTokenExchangeRoleAlias `
     --component-default-user ggc_user `
     --provision true `
     --setup-system-service true

   Important

   On Windows core devices, you must specify --setup-system-service true to set up the AWS IoT Greengrass Core software as a system service.

   The installer prints the following messages if it succeeds:

   • If you specify --provision, the installer prints Successfully configured Nucleus with provisioned resource details if it configured the resources successfully.

   • If you specify --deploy-dev-tools, the installer prints Configured Nucleus to deploy aws.greengrass.Cli component if it created the deployment successfully.

   • If you specify --setup-system-service true, the installer prints Successfully set up Nucleus as a system service if it set up and ran the software as a service.

   • If you don't specify --setup-system-service true, the installer prints Launched Nucleus successfully if it succeeded and ran the software.

2. Skip this step if you installed Greengrass nucleus v2.0.4 or later. If you downloaded the latest version of the software, you installed v2.0.4 or later.

   Run the following command to set the required file permissions for your AWS IoT Greengrass Core software root folder. Replace /greengrass/v2 with the root folder that you specified in your installation command, and replace /greengrass with the parent folder for your root folder.

   sudo chmod 755 /greengrass/v2 && sudo chmod 755 /greengrass