Step-by-Step Guide to Deploying a Static Website from an S3 Bucket in AWS

Step-by-Step Guide to Deploying a Static Website from an S3 Bucket in AWS

Introduction:

In this tutorial, we will walk through the process of deploying a static website using Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) in AWS. Amazon S3 provides a highly scalable and cost-effective solution for hosting static websites. We will cover all the necessary steps, from creating an S3 bucket to configuring it as a static website hosting endpoint. So, let's get started!

1. Prerequisites:

Before we begin, make sure you have the following prerequisites in place:

- An AWS account with appropriate access permissions

- A domain name (optional, but required for custom domain setup)

- Website files (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images, etc.)

2. Creating an S3 Bucket:

- Log in to your AWS Management Console.

- Navigate to the S3 service.

- Click on "Create bucket" and provide a unique name for your bucket.

- Select the region that suits your needs and click "Next."

- Leave the default settings and click "Next."

- Review the configuration and click "Create bucket."

3. Uploading Website Files:

- Open the newly created bucket.

- Click on "Upload" and select the website files from your local machine.

- Click "Next" and keep the default settings.

- Review the upload and click "Upload."

4. Configuring Bucket Properties:

- In the bucket overview page, click on the "Properties" tab.

- Under "Static website hosting," click on "Edit."

- Select "Use this bucket to host a website."

- Enter the index document name (e.g., "index.html").

- Optionally, specify an error document for handling 404 errors.

- Click "Create ."

5. Enabling Static Website Hosting:

- After saving the changes, note the "Endpoint" URL mentioned under "Static website hosting."

- This URL represents the public URL of your static website.

6. Configuring Bucket Permissions:

- In the bucket overview page, click on the "Permissions" tab.

- Under "Bucket policy," click on "Edit."

- Add the following bucket policy, replacing "your-bucket-name" with your actual bucket name and "your-domain.com" with your domain (if applicable)

```

{

"Version":"2012-10-17",

"Statement":[{

"Sid":"PublicReadGetObject",

"Effect":"Allow",

"Principal": "*",

"Action":["s3:GetObject"],

"Resource":["arn:aws:s3:::your-bucket-name/*"]

}]

}

```

- Click "Save changes."

7. Setting Up DNS:

- If you have a custom domain, configure the DNS settings to point to your S3 bucket's endpoint URL.

- Create a new "CNAME" or "Alias" record and set the value as the S3 bucket endpoint URL.

- Wait for DNS propagation, which may take some time.

8. Testing the Website:

- Once DNS propagation is complete, open a web browser and visit your website using the custom domain or the S3 bucket endpoint URL.

- Confirm that your website is accessible and functioning correctly.

9. Conclusion:

Congratulations! You have successfully deployed a static website from an S3 bucket in AWS. Using Amazon S3 for static website hosting offers scalability, cost-effectiveness, and reliable performance. You can easily update or modify your website by uploading new files to the S3 bucket. Explore additional features of S3, such as versioning and lifecycle policies, to enhance your website deployment further.

In this tutorial, we covered the step-by-step process of creating an S3 bucket, uploading website files, configuring bucket properties, enabling static website hosting, configuring bucket permissions, and setting up DNS.

Now you can confidently host your static websites on AWS S3. Happy deploying!