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AWS CLI IAM & Authentication Cheat Sheet 2026

2 min read

AWS CLI — IAM & Authentication Cheat Sheet 2026

AWS CLI IAM & Authentication Cheat Sheet is the complete quick-reference of AWS CLI IAM & Authentication commands grouped by function. Copy any command with one click and find what you need with Ctrl+F in under 3 seconds.

IAM & Authentication

Action Command Useful flags
List users 
aws iam list-users
List policies 
aws iam list-policies
List groups 
aws iam list-groups
Get users in a group 
aws iam get-group --group-name <group_name>
 --group-name
Describe an IAM policy 
aws iam get-policy --policy-arn arn:aws:iam::aws:policy/<policy_name>
 --policy-arn
List access keys 
aws iam list-access-keys
List access keys for a specific user 
aws iam list-access-keys --user-name <user_name>
 --user-name
Display help 
aws iam help
Configure AWS CLI interactively (creates a new configuration or updates the defa 
aws configure
Configure a named profile for AWS CLI interactively (creates a new profile or up 
aws configure --profile <profile_name>
 --profile
Display the value from a specific configuration variable 
aws configure get <name>
Display the value for a configuration variable in a specific profile 
aws configure get <name> --profile <profile_name>
 --profile

⚠️ Dangerous / Destructive Commands

These commands are irreversible. Verify your environment (dev/staging vs prod) before running them.

Action Command Warning
⚠️ Destroy ⚠️ 
terraform destroy -auto-approve
 Irreversible — verify the target before running
⚠️ Delete 
kubectl delete namespace production
 Irreversible — verify the target before running
⚠️ Prune ⚠️ 
docker system prune -af --volumes
 Irreversible — verify the target before running
⚠️ Delete 
pvesh delete /nodes/{node}/qemu/{vmid}
 Irreversible — verify the target before running
⚠️ Delete 
az group delete --name MyResourceGroup --yes
 Irreversible — verify the target before running

FAQ — Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between IAM & Authentication and the other groups?

Each group in this AWS CLI cheat sheet covers a distinct area. IAM & Authentication focuses on its specific scope, while the other groups and the remaining groups cover networking, storage, security and diagnostics respectively.

How do I check the installed AWS CLI version?

Run the version command (usually aws version or aws --version). The output shows the client and, when applicable, the server version.

Why does AWS CLI return ‘permission denied’?

A ‘permission denied’ error in AWS CLI usually means the current user lacks sufficient privileges or credentials are not configured. Check: (1) assigned IAM/RBAC roles, (2) an active authentication context via the corresponding login command.

How do I filter AWS CLI output by status or name?

Use flags such as --filter, --selector or --query depending on the tool. You can also pipe into grep or jq to process JSON: 

aws list | grep RUNNING

What is the fastest way to debug a AWS CLI error?

Add the verbose flag (--verbose, -v or --debug) to the failing command. This reveals the underlying HTTP/API calls and the full error response body.

Official sources & references

Commands cross-checked against vendor documentation and high-authority repositories: