# AWS CloudWatch Monitoring

# Implementing CloudWatch Monitoring for Nginx Web Server on EC2

## Step 1: Launch an EC2 Instance

* Go to AWS Console → EC2 → Launch Instance.
    
* Configure the following:
    
    * Name: `nginx-server`
        
    * AMI: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
        
    * Instance Type: t2.micro (Free Tier eligible)
        
    * Key pair: Create or select an existing one.
        
    * Security Group: Allow inbound rules for:
        
        * Port 22 (SSH)
            
        * Port 80 (HTTP)
            
* Launch the instance.
    

## Step 2: Install and Start Nginx

Connect to the EC2 instance using SSH:

```bash
ssh -i your-key.pem ubuntu@your-ec2-public-ip
```

Update and install nginx:

```bash
sudo apt update -y
sudo apt install nginx -y
```

Start and enable nginx service:

```bash
sudo systemctl start nginx
sudo systemctl enable nginx
```

Verify by accessing the public IP address of the EC2 instance in a web browser. You should see the Nginx welcome page.

![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1745684732895/36d9ef04-e043-44d8-839d-8ac7256c3b95.png align="center")

## Step 3: Create an IAM Role for CloudWatch

* Navigate to IAM → Roles → Create Role.
    
* Trusted Entity: EC2.
    
* Attach the following policies:
    
    * CloudWatchAgentServerPolicy
        
    * AmazonSSMManagedInstanceCore (optional but recommended for easier management)
        
* Name the role appropriately, for example: `EC2CloudWatchAgentRole`.
    
* Attach this role to the running EC2 instance (EC2 → Actions → Security → Modify IAM Role).
    

## Step 4: Install the CloudWatch Agent

Since `amazon-cloudwatch-agent` is not available via `apt` on Ubuntu, install it manually:

```bash
cd /tmp
wget https://s3.amazonaws.com/amazoncloudwatch-agent/ubuntu/amd64/latest/amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb
sudo dpkg -i -E ./amazon-cloudwatch-agent.deb
```

Verify the installation:

```bash
sudo /opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/amazon-cloudwatch-agent-ctl -a status
```

## Step 5: Create a CloudWatch Agent Configuration File

Create a configuration file to specify which logs to collect:

```bash
sudo vim /opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/config.json
```

Paste the following configuration:

```json
{
  "logs": {
    "logs_collected": {
      "files": {
        "collect_list": [
          {
            "file_path": "/var/log/nginx/access.log",
            "log_group_name": "nginx-access-logs",
            "log_stream_name": "{instance_id}-access",
            "timezone": "UTC"
          },
          {
            "file_path": "/var/log/nginx/error.log",
            "log_group_name": "nginx-error-logs",
            "log_stream_name": "{instance_id}-error",
            "timezone": "UTC"
          }
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}
```

Save and exit the file.

## Step 6: Start the CloudWatch Agent

Start the CloudWatch Agent with the created configuration:

```bash
sudo /opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/amazon-cloudwatch-agent-ctl \
  -a fetch-config \
  -m ec2 \
  -c file:/opt/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent/bin/config.json \
  -s
```

This will start collecting the nginx logs and push them to CloudWatch.

## Step 7: Verify in AWS Console

* Go to AWS Console → CloudWatch → Log Groups.
    
* You should see two log groups:
    
    * `nginx-access-logs`
        
        ![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1745684609697/2241638d-98d1-4d9d-9862-a22fd5c7a849.png align="center")
        
        ![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1745684622458/5854d3ce-5144-45ef-a323-61712cacfe62.png align="center")
        
        ![](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1745684635554/29f7c924-96ae-4f12-b393-02cd61a93b58.png align="center")
        
* You can now monitor the nginx access and error logs directly from the CloudWatch console.
    

---

# Final Outcome

* A running EC2 instance with an nginx web server installed and active.
    
* CloudWatch Agent installed and configured to collect nginx logs.
    
* Log streams visible and accessible in the AWS CloudWatch service for monitoring.