Install Node.js, the AWS CLI, and the CDK Toolkit

Three tools sit underneath every CDK project, whichever language you write stacks in.

Node.js and npm

The CDK CLI itself — the cdk command you'll run in every later lesson — is a Node.js program. That's true even if you write your stacks in Python: aws-cdk-lib for Python is a jsii-generated binding, and jsii proxies every call through a real Node process behind the scenes. No Node, no cdk command, regardless of language.

Install Node from nodejs.org, then confirm both pieces landed:

node -v
npm -v

AWS CLI

The AWS CLI is how the CDK Toolkit actually talks to your account — it reads the credentials you'll set up in the next lesson and uses them for every API call CDK makes on your behalf.

Linux:

curl "https://awscli.amazonaws.com/awscli-exe-linux-x86_64.zip" -o "awscliv2.zip"
unzip awscliv2.zip
sudo ./aws/install

macOS:

curl "https://awscli.amazonaws.com/AWSCLIV2.pkg" -o "AWSCLIV2.pkg"
sudo installer -pkg ./AWSCLIV2.pkg -target /

Windows: download and run the AWS CLI MSI installer.

Confirm it installed:

aws --version

The CDK Toolkit

npm install -g aws-cdk
cdk --version

Language-specific setup

CDK apps in TypeScript are compiled with tsc before they run. Install it globally:

npm install -g typescript
tsc -v

Pick an editor

Any editor with TypeScript or Python support works fine here. If you don't already have one, VS Code with the AWS Toolkit extension is a solid, low-friction default — but nothing in this project depends on a specific editor.

With all three tools installed and verified, you're ready to create an IAM user for CDK to actually use.