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If you’re using AWS Amplify Hosting with server-side rendering (SSR) and trying to connect to an Aurora DSQL database, you might run into some issues with authentication. Specifically, obtaining the necessary IAM credentials to generate an authentication token can be tricky.
Here’s a simple way to resolve this problem:
First, ensure you have an IAM service role created that has the correct permissions. Attach policies like ‘dsql:DbConnect’ and ‘dsql:DbConnectAdmin,’ as well as any other permissions needed for your setup, such as S3 access if necessary. Make sure this role’s trust relationship includes both ‘amplify.amazonaws.com’ and ‘lambda.amazonaws.com’ so that both services can assume it.
Next, assign this role to your Amplify app through the console. Go to the app settings under “General” and select the created IAM role as the service role. This way, your environment knows which role to use.
However, one common stumbling block is environment variables. Amazon restricts certain reserved prefixes, like ‘AWS,’ for security reasons. Therefore, setting an environment variable like ‘AWS_ROLE_ARN’ won’t work. Instead, rely on the default methods that SDKs use to fetch credentials.
In your code, avoid trying to set environment variables manually for role ARN if it starts with ‘AWS.’ Instead, the SDK should automatically pick up the instance or container role credentials. But, in Amplify SSR environments, these credentials are not always available by default, which causes the authentication process to fail with errors like “Could not load credentials from any providers.”
Since typical credential providers aren’t accessible, one workaround is to use a different architecture:
– Move to an API Gateway + Lambda setup, where your Lambda functions have the required IAM roles and can securely generate auth tokens for Aurora DSQL.
– Or, consider migrating to Amplify’s newer features (like Amplify Gen 2) with Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools such as the Cloud Development Kit (CDK), which allow more control over backend resources and roles.
If you prefer to keep your current setup, a potential solution is to perform a manual credential fetch during deployment, store the auth token securely, and then use it in your environment, but be cautious with security.
In summary, the key is understanding that Amplify SSR environments may not pass IAM credentials automatically to your code. Using a dedicated backend (API Gateway + Lambda) or upgrading your environment setup can help resolve this issue more securely and reliably.
Good luck with your project!
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