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Quick Start Guide

Get up and running with CloudKeeper in minutes. This guide will help you understand the platform and start optimizing your cloud costs immediately.

Overview​

CloudKeeper provides two main products for AWS cost optimization:

  1. AWS Lens: Cost visibility and analytics platform
  2. AWS Tuner: Automated optimization and recommendations

This guide covers both products and helps you get started with the one that best fits your needs.

Prerequisites​

Before you begin, ensure you have:

  • ✅ AWS account(s) that you want to monitor and optimize
  • ✅ AWS Cost and Usage Report (CUR) enabled (for Lens)
  • ✅ IAM permissions to view billing and cost data
  • ✅ Basic understanding of AWS services and billing

Getting Started with AWS Lens​

AWS Lens provides comprehensive cost visibility without requiring direct access to your AWS accounts.

Step 1: Enable Cost and Usage Report​

AWS Lens requires the Cost and Usage Report (CUR) to be enabled in your AWS account.

  1. Log in to AWS Console as an account administrator

  2. Navigate to Billing Dashboard → Cost & Usage Reports

  3. Create a new report with these settings:

    • Report name: cloudkeeper-cur
    • Time granularity: Hourly
    • Report versioning: Overwrite existing report
    • Data refresh settings: Enable refresh
    • Compression: GZIP
    • Format: Parquet (recommended) or CSV

  4. Configure S3 bucket for CUR delivery:

    • Create or select an S3 bucket
    • Enable bucket policy for CUR delivery
    • Note the bucket name and path

Step 2: Connect to CloudKeeper​

Provide CloudKeeper with read-only access to your CUR data:

  1. Share CUR bucket details with CloudKeeper support:

    • S3 bucket name
    • CUR report path
    • AWS account ID

  2. Grant read access via S3 bucket policy:

    {
      "Version": "2012-10-17",
      "Statement": [
        {
          "Effect": "Allow",
          "Principal": {
            "AWS": "arn:aws:iam::CLOUDKEEPER-ACCOUNT-ID:role/CURReaderRole"
          },
          "Action": [
            "s3:GetObject",
            "s3:ListBucket"
          ],
          "Resource": [
            "arn:aws:s3:::YOUR-CUR-BUCKET/*",
            "arn:aws:s3:::YOUR-CUR-BUCKET"
          ]
        }
      ]
    }

  3. Wait for initial data ingestion (typically 24-48 hours for first sync)

Step 3: Access Your Dashboard​

Once data is ingested, you can access CloudKeeper Lens:

  1. Log in to your CloudKeeper account
  2. Navigate to the Lens dashboard
  3. Explore your cost data:
    • Cost Summary dashboard
    • Service breakdown
    • Resource-level visibility
    • RI/Savings Plan coverage

Key Features to Explore​

Cost Analysis​

  • Cost Summary: Overall spending trends
  • Service Breakdown: Costs by AWS service
  • Account Breakdown: Multi-account visibility
  • Tag-based Analysis: Cost allocation by tags

Dashboards​

  • CUDOS Dashboards: Pre-built for EC2, RDS, S3, Lambda, etc.
  • Custom Dashboards: Create your own views
  • Hourly Analytics: Detailed hourly cost data

Reservations​

  • RI Coverage: Current reservation coverage percentage
  • RI Utilization: How well you're using purchased RIs
  • RI Recommendations: Suggestions for new purchases
  • Expiry Tracking: Alert before RIs expire

Alerts & Forecasting​

  • Budget Alerts: Set thresholds and get notified
  • Anomaly Detection: Automatic cost spike detection
  • Forecasting: ML-based spending predictions

View Complete Lens Documentation →

Getting Started with AWS Tuner​

AWS Tuner provides automated optimization recommendations and can take actions to reduce costs.

Step 1: Install Browser Extension​

AWS Tuner integrates directly into the AWS Console via a browser extension:

  1. Download the CloudKeeper Tuner extension:

    • Chrome: [Chrome Web Store link]
    • Firefox: [Firefox Add-ons link]

  2. Install the extension in your browser

  3. Authenticate with your CloudKeeper credentials

  4. Grant permissions for the extension to access AWS Console

Step 2: Configure AWS Access​

Tuner requires read-only access to analyze your AWS resources:

  1. Create IAM role in your AWS account:

    {
      "Version": "2012-10-17",
      "Statement": [
        {
          "Effect": "Allow",
          "Action": [
            "ec2:Describe*",
            "rds:Describe*",
            "s3:List*",
            "s3:GetBucketLocation",
            "elasticloadbalancing:Describe*",
            "cloudwatch:GetMetricStatistics",
            "cloudwatch:ListMetrics"
          ],
          "Resource": "*"
        }
      ]
    }

  2. Establish trust relationship with CloudKeeper

  3. Register the role ARN in your Tuner settings

Step 3: Explore Recommendations​

Once configured, Tuner will start analyzing your resources:

  1. Open AWS Console and navigate to any service (EC2, RDS, S3, etc.)

  2. View recommendations directly in the console:

    • Zombie resources (unused)
    • Over-provisioned instances
    • Unattached volumes
    • Old snapshots
    • Idle load balancers

  3. Review details for each recommendation:

    • Current cost
    • Potential savings
    • Risk level
    • Implementation steps

  4. Take action:

    • One-click implementation (for supported recommendations)
    • Manual implementation with step-by-step guide
    • Schedule for later
    • Dismiss if not applicable

Key Features to Explore​

Cleaner Module​

Identifies and helps remove unused resources:

  • Unattached EBS volumes
  • Old snapshots
  • Unused Elastic IPs
  • Idle load balancers
  • Stopped instances (old)

Scheduler Module​

Automates resource scheduling:

  • Configure schedules: Define on/off hours
  • Apply to resources: Tag resources for automation
  • Monitor savings: Track costs before/after

SpotBot Module​

Dynamically manages ECS Fargate tasks:

  • Automatic switching: Between Spot and On-Demand
  • Up to 65% savings: On compute costs
  • Zero downtime: Graceful task migration
  • Intelligent logic: Switches based on availability

Modernization Module​

Suggests upgrades and optimizations:

  • Newer instance types
  • Graviton2/Graviton3 migrations
  • GP3 volume upgrades
  • Current-gen database engines

View Complete Tuner Documentation →

Next Steps​

For Business Users​

  1. Explore Dashboards: Navigate through cost summary and CUDOS dashboards
  2. Set Up Alerts: Configure budget thresholds and anomaly alerts
  3. Review Reports: Generate and schedule cost reports
  4. Share Insights: Distribute reports to stakeholders

Learn More: Lens Overview →

For Technical Users​

  1. Review Recommendations: Analyze Tuner's optimization suggestions
  2. Implement Quick Wins: Start with low-risk, high-savings recommendations
  3. Configure Automation: Set up Scheduler and SpotBot
  4. API Integration: Integrate CloudKeeper data into your tools

Learn More: API Reference →

For DevOps Engineers​

  1. Review Architecture: Understand system components and data flows
  2. Configure Integrations: Connect with Slack, MS Teams, JIRA
  3. Set Up CI/CD: Integrate cost checks into deployment pipelines
  4. Monitor Performance: Track optimization impact over time

Learn More: Deployment Guide →

Learning Path​

Follow this recommended learning path to master CloudKeeper:

Week 1: Foundation​

Week 2: Deep Dive​

  • ✅ Review Functional Architecture
  • ✅ Explore all CUDOS dashboards
  • ✅ Install and configure Tuner
  • ✅ Implement first 5 recommendations

Week 3: Optimization​

  • ✅ Configure resource scheduling
  • ✅ Set up SpotBot for ECS workloads
  • ✅ Create custom reports
  • ✅ Integrate with Slack/Teams

Week 4: Automation​

  • ✅ Review API Reference
  • ✅ Integrate with CI/CD pipelines
  • ✅ Automate report distribution
  • ✅ Set up advanced alerting rules

Common Use Cases​

Use Case 1: Identify Unused Resources​

Goal: Find and remove zombie resources wasting money

Steps:

  1. Open AWS Tuner in your AWS Console
  2. Navigate to EC2 dashboard
  3. Check "Cleaner" recommendations
  4. Review unattached volumes and old snapshots
  5. Delete confirmed unused resources

Expected Savings: 5-10% of EC2 costs

Use Case 2: Optimize Reserved Instances​

Goal: Maximize RI coverage and utilization

Steps:

  1. Open Lens → Reservations dashboard
  2. Review current RI coverage (target: >70%)
  3. Check RI utilization (target: >80%)
  4. Review RI recommendations
  5. Purchase recommended RIs
  6. Monitor utilization over 30 days

Expected Savings: 10-20% on compute costs

Use Case 3: Reduce ECS Fargate Costs​

Goal: Use Spot instances for non-critical workloads

Steps:

  1. Enable SpotBot in Tuner settings
  2. Tag ECS services suitable for Spot
  3. Configure fallback behavior
  4. Monitor switching patterns
  5. Review cost savings dashboard

Expected Savings: 40-65% on ECS Fargate costs

Use Case 4: Forecast Budget Overruns​

Goal: Predict and prevent budget overruns

Steps:

  1. Open Lens → Forecasting dashboard
  2. Review ML-based predictions
  3. Compare against budget
  4. Set alert threshold at 80% of budget
  5. Receive proactive notifications
  6. Take action before month-end

Expected Benefit: Avoid surprise bills

Troubleshooting​

CUR Not Syncing​

Problem: Cost data not appearing in Lens

Solutions:

  • Verify CUR is enabled in AWS Billing Console
  • Check S3 bucket policy allows CloudKeeper access
  • Confirm CUR format is Parquet (preferred) or CSV
  • Wait 24-48 hours for initial sync
  • Contact support if issue persists

Tuner Extension Not Working​

Problem: Recommendations not appearing in AWS Console

Solutions:

  • Verify browser extension is installed and enabled
  • Check authentication status
  • Confirm IAM role is properly configured
  • Try refreshing the AWS Console page
  • Check browser console for errors

Missing Recommendations​

Problem: Expected recommendations not showing

Solutions:

  • Ensure sufficient CloudWatch metrics data (minimum 7 days)
  • Verify IAM permissions include CloudWatch access
  • Check resource tags match Tuner filters
  • Wait 24 hours after initial setup
  • Review dismissed recommendations

Support & Help​

Documentation​

External Resources​

Contact​

Congratulations! You're now ready to start optimizing your cloud costs with CloudKeeper. Explore the documentation to learn more about advanced features and capabilities.