In today’s rapidly evolving DevOps landscape, automating your CI/CD pipeline is more crucial than ever. Jenkins remains a top contender for automation servers, and deploying Jenkins on AWS (Amazon Web Services) combines the power and scalability of cloud computing with Jenkins’ extensive features. This comprehensive guide will walk you through how to set up Jenkins on AWS in 2025.
Why Deploy Jenkins on AWS?
Deploying Jenkins on AWS offers several advantages:
- Scalability: Automatically adjust resources based on demand.
- Reliability: Benefit from AWS’s high availability architecture.
- Integration: Easily integrate with other AWS services and DevOps tools.
- Security: Employ AWS’s robust security practices for data protection.
Prerequisites
Before you begin, ensure you have:
- An AWS account
- Basic knowledge of AWS CLI and EC2 services
- An IAM User with permissions for EC2 and S3 services
- SSH access set up
Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up Jenkins on AWS
Step 1: Launch an EC2 Instance
First, you’ll need to launch an EC2 instance where Jenkins will be hosted.
- Log in to your AWS Management Console.
- Navigate to the EC2 Dashboard.
- Click on “Launch Instance”.
- Choose an Amazon Machine Image (AMI), preferably with Ubuntu 20.04 for a seamless Jenkins installation.
- Select an instance type. T2.micro is eligible for free tier but consider a larger instance for production environments.
- Configure instance details, storage, and tags according to your needs.
- Configure the security group rules to allow HTTP (port 8080) and SSH (port 22) access.
- Launch the instance and download the key pair for SSH access.
Step 2: Install Jenkins
SSH into your instance to start the Jenkins installation.
Update your server:
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sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
Install Java, a prerequisite for Jenkins:
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sudo apt install openjdk-11-jre -y
Add the Jenkins Debian repository:
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wget -q -O - https://pkg.jenkins.io/debian/jenkins.io.key | sudo apt-key add - sudo sh -c 'echo deb http://pkg.jenkins.io/debian-stable binary/ > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/jenkins.list'
Install Jenkins:
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sudo apt update sudo apt install jenkins -y
Start Jenkins:
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sudo systemctl start jenkins
Enable it to start on boot:
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sudo systemctl enable jenkins
Step 3: Configure Jenkins
Access Jenkins by navigating to http://<your-instance-public-ip>:8080
in your web browser.
Retrieve the administrator password:
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sudo cat /var/lib/jenkins/secrets/initialAdminPassword
Complete the setup wizard by installing suggested plugins.
Create your first admin user.
Step 4: Secure Jenkins
While letting Jenkins run, it’s crucial to secure your setup. Transition Jenkins from HTTP to HTTPS to encrypt data.
- Learn how to configure Jenkins HTTP to HTTPS to secure your Jenkins environment.
Step 5: Advanced Configurations
Jenkins can be integrated with multiple tools for a robust CI/CD pipeline:
- Add SonarQube for continuous inspection of code quality to your Jenkins setup.
- Consider using Docker and Kubernetes to enhance scalability. Run Jenkins with Docker on Kubernetes to leverage container orchestration.
Conclusion
Setting up Jenkins on AWS in 2025 provides a powerful foundation for implementing an efficient and scalable CI/CD pipeline. With the steps outlined above, you can launch a secure, reliable Jenkins server on AWS, and tailor it for your organization’s needs with advanced configurations and integrations. Happy building!
Additional Resources
By following these instructions, you will have a robust Jenkins setup tailored for modern-day software development demands, ensuring your pipelines are resilient and future-proofed for years to come.