Benefits, features, and configuration guide of Alibaba Cloud Client - Elastic Compute Service

Alibaba Cloud Client is a desktop application that simplifies and secures cloud resource management. It eliminates common challenges like network restrictions, complex operational workflows, and credential security risks with integrated secure connections and credential management.

Key advantages

Unified resource management: Centrally manage Elastic Compute Service (ECS), Elastic Container Instance (ECI), Simple Application Server (SAS), managed instances, Container Service for Kubernetes (ACK), and Object Storage Service (OSS).
Secure password-free connections: Connect to cloud instances over a private network without passwords to improve connection security and O&M efficiency.
Secure port forwarding: Securely map ports from your cloud instances to your local machine. This eliminates the need to expose ports to the public network or configure a Virtual Private Network (VPN), simplifying local development and debugging.
Multi-account switching: Log on to and manage multiple Alibaba Cloud accounts at the same time. You can switch between accounts instantly without repeatedly logging in and out.

Core features

Alibaba Cloud Client lets you view, find, and remotely connect to the following cloud products:

Cloud product	Feature description
ECS	View ECS instances by region, with support for global and region-specific searches. Connect to instances using the following methods: Connect over Secure Shell Protocol (SSH) to Linux instances with public IP addresses. Connect over Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to Windows instances with public IP addresses. Connect to instances by using Session Manager (no public IP address or password required). Connect by using Port Forwarding to access SSH or RDP without a public IP address. Save instance login information (Instance ID, username, SSH key file name, and encrypted password) locally for quick, credential-free access. Manage information within the instance: Manage system users. Manage system keys. Manage system files.
ECI	View ECI instances by region. View container group events. Remotely connect to containers within a container group.
SAS	View Simple Application Server instances by region. View monitoring information and properties for SAS instances. Connect over SSH to Linux instances. Connect over RDP to Windows instances.
Managed instance	View managed instances by region. View managed instance properties. Connect over SSH or by using Session Manager. Connect to Windows Remote Desktop by using Port Forwarding.
ACK	View ACK clusters. View cluster nodes. View cluster pods and containers. View cluster ConfigMaps and Secrets. View cluster logs. Remotely connect to containers within pods and to cluster nodes.
OSS	View the list of OSS buckets. View the list of files in a bucket. Manage files in a bucket: Upload and download directories. Upload and download files. Rename and delete files. View image files. View and edit text files. Modify file access permissions. Use OSS within the ECS file manager. Upload files from an ECS instance to OSS. Download files from OSS to an ECS instance.

Download and install

Download and install the client

Download and install the Alibaba Cloud Client version for your operating system:

Configure the client

To manage resources under your account, configure logon credentials in Alibaba Cloud Client after intallation.
View and manage your resources in Alibaba Cloud Client.
(Optional) Configure Alibaba Cloud Client, including system settings for the local terminal and SSH.