Before you use MaxCompute, you must have an Alibaba Cloud account. This topic describes how to create an Alibaba Cloud account and complete the account-related preparations.

Step 1: Create an Alibaba Cloud account

  1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud official website.
  2. In the upper-right corner of the Alibaba Cloud official website, click Free Account.
  3. On the Create Your Alibaba Cloud Account page, create an account as prompted.
    The Alibaba Cloud account that you created has full operational control over all the resources that belong to this account.
    Notice To secure your account and password, we recommend that you regularly update your password and do not share your account with others.

Step 2: Complete real-name verification for your Alibaba Cloud account

To make sure that you can normally use Alibaba Cloud services, you must complete real-name verification. Only an Alibaba Cloud account that passes real-name verification can purchase and use Alibaba Cloud services.

  1. Go to the Account Center page.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, click Real-name Registration to complete real-name verification as prompted.

Step 3: Create an AccessKey pair

To make sure that subsequent jobs can run normally, you must create an AccessKey pair. The AccessKey pair is different from the account and password configured when you create an Alibaba Cloud account. The AccessKey pair is used for authentication between Alibaba Cloud services. An AccessKey pair consists of an AccessKey ID and an AccessKey secret.

  1. Go to the AccessKey Management page.
  2. On the AccessKey Management page, click Create AccessKey. The system automatically creates an AccessKey pair.
  3. In the Create AccessKey dialog box, click the Download or Copy icon, save the created AccessKey pair, and then click Close.
    You can also view the status of the created AccessKey pair on the AccessKey Management page, and disable or delete the AccessKey pair.
    Notice
    • To ensure the security of the AccessKey pair, we recommend that you do not share this information with others. If your AccessKey pair is susceptible to data leakage, disable or update it immediately.
    • The AccessKey pair is displayed only when you create the pair and unavailable for subsequent queries. We recommend that you record the AccessKey pair and keep it confidential for subsequent user.
    • After you disable an AccessKey pair, the service that uses the AccessKey pair fails to run and an error is reported. Proceed with caution when you perform this operation. If the status of the AccessKey pair changes, check the status of the services that use the AccessKey pair in a timely manner.

What to do next

  • If you want to add other members to a MaxCompute project, you need to create Resource Access Management (RAM) users for security management. For more information about how to create a RAM user, see Prepare a RAM user.
  • If only you use MaxCompute, activate MaxCompute. For more information about how to activate MaxCompute, see Activate MaxCompute and DataWorks.
    Note We recommend that you create a RAM user and use MaxCompute as the RAM user. This facilitates permission control as your business grows.