--- name: cloud-object-storage-developers title: For developers description: The powerful features of IBM Cloud® Object Storage are available to a developer directly from the command line. last-updated: 2024-07-24 --- > ## Documentation Index > The table of contents for this documentation set is at https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?format=markdown > The index for all IBM Cloud docs is at: https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/llms.txt > Use these files to discover more information as needed. # For developers {: #gs-dev} The powerful features of IBM Cloud® Object Storage are available to a developer directly from the command line. {: shortdesc} First, ensure that you have the [IBM Cloud® Platform CLI](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cli/index.html?format=markdown) and [IBM Developer Tools](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloudnative/idt/index.html?format=markdown) installed. ## Create an instance of IBM Cloud Object Storage {: #gs-dev-provision} 1. First, make sure that you have an API key. Get it from [IBM Cloud Identity and Access Management](https://cloud.ibm.com/iam/apikeys). 2. Log in to IBM Cloud Platform by using the CLI. It's also possible to store the API key in a file or set it as an environment variable. ```sh ibmcloud login --apikey ``` {: pre} 3. Next, create an instance of IBM Cloud Object Storage specifying the name for the instance and the Standard plan (see [Choosing a plan and creating an instance](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-provision&format=markdown)). Now you have a CRN for the instance. ```sh ibmcloud resource service-instance-create cloud-object-storage global ``` {: pre} When trying to create a new instance, if you encounter the error `No resource group targeted`, it indicates that the default resource group is not available and that a resource group must be explicitly set. A list of available resource groups can be found using `ibmcloud resource groups` and the target can be set with `ibmcloud target -g `. {: tip} The [Getting Started guide](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-getting-started-cloud-object-storage&format=markdown) walks through the basic steps of creating buckets and objects, as well as inviting users and creating policies. A list of basic 'curl' commands can be found [here](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-curl&format=markdown). Learn more about using the IBM Cloud CLI to create applications, manage Kubernetes clusters, and more [in the documentation](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cli?topic=cli-ibmcloud_cli&format=markdown). ## Using the API {: #gs-dev-api} For managing data stored in Object Storage, you can use S3 API compatible tools like the [AWS CLI](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-aws-cli&format=markdown) with [HMAC credentials](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-uhc-hmac-credentials-main&format=markdown) for compatibility. As IAM tokens are relatively easy to work with, `curl` is a good choice for basic testing and interaction with your storage. More information can be found in the [`curl`](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-curl&format=markdown) and the [API](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-compatibility-api&format=markdown) documentation. ## Using libraries and SDKs {: #gs-dev-sdk} IBM COS SDKs are available for [Python](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-python&format=markdown), [Java](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-java&format=markdown), [Go](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-using-go&format=markdown), and [Node.js](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-node&format=markdown). These libraries are forked and modified versions of the AWS S3 SDKs that support [IAM token-based authentication](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-iam-overview&format=markdown), as well as support for [Key Protect](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-encryption&format=markdown). ## Building applications on IBM Cloud {: #gs-dev-apps} IBM Cloud® provides flexibility to developers in choosing the right architectural and deployment options for a given application. Run your code on [bare metal](https://cloud.ibm.com/catalog/infrastructure/bare-metal), in [virtual machines](https://cloud.ibm.com/catalog/infrastructure/virtual-server-group), in [containers](https://cloud.ibm.com/kubernetes/catalog/cluster), or by using a [serverless framework](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/solution-tutorials?topic=solution-tutorials-serverless-webapp&format=markdown). The [Cloud Native Computing Foundation](https://www.cncf.io) fostered [Kubernetes](https://kubernetes.io) container orchestration framework, which forms the foundation for the IBM Cloud® Kubernetes Service. Developers who want to use Object Storage for persistent storage in their Kubernetes applications can learn more at the following links: * [Choosing a storage solution](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage-plan&format=markdown) * [Comparison table for persistent storage options](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage-plan&format=markdown) * [Main COS page](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-object-storage?topic=cloud-object-storage-getting-started-cloud-object-storage&format=markdown) * [Installing COS](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage_cos_install&format=markdown) * [Creating COS service instance](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage-cos-understand&format=markdown#create_cos_service) * [Decide on the configuration](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage_cos_install&format=markdown#configure_cos) * [Creating a COS Kubernetes secret](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage-cos-understand&format=markdown#create_cos_secret) * [Kubernetes back up and restore information](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage_br&format=markdown) * [Kubernetes Storage Class reference](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/containers?topic=containers-storage_cos_reference&format=markdown)