# Athena (IAM) ## Overview This guide explains how to add an Amazon Athena datasource in StrongDM using AWS IAM for authentication. When the resource is added, StrongDM proxies client connections through a [node](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/networking/gateways-and-relays) (gateway, relay, or proxy cluster). This enables centralized access control, credential management, and audit logging. Use this guide to complete IAM setup on your node, fill in the required properties (including the S3 query results location), and test connectivity. For general information about how to add a database as a resource in StrongDM, see our main guide, [Add a Datasource](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/resources/datasources). ## Supported Versions and Clients StrongDM supports Athena when access is authenticated via AWS IAM. StrongDM also supports authentication with AWS access keys (for more detail, see the [Athena](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/resources/datasources/athena) guide). Standard Athena clients (for example, JDBC/ODBC tools, AWS SDK/CLI–backed clients, or BI tools that speak the Athena API) work when configured to reach Athena through StrongDM. Ensure that your client can operate with an S3 query results bucket, as required by Athena. When using JDBC clients to access Athena, StrongDM supports versions 2.0.5, 2.0.6, and 3.0.0 to 3.6.0. For JDBC v3, a StrongDM certificate is required (see the [User Connection](#user-connection-with-jdbc-v3) section). ## Prerequisites To add your resource in StrongDM, you need to meet several technical and configuration prerequisites. Please ensure that the following requirements are met. In StrongDM, you must have the following: * Administrator permission level * At least one operational StrongDM node (gateway, relay, or proxy cluster) that can reach Athena’s endpoint * If using secrets management tools for storing your credentials, a Secret Store configured in StrongDM {% hint style="info" %} To verify that the resource is accessible by the node, log in to the gateway or relay and use Netcat: `nc -zv ` (in this example, `nc -zv testdb-01.fancy.org 3306`). If your gateway server can connect to this hostname, proceed. Netcat is a tool for checking various hostnames and ports by either sending data (a ping) or checking for listeners on the ports. The command in the aforementioned example use "-z" to check for listeners without sending data and "-v" to show verbose output. If you don't have Netcat, you can install the Netcat package with whatever package manager you are using, such as "apt-get install netcat". {% endhint %} On the AWS side, you must have the following: * IAM role (or equivalent) attached to the EC2 instance(s) where your StrongDM node runs, granting the minimum Athena, S3, and Glue permissions needed to run queries and list metadata (example policy shown in the docs). Typical actions include: * Athena: `athena:GetQueryExecution`, `athena:StartQueryExecution`, `athena:GetDatabase`, `athena:GetTables` * S3: `s3:PutObject`, `s3:GetObject`, `s3:ListBucket`, `s3:GetBucketLocation`, etc. * Glue: `glue:GetTable`, `glue:GetSchemaVersion`, `glue:ListSchemaVersions` Attach this role to the node EC2 instance(s). ### Resource Setup Some setup is required to prepare an Athena (IAM) resource to receive connections via StrongDM. Specifically, you will need to create an IAM role similar to the example below and attach that role to the EC2 instance you are using for your node (gateway or relay). ```json { "Version": "2012-10-17", "Statement": [ { "Sid": "VisualEditor0", "Effect": "Allow", "Action": [ "s3:PutObject", "s3:GetObject", "s3:ListBucket", "s3:CreateBucket", "s3:GetBucketLocation", "s3:ListBucketMultipartUploads", "s3:ListMultipartUploadParts", "s3:AbortMultipartUpload" ], "Resource": [ "*" ] }, { "Sid": "VisualEditor1", "Effect": "Allow", "Action": [ "athena:GetQueryExecution", "athena:GetTables", "athena:GetDatabase", "athena:ListNamedQueries", "athena:StartQueryExecution" ], "Resource": "*" }, { "Sid": "VisualEditor2", "Effect": "Allow", "Action": [ "glue:GetSchemaVersion", "glue:ListSchemaVersions", "glue:GetTable" ], "Resource": "*" } ] } ``` For further help, consult the [Athena IAM documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/athena/latest/ug/security-iam-athena.html). ## Resource Management in StrongDM After all prerequisites and prep work is done, you are ready to add the resource to StrongDM. This section provides instructions for adding the resource in either the StrongDM Admin UI, CLI, Terraform provider, or SDKs. {% tabs %} {% tab title="Admin UI" %} **Set up and Manage With the Admin UI** If using the Admin UI to add an Athena (IAM) database as a StrongDM resource, use the following steps. 1. Log in to the StrongDM Admin UI. 2. Go to **Resources** > **Managed Resources**. 3. Click **Add Resource**. 4. Select **Athena (IAM)** as the **Resource Type** and set other [configuration properties](#configuration-properties) for your new database resource. 5. Complete all required fields. 6. Click **Create** to save the resource. 7. Click the resource name to [view status](#resource-status), diagnostic information, and setting details. {% endtab %} {% tab title="CLI" %} **Set up and Manage With the CLI** This section provides an example of how to configure and manage the resource using the StrongDM CLI. For more information and examples, please see the [CLI Reference](https://app.gitbook.com/s/4XOJmXFslCMVCzIG2rKp/cli) documentation. ``` # Add Athena (IAM) datasource sdm admin datasources add athenaiam athena-iam-prod --region="us-east-1" --s3-output="s3://aws-athena-query-results-123456789012-us-east-1/strongdm/" --workgroup="primary" --port=443 --bind-interface="127.0.0.1" --egress-filter="tag:env=prod" --port-override="-1" --proxy-cluster-id="n-1a2b345c67890123" --secret-store-id="se-e1b2" --subdomain="athena-prod" --tags="env=production,team=bi" --role-arn="arn:aws:iam::123456789012:role/StrongDM-Athena-Role" --role-external-id="optional-external-id" ``` {% endtab %} {% tab title="Terraform" %} **Set up and Manage With Terraform** This section provides an example of how to configure and manage the resource using the Terraform provider. For more information and examples, please see the [Terraform provider](https://github.com/strongdm/terraform-provider-sdm) documentation. ``` # Install StrongDM provider terraform { required_providers { sdm = { source = "strongdm/sdm" version = "16.5.0" } } } # Configure StrongDM provider provider "sdm" { # Add API access key and secret key from Admin UI api_access_key = "njjSn...5hM" api_secret_key = "ziG...=" } # Create Athena (IAM) resource resource "sdm_athenaiam" "athena_prod" { name = "athena-iam-prod" region = "us-east-1" s3_output_location = "s3://aws-athena-query-results-123456789012-us-east-1/strongdm/" workgroup = "primary" # optional port = 443 # IAM options (choose one approach) role_arn = "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:role/StrongDM-Athena-Role" role_external_id = "optional-external-id" # OR static AWS creds (alternative, not recommended for prod) # access_key_id = "AKIAEXAMPLE" # secret_access_key = "secretKeyExample123" # Networking / routing bind_interface = "127.0.0.1" egress_filter = "tag:env=prod" port_override = 12345 proxy_cluster_id = "n-1a2b345c67890123" # Secrets / metadata secret_store_id = "se-e1b2" subdomain = "athena-prod" tags = { env = "production" team = "bi" } } ``` {% endtab %} {% tab title="SDKs" %} **Set up and manage with SDKs** In addition to the Admin UI, CLI, and Terraform, you may configure and manage your resource with any of the following SDK options: Go, Java, Python, and Ruby. Please see the following references for more information and examples. | Language | Reference | GitHub | Examples | | ------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Go | [pkg.go.dev](https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-go/v16) | [strongdm-sdk-go](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-go) | [Go SDK Examples](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-go-examples) | | Java | [javadoc](https://strongdm.github.io/strongdm-sdk-java-docs/) | [strongdm-sdk-java](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-java) | [Java SDK Examples](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-java-examples) | | Python | [pdocs](https://strongdm.github.io/strongdm-sdk-python-docs/) | [strongdm-sdk-python](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-python) | [Python SDK Examples](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-python-examples) | | Ruby | [RubyDoc](https://www.rubydoc.info/gems/strongdm) | [strongdm-sdk-ruby](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-ruby) | [Ruby SDK Examples](https://github.com/strongdm/strongdm-sdk-ruby-examples) | | {% endtab %} | | | | | {% endtabs %} | | | | ## **Configuration Properties** The following configuration properties are required to define an Athena (IAM) datasource in StrongDM. These settings control how StrongDM connects to the resource, authenticates the connection, and optionally uses encryption or secret management. Each property must be correctly configured to ensure connectivity and access enforcement through StrongDM. | Property | Requirement | Description | | ---------------------------------- | ----------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Display Name** | Required | Meaningful name to display the resource throughout StrongDM; exclude special characters like quotes (") or angle brackets (< or >) | | **Resource Type** | Required | **Athena (IAM)** | | **Proxy Cluster** | Required | Defaults to "None (use gateways)"; if using [proxy clusters](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/networking/proxy-clusters), select the appropriate cluster to proxy traffic to this resource | | **AWS Region** | Optional | AWS region (for example, `us-east-1`) | | **Connectivity Mode** | Required | Select either **Virtual Networking Mode**, which lets users connect to the resource with a software-defined, IP-based network; or **Loopback Mode**, which allows users to connect to the resource using the local loopback adapter in their operating system; this field is shown if [Virtual Networking Mode](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/clients/client-networking/virtual-networking-mode) enabled for your organization | | **IP Address** | Optional | If **Virtual Networking Mode** is the selected connectivity mode, an IP address value in the configured Virtual Networking Mode subnet in the organization network settings; if **Loopback Mode** is the selected connectivity mode, an IP address value in the configured Loopback IP range in the organization network settings (by default, `127.0.0.1`); if not specified, an available IP address in the configured IP address space for the selected connectivity mode will be automatically assigned; this field is shown if [Virtual Networking Mode](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/clients/client-networking/virtual-networking-mode) and/or [multi-loopback mode](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/clients/client-networking/loopback-ip-ranges) is enabled for your organization | | **Port Override** | Optional | If **Virtual Networking Mode** is the selected connectivity mode, a port value between 1 and 65535 that is not already in use by another resource with the same IP address; if **Loopback Mode** is the selected connectivity mode, a port value between 1024 to 64999 that is not already in use by another resource with the same IP address; when left empty with Virtual Networking Mode, the system assigns the default port to this resource; when left empty for Loopback Mode, an available port that is not already in use by another resource is assigned; preferred port also can be modified later from the [Port Overrides settings](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/resources/port-overrides) | | **DNS** | Optional | If Virtual Networking Mode is the selected connectivity mode, a unique hostname alias for this resource; when set, causes the desktop app to display this resource's human-readable DNS name (for example, `k8s.my-organization-name`) instead of the bind address that includes IP address and port (for example, `100.64.100.100:5432`) | | **Secret Store** | Optional | Credential store location; defaults to none (credentials are stored in StrongDM resource configuration); learn more about [Secret Store](#secret-store-options) options | | **AWS S3 Output Location** | Required | Enter the Amazon S3 output location (for example, `s3://aws-athena-query-results-123456789012-us-east-1/MyInsertQuery/2024/10/04/abc1234d-5efg-67hi-jklm-89n0op12qr34`) | | **Assume Role ARN** | Optional | Role ARN, such as `arn:aws:iam::000000000000:role/RoleName`, that allows users accessing this resource to assume a role using [AWS AssumeRole](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/STS/latest/APIReference/API_AssumeRole.html) functionality | | **Assume Role ARN (path)** | Optional | If Secret Store integration is configured for your organization *and* you selected a Secret Store type that is not StrongDM, the path to the secret in your Secret Store (for example, `path/to/credential?key=optionalKeyName`); the key argument is optional | | **Assume Role External ID** | Optional | External ID role to assume after login (for example `12345`) | | **Assume Role External ID (path)** | Optional | If Secret Store integration is configured for your organization *and* you selected a Secret Store type that is *not* StrongDM, the path to the secret in your Secret Store (for example, `path/to/credential?key=optionalKeyName`); the key argument is optional | | **Resource Tags** | Optional | Datasource [Tags](https://app.gitbook.com/s/4XOJmXFslCMVCzIG2rKp/cli/tags "mention") consisting of key-value pairs `=` (for example, `env=dev`) | ### Secret Store options By default, datasource credentials are stored in StrongDM. However, these credentials can also be saved in a secrets management tool. Non-StrongDM options appear in the **Secret Store** dropdown if they are created under **Network** > **Secret Stores**. When you select another Secret Store type, its unique properties display. For more details, see [Configure Secret Store Integrations](https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/access/secret-stores). ### Resource status After a resource is created, the Admin UI displays that resource as unhealthy until the healthchecks run successfully. When the resource is ready, the **Health** icon indicates a positive, green status. When the resource does not display a positive status, click the resource name to go to the **Diagnostics** tab and check for errors. ## User Connection With JDBC v3 For users with JDBC drivers versions 3.0.0 to 3.6.0, users must install the StrongDM DNS CA certificate in order to successfully connect. StrongDM admins can manage this certificate in the Admin UI at **Settings** > **Secrets Management** > **Certificate Authorities** > **StrongDM DNS Certificate Authority**. They can create, rotate, and delete the certificate there, and can also download it to distribute to end users who plan to use JDBC v3 drivers. Users can install the certificate using the following command, replacing the cert file name: ```bash keytool -import -cacerts -file dns.cer -alias sdmdns ``` Additionally, users must set values for the following parameters upon connection: * `ProxyHost`: StrongDM hostname for the resource, which must begin with `http://`; can be found in the desktop app or with `sdm status` at the CLI * `ProxyPort`: StrongDM assigned port for the resource; can be found in the desktop app or with `sdm status` at the CLI * `Region`: Must be `us-east-1` regardless of the actual region of the datasource Example connection string: ```bash jdbc:athena://ProxyHost=http://127.0.0.1;ProxyPort=;Region=us-east-1;UID=ANY_VALUE;PWD=ANY_VALUE;OutputLocation=s3://ANY_VALUE;ConnectionTest=FALSE ``` ## Test the Connection After you have added your resource in StrongDM, follow these steps to verify that it’s working correctly. 1. Assign yourself access by ensuring that your user or role has access to the resource. In the StrongDM Admin UI, go to **Access** > **Roles**, and verify that the resource is attached to a role you’re in. 2. In the CLI, run `sdm status` to list the available datasources. Ensure that the Athena (IAM) resource appears in your list of accessible datasources. 3. Start a session to the resource, as in the following example: ```bash sdm connect ``` This routes your client through StrongDM to Athena. See the CLI Reference documentation for details on [sdm connect](https://app.gitbook.com/s/4XOJmXFslCMVCzIG2rKp/cli/connect). 4. Use your JDBC/ODBC tool or an AWS-backed client to execute a trivial query against a known database/table. Verify results are written to your configured S3 output location. ```bash # If using the StrongDM subdomain: curl -s https://es-prod..sdm.network/_cluster/health | jq . # Example if using the AWS domain you configured: curl -s https://search-prod-domain.us-west-2.es.amazonaws.com/_cluster/health | jq . ``` You should see one or more namespaces returned if connectivity and auth are working. 5. In the StrongDM Admin UI, check **Logs > Queries** (and **Logs > Connections**) to confirm the session and statements were recorded. When these steps succeed, you’re ready to connect to your resource through StrongDM. ### Help If you encounter issues, please consult the [StrongDM Help Center](https://help.strongdm.com/hc/en-us). Be prepared to provide the following information to StrongDM Support, so that they can inspect logs and confirm node and resource health: * Resource name or ID * CLI error output or logs * Node name and region * Timestamps of failed attempts --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.strongdm.com/admin/resources/datasources/athena-iam.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.