Software⏱️ 2 min read📅 2026-06-03

How to Fix: AWS CLI S3 A client error (403) occurred when calling the HeadObject operation: Forbidden

Learn how to fix: AWS CLI S3 A client error (403) occurred when calling the HeadObject operation: Forbidden.

Quick Answer: Try checking your system settings or restarting.

The error 'AWS CLI S3 A client error (403) occurred when calling the HeadObject operation: Forbidden' occurs due to a mismatch between the IAM role assigned to the EC2 instance and the permissions required by the AWS CLI command.

🛑 Root Causes of the Error

  • The IAM role assigned to the EC2 instance does not have the necessary permissions to access the S3 bucket.
  • The AWS CLI command is using a different AWS region than the one where the S3 bucket is located.

🛠️ Step-by-Step Verified Fixes

Method 1: Check IAM Role Permissions

  1. Step 1: Log in to the AWS Management Console and navigate to the IAM dashboard.
  2. Step 2: Select the IAM role assigned to the EC2 instance and click on the 'Permissions' tab.
  3. Step 3: Review the permissions assigned to the IAM role and ensure that it includes the necessary permissions for S3 access (e.g. 's3:GetObject').

Method 2: Specify AWS Region

  1. Step 1: Update the AWS CLI command to specify the correct AWS region using the '--region' option (e.g. `aws s3 cp --region us-west-2 s3://aws-codedeploy-us-west-2/latest/codedeploy-agent.noarch.rpm .`).

✨ Wrapping Up

By following these steps, you should be able to resolve the 'AWS CLI S3 A client error (403) occurred when calling the HeadObject operation: Forbidden' error and successfully copy files from an S3 bucket using the AWS CLI.

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