Cloud Environment Setup
Configure Elastic Cloud authentication and preferences. All other
skills depend on this setup.
Workflow
text
Setup Progress:
- [ ] Step 1: Verify API key
- [ ] Step 2: Set defaults
- [ ] Step 3: Validate connection
Step 1: Verify API key
Check whether
is already set:
bash
echo "${EC_API_KEY:?Not set}"
If not set, instruct the user to set it. Never ask the user to paste an API key into the chat — secrets must not
appear in conversation history.
Direct the user to:
- Generate a key at Elastic Cloud API keys. The key must have Project
Admin privileges or higher (Org Owner) to create and manage serverless projects.
- Create a file in the project root (recommended — works in sandboxed agent shells):
All
scripts auto-load
from the working directory — no manual sourcing needed.
- Alternatively, export directly in the terminal:
bash
export EC_API_KEY="your-api-key"
Terminal exports might not be visible to sandboxed agents running in a separate shell session. Prefer the
file
when working with an agent.
Remind the user that storing secrets in local files is acceptable for development, but for production or shared
environments, use a centralized secrets manager (for example, HashiCorp Vault, AWS Secrets Manager, 1Password CLI) to
avoid secrets sprawl.
Step 2: Set defaults
Export the base URL and default region:
bash
export EC_BASE_URL="https://api.elastic-cloud.com"
export EC_REGION="gcp-us-central1"
Ask the user if they want a different region. To list available regions:
bash
curl -s -H "Authorization: ApiKey ${EC_API_KEY}" \
"${EC_BASE_URL}/api/v1/serverless/regions" | python3 -m json.tool
Step 3: Validate connection
Confirm the API key works by calling the regions endpoint:
bash
curl -sf -H "Authorization: ApiKey ${EC_API_KEY}" \
"${EC_BASE_URL}/api/v1/serverless/regions" > /dev/null && echo "Authenticated." || echo "Authentication failed."
If validation fails, check:
- The API key is valid and not expired
- Network connectivity to
Examples
First-time setup
text
User: set up my cloud environment
Agent: Check if EC_API_KEY is set in your terminal. If not, generate a key at
https://cloud.elastic.co/account/keys and run:
export EC_API_KEY="your-key"
Then confirm and I'll validate the connection.
Setup with custom region
text
User: set up cloud with eu region
Agent: [runs setup, sets EC_REGION to user's preferred EU region]
Guidelines
- Never receive, echo, or log API keys, passwords, or any credentials in the chat. Instruct the user to manage secrets
in their terminal or using files directly.
- Always validate the connection after setting the key.
- Default region is — only change if the user requests a different region.
- This skill is a prerequisite. Other cloud skills should refer here when is missing.
Environment variables
| Variable | Required | Description |
|---|
| Yes | Elastic Cloud API key |
| No | Cloud API base URL (default: https://api.elastic-cloud.com
|
| No | Default region (default: ) |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Fix |
|---|
| API key is invalid or expired — generate a new one |
| Check network access to |