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Getting Started

Quick start guide to set up Cloud Cost Guard in under 10 minutes

7 min read
Updated 2026-02-24

Onboarding Guide

Welcome to OpsCurb! This guide will help you get started in less than 10 minutes.

🚀 Quick Start Checklist

  • Create your account
  • Connect your AWS account
  • Run your first scan
  • Review findings
  • Set up notifications (optional)
  • Implement recommendations

Step 1: Create Your Account (2 minutes)

Sign Up

  1. Go to https://opscurb.com/signup
  2. Enter your email and create a password
  3. Verify your email address
  4. Complete your profile (company name, role)

Choose a Plan

PlanBest ForPrice
FreeTesting, small projects$0/month
StarterStartups, small teams$29/month
ProGrowing companies$99/month
EnterpriseLarge organizationsCustom

See PRICING.md for detailed comparison.

💡 Tip: Start with the Free plan to test the service, then upgrade when ready.

Step 2: Connect Your AWS Account (5 minutes)

Option A: Automated Setup (Recommended)

  1. Log in to OpsCurb dashboard
  2. Click "Add AWS Account"
  3. Click "Deploy with Terraform"
  4. Follow the guided setup: 
    # Clone the setup script
curl -o setup.sh https://opscurb.com/setup.sh

# Run the setup
bash setup.sh
  5. The script will:
    • Generate a unique External ID
    • Create the IAM role in your AWS account
    • Configure the trust relationship
    • Test the connection

Option B: Manual Setup

2.1 Generate External ID

# Download the generator
curl -o generate_external_id.py \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/opscurb/cloud-cost-guard/main/generate_external_id.py

# Generate your External ID
python generate_external_id.py

Save this External ID - you'll need it in the next step.

2.2 Deploy IAM Role

Using Terraform (Recommended):

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/opscurb/cloud-cost-guard.git
cd cloud-cost-guard/terraform

# Configure
cp terraform.tfvars.example terraform.tfvars
nano terraform.tfvars  # Edit with your values

# Deploy
terraform init
terraform plan
terraform apply

Using CloudFormation:

aws cloudformation create-stack \
  --stack-name cloud-cost-guard-role \
  --template-url https://opscurb.com/cloudformation.yaml \
  --parameters \
    ParameterKey=OpsCurbAccountId,ParameterValue=123456789012 \
    ParameterKey=ExternalId,ParameterValue=YOUR_EXTERNAL_ID \
  --capabilities CAPABILITY_NAMED_IAM

Using AWS Console:

  1. Go to IAM → Roles → Create Role
  2. Select Another AWS Account
  3. Enter OpsCurb Account ID: 123456789012 (replace with actual)
  4. Check Require External ID
  5. Enter your External ID
  6. Attach the OpsCurbPolicy (see terraform/main.tf)
  7. Name the role: OpsCurbRole
  8. Create the role

2.3 Add Account to Dashboard

  1. Go to OpsCurb dashboard
  2. Click "Add AWS Account"
  3. Enter:
    • Account Name: e.g., "Production"
    • AWS Account ID: Your 12-digit AWS account ID
    • IAM Role ARN: arn:aws:iam::YOUR_ACCOUNT_ID:role/OpsCurbRole
    • External ID: The External ID you generated
  4. Click "Test Connection"
  5. If successful, click "Save"

Step 3: Run Your First Scan (1 minute)

Automatic Scan

OpsCurb automatically scans your account:

  • Free Plan: Daily at 6 AM UTC
  • Paid Plans: Configurable schedule (hourly, daily, weekly)

Manual Scan

To run a scan immediately:

  1. Go to Dashboard → Scans
  2. Click "Run Scan Now"
  3. Select the AWS account(s) to scan
  4. Click "Start Scan"

The scan typically takes 2-5 minutes depending on your infrastructure size.

What Gets Scanned?

OpsCurb scans 14 categories:

  • ✅ Unattached EBS volumes
  • ✅ Unassociated Elastic IPs
  • ✅ Idle load balancers
  • ✅ Aged RDS/EBS snapshots
  • ✅ Zombie RDS instances
  • ✅ NAT gateways
  • ✅ CloudWatch logs
  • ✅ S3 buckets
  • ✅ ECR repositories
  • ✅ VPC endpoints
  • ✅ AMI snapshots
  • ✅ CloudWatch metrics
  • ✅ Data transfer costs
  • ✅ And more...

Step 4: Review Findings (2 minutes)

Understanding Findings

Each finding includes:

  • Resource Type: What kind of resource (EBS volume, RDS instance, etc.)
  • Resource ID: AWS resource identifier
  • Region: AWS region
  • Severity: High, Medium, or Low
  • Monthly Cost: Estimated monthly waste
  • Annual Savings: Potential yearly savings
  • Recommendation: What to do about it

Severity Levels

SeverityMeaningExample
🔴 High>$50/month wasteUnattached 1TB EBS volume
🟡 Medium$10-$50/month wasteIdle NAT Gateway
🟢 Low<$10/month wasteSmall aged snapshot

Filtering Findings

Use filters to focus on what matters:

  • By Severity: Show only high-severity findings
  • By Category: Focus on specific resource types
  • By Region: Filter by AWS region
  • By Cost: Show findings above a certain threshold

Exporting Findings

Export findings for reporting:

  • CSV: For spreadsheets
  • JSON: For automation
  • PDF: For presentations

Step 5: Set Up Notifications (Optional, 3 minutes)

Email Notifications

  1. Go to Settings → Notifications
  2. Enable Email Notifications
  3. Choose notification triggers:
    • ✅ Scan completed
    • ✅ High-severity findings detected
    • ✅ Weekly summary report
  4. Save settings

Slack Integration

  1. Go to Settings → Integrations → Slack
  2. Click "Connect Slack"
  3. Authorize OpsCurb
  4. Select the channel for notifications
  5. Configure notification preferences

Discord Integration

  1. Go to Settings → Integrations → Discord
  2. Create a webhook in your Discord server:
    • Server Settings → Integrations → Webhooks → New Webhook
  3. Copy the webhook URL
  4. Paste it in OpsCurb settings
  5. Test the integration

See INTEGRATIONS.md for more details.

Step 6: Implement Recommendations (Ongoing)

Using AI-Powered Instructions (Starter+)

For each finding:

  1. Click "Get Fix Instructions"
  2. Review the AI-generated steps
  3. Choose your preferred method:
    • AWS CLI: Copy and run commands
    • AWS Console: Follow step-by-step guide
    • Terraform: Infrastructure as Code changes

Example: Delete Unattached EBS Volume

AWS CLI:

# Optional: Create snapshot first
aws ec2 create-snapshot \
  --volume-id vol-0123456789abcdef0 \
  --description "Backup before deletion"

# Delete the volume
aws ec2 delete-volume --volume-id vol-0123456789abcdef0

AWS Console:

  1. Go to EC2 → Volumes
  2. Select the volume
  3. Actions → Delete Volume
  4. Confirm deletion

Track Your Savings

OpsCurb tracks:

  • Potential Savings: What you could save
  • Realized Savings: What you've actually saved
  • Savings Over Time: Historical trends

Next Steps

Optimize Your Setup

  • Enable MFA: Settings → Security → Enable MFA
  • Invite Team Members: Settings → Team → Invite
  • Set Up API Access: Settings → API Keys → Generate
  • Configure Scan Schedule: Settings → Scans → Schedule
  • Customize Thresholds: Settings → Preferences → Thresholds

Learn More

Get Help

  • 💬 Live Chat: Available in dashboard (Pro+)
  • 📧 Email: support@opscurb.com
  • 📚 Documentation: docs.opscurb.com
  • 🐛 Bug Reports: github.com/opscurb/issues

Common Questions

How much will I save?

Most customers save 15-30% on their AWS bill in the first month. Actual savings depend on your infrastructure and how many recommendations you implement.

Is it safe?

Yes! OpsCurb is read-only and cannot modify your AWS resources. See SECURITY.md for details.

How long does setup take?

5-10 minutes for most users. The IAM role setup is the longest part.

Can I scan multiple AWS accounts?

Yes! Add as many AWS accounts as you need. Each account requires its own IAM role.

What if I need help?

We're here to help! Contact support@opscurb.com or use the in-app chat.

Welcome aboard! 🎉

You're now ready to start saving money on AWS. If you have any questions, we're here to help.

Last Updated: 2026-02-24
Version: 1.0