Unable to Install AWS Systems Manager on Debian 9 (Stretch) EC2 Instance

Question

I am encountering an issue while trying to install AWS Systems Manager on a Debian 9 (Stretch) EC2 instance. The package amazon-ssm-agent is not available for installation on Debian 9, and as a result, I am unable to utilize Systems Manager to manage and automate tasks on my instance.

Background:

I am running a Debian 9 (Stretch) EC2 instance on AWS.
    My intention is to use AWS Systems Manager to automate tasks, including OS updates and patch management.
    The installation commands for amazon-ssm-agent are not working on my Debian 9 instance.

Issue:

When attempting to install amazon-ssm-agent using the standard instructions, I receive a "Package Not Found" error.
    The official repositories for amazon-ssm-agent do not appear to support Debian 9 (Stretch).

Request:
I am seeking guidance on how to proceed with using AWS Systems Manager on my Debian 9 (Stretch) EC2 instance. Specifically, I would like to know if there is a workaround to install Systems Manager or if there are alternative methods to achieve similar functionality on a Debian 9 instance.

Actions Taken:

I have checked my instance's OS version, which is Debian 9 (Stretch).
    I have attempted to install amazon-ssm-agent using commands recommended by AWS, but encountered package not found errors.
    I have verified my repository URLs in /etc/apt/sources.list.

Desired Outcome:
I am looking for advice on how to set up AWS Systems Manager or equivalent automation tools on my Debian 9 (Stretch) EC2 instance. Any insights, workarounds, or alternative approaches that allow me to automate tasks on this Debian version would be greatly appreciated.

Accepted Answer

Which command returned "Package Not Found"?

Full instructions are in https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/agent-install-deb.html#quick-install-debian

First you either have to run (depending on whether your instance is x86_64 or ARM64):

```
wget https://s3.amazonaws.com/ec2-downloads-windows/SSMAgent/latest/debian_amd64/amazon-ssm-agent.deb
```

or

```
wget https://s3.amazonaws.com/ec2-downloads-windows/SSMAgent/latest/debian_arm64/amazon-ssm-agent.deb
```

I've just verified I can download both of these from those URLs. Are you not able to get the one that you need?

Then you `sudo dpkg -i amazon-ssm-agent.deb` - is this what is giving you the "Package Not Found" message? Ensure you are in the same directory that you have just downloaded the package into when you run this.

Answer

Hello.  
In my environment, I was able to install SSM Agent by following the procedure in the following document.  
https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/agent-install-deb.html

The command executed is shown below.  
```
sudo su -
mkdir /tmp/ssm
cd /tmp/ssm
wget https://s3.amazonaws.com/ec2-downloads-windows/SSMAgent/latest/debian_amd64/amazon-ssm-agent.deb
sudo dpkg -i amazon-ssm-agent.deb
sudo systemctl status amazon-ssm-agent
sudo systemctl enable amazon-ssm-agent
```

If you are using an ARM-based instance type, execute the following command.  
```
sudo su -
mkdir /tmp/ssm
cd /tmp/ssm
wget https://s3.amazonaws.com/ec2-downloads-windows/SSMAgent/latest/debian_arm64/amazon-ssm-agent.deb
sudo dpkg -i amazon-ssm-agent.deb
sudo systemctl status amazon-ssm-agent
sudo systemctl enable amazon-ssm-agent
```

Unable to Install AWS Systems Manager on Debian 9 (Stretch) EC2 Instance

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