Build: Installing LocalStack on Debian Linux

Build: Installing LocalStack on Debian Linux

Introduction: AWS Without the Cloud

Imagine spinning up S3, Lambda, and DynamoDB on your laptop without touching AWS or paying a dime. That's the promise of LocalStack—a self-contained emulator for AWS services that runs inside Docker. In this guide, we'll walk through installing LocalStack on a Debian-based system (like Ubuntu or Chromebook Linux) and successfully creating your first S3 bucket, all from the command line.

Step 1: Install Docker (System-Wide)

LocalStack runs inside Docker, so your first move is to install Docker outside any Python environment.

Update and upgrade your system packages: 

Bash

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y    

Install Docker: 

Bash

sudo apt install docker.io -y    

Add your user to the Docker group so you can run Docker without sudo: 

Bash

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER    

Reboot or restart your Linux session to activate the new group.

Step 2: Set Up a Python Virtual Environment

This keeps your LocalStack CLI isolated and avoids the externally-managed-environment pip error.

Install the required Python tools: 

Bash

sudo apt install python3-venv python3-pip -y    

Create a virtual environment for LocalStack: 

Bash

python3 -m venv localstack-venv    

Activate the virtual environment: 

Bash

source localstack-venv/bin/activate    

Install LocalStack CLI and supporting tools inside the venv: 

Bash

pip install --no-cache-dir localstack awscli awscli-local    

Confirm the installation: 

Bash

localstack --version    

Check that awslocal installed correctly: 

Bash

awslocal --version    

Step 3: Launch LocalStack in One Terminal

Open your first terminal.

Activate the venv: 

Bash

source ~/localstack-venv/bin/activate    

Start LocalStack in foreground mode to see live logs: 

Bash

localstack start    

The terminal will stay open and stream logs. Wait for the Ready. message.

Step 4: Run CLI Commands in a Second Terminal

Open a second terminal window.

Activate the venv again: 

Bash

source ~/localstack-venv/bin/activate    

Now create your first local S3 bucket: 

Bash

awslocal s3 mb s3://my-test-bucket    

If you see make_bucket: my-test-bucket, you’re golden.

Look back at Terminal 1—you'll see log output like: 

Bash

AWS s3.CreateBucket => 200    

That's proof your local AWS environment is fully operational.

Conclusion: You're Now Cloud-Free and Cloud-Ready

You've got Docker, LocalStack, and CLI tools working together on Debian Linux—and you just created your first bucket without touching AWS. From here, you can explore uploads, events, Lambdas, and more, all locally, all free.

In a future post, we'll show how to upgrade your AWS CLI to v2 for even more features.

Need AWS Expertise?

We'd love to help you with your AWS projects.  Feel free to reach out to us at info@pacificw.com.

Written by Aaron Rose, software engineer and technology writer at Tech-Reader.blog.