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Step 1: Log in to Drupal - LocalGov Drupal Walkthrough

Get your credentials and access the Drupal admin dashboard

Walkthrough progress

Step 1 of 12 • 3 minutes

Step 1 3 minutes

Log in to Drupal

Get your admin credentials from CloudFormation and access the Drupal admin dashboard.

Expected outcome

  • CloudFormation stack shows CREATE_COMPLETE status
  • You have copied the DrupalUrl, AdminUsername, and AdminPassword
  • You are logged into the Drupal admin dashboard

Navigating to CloudFormation

From the AWS Console homepage, you can find CloudFormation in the "Recently visited" section or by searching for "CloudFormation" in the search bar.

AWS Console homepage showing the search bar and Recently visited section with CloudFormation
The AWS Console homepage - find CloudFormation in "Recently visited" or use the search bar

Finding your credentials

  1. Open the CloudFormation console

    Go to CloudFormation console in us-east-1 (N. Virginia) (opens in new tab)

  2. Find your stack

    Look for a stack named LocalGovDrupalStack

    The status should be CREATE_COMPLETE

    Warning If the status shows CREATE_IN_PROGRESS, the deployment is still running. This scenario takes 35 to 40 minutes to deploy fully.

    This is normal. LocalGov Drupal provisions enterprise-grade infrastructure including an Aurora Serverless database, which takes time to create on-demand. While you wait, watch the Events tab in CloudFormation to see resources being created in real-time.

    CloudFormation console showing the Stacks list with LocalGovDrupalStack and CREATE_COMPLETE status
    The CloudFormation Stacks list showing LocalGovDrupalStack with CREATE_COMPLETE status
  3. Go to the "Outputs" tab

    Click on your stack name, then select the "Outputs" tab

  4. Copy these three values

    DrupalUrl: The URL to access your Drupal site
    https://[random-id].cloudfront.net

    AdminUsername: Usually admin

    AdminPassword: Auto-generated secure password

AWS CloudFormation console showing the Outputs tab with DrupalUrl, AdminUsername, and AdminPassword values
The CloudFormation Outputs tab shows your Drupal URL and admin credentials

Tip: If you're viewing this after deploying from the scenario page, your credentials are also shown in the Credentials Card on that page.

Logging in to Drupal

  1. Open your Drupal site

    Click the DrupalUrl link or paste it into a new browser tab

  2. Go to the login page

    Add /user/login to the URL, or click "Log in" in the header

  3. Enter your credentials

    Enter the AdminUsername and AdminPassword from the Outputs tab

  4. Click "Log in"

    You'll be redirected to the Drupal admin dashboard

What you should see

After logging in, you should see:

  • The Drupal admin toolbar at the top of the page
  • A "Welcome to [Council Name]" message
  • Quick links to Content, Structure, and other admin sections
  • The DEMO banner indicating this is a demonstration site
Troubleshooting: Site not loading

If the Drupal site doesn't load:

  • Wait 2-3 minutes after stack completion - Drupal needs time to initialize
  • Check the CloudFormation "Events" tab for any errors
  • Try refreshing the page - the first load may be slow
  • Check you're using the correct URL from the Outputs tab
Troubleshooting: Login not working

If you can't log in:

  • Double-check you copied the entire password (no trailing spaces)
  • Passwords are case-sensitive
  • Make sure you're on the /user/login page, not the homepage
  • Try using the password copy button in CloudFormation Outputs
Drupal login page showing username and password fields with a Log in button
The Drupal login page where you'll enter your admin credentials from the CloudFormation Outputs

Need help?

If you're stuck, check the troubleshooting section or contact us.