---
title: "Routing AWS CLI Requests to Wasabi by Region"
slug: "routing-aws-cli-requests-to-wasabi-by-region"
updated: 2026-09-28T15:15:11Z
published: 2026-09-28T15:15:11Z
canonical: "docs.wasabi.com/routing-aws-cli-requests-to-wasabi-by-region"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.wasabi.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Routing AWS CLI Requests to Wasabi by Region

The AWS CLI is certified for use with Wasabi. Normally, that means adding `--endpoint-url` to every command, or creating a separate CLI profile for every Wasabi region you use. This article provides a shell function that removes both steps. It reads the `--region` you already pass and automatically sends that one command to the matching Wasabi endpoint.

This article assumes the AWS CLI is already installed and that you have a Wasabi access key and secret key configured under a named profile. For installation help, refer to [AWS CLI With Wasabi](https://docs.wasabi.com/docs/how-do-i-use-aws-cli-with-wasabi).

## macOS / Linux (zsh)

1. Open ~/.zshrc in a text editor.
2. Add the following to the end of the file:

```plaintext
# "named" (default): only profiles containing "wasabi" use Wasabi endpoints.
# "all": every call, including the default profile, uses Wasabi endpoints.
export AWS_ROUTING_MODE="named"
 
wasabi-mode() {
  case "$1" in
    all|named) export AWS_ROUTING_MODE="$1"; echo "aws routing mode: $1" ;;
    *) echo "usage: wasabi-mode [all|named]  (current: $AWS_ROUTING_MODE)" ;;
  esac
}
 
aws() {
  local region="" profile=""
  local args=("$@")
  local n=$#args
  local i val
 
  for (( i=1; i<=n; i++ )); do
    val="$args[i]"
    case "$val" in
      --region) region="$args[i+1]" ;;
      --region=*) region="${val#--region=}" ;;
      --profile) profile="$args[i+1]" ;;
      --profile=*) profile="${val#--profile=}" ;;
    esac
  done
 
  local use_wasabi=0
  if [[ "$AWS_ROUTING_MODE" == "all" ]]; then
    use_wasabi=1
  elif [[ "$AWS_ROUTING_MODE" == "named" && "$profile" == *wasabi* ]]; then
    use_wasabi=1
  fi
 
  # Default region for wasabi profiles when --region wasn't passed
  if [[ "$use_wasabi" == 1 && -z "$region" ]]; then
    region="us-east-1"
  fi
 
  if [[ -n "$region" && "$use_wasabi" == 1 ]]; then
    AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_S3="https://s3.${region}.wasabisys.com" \
    AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_IAM="https://iam.wasabisys.com" \
    AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_STS="https://sts.wasabisys.com" \
    command aws "${args[@]}"
  else
    command aws "${args[@]}"
  fi
}
```

Commands such as `aws s3 ls --profile cloudnas-wasabi` do not take a `--region` flag at all. Without the default-region fallback above, the function would have no region from which to build an endpoint and would silently fall through to real AWS, which is why a command that omits `--region` can fail with InvalidAccessKeyId instead of routing to Wasabi. The fallback here defaults to us-east-1. Change it if your buckets reside in a different Wasabi region.
3. Save the file.
4. Reload your shell:

```shell
$ source ~/.zshrc
```
5. Run AWS CLI commands as usual. Any command using a profile name containing `wasabi` is sent to the matching Wasabi region automatically:

```shell
$ aws --region us-east-1 --profile prod-wasabi s3 ls
```
6. To route every command to Wasabi, including the default profile, switch modes:

```shell
$ wasabi-mode all
$ aws --region us-east-1 s3 ls
```

```shell
$ wasabi-mode named   # back to the default behavior
```

## Windows (PowerShell)

1. Check your profile path and whether it already exists:

```powershell
PS> $PROFILE
PS> Test-Path $PROFILE
```
2. Write the script directly to the file with the command below. This is safer than opening the file in Notepad and pasting. The Notepad Save dialog can silently save a decoy Microsoft.PowerShell_profile.ps1.txt file instead of overwriting the real PS1 file, leaving the real profile empty.

```plaintext
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path (Split-Path $PROFILE) | Out-Null
 
@'
$env:AWS_ROUTING_MODE = "named"   # "named" = only *wasabi* profiles use Wasabi
                                   # "all"   = every call uses Wasabi
 
function wasabi-mode {
    param([string]$Mode)
    if ($Mode -eq "all" -or $Mode -eq "named") {
        $env:AWS_ROUTING_MODE = $Mode
        Write-Host "aws routing mode: $Mode"
    } else {
        Write-Host "usage: wasabi-mode [all|named]  (current: $env:AWS_ROUTING_MODE)"
    }
}
 
function aws {
    $region = $null
    $profileName = $null
 
    for ($i = 0; $i -lt $args.Count; $i++) {
        if ($args[$i] -eq '--region')          { $region = $args[$i + 1] }
        elseif ($args[$i] -like '--region=*')  { $region = $args[$i].Substring(9) }
        elseif ($args[$i] -eq '--profile')     { $profileName = $args[$i + 1] }
        elseif ($args[$i] -like '--profile=*') { $profileName = $args[$i].Substring(10) }
    }
 
    $realAws = (Get-Command -CommandType Application aws | Select-Object -First 1).Source
 
    $useWasabi = $false
    if ($env:AWS_ROUTING_MODE -eq "all") {
        $useWasabi = $true
    } elseif ($env:AWS_ROUTING_MODE -eq "named" -and $profileName -like '*wasabi*') {
        $useWasabi = $true
    }
 
    # Default region for wasabi profiles when --region wasn't passed
    if ($useWasabi -and -not $region) {
        $region = "us-east-1"
    }
 
    if ($region -and $useWasabi) {
        $env:AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_S3  = "https://s3.$region.wasabisys.com"
        $env:AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_IAM = "https://iam.wasabisys.com"
        $env:AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_STS = "https://sts.wasabisys.com"
        try {
            & $realAws @args
        } finally {
            Remove-Item Env:AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_S3, Env:AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_IAM, Env:AWS_ENDPOINT_URL_STS -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
        }
    } else {
        & $realAws @args
    }
}
```

```plaintext
'@ | Set-Content -Path $PROFILE -Encoding UTF8
```

Commands such as `aws s3 ls --profile cloudnas-wasabi` do not take a `--region` flag at all. Without the default-region fallback above, the function would have no region from which to build an endpoint and would silently fall through to real AWS, which is why a command that omits `--region` can fail with InvalidAccessKeyId instead of routing to Wasabi. The fallback here defaults to us-east-1. Change it if your buckets reside in a different Wasabi region.

If you prefer a text editor, run notepad $PROFILE, paste the script, and save. Be sure the “Save as type” drop-down is set to All Files (not Text Documents) before saving.

No matter your approach, verify the file with the next step before reloading.
3. Verify the script actually saved before reloading:

```powershell
PS> Get-Content $PROFILE | Select-String "wasabi-mode"
```

This should print two matching lines. If it prints nothing, the file is empty, or the write failed. If there is a failure, repeat Step 2 before continuing.
4. Load the profile in to your current session. (Note the space between the dot and the path. Without it, PowerShell tries to run the path as a command instead of loading it.)

```powershell
PS> . $PROFILE
```

If this fails with “running scripts is disabled on this system,” your execution policy is blocking it. Run `Set-ExecutionPolicy -Scope CurrentUser -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned` (no administrator rights required for `-Scope CurrentUser`).
5. Confirm the function loaded:

```plaintext
PS> Get-Command wasabi-mode -CommandType Function
PS> Get-Command aws -CommandType Function
```
6. Run AWS CLI commands as usual. Any command using a profile name containing `wasabi` is sent to the matching Wasabi region automatically.

```powershell
PS> aws --region us-east-1 --profile prod-wasabi s3 ls
```
7. To route every command to Wasabi, including the default profile, switch modes:

```powershell
PS> wasabi-mode all
PS> aws --region us-east-1 s3 ls
```

```powershell
PS> wasabi-mode named   # back to the default behavior
```

## Notes

This function only reads the `--region` and `--profile` flags typed on the command line. It does not read the AWS_PROFILE environment variable.

Neither script edits ~/.aws/config, ~/.aws/credentials, or any existing profile. They only change where one command is sent, for the duration of that command.

Non-interactive environments (cron, CI pipelines) generally do not load ~/.zshrc or a PowerShell profile automatically. So this has no effect there unless the script explicitly sources it first.

Replace `wasabi` in the profile-name check with whatever naming convention your Wasabi profiles use, if different.

## Additional Information

Refer to:

- [AWS CLI With Wasabi](https://docs.wasabi.com/docs/how-do-i-use-aws-cli-with-wasabi) for base setup with `--endpoint-url`, a single named profile, and multipart upload tuning.
- [Service URLs for Wasabi's Storage Regions](https://docs.wasabi.com/docs/what-are-the-service-urls-for-wasabis-different-storage-regions) for the full list of regional endpoints used to build the URL in this script.
- [AWS CLI Credentials & Config Chain](https://docs.wasabi.com/docs/how-does-aws-cli-credentials-config-chain-work) for background information on how `--profile` and environment variables are resolved.