I have an AWS CLI install problem that I found no solution for on the Web. I hacked a solution via a symlink. More precisely, please observe my command line session, with comments and, if you can, please answer the question I ask below at the last line: [2021-03-28 19:04:55 root:~]# #dga- I had downloaded and unzipped the AWS install per: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cli/latest/userguide/install-cliv2-linux.html [2021-03-28 17:34:53 root:~]# ls -l aws total 80 drwxr-xr-x 11 root root 4096 Mar 24 21:39 dist -rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 4047 Mar 24 21:28 install -rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1465 Mar 24 21:28 README.md -rw-r--r-- 1 root root 68271 Mar 24 21:28 THIRD_PARTY_LICENSES [2021-03-28 17:35:00 root:~]# # I installed AWS CLI as instructed in the above AWS link... [2021-03-28 17:35:00 root:~]# ./aws/install -i /usr/local/aws-cli -b /usr/local/bin You can now run: /usr/local/bin/aws --version [2021-03-28 19:09:10 root:~]# which aws /usr/local/bin/aws [2021-03-28 19:09:23 root:~]# /usr/local/bin/aws --version aws-cli/2.1.32 Python/3.8.8 Linux/5.4.0-1041-aws exe/x86_64.ubuntu.18 prompt/off [2021-03-28 19:09:39 root:~]# aws --version bash: /usr/bin/aws: No such file or directory [2021-03-28 19:10:21 root:~]# #dga- WHAT? How is that possible? A mystery. [2021-03-28 19:11:01 root:~]# ls -l /usr/local/bin/aws lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 37 Mar 28 17:35 /usr/local/bin/aws -> /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current/bin/aws [2021-03-28 19:13:45 root:~]# ls -l /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current/bin/aws lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 11 Mar 28 17:35 /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current/bin/aws -> ../dist/aws [2021-03-28 19:14:03 root:~]# ls -l /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current/dist/aws -rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 4414504 Mar 28 17:35 /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current/dist/aws [2021-03-28 19:14:31 root:~]# # Note that /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current is itself a symlink: [2021-03-28 19:15:07 root:~]# ls -l /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 28 Mar 28 17:35 /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current -> /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/2.1.32 [2021-03-28 19:15:31 root:~]# # Presumably future updates from AWS will modify the above "current" symlink to a future path of the form /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/X.Y.Z where X.Y.Z > 2.1.32 [2021-03-28 19:21:03 root:~]# ls -l /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/2.1.32 total 8 drwxr-xr-x 2 root root 4096 Mar 28 17:35 bin drwxr-xr-x 11 root root 4096 Mar 28 17:35 dist [2021-03-28 19:27:31 root:~]# ls -l /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/2.1.32/dist/aws -rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 4414504 Mar 28 17:35 /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/2.1.32/dist/aws [2021-03-28 19:27:58 root:~]# #dga- So the above path is the executable that the "current" symlink references. [2021-03-28 19:28:53 root:~]# #dga- Here is my total HACK to fix the total bullshit mystery mentioned above... [2021-03-28 19:29:40 root:~]# #dga- Again, here is what we do NOT want to see happen: [2021-03-28 19:30:09 root:~]# aws --version bash: /usr/bin/aws: No such file or directory [2021-03-28 19:30:24 root:~]# pushd /usr/bin /usr/bin ~ [2021-03-28 19:31:27 root:/usr/bin]# pwd /usr/bin [2021-03-28 19:31:35 root:/usr/bin]# ln -s /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current/bin/aws [2021-03-28 19:31:54 root:/usr/bin]# ls -l aws lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 37 Mar 28 19:31 aws -> /usr/local/aws-cli/v2/current/bin/aws [2021-03-28 20:20:13 root:/usr/bin]# #dga- THAT is my hack and it appears to work: [2021-03-28 20:20:13 root:/usr/bin]# popd ~ /usr/bin [2021-03-28 20:20:19 root:~]# aws --version aws-cli/2.1.32 Python/3.8.8 Linux/5.4.0-1041-aws exe/x86_64.ubuntu.18 prompt/off [2021-03-28 20:21:28 root:~]# #dga- some additional context: [2021-03-28 20:47:36 root:~]# cat /etc/issue Ubuntu 18.04.5 LTS n l [2021-03-28 20:47:39 root:~]# uname -a Linux bamboo.oceanpark.com 5.4.0-1041-aws #43~18.04.1-Ubuntu SMP Sat Mar 20 15:47:52 UTC 2021 x86_64 x86_64 x86_64 GNU/Linux [2021-03-28 20:47:44 root:~]# #dga- Can someone explain to me why the hack was needed?