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

# Onboarding your dedicated instance + AWS PrivateLink

<Note>
  The following information applies only to dedicated instance deployments with AWS PrivateLink for [Unstructured Business](/business/overview) on AWS.

  For dedicated instance deployments of Unstructured Business to AWS *without* PrivateLink, contact your Unstructured sales representative,
  or email Unstructured Sales at [sales@unstructured.io](mailto:sales@unstructured.io).
</Note>

After your organization signs the **Business** account agreement with Unstructured, a member of the Unstructured technical enablement team will reach out to begin the deployment onboarding process.

## High-level onboarding process

| Step | Owner                   | Description                                                                             |
| :--: | ----------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
|   1  | Customer                | Provide Unstructured with the information required to provision your dedicated instance |
|   2  | Unstructured            | Build and configure your dedicated instance                                             |
|   3  | Customer                | Establish private connectivity to access the Unstructured Platform UI and API           |
|   4  | Customer + Unstructured | Connect your dedicated instance to your data sources and destinations                   |

<Note>
  Use a support ticket for all configuration data exchanges. Open a ticket in the [Unstructured Support Portal](https://support.unstructured.io/) with the subject line **`PrivateLink Configuration Request — [Your Company Name]`**.
</Note>

## Step 1: Provide provisioning information

Provide the information listed in [Before you begin](/business/dedicated-instances/before-you-begin#what-to-prepare-before-onboarding) to Unstructured to begin provisioning your dedicated instance.

## Step 2: Unstructured provisions your dedicated instance

No action is required from you during this step. Once provisioning is complete, Unstructured will provide you with:

* The AWS Account ID your dedicated instance is hosted in
* The VPC Endpoint Service name for your dedicated instance (format: `com.amazonaws.vpce.<region>.vpce-svc-<id>`)
* The Availability Zones supported by the endpoint service

## Step 3: Connect to the Unstructured Platform

Once your dedicated instance is provisioned, establish private connectivity from your environment so your users can access the platform UI and API.

### Information exchange

| Information                  | Description                                         | Example                                         | Provided by  |
| ---------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------- | ------------ |
| Unstructured AWS Account ID  | AWS Account ID your dedicated instance is hosted in | `987654321098`                                  | Unstructured |
| VPC Endpoint Service Name    | Service name for the Unstructured endpoint          | `com.amazonaws.vpce.us-east-1.vpce-svc-0abc123` | Unstructured |
| Supported Availability Zones | AZs available for the endpoint service              | `us-east-1a`, `us-east-1b`                      | Unstructured |
| Customer AWS Account ID(s)   | 12-digit ID of each AWS account that needs access   | `123456789012`                                  | Customer     |

### Step 3a: Provide your AWS Account IDs

Provide Unstructured with the AWS Account IDs that need access to your dedicated instance. Unstructured will add these accounts as allowed principals on the VPC Endpoint Service.

### Step 3b: Create Interface VPC Endpoints

In each AWS account that requires access, create an Interface VPC Endpoint targeting Unstructured's VPC Endpoint Service. [Learn how](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/vpc/latest/privatelink/create-interface-endpoint.html)

When creating the endpoint:

* Use the Endpoint Service name provided by Unstructured in Step 2
* Select subnets in the Availability Zones supported by the endpoint service
* The endpoint must be in the same AWS Region as your dedicated instance

Creating the endpoint sends a connection request to Unstructured.

### Step 3c: Unstructured approves your connection request

No action is required from you during this step. Unstructured will approve your VPC Endpoint connection request.

### Step 3d: Configure DNS

Configure DNS so your dedicated instance hostname (`<companyname>.privatelink.unstructuredapp.io`) resolves to the private IPs of your VPC Endpoint. Clients must use the exact hostname because TLS is terminated using a provider-managed certificate.

**Option 1: Enable private DNS (Recommended)**

When creating your VPC Endpoint in Step 3b, enable the **Enable private DNS name** option. AWS automatically creates a Route 53 private hosted zone in your VPC that resolves your dedicated instance hostname to the endpoint's private IPs. No additional DNS configuration is required.

This requires DNS hostnames and DNS resolution to be enabled on your VPC. [Learn how to check VPC DNS settings](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/vpc/latest/userguide/vpc-dns.html#vpc-dns-updating).

**Option 2: Manual Route 53 configuration**

If you cannot enable private DNS on the endpoint:

1. Create a Route 53 Private Hosted Zone for `privatelink.unstructuredapp.io` associated with your VPC.
2. Add an alias A record for `<companyname>.privatelink.unstructuredapp.io` pointing to the VPC Endpoint's regional DNS name.
3. Associate the hosted zone with any additional VPCs that need access.

For access from on-premises networks, you also need a Route 53 Resolver inbound endpoint and forwarding rules configured to forward queries to Route 53.

## Step 4: Connect to your data sources and destinations

Once your users can access the Unstructured Platform, connect the platform to your data sources and destinations. The approach depends on the type of service.

* **AWS-managed services** (S3, Bedrock, MSK, OpenSearch, Databricks): See [Connecting to AWS-managed services](/business/aws/aws-privatelink/connect-to-services)
* **Customer-managed services on AWS** (self-hosted applications such as MongoDB or Elasticsearch, or AWS services that require a Network Load Balancer): See [Connecting to customer-managed services on AWS](/business/aws/aws-privatelink/connect-to-customer-managed-services)

## Questions? Need help?

Contact your Unstructured account team or open a ticket in the [Unstructured Support Portal](https://support.unstructured.io/).