Connect IBM Cloud Object Storage

IBM Cloud Object Storage supports S3-compatible access through HMAC credentials. This guide walks you through connecting it to HeftySend.

Step 1: Create a Cloud Object Storage instance

• Go to your IBM Cloud Console
• Click "Create" to create a new Object Storage instance
• Choose your pricing plan (Lite is free for getting started)
• Enter a service name
• Click "Create"

Step 2: Create a bucket

• Open your Object Storage instance
• Click "Create bucket"
• Choose "Customize your bucket"
• Enter a unique bucket name
• Select Regional resiliency (recommended)
• Choose a location closest to your users
• Select Standard storage class
• Click "Create bucket"

Step 3: Create HMAC credentials

HMAC credentials are required for S3-compatible access. Standard API keys will not work.

• Go to "Service credentials" in your Object Storage instance
• Click "New credential"
• Enter a name (for example, HeftySend)
• Select "Manager" role
• Enable "Include HMAC Credential" — this is required
• Click "Add"
• Expand the credential to find the cos_hmac_keys section, which contains your access_key_id and secret_access_key

Step 4: Find your endpoint

• Go to "Endpoints" in your Object Storage instance
• Find the endpoint matching your bucket's region and resiliency
• Use the Public endpoint

Common IBM Cloud endpoints

Region	Public endpoint
US South	s3.us-south.cloud-object-storage.appdomain.cloud
US East	s3.us-east.cloud-object-storage.appdomain.cloud
EU GB	s3.eu-gb.cloud-object-storage.appdomain.cloud
EU DE	s3.eu-de.cloud-object-storage.appdomain.cloud
AP Tokyo	s3.jp-tok.cloud-object-storage.appdomain.cloud

Step 5: Connect to HeftySend

1. Go to Settings > Storage in your HeftySend dashboard
2. Click "Configure S3 Storage"
3. Enter your public endpoint URL (with https://)
4. Enter your access_key_id from HMAC credentials
5. Enter your secret_access_key from HMAC credentials
6. Enter your bucket name
7. Click "Test Connection" then "Save"

Troubleshooting

If connection fails, make sure you created HMAC credentials and not just a standard API key. Verify the endpoint matches your bucket's region.