Environment Setup

Duration: 45 minutes (10 min presentation + 15 min verification + 20 min new setup)

Everything from Day 1 forward depends on having a working environment. Complete each section in order.

Part 1: What You Should Already Have

These were in the pre-work. Verify each one actually works right now — don't assume.

Claude Code + Vertex AI CRITICAL

You need Claude Code connected to our Vertex AI endpoint. This is your lab companion for the entire week.

Full setup guide: Claude Code Onboarding Guide

Verify:

bash

claude --version

Should return a version number. If command not found, you need to install Claude Code first.

Verify Vertex connection:

bash

claude

Start a session and submit any prompt. If Claude responds, your Vertex connection is working.

Two-Project Configuration

There are two different GCP projects involved. Don't mix them up:

Setting	Project	Purpose
ADC quota project	Your own project (e.g., `syoungberg-prod`)	Bills API quota against your lab project
Claude Code Vertex project (`ANTHROPIC_VERTEX_PROJECT_ID`)	`coe-airs-vertex`	Shared CoE endpoint where Claude models are enabled

GCP Authentication (ADC)

bash

# Re-authenticate with GCP
gcloud auth login
gcloud auth application-default login

# Set your default project to YOUR lab project
gcloud config set project <your-project-id>

# Set ADC quota project to YOUR lab project (NOT coe-airs-vertex)
gcloud auth application-default set-quota-project <your-project-id>

Claude Code Environment Variables

Add these to your shell profile (~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc):

bash

export CLAUDE_CODE_USE_VERTEX=1
export CLOUD_ML_REGION=global
export ANTHROPIC_VERTEX_PROJECT_ID=coe-airs-vertex

Then reload your shell:

bash

source ~/.zshrc   # or source ~/.bashrc

Verify in a new terminal:

bash

echo $CLAUDE_CODE_USE_VERTEX       # should print: 1
echo $CLOUD_ML_REGION              # should print: global
echo $ANTHROPIC_VERTEX_PROJECT_ID  # should print: coe-airs-vertex

VS Code Tip

The VS Code Claude Code extension auth flow can be finicky. Use Claude Code from the VS Code integrated terminal instead — your shell environment variables carry through.

YOLO Mode

During labs, skip permission prompts with claude --dangerously-skip-permissions. Only use this in lab/dev environments.

GCP Project with Billing CRITICAL

You need a GCP project with an active billing account.

Creating a New GCP Project

Open Google Cloud Console
Click New Project and configure:
- Project name: <your-panw-username>-prod (e.g., syoungberg-prod)
- Organization: global-test-panw.com
- Location/Folder: global-test-panw.com → gcp-gcp-lab → coe → airs-workshop
Click Create and note your Project ID

Linking a Billing Account

Billing is managed through the internal CloudOps Self-Service Portal (requires GlobalProtect VPN).

Go to the CloudOps Self-Service Portal
Click the Google Cloud card
Select Billing Request → Link Project with Billing Account
Paste your Project ID and click Link Billing
Wait for confirmation — CloudOpsBot will notify you via Slack within 1-2 minutes

Verify Your Project

bash

gcloud config set project YOUR_PROJECT_ID
gcloud auth application-default set-quota-project YOUR_PROJECT_ID
gcloud billing projects describe YOUR_PROJECT_ID --format="value(billingEnabled)"

Enable Required APIs

bash

gcloud services enable \
  aiplatform.googleapis.com \
  run.googleapis.com \
  cloudbuild.googleapis.com

Part 2: New Setup for This Week

Work through these in order. Priority: Claude Code > GCP > git/gh.

Step 1: git + gh CLI REQUIRED

Verify git:

bash

git --version
git config user.name
git config user.email

All three should return values. If user.name or user.email are blank:

bash

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@paloaltonetworks.com"

Verify gh:

bash

gh --version
gh auth status

If not authenticated:

bash

gh auth login
# Select: GitHub.com → HTTPS → Login with a web browser

Step 2: Join the Lab GitHub Org REQUIRED

Our lab repos are in the airs-labs GitHub org. Submit your GitHub username using the method Berg provides.

bash

# Accept invitation via CLI
gh api --method PATCH /user/memberships/orgs/airs-labs -f state=active

# Verify access
gh repo view airs-labs/vertex-ai-search-context7 --json name,visibility

Step 3: Set Up vertex-search MCP REQUIRED

This is our workaround for corporate fetch/web search restrictions.

Prerequisites: Bun 1.3.x or later.

bash

curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash

bash

gh repo clone airs-labs/vertex-ai-search-context7 ~/vertex-ai-search-mcp
cd ~/vertex-ai-search-mcp
bun install

Add to ~/.claude.json:

json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "vertex-search": {
      "command": "bun",
      "args": ["run", "/Users/YOU/vertex-ai-search-mcp/src/index.ts"],
      "env": {
        "GOOGLE_CLOUD_PROJECT": "coe-airs-vertex"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace /Users/YOU/ with your actual home directory path.

Step 4: Model Security Lab Prep REQUIRED for Mon PM

Python 3.10+ with uv:

bash

python3 --version
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
uv --version

Docker Desktop:

bash

docker --version

Docker is needed for Day 2 (containerizing and deploying models to Cloud Run).

Step 5: Have Claude Code Verify Your Setup REQUIRED

Open Claude Code and paste this prompt:

Verify my workshop environment is ready. Check:
1. Can you access GCP? Try listing projects.
2. Is git configured with a username and email?
3. Is gh CLI authenticated? What org memberships do I have?
4. Can you use the vertex-search MCP to run a test query?
5. Is Python 3.10+ installed? Is uv available?
6. Is Docker installed and running?
7. Summarize: what is working and what is not?

Step 6: Help Your Neighbor

Done early? Look around. If someone near you is stuck, help them out. Teaching is the fastest way to learn.

Quick Reference

Item	Required By	Priority
Claude Code + Vertex	Now	CRITICAL
GCP Project + Billing	Now	CRITICAL
git + gh CLI	Now	CRITICAL
Lab org membership	Now	CRITICAL
vertex-search MCP	Now	HIGH
Python 3.10+ + uv	Mon PM (Module 1.8)	HIGH
Docker Desktop	Tue (Module 2.2)	HIGH
n8n instance	Wed (Module 3.4)	OPTIONAL

Troubleshooting

Claude Code / Vertex Authentication

bash

gcloud auth login
gcloud auth application-default login
gcloud auth application-default set-quota-project coe-airs-vertex
gcloud config set project coe-airs-vertex
gcloud services list --enabled | grep aiplatform

Corporate Proxy Issues

bash

git config --global http.proxy http://your-proxy:port
git config --global https.proxy https://your-proxy:port
export HTTPS_PROXY=http://your-proxy:port

Windows PATH Issues

Close and reopen your terminal after installing any tool. Common missing paths:

Claude Code: check installer output
gh: typically C:\Program Files\GitHub CLI\
gcloud: typically C:\Users\<you>\AppData\Local\Google\Cloud SDK\google-cloud-sdk\bin

Environment Setup ​

Part 1: What You Should Already Have ​

Claude Code + Vertex AI CRITICAL ​

Two-Project Configuration ​

GCP Authentication (ADC) ​

Claude Code Environment Variables ​

GCP Project with Billing CRITICAL ​

Creating a New GCP Project ​

Linking a Billing Account ​

Verify Your Project ​

Enable Required APIs ​

Part 2: New Setup for This Week ​

Step 1: git + gh CLI REQUIRED ​

Step 2: Join the Lab GitHub Org REQUIRED ​

Step 3: Set Up vertex-search MCP REQUIRED ​

Step 4: Model Security Lab Prep REQUIRED for Mon PM ​

Step 5: Have Claude Code Verify Your Setup REQUIRED ​

Step 6: Help Your Neighbor ​

Quick Reference ​

Troubleshooting ​

Claude Code / Vertex Authentication ​

Corporate Proxy Issues ​

Windows PATH Issues ​

Environment Setup

Part 1: What You Should Already Have

Claude Code + Vertex AI CRITICAL

Two-Project Configuration

GCP Authentication (ADC)

Claude Code Environment Variables

GCP Project with Billing CRITICAL

Creating a New GCP Project

Linking a Billing Account

Verify Your Project

Enable Required APIs

Part 2: New Setup for This Week

Step 1: git + gh CLI REQUIRED

Step 2: Join the Lab GitHub Org REQUIRED

Step 3: Set Up vertex-search MCP REQUIRED

Step 4: Model Security Lab Prep REQUIRED for Mon PM

Step 5: Have Claude Code Verify Your Setup REQUIRED

Step 6: Help Your Neighbor

Quick Reference

Troubleshooting

Claude Code / Vertex Authentication

Corporate Proxy Issues

Windows PATH Issues