If whatever is being launched on AWS needs to be private, the Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) provides enough functionality for such a task. It grants full control over the virtual network environment from resource allocation to security and is simple to start up. There are options for choosing the IP range, creating subnets, and configuring route tables. The only connections to this network are completely user-defined.
Amazon’s services are not completely iron-clad and applications built on the platform are still vulnerable to the occasional hiccup. When it does happen, there is a degree of shared responsibility between AWS and the developers of the web applications. All services are designed with redundancies in mind and much of the physical infrastructure does come with backup databases and availability zones to help cover for any instances that go down or are brought down for maintenance. Though data loss is mitigated, it is still advisable to prepare for the next incident.
Cybercrime is a perpetually evolving threat that demands the most out of companies’ ability to adapt in turn. There are a variety of threats present that can damage a company in a variety of ways from siphoning critical information off to unwanted third parties to damaging company equipment or putting information behind a paywall. Even for those who aren’t security specialists, having a basic grasp of these concepts is important to have.
When a development team is building out an application, it helps to have access to the same resources, have the tools for planning and testing, and to have access to the application all in one place. CodeCatalyst comes with a slew of continuous integration/continuous development (CI/CD) tools and can leverage other AWS services and be connected to other AWS projects on an account. As a collaborative tool, it is easy to introduce new members into the project and to log all activity or all tests from a single dashboard. It’s a complete package of all the tools needed to securely work on every step of an application’s lifecycle.
Perhaps the biggest issue with AWS that its competitors edge out on is the confusing pricing model. It does promise the capacity to help users save significantly on funds that otherwise by avoiding spending on unnecessary resources, but getting to that point isn’t always clear. We will be covering in greater detail how this works.
Business Intelligence is important to a firm in order to understand the data gathered from its various operations. Amazon does provide a service called QuickSight which is more tailored to use-by-use cases. By comparison, Microsoft has Power BI on offer with a much more universally applied pricing model but extensive customizability and modularity. Both do have a lot to offer on top of their compatibility to their respective organizations.
Among other services, Amazon also provides Aurora – a database service with a global presence that is compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL at a mere tenth of the cost of traditional databases. True to AWS fashion, Amazon fully manages these databases helping to further reduce costs for the users and alleviate the need to dedicate resources towards maintenance. To prevent loss and damage, Aurora databases have nearly a 100% uptime with easy replication and a restoration of services in less than a minute. For newer users to AWS, immigrating data locally is incredibly easy.
While Amazon does make acquiring certification for knowledge on their cloud services readily accessible, the process is still a large hurdle to overcome. The exams are incredibly tough and do have a B and above requirement in order to pass. Fortunately, there are plenty of resources both official and unofficial to help potential new experts to prepare. Everyone is better off knowing what resources they have to prepare for such a tremendous hurdle.
Data Analytics is increasingly important for evaluating company performance and adjusting for continuous improvement and avoiding recreating mistakes. As such, there are plenty of platforms on the market for making the analysis process to make this easier. Though Amazon’s offering might seem to be the go-to for any and all solutions, there are still other options present on the market for anyone who has data analysis needs.
Cloud services are numerous in type and functionality, leaving potential users with no shortage of choice as to what cloud service they wish to use and why. While not as widely known or capable of some of the same potential as their bigger competitors, Dell and DigitalOcean have their own offerings for cloud computing. Despite their more niche use and more fitting application for much smaller users, keep in mind that the likes of AWS and Google Cloud will just be more flexible and likely more capable in the long-run.