Overview
A summary of the storage services in the course and when to pick each. Choosing the right storage for the right architecture is part of a Solutions Architect's role.
Comparison
| Service | Use it when |
|---|---|
| Amazon S3 (notes) | Object storage with a specific API, great for anything on AWS |
| S3 Glacier | Archive objects |
| Amazon EBS (notes) | Storage attached to one EC2 instance at a time. Multi-attach exists for io1 and io2. Volume types include gp3, io2 |
| EC2 Instance Store (notes) | Physical (not network) storage with very high IOPS |
| Amazon EFS (notes) | Network file system for Linux instances, mountable across multiple AZs, POSIX |
| FSx for Windows | Windows file server file system |
| FSx for Lustre | High Performance Computing Linux file system, Lustre client |
| FSx for NetApp ONTAP | Network file system with very high OS compatibility |
| FSx for OpenZFS | Managed ZFS file system |
| Storage Gateway | Bridge on premises and AWS: S3 and FSx File Gateway sync files, Volume Gateway mounts volumes backed up in the cloud, Tape Gateway backs up in tape form |
| Transfer Family | FTP, FTPS, SFTP interface on top of S3 or EFS |
| DataSync | Scheduled sync from on premises to AWS or AWS to AWS |
| Snowcone, Snowball, Snowmobile | No network capacity, move large data physically. Snowcone has the DataSync agent bundled |
| Databases | Can store data, but for specific workloads that need indexing and querying. A later section covers choosing the right database |
Snowcone was discontinued on 2024-11-12 (AWS source, end of support notice) and Snowmobile is retired (listed in AWS full-shutdown services, 2024). Snowball Edge is closed to new customers. The course lists all three. The exam may still use the course figures. AWS source
See also 01-AWS-Snow-Family, 02-Amazon-FSx, 03-AWS-Storage-Gateway, 04-AWS-Transfer-Family, 05-AWS-DataSync.
AWS storage options map
Questions & Answers
Q1: Linux network file system across multiple AZs?
Answer:
Amazon EFS.
Q2: Very high IOPS physical storage for EC2?
Answer:
EC2 Instance Store.
Q3: Windows file system / HPC / OS compatibility / ZFS?
Answer:
FSx for Windows / FSx for Lustre / FSx for NetApp ONTAP / FSx for OpenZFS.
Q4: Move large data without network capacity?
Answer:
Snowcone, Snowball or Snowmobile (course answer; Snowcone is discontinued, Snowmobile is retired and Snowball Edge is closed to new customers).
Check yourself
Quiz
Flashcards
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