AWS EC2, S3, and CloudFormation – A Beginner’s Guide to Cloud Computing

Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud)

• EC2 provides scalable virtual servers in the cloud.
• You can launch, configure, and manage instances (virtual machines).
• Supports various operating systems (Linux, Windows).
• Key components:
  • Instances: Virtual machines.
  • AMI (Amazon Machine Image): Preconfigured OS and software.
  • Security Groups: Firewall rules to allow/deny access.
  • Elastic IP: Static IP address for your instance.
  • Auto Scaling: Automatically adjusts capacity based on demand.

Example Use Case: Hosting a web application.

Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service)

• S3 is an object storage service.
• Stores files, backups, and static content.
• Highly durable and scalable.
• Key components:
  • Buckets: Containers for objects.
  • Objects: Files stored in S3.
  • Versioning: Keeps multiple versions of an object.
  • Lifecycle Policies: Automate data deletion or archiving.

Example Use Case: Storing website images and backups.

AWS CloudFormation

• Infrastructure as Code (IaC) service.
• Automates AWS resource creation using templates.
• Templates are written in JSON or YAML.
• Key components:
  • Stacks: Group of AWS resources managed as a unit.
  • Templates: Define resources (EC2, S3, IAM, etc.).
  • Change Sets: Preview changes before applying.

Example Use Case: Deploying a complete infrastructure setup with EC2, S3, and IAM roles.

Lets go more detail :

Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) – Scalable Cloud Servers

What is EC2?

• Amazon EC2 provides virtual machines (VMs) in the cloud.
• You can run applications without buying physical servers.
• Offers flexibility in OS, instance types, and scalability.

Key Features

• Elasticity & Scalability: Easily increase or decrease instances.
• Multiple Instance Types: General-purpose, Compute-optimized, Memory-optimized, GPU instances.
• Security Groups: Control inbound/outbound traffic like a firewall.
• Elastic IPs: Static IPs for reliable access.
• Auto Scaling: Adjusts instances automatically based on traffic.
• AMI (Amazon Machine Images): Pre-configured OS with apps.

Use Case

• Hosting a web application with multiple users.

Hands-on: Launch an EC2 Instance

1. Go to the AWS EC2 Console.
2. Click on Launch Instance.
3. Choose an Amazon Machine Image (AMI) (e.g., Ubuntu 22.04).
4. Select an Instance Type (t2.micro for free tier).
5. Configure security group (allow SSH, HTTP).
6. Create a key pair for secure access.
7. Click Launch and connect via SSH.

Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service) – Secure Object Storage

What is S3?

• AWS S3 is a scalable object storage service.
• Used for storing files, backups, and static content.
• Provides high durability (99.999999999% reliability).

Key Features

• Buckets & Objects: Store files in containers called “buckets.”
• Access Control: Public/Private access and fine-grained permissions.
• Versioning: Maintain multiple versions of an object.
• Lifecycle Management: Automatically move files to cheaper storage (Glacier).
• S3 Transfer Acceleration: Speeds up file uploads.

Use Case

• Storing website assets (images, CSS, JavaScript) and backups.

Hands-on: Create an S3 Bucket

1. Go to the AWS S3 Console.
2. Click Create Bucket.
3. Choose a unique name and AWS region.
4. Configure access permissions (public/private).
5. Upload files to your bucket.
6. Access them via an S3 URL.

AWS CloudFormation – Infrastructure as Code (IaC)

What is CloudFormation?

• A service that allows you to define and provision AWS infrastructure using code.
• Uses JSON or YAML templates to automate AWS resource creation.

Key Features

• Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Automate deployments with scripts.
• Stacks: Manage related AWS resources as a single unit.
• Change Sets: Preview modifications before applying.
• Rollback Mechanism: Reverts to the last known good state if deployment fails.

Use Case

• Automating EC2 and S3 bucket creation for a web app.

Hands-on: Deploy an EC2 Instance with S3 using CloudFormation

1. Go to the AWS CloudFormation Console.
2. Click Create Stack → With New Resources.
3. Upload the following YAML template:

AWSTemplateFormatVersion: '2010-09-09'
Resources:
  MyEC2Instance:
    Type: AWS::EC2::Instance
    Properties:
      ImageId: ami-0c55b159cbfafe1f0  # Change based on your region
      InstanceType: t2.micro
      SecurityGroups:
        - !Ref MySecurityGroup
  MyS3Bucket:
    Type: AWS::S3::Bucket
  MySecurityGroup:
    Type: AWS::EC2::SecurityGroup
    Properties:
      GroupDescription: Allow SSH and HTTP access
      SecurityGroupIngress:
        - IpProtocol: tcp
          FromPort: 22
          ToPort: 22
          CidrIp: 0.0.0.0/0
        - IpProtocol: tcp
          FromPort: 80
          ToPort: 80
          CidrIp: 0.0.0.0/0

Click Next, review settings, and deploy the stack.

AWS will automatically create an EC2 instance and an S3 bucket.