Guide to Setting Up a Cost-Effective AWS Environment for a Small Tech Startup
AWS Cost Optimization Techniques
Table of Contents
Introduction
A lot of advancements are taking place in the technology landscape, and due to this, we’ve grown past the era where cloud utilization is mainly by big companies. Small tech startups are now leveraging the opportunity cloud technology offers. The use of a cloud environment is a recommended option for small startups because these startups may not be ready to start acquiring on-premises infrastructure to run a business.
As a small tech startup that is just starting out or has been in the business, you may have heard of the cloud technology and having done some research, you and your team have decided to set up an AWS environment, for cost-effective purposes. This article will provide you with a simple and detailed guide on how to set up a cost-effective AWS environment.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers several types of services that can be adjusted to meet the needs of startups while ensuring that cost issues are in check. In this article, I’ll lead you through setting up a cost-effective environment in AWS, with a focus on key areas like getting familiar with the environment, Identity and Access Management (IAM) setup, and cost monitoring.
Key Takeaways
AWS offers services that are scalable and convenient even for small tech startups.
EC2, S3, budget and IAM are the basic key services for setting up a cost-effective AWS environment.
Identity and Access Management, IAM plays a key role in the security and management of an AWS environment.
Getting Familiar With the AWS Environment
Before proceeding to set up an AWS environment, it's important to understand how the AWS Management Console (see this as the general management dashboard) works. The AWS Management Console is the central interface for managing all AWS offered by AWS.
To simplify this further, here's a step-by-step guide on navigating through the key AWS services:
An Overview Of The AWS Management Console
The AWS Management Console is your first point of contact for accessing all the AWS services. It allows you to manage and monitor resources, deploy applications, and handle security configurations, all from that general dashboard.
1. Accessing the Console
Now, you may ask, How do I access this console?
It’s simple! The AWS Management Console is the first page you see when you create an account and sign in to your AWS account as the root user (simply means a superior user).
2. Accessing the Services
The homepage of the console displays a search bar and a list of recently used services (if you have used one; but as a first-time user, yours can be blank). You can click on this search bar to search for services you’d like to use. If you have no idea of the services, don’t worry, as this article will cover a few of these services and how to use them in your journey of setting up an AWS cloud environment.
The basic services you can use for an AWS environment setup include EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud), S3 (Simple Storage Service), and IAM (Identity and Access Management). Although it is not limited to these, they are the key and easy-to-use services if you're setting up your environment for the first time.
Here is a detail of each of these resources:
a. EC2
EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud), or Amazon EC2 is a service that provides scalable compute capacity in the cloud. It allows you to launch servers virtually, which can be easily scaled to meet cost and demand. Some of the uses of EC2 include web and application hosting, use for data backup recovery, as well as an environment for testing and development.
To test the waters and get familiar with the service, start with the free tier.
b. S3
S3 (Simple Storage Service), just like EC2, is a scalable solution that is used for storing and retrieving data. As a method of optimizing cost, select the Standard-Infrequent Access or Glacier tiers to save on storage costs when storing data that is not frequently accessed, and Standard Storage Class for frequently accessed data.
c. IAM
IAM (Identity and Access Management) helps you manage access and control privileges resources and services on AWS. It is important to properly configure IAM, as it is a stepping stone to ensuring the security and management of people and what they can access in the cloud environment.
Setting Up IAM on AWS
IAM is the security backbone of your AWS environment. It ensures that the right users have access to the right resources, protecting your resources from unauthorized access.
Several components (termed “resources” in AWS) make up the IAM services, and each of these components plays a role in the security and management of resources. They include:
1. User
A user is an entity in AWS that represents an individual, to give them a platform to access resources or own a role. It is important not to use the root user account for daily activities due to its lack of limitation to privileges, hence, the need to create an IAM user account.
How to Create an IAM User and Assign Privileges
Here’s a step-by-step process for creating an IAM user and assigning privileges right from the creation stage:
Go to the search bar on the AWS management console and search for IAM. Click on it, then at the left, click on “Users”
On the User page, click on “Create user” and enter a username.
On the same page, tick the “Provide user access to the AWS Management Console - optional” and “I want to create an IAM user” boxes. Then, create a password.
Click “Next”. Attach the appropriate permissions relevant to the role of the user you just created.
Click on “Next” after assigning the permissions. Then, review the information and click on “Create”.
2. User Groups
Assigning privileges individually to people with the same role can be daunting. This is where IAM User group comes to play an important role. For general users who don’t require full admin access, it’s best to create an IAM group with limited privileges.
Grouping users simplifies permissions management, ensuring that users only have access to the resources they need and for what they need it.
How to Create an IAM User Group and Assign Privileges
Here’s a step-by-step process to create an IAM User Group:
Go to the search bar on the AWS management console and search for IAM. Click on it, then at the left, click on “User groups”
Enter a group name. The name can be specific to a certain group of users. E.g. Security, IT, Finance, etc.
Attach the necessary policies (e.g.,
AmazonS3ReadOnlyAccessfor read-only S3 access – which is specifically used for individuals who do not need to modify a resource but only read through it, e.g. the CEO and an external Auditor).Scroll down and click on “Create user group”. Add users to the group (optional).
3. IAM Policies/Permissions
The permissions to access a resource or carry out specific tasks outside of the root user account on AWS are managed through policies. To make things easier, AWS provides pre-built policies that you can assign based on the role of each user or group.
Policies can either be assigned at a user level or at a group level, as shown above.
Although there are already-made policies for every user on AWS, it is possible to come up with a policy as a user. Here’s an example of a policy written by a user in JSON (Javascript Object Notation) format:
```json
{
"Version": "2012-10-17",
"Statement": [
{
"Effect": "Allow",
"Action": [
"s3:GetObject",
"s3:ListBucket"
],
"Resource": "*"
}
]
}
```
This policy above is assigned to users or groups that require read-only access to S3 buckets (a term used by AWS to refer to a container housing one or more items). This ensures that they can view and download files but cannot modify or delete them.
Important Settings For a Cost-Effective Environment
As an additional method of building a cost-effective AWS environment, there are several meetings you should keep in mind when using these AWS services. They include:
1. Tag Your Resource: Resource tagging helps to organize and identify resources. You can also tag resources based on their cost level, as this helps determine which resources are incurring more cost.
2. Utilize Auto-Scaling: When using resources like EC2, you can use auto-scaling to automatically adjust the number of instances, based on demand. This keeps your use of resources in check, allowing you to only pay for what you need and at when you need it. In this way, when demand is high, it automatically scales up/out, and when it is low, it automatically scales down/in.
3. Set Budget Alerts: AWS allows you to set up budget alerts, which helps to monitor your spending. It is a way of ensuring you stay within your startup's budget, and take caution on how best to manage your resources.
Security Best Practices As a Cost-effective Solution in AWS
When using cloud services, it is important to keep security in mind. Here are some of the security best practices you should consider when using the cloud.
1. Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): This is your first line of defence when your account is susceptible to unusual activities. MFA adds an extra layer of security to your AWS account. It’s a simple but effective way to protect your environment.
2. Apply the Principle of Least Privilege: This principle requires that you grant only the permissions necessary for users to perform their tasks, without giving extra permissions that are not relevant to their role, helping to minimize the risk of accidental or malicious changes to your AWS environment.
Conclusion
There is a thin line between managing costs and ensuring security when setting up a cost-effective AWS environment for a small tech startup. However, it is not a big deal when you get familiar with the AWS management console, understand how to navigate through the resources, and most importantly, be able to use the IAM service effectively.
Keep in mind that the key to maintaining a cost-effective AWS environment is continuous monitoring and adjusting your initial setup as your startup grows and you begin to utilize more resources and services. By following the steps provided in this article, you will be able to create a cost-effective AWS environment for your startup without having to break the bank.