Title
AWS re:Invent 2022 - Automating AMIs for reliability, security, and cost (PRT074)
Summary
- The session focused on automating Amazon Machine Images (AMIs) through a factory-led approach to improve reliability, security, and cost-efficiency.
- EC2 remains a highly customizable platform, but managing AMIs at scale can be challenging.
- An AMI factory approach helps large enterprises manage AMIs efficiently, ensuring they are functional, cost-effective, and meet performance requirements.
- Hitachi Vantara offers a unique perspective by treating cloud workloads as products, integrating non-functional requirements into the development process.
- Emphasis on reliability and resiliency, including failure mode effect analysis and chaos engineering for AMIs.
- Integration of DevSecOps throughout the AMI lifecycle, from design to production, ensuring visibility and control over cost, reliability, security, and availability.
- The AMI factory includes a hardened OS image, security and monitoring agents, a solid CMDB, and application packages.
- Tools like AWS EC2 Image Builder and Packer automate the AMI pipeline.
- The process includes design, build, validation, production readiness, deployment, and operational stages, with a focus on automation and observability.
- Outcomes of an AMI factory include up to 40% reduction in build effort, 30% reduction in human capital, 75% reduction in incidents, and an always-on business outcome with higher availability.
Insights
- The AMI factory concept is crucial for enterprises that need to manage a large number of AMIs, ensuring they are updated, secure, and optimized for cost.
- Treating cloud workloads as products with a common backlog for features and non-functional requirements is a strategic approach that can lead to more cohesive and reliable cloud operations.
- The integration of DevSecOps principles throughout the AMI lifecycle ensures that security and operational considerations are not afterthoughts but are embedded from the start.
- Automation is a key theme, with tools like AWS EC2 Image Builder and Packer streamlining the AMI creation process, reducing manual effort, and minimizing the potential for human error.
- The focus on reliability and resiliency, including proactive measures like chaos engineering, indicates a shift towards more robust and fault-tolerant cloud infrastructure.
- The reported outcomes of implementing an AMI factory demonstrate significant efficiency gains and operational improvements, which can translate into tangible business benefits.