Title

AWS re:Invent 2023 - How to manage applications at scale and innovate faster with AWS (COP328)

Summary

AWS introduced "application operations" to help manage and operate environments based on business applications rather than individual resources.
Customers expressed the need for tools to understand their applications' cost, security posture, and overall management.
AWS services such as CloudWatch Application Insights, Systems Manager, Application Manager, Resilience Hub, and Service Management Connections already supported the notion of an application.
Security Hub and Resource Explorer have been enhanced to become application-aware, allowing users to filter findings and resources by application.
Cost management services like Cost Explorer, budgets, cost and usage reports, and cost anomaly detection are now application-aware.
A new service will be announced that is application-aware at launch, with more services to be added under the application operations umbrella.
App Registry is the central hub where applications are defined and associated with resources.
AWS solutions like Well-Architected, Launch Wizard, CDK, and CloudFormation can automatically create applications in App Registry.
The AWS application tag is a new construct that ties resources to applications across AWS services.
Application Manager centralizes management and operational tasks for applications.
Group Lifecycle Events, Lambda, and EventBridge can be used to automate the addition of resources to applications based on existing tagging strategies.

The focus on application operations indicates a shift from resource-centric to application-centric management in AWS, aligning with how customers perceive their environments.
The introduction of the AWS application tag simplifies the association of AWS resources with applications, enabling a standardized approach across various AWS services.
Automation features such as Group Lifecycle Events and integration with Lambda and EventBridge can significantly reduce manual overhead and potential for human error when managing resources at scale.
The enhancements to existing services like Security Hub and Resource Explorer, along with the new application-aware service to be announced, show AWS's commitment to continuous innovation and addressing customer feedback.
The ability to manage applications without changing existing deployment processes or tagging strategies demonstrates AWS's focus on backward compatibility and minimizing disruption to customer workflows.
The central role of App Registry and the ability to automatically create applications through AWS solutions and infrastructure as code tools highlight the importance of seamless integration and ease of use in AWS's strategy.
The session's emphasis on demos and practical examples underscores AWS's approach to providing tangible, actionable solutions rather than just theoretical concepts.