Title

AWS re:Invent 2023 - Running OpenShift on AWS using Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA) (CON207)

Summary

• Introduction: Eric Chapman, a senior product manager at AWS, and Trey Haney, a container specialist at AWS, introduce the session on Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA).
• Audience Engagement: A brief interactive session reveals a mixed audience with varying experiences with OpenShift, ROSA, and Kubernetes.
• Agenda Overview: The talk covers customer requirements, the benefits of containerization, challenges, ROSA's solutions, deployment options, recent launches, upcoming features, and ends with a Q&A.
• Customer Requirements: Customers need quick innovation, operational focus on application delivery, reliability, security, cost efficiency, scalability, and automation.
• Containerization and Kubernetes: Containers offer consistent deployment and operational efficiency. Kubernetes helps with orchestration but requires integration of various components.
• ROSA Benefits: ROSA provides a managed Kubernetes service with built-in features, reducing operational burden and offering support across the entire stack.
• ROSA Deployment Models: Discussion of ROSA Classic vs. ROSA with Hosted Control Planes (HCP), including cost savings and infrastructure efficiency with HCP.
• Integration with AWS Services: ROSA integrates with AWS services like Direct Connect, Transit Gateway, and PrivateLink for secure and efficient operations.
• Migration and Management Tools: Tools like the migration toolkit for containers and Terraform support for infrastructure as code are available for ROSA.
• Service Enhancements and Roadmap: Updates include support for GPU instances, local zones, custom AWS resource tags, shared VPC support, and expansion into new AWS regions. Future plans include FedRAMP certifications, support for AWS Wavelength, and new instance families.
• Use Cases: Highlighting the use of ROSA for running IBM business software and the options for getting started with ROSA, including hands-on experiences, workshops, and proof of concepts.

Insights

• ROSA as a Managed Service: ROSA stands out as a managed service that simplifies Kubernetes operations, allowing customers to focus on application development rather than infrastructure management.
• Hybrid Cloud and Multi-Environment Support: ROSA supports hybrid cloud scenarios, enabling consistent management across on-premises and cloud environments, which is crucial for organizations with complex infrastructure.
• Cost Efficiency and Infrastructure Savings: The introduction of ROSA with HCP is a significant update that offers infrastructure cost savings and faster cluster spin-up times, addressing customer concerns about operational costs.
• Compliance and Certifications: ROSA's pursuit of compliance certifications like FedRAMP High and Medium indicates a strong commitment to security and regulatory compliance, which is essential for public sector customers and those with strict compliance requirements.
• Integration with AWS Ecosystem: ROSA's deep integration with the AWS ecosystem, including services like Direct Connect, Transit Gateway, and PrivateLink, showcases the seamless experience for customers leveraging AWS infrastructure.
• Focus on AI and Accelerated Compute: The support for NVIDIA-based GPU instances and plans for Graviton support reflect the growing demand for AI and machine learning workloads, positioning ROSA as a platform for AI ops.
• Support for Virtualization: The introduction of OpenShift virtualization on ROSA allows customers to run VMs alongside containers, facilitating migration for applications not yet ready for containerization.
• Infrastructure as Code: The Terraform support for ROSA underscores the importance of infrastructure as code for automating and managing cloud resources consistently and reliably.
• Strategic Partnerships: The use case of running IBM business software on ROSA highlights strategic partnerships and the potential for ROSA to host a variety of enterprise applications, expanding its market reach.