Managing Cloud Terminology: A Management Perspective


Most basic activities refer to the fundamentals of cloud computing, which a modern manager needs to become familiar with in general. One of the various cloud computing platforms is Amazon Web Services, commonly known as AWS. The managers who can apprehend the fundamentals of AWS can accordingly develop appropriate strategies and have worthwhile discussions for arriving at a viable decision or set of decisions with the technical teams. 


Introduction to Cloud Computing Using AWS

Cloud computing can be best thought of as renting office space. Suppose you're renting an office. That means somebody has to do the building maintenance and take care of anything relating to security, lighting, water, and sewage. Doing just that, AWS provides you with scalable, reliable, and secure IT resources.


Example: Think of AWS to the manager of the office building, who presents a suite of services to your business, including storage, databases, and servers, to mention but a few. It can save your team a lot of trouble when managing and running applications.


Alt text: Microsoft Azure vs. AWS



AWS SDK for Python; How to Launch an EC2 Instance on AWS Using AWS SDK for Python


Python

# Sample of launching an EC2 instance with the use of AWS SDK for Python (Boto3)
import boto3

ec2 = boto3.resource('ec2')

instance = ec2.create_instances(
        ImageId='ami-0abcdef1234567890',
        MinCount=1,
        MaxCount=1,
        InstanceType='t2.micro'
    )

print("New instance created:", instance[0].id)


This Python script will fire up an EC2 instance in AWS and prove cloud automation's easy and powerful.

AWS is one of the largest diversified portfolios in the cloud market, covering all business needs associated with the cloud, from computing/processing power to storage options for advanced cloud services like functions, machine learning, and analytics. 


Example: Businesses like Netflix can use storage in PB with AWS and outsource the headache of managing servers to them while deploying their services globally.

Alt text: Graph on the leadership of AWS in markets on cloud computing.

Source: Statista


JSON

{
"service": "AWS Lambda",
  "action": "CreateFunction",
  "parameters": {
    "FunctionName": "MyFunction",
    "Runtime": "python3.8",
    "Role": "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:role/service-role/MyLambdaRole",
    "Handler": "lambda_function.lambda_handler",
"Code": {
      "ZipFile": "fileb://function.zip"


The JSON code above translates into a request for an AWS Lambda function for those hoping to be in the know. It demonstrates AWS's granular capacity to host serverless functions.

If only the managers had known that AWS was around, they would have been in a position to connect their business strategies with the technology transition. This could have gone a long way toward marshaling available resources and ensuring a continuous competitive edge.



Practical Acronyms Decoded

Here are some common AWS acronyms:


Acronym

Full Form

Description

EC2

Elastic Compute Cloud

It is resizable computing capacity in a cloud. This makes Amazon cloud web-scalable cloud computing.

RDS

Relational Database Service

It makes it easier and more cost-effective to set up, operate, and scale the relation database setting in the lifecycle.

VPC

Virtual Private Cloud

It gives the user a second way to provision a logically isolated section of the AWS cloud, making it possible to launch resources on a self-service basis.

IAM

Identity and Access Management

It allows secured access to AWS services and resources.






Core AWS Services

Here are some of the core AWS services:

Amazon EC2

It allows a company to rent virtual computers to run its applications. Amazon EC2 provides flexible, resizeable computing capacity and makes it easier for developers to use web-scale cloud computing. For instance, if a company needs more computing power to process vast amounts of data, it can choose an independent instance type according to the requirement: high-CPU instances, high-memory instances, or GPU instances.


Below is an example of how a command would look to run an EC2 upon the AWS CLI: 


bash 

aws ec2 run-instances 

   --image-id ami-0abcdef1234567890 

   --count 1 

   --instance-type t2.micro 

   --key-name MyKeyPair 

   --security-groups my-sg


This command will create a t2.micro instance in the defined AMI and security group.

Amazon S3

Amazon S3 represents an IaaS: infinite data storage and backups. For example, there can be a case where a marketing company has terabytes of digital assets with images, videos, and documents to store. The data is secure, durable, and highly available in all cases.

Amazon RDS

Amazon RDS is a service that helps in the setup, operation, and increase of a relation DB in the cloud while experiencing the simplicity and cost-effectiveness in renting the buggering up e-commerce family's capacity of storage as well as memory and grows to continue doing so. It allows me to spend more time focusing on matters about nurturing and being free from clouds of bureaucracy. Here, it refrains the implementation efficiency's shelf life regarding an inventory and customer data management system applied by an e-commerce site, for instance, that uses Amazon RDS for ease of setup, which will also back up and patch automatically.


AWS Lambda

AWS Lambda can run your code without requiring you to provision or manage servers. It automatically scales your application by running your code in response to triggers, such as changes to data or system state. For example, a company can use Lambda to automatically generate thumbnails even after uploading images.

Amazon CloudFront

With low latency and fast transfer speeds, Amazon CloudFront is a quick content delivery network (CDN) solution that securely sends data, videos, apps, and APIs to clients all over the world. For instance, an e-commerce website can use the CloudFront service to efficiently deliver product images and videos.

Amazon Route 53

Amazon Route 53 is a scalable and highly available Domain Name System (DNS) web service. This service is designed to route end-users toward Internet applications by translating names within the domain to Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. For example, a business can use Route 53 to route users' requests between the business and the web application endpoint hosted on AWS.

Amazon Lightsail 

Amazon Lightsail is the platform on Amazon Web Services that enables the user to create back-ends for his application or website in the cloud amazingly easily: you get virtual servers, storage, databases, and networking. Therefore, it is fulfilled with simplicity and is more appropriate for simple workloads, quick deployments, and forays into AWS. For example, a small business could quickly pivot and launch a WordPress site in Lightsail.


Example of creating a Lightsail instance using the AWS CLI:


Bash

aws lightsail create-instances \
--instance-names MyFirstInstance \
    --availability-zone us-east-1a \
    --blueprint-id Wordpress \
    --bundle-id micro_2_0


 This would create a Lightsail instance of blueprint WordPress in the selected Availability zone.




Essential Terms Every Manager Should Know

Consider the technology that is revolutionizing the concept, revolutionizing work in general, and directly affecting the profile of the professional to whom the manager directs their business. 


Serverless Computing (AWS Lambda)

AWS Lambda is an occasion-pushed, serverless computing provider that permits you to run code without managing or provisioning infrastructure. Just load your code, and Lambda takes care of everything required to run and scale that code with high availability.


Example: An S3 bucket where a Lambda function will process any uploads from users without any servers to manage.


Sample Lambda function handler in Python:


Python

def lambda_handler(event, context):
return "Hello, World!"


 This simple function will return "Hello, World!" any time it runs.


Scalability and Elasticity

This just means that resources on AWS can automatically expand or contract based on demands. A use case: during a flash sale of an e-commerce website, the website will scale according to the surge in traffic. The website itself cannot do this.


Sample configuration of Auto Scaling:


bash

aws autoscaling create-auto-scaling-group \
--auto-scaling-group-name my-asg \
--launch-configuration-name my-lc \
--min-size 1
--max-size 10 \
--desired-capacity 2 \
--availability-zones us-west-2a us-west-2b


This will enable the Auto Scaling group to auto-scale, ensuring only 1 to 10 instances.


AWS Cloud Security and Compliance

AWS is widely known to have very tough requirements for securing and fully complying with international regulatory provisions. For example, with the assistance of AWS, most healthcare providers are able to store a great deal of patients' information with fuller assurance that it is in compliance with HIPAA.


They provide encryption, network firewalls, and compliance certificates, ensuring that they take due care for data protection and that the system complies with the regulations.



Application of Cloud Terminology in Management

Here are some of the real-life applications of AWS in various businesses:

Strategic Applications

  • Scalability: Netflix scales video streaming services globally with millions of concurrent connections on AWS.

  • Cost-effective: Airbnb scales up its capacity automatically; hence, using AWS would have only extracted the right amount of supply when it was required, allowing costs to be well managed.

  • Innovative: Spotify must be able to use AWS analytics and machine learning to find the data notion and recommend much better music.


Alt Text: AWS Scalability Infographic


Comparative Insight

  • Azure Virtual Machines vs. AWS EC2 vs. Google Compute Engine: The virtual servers and the depth of what is provided vary, along with their respective pricing. 

  • Azure SQL Database vs. AWS RDS vs. Google Cloud SQL: This is a fully managed relational database with differences in integrations, balance, and support.


While AWS provides EC2 against computing needs, Azure is with Virtual Machines and Google Cloud with Compute Engine. Growing in such an easy way, as demonstrated here, this kind of understanding helps one choose the provider most fitting for their particular business needs.

Alt text: Comparing cloud services between AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud.




Best Practices

Below are some of the best practices involved in cloud management:


  • Training: Deliver training at periodic intervals that are frequent enough to keep every team up to date on AWS's newly launched services.

  • Inter-Department Meetings: A monthly interfacing meeting of departments like IT and management can discuss issues related to applications and enhancements of AWS.


With this understanding of key elements, managers will be better positioned to take advantage of AWS's ability to innovate business models, move companies ahead, and ensure competitiveness in a fast-changing digital world.




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Docker Bridge Network: Connecting Containers with Virtual Networks

Top Restaurant Marketing Metrics You Must Track

Green Living: - An In-demand Lifestyle For The People Of This Planet