It’s important to monitor your Amazon Web Services (AWS) environment to make sure that you get the performance you need, security is maintained, and developers are able to be productive. AWS provides numerous tools that let you stay on top of your cloud; most can be accessed through the AWS Management Console or through APIs. Amazon uses these same tools for managing its own AWS development environments, so it’s clear that the tools are effective.
AWS Cloud Monitoring and Management Tools
Here’s a look at some of the most important tools available for managing your AWS cloud:
- AWS Config. AWS Config lets you get a close look at how your AWS resources are configured. Define your desired state configuration (DSC) and verify resources against it to ensure compliance with business rules. AWS Config tracks configuration changes, letting you know who made them and what the impacts were. Configurations that don’t meet the DSC trigger notifications.
- AWS CloudTrail. Because so many AWS services are accessed through APIs, monitoring API usage is critical to maintaining security over your environment. AWS CloutTrail preserves an audit log of the API calls your AWS accounts make.
- Amazon Inspector. Assess the security of your AWS applications automatically using Amazon Inspector. The Inspector agent uses a knowledgebase of best practices to identify vulnerabilities in Elastic Compute Cloud instances, such as allowing remote root login or systems needing patches.
- AWS CloudFormation. Simplify your cloud configuration process and ensure consistency across environments by using AWS CloudFormation. CloudFormation lets you define your AWS configuration through templates and allows you to easily standardize your environments.
- AWS OpsWorks. Automate your deployment procedures using AWS OpsWorks, which supports Chef Automate and Puppet Enterprise. The tools simplify package installation and system configuration tasks. Templates mean you don’t have to start from scratch to build your environment.
- AWS Systems Manager. Consolidate your AWS resources into groups in AWS Systems Manager so you can easily view resources like EC2 and RDS instances on an application basis. Investigating application issues is simplified when all resources are viewed from a single console. AWS EC2 Systems Manager includes support for running scripts, deploying patches, and automating routine maintenance.
- Amazon CloudWatch. Use CloudWatch to monitor application resource utilization, collect metrics, and trigger alarms when thresholds are exceeded. CloudWatch can collect both standard metrics for Amazon resources and custom metrics for your own applications.
Not sure where to start? AWS Trusted Advisor evaluates your environment and provides suggestions to help you manage costs, improve performance, increase security, increase fault tolerance, manage service limits, and follow AWS best practices.
Another way to get a handle on your AWS environment is through managed Amazon Web Services support from dcVAST. Our team takes a proactive approach to overseeing your AWS infrastructure, ensuring your AWS architecture supports your business needs and protects your business information. Contact us to learn more about how managed AWS can help you make the most of your cloud.
