Day 6: Exploring AWS Database Services – RDS, DynamoDB, ElastiCache & Redshift
AkankshaToday’s focus was on understanding how AWS handles databases – both relational and non-relational. I explored RDS, DynamoDB, ElastiCache, and Redshift, and also got hands-on with a few configurations. Here's what I covered -
Amazon RDS – Relational Database Service
RDS is AWS’s managed relational database solution. It takes care of the heavy lifting like backups, patching, and monitoring.
What I learned:
Supports multiple engines: MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB, SQL Server, Oracle, Aurora
Multi-AZ setup ensures high availability
You can create Read Replicas to reduce load on the primary DB
Backup options: Manual Snapshots and Automated Backups
Uses DB Subnet Groups to control which AZs the DB can live in
In the lab:
I launched an RDS instance inside a custom VPC
Configured Multi-AZ deployment
Took a manual snapshot
Set up monitoring via CloudWatch
DynamoDB – NoSQL Database
DynamoDB is AWS's serverless NoSQL offering. It’s fast, scalable, and perfect for key-value workloads.
What I learned:
It’s fully managed and serverless
Uses partition keys and optional sort keys
Stores data across multiple AZs by default
Comes with features like DAX (in-memory caching) and Global Tables for multi-region access
Good for real-time apps where low latency is critical.
ElastiCache – In-Memory Caching
ElastiCache provides managed Redis or Memcached instances to cache data and reduce database load.
Key takeaways:
Improves performance by serving frequently accessed data from memory
Great for session management, gaming leaderboards, real-time analytics
Supports high availability and failover in Redis
Redshift – Data Warehousing
Redshift is a powerful data warehouse for running analytical queries on huge datasets.
Quick notes:
Uses columnar storage and MPP (Massively Parallel Processing)
Ideal for BI tools like QuickSight, Tableau
Can query data directly from S3 using Redshift Spectrum
Common Features Across Services
VPC support for network-level isolation
Encryption at rest and in transit
IAM for access control
Monitoring via CloudWatch
Automated backups and snapshots
All these services help build scalable, high-performance apps in the cloud without managing database infrastructure manually.
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