AWS Foundations
Become a
Solutions Architect
A volunteer-driven learning journey to help you master AWS cloud architecture — one week at a time.
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AWS Foundations
A volunteer-driven learning journey to help you master AWS cloud architecture — one week at a time.
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Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) is a web service that provides resizable compute capacity in the cloud. It is one of AWS's core services and forms the backbone of most cloud-based architectures.
EC2 is an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) offering — you rent virtual machines (called instances) and only pay for the compute time you use. No upfront hardware investment required.
An AMI is a template that defines your instance: operating system, pre-installed software, storage configuration. Think of it as a recipe — the EC2 instance is the "baked cake."
Security Groups act as a virtual firewall at the instance level. They control inbound and outbound traffic using rules based on protocol, port, and source/destination IP.
Instance types follow the naming pattern: <family><generation><attribute>.<size> — for example c5n.xlarge means Compute-optimised (c), 5th generation, high-network (n), extra-large.
| Family | Optimised For | Example Types | Use Cases |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Purpose | Balanced CPU, memory, networking | t3, m6i, m7g | Web servers, dev environments, small databases |
| Compute Optimised | High-performance processors | c5, c6g, c7g | Batch processing, HPC, gaming servers |
| Memory Optimised | Fast in-memory data processing | r6i, x2idn, z1d | In-memory databases, big data analytics, SAP |
| Storage Optimised | High sequential read/write I/O | i3, i4i, d3 | Data warehousing, distributed filesystems |
| Accelerated Computing | Hardware co-processors (GPU/FPGA) | p4, g5, inf2 | ML training, deep learning, video rendering |
AWS offers multiple purchasing options to match different workload patterns and cost objectives:
Pay by the second with no commitment. Ideal for unpredictable workloads or getting started.
1 or 3-year commitment for up to 72% savings. Best for steady-state, predictable workloads.
Flexible pricing with a commitment to a consistent usage amount ($/hr). Applies across instance families.
Up to 90% discount using unused AWS capacity. Can be interrupted — use for fault-tolerant workloads.
Physical server dedicated to your use. Required for compliance or existing per-socket software licenses.
Navigate to the EC2 Dashboard in the AWS Management Console and click Launch Instance.
Select Amazon Linux 2023 for the Free Tier. The AMI defines your OS and base software environment.
Choose t3.micro (Free Tier eligible) — 2 vCPUs, 1 GB RAM, burstable performance.
Create a Security Group allowing SSH (port 22) from your IP. Add HTTP (80) if hosting a web server.
User Data is a startup script that runs on first boot — this is called bootstrapping. Use it to install software automatically.
Create or select a key pair (.pem file), launch the instance, and connect via SSH or EC2 Instance Connect in the console.
Security in AWS is a shared responsibility between AWS and you:
Our volunteer team is preparing new content every week. Topics ahead include VPC, S3, IAM, RDS, Lambda, and much more.
BeSA — Become a Solutions Architect is a community platform created entirely by volunteers passionate about cloud technology and education. Our mission is to make AWS learning accessible, structured, and engaging for everyone — from beginners to those preparing for their Solutions Architect certification.
We believe knowledge should be free and shared. Each week our volunteer contributors craft hands-on content, challenges, and resources to guide you through your AWS journey.
