: Your website experiences varying levels of traffic

throughout the day. How can you ensure that your Amazon
EC2 instances automatically scale up and down based on
demand?

You can use Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling to automatically adjust the
number of instances based on predefined scaling policies. Define
scaling policies based on metrics like CPU utilization or network traffic.
When traffic increases, EC2 Auto Scaling adds more instances, and
when traffic decreases, it removes instances, ensuring optimal
performance and cost efficiency.

Reference Links:

Mastering Amazon Auto Scaling: Practical POCs and Use

Cases

Q : You have an application that requires extremely low-

latency communication between instances. How can you

achieve this on Amazon EC2?

To achieve low-latency communication between instances, you can use

EC2 Placement Groups. Placement Groups enable instances to be
placed in close proximity within the same Availability Zone (AZ). There
are two types of Placement Groups: Cluster Placement Groups for low-
latency and High-Performance Computing (HPC) workloads and
Spread Placement Groups for critical instances that require maximum
separation to minimize the risk of simultaneous failure.

Q : Your application needs to store sensitive data, and you

want to ensure that the data is encrypted at rest on EC2

instances. How can you enable this encryption?

To encrypt data at rest on EC2 instances, you can use Amazon Elastic
Block Store (EBS) volumes with encryption enabled. When creating or
modifying an EBS volume, you can specify the use of AWS Key
Management Service (KMS) to manage the encryption keys. Data
written to the EBS volume is automatically encrypted, and it remains
encrypted at rest.

Q : Your team is developing a containerized application

and wants to deploy it on EC2 instances. Which service can

you use to manage the containers on EC2 efficiently?

You can use Amazon Elastic Container Service (ECS) or Amazon

Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) to manage containers on EC2
instances. ECS is a fully-managed service for running containers at
scale, while EKS provides Kubernetes management capabilities for
container orchestration. Both services simplify the process of
deploying, managing, and scaling containerized applications on EC2
instances.

Q : Your application requires GPU capabilities for

machine learning or graphics-intensive workloads. How can

you launch EC2 instances with GPU support?

You can launch EC2 instances with GPU support by selecting an

instance type that offers GPU resources. Examples of such instances
include the “p3” and “g4” instance families. These instances are
optimized for different GPU workloads, and you can choose the one
that best fits your specific use case.

Q : You need to ensure that your EC2 instances are

running in a private network and are not directly accessible

from the internet. How can you achieve this?

To run EC2 instances in a private network without direct internet

access, you can place them in an Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC)
with private subnets. To access the instances securely, you can set up a
bastion host (jump host) in a public subnet, which acts as a gateway for
connecting to the private instances through SSH or RDP.
Q : You want to enhance the security of your EC2

instances by restricting incoming traffic only to specific IP

addresses. How can you implement this security measure?

To restrict incoming traffic to specific IP addresses on EC2 instances,

you can configure security group rules. Security groups act as virtual
firewalls and allow you to control inbound and outbound traffic. By
specifying the desired IP ranges in the inbound rules, you can ensure
that only traffic from those IP addresses is allowed to reach the
instances.

Q : Your organization needs to store and share data files

across multiple EC2 instances. What service can you use to

achieve scalable and durable file storage?

You can use Amazon Elastic File System (EFS) to achieve scalable and
durable file storage for multiple EC2 instances. EFS provides a
managed file system that can be mounted concurrently by multiple
instances within a VPC. It supports the Network File System (NFS)
protocol and automatically scales capacity as data grows.
Q : Your team wants to minimize the cost of running EC2

instances for non-production environments (e.g.,

development and testing). How can you achieve cost savings
without compromising availability?

To minimize costs for non-production environments while maintaining

high availability, you can use EC2 Spot Instances. Spot Instances allow
you to bid on spare EC2 capacity, and they can significantly reduce
costs compared to On-Demand Instances. However, keep in mind that
Spot Instances can be terminated when the Spot price exceeds your
bid, so they are best suited for stateless and fault-tolerant workloads.

Q : Your application requires the ability to quickly recover

from instance failure and ensure data durability. What type

of Amazon EBS volume is recommended for such scenarios?

To ensure data durability and quick recovery from instance failure, you
can use Amazon EBS volumes with the “io1” (Provisioned IOPS) type.
“io1” volumes provide the highest performance and reliability and are
ideal for critical workloads that demand consistent and low-latency
performance.
Q : Your organization needs to control the launch

permissions of Amazon Machine Images (AMIs) and prevent

accidental termination of EC2 instances. What AWS service
can help you manage these permissions effectively?

You can use AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) to manage
launch permissions for AMIs and control who can launch instances
from specific AMIs. IAM allows you to define policies that restrict or
grant permissions for different users or groups. Additionally, IAM roles
can be used to control what actions EC2 instances are allowed to
perform, reducing the risk of accidental terminations.

Q : Your organization needs to host a web application that

requires consistent CPU performance and low latency.

Which EC2 instance type would you recommend, and why?

For applications requiring consistent CPU performance and low

latency, I would recommend using an EC2 instance from the “c5” or
“m5” instance families. Both families are designed for compute-
intensive workloads, with the “c5” instances offering higher CPU
performance and the “m5” instances providing a balance of compute
and memory resources.
Q : Your application involves batch processing of large

datasets. How can you optimize the EC2 instances for such a
workload?

For batch processing of large datasets, you can use EC2 instances from
the “r5” instance family, which is optimized for memory-intensive
workloads. By choosing an instance with sufficient memory, you can
avoid performance bottlenecks caused by frequent disk swapping,
enhancing the efficiency of your batch processing.

Q : You need to create a cost-effective, scalable, and fault-

tolerant web application architecture. How can you achieve

this with EC2?

To create a cost-effective, scalable, and fault-tolerant web application

architecture, you can use EC2 instances with Elastic Load Balancing
(ELB) and Auto Scaling. ELB distributes incoming traffic among
multiple EC2 instances, while Auto Scaling automatically adjusts the
number of instances based on demand, ensuring optimal performance
and cost-efficiency.
Q : Your team is developing a microservices-based

application and wants to deploy it on EC2 instances. What

are some best practices to ensure the scalability and
maintainability of the microservices architecture?

To ensure the scalability and maintainability of a microservices-based

application on EC2, consider the following best practices:

 Deploy each microservice on separate EC2 instances to achieve

isolation.

 Use containerization technology like Docker to package and

deploy microservices consistently.

 Implement an orchestration service like Amazon ECS or Amazon

EKS to manage the containerized microservices efficiently.

 Design microservices with loosely coupled communication to

enable independent scaling and deployment.

Q : Your organization needs to run a Windows-based

application on EC2 instances. How can you ensure that the

instances are automatically updated with the latest Windows
patches?
To automatically update Windows-based EC2 instances with the latest
patches, you can use AWS Systems Manager Patch Manager. Patch
Manager simplifies the process of managing Windows updates by
automating patching and providing insights into compliance and
patching status.

Q : Your application requires low-latency access to a

relational database. How can you optimize EC2 instances to

minimize database response times?

To minimize database response times and achieve low-latency access,

you can deploy EC2 instances in the same AWS Region and Availability
Zone as the database. Additionally, consider using Amazon RDS Read
Replicas to offload read traffic from the primary database, reducing the
load and improving overall database performance.

Q : Your application must handle spikes in traffic during

seasonal promotions. How can you ensure that the EC2

instances scale up automatically during peak times and scale
down during off-peak times?

To automatically scale EC2 instances during peak and off-peak times,

you can use Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling with scheduled scaling policies.
Set up a schedule to increase the desired capacity before the expected
peak traffic and decrease it afterward. EC2 Auto Scaling will adjust the
number of instances based on the schedule, ensuring you have the
right capacity when you need it.

Q : Your organization is migrating a legacy application to

AWS EC2. The application requires direct access to the

underlying hardware. What EC2 feature can you use to fulfill
this requirement?

To gain direct access to the underlying hardware, you can use Amazon
EC2 Dedicated Hosts. EC2 Dedicated Hosts provide dedicated physical
servers to run your instances, allowing you to launch instances on
specific hardware for compliance, licensing, or regulatory
requirements.

Q : Your team is running multiple applications on EC2

instances, and you want to optimize costs by leveraging

unused compute capacity. What EC2 pricing option should
you choose?

To optimize costs and leverage unused compute capacity, you can use
Amazon EC2 Spot Instances. Spot Instances allow you to bid on spare
EC2 capacity, typically providing significant cost savings compared to
On-Demand Instances. However, be aware that Spot Instances can be
terminated when the Spot price exceeds your bid.

Q : You need to migrate an on-premises virtual machine

(VM) to AWS EC2. What service can you use to simplify the
VM migration process?

To simplify the migration of on-premises VMs to AWS EC2, you can

use AWS Server Migration Service (SMS). SMS allows you to automate,
schedule, and track incremental replications of VMs from your data
center to AWS, reducing the complexity of the migration process.

Q : Your application requires frequent changes and

updates, and you want to test new features without affecting

the production environment. How can you achieve this with
EC2?

To test new features and changes without affecting the production

environment, you can create an Amazon Machine Image (AMI) of the
existing production EC2 instance. Launch a new EC2 instance using
the AMI in a separate testing environment. This isolated environment
allows you to experiment and validate changes before applying them to
the production instance.
Q : You want to implement data encryption in transit for

communication between your EC2 instances and Amazon S3.

How can you achieve this security measure?

To implement data encryption in transit between EC2 instances and

Amazon S3, use Amazon S3 Transfer Acceleration with SSL/TLS
encryption enabled. By enabling Transfer Acceleration, data is
transferred over an optimized network path with encryption,
improving upload and download speeds while ensuring data security.

Q : Your application relies on stateful connections

between clients and servers, and you need to preserve these

connections even if an EC2 instance fails. What service can
you use to achieve this?

To preserve stateful connections even if an EC2 instance fails, you can

use Elastic IP addresses (EIPs) in combination with Auto Scaling.
Associate an EIP with an EC2 instance to create a static public IP
address that remains associated with the instance even if it is
terminated. Auto Scaling will automatically replace any failed instances
and associate the EIP with the new instance, preserving the client
connections.
Q : Your development team needs to share sensitive data

securely between EC2 instances. How can you set up a secure

communication channel for this purpose?

To set up a secure communication channel between EC2 instances, you

can use Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) peering or AWS PrivateLink. VPC
peering allows you to connect VPCs within the same AWS account
privately. AWS PrivateLink enables secure and private communication
between VPCs and supported AWS services without traversing the
internet.

Q : Your organization requires on-premises resources to

communicate securely with EC2 instances within a VPC.

How can you establish a secure connection between your on-
premises network and the VPC?

To establish a secure connection between your on-premises network

and an EC2 instance within a VPC, you can use AWS Site-to-Site VPN
or AWS Direct Connect. Site-to-Site VPN creates an encrypted tunnel
over the internet, whereas Direct Connect provides a dedicated
connection through a private network link.
Q : Your team wants to ensure that only authorized

personnel can access the EC2 instances via SSH. What

security measure should be implemented?

To ensure that only authorized personnel can access the EC2 instances
via SSH, you should configure the security group rules to allow
inbound SSH access only from specific IP addresses or ranges
associated with authorized personnel. Additionally, you can manage
SSH access using IAM roles and AWS Systems Manager Session
Manager for secure remote management.

Q : Your organization wants to ensure that EC2 instances

are protected against common security threats and

vulnerabilities. What service can you use to monitor and
assess the security posture of your instances?

You can use Amazon Inspector to monitor and assess the security
posture of your EC2 instances. Amazon Inspector automatically
assesses instances for vulnerabilities and security deviations based on
predefined rulesets, providing you with detailed findings and
recommendations to enhance the security of your environment.
Q : Your application requires high network performance

and low latency communication between EC2 instances in

different Availability Zones. What service can you use to
achieve this requirement?

To achieve high network performance and low latency communication

between EC2 instances in different Availability Zones, you can use
Enhanced Networking with Elastic Network Adapter (ENA). ENA
optimizes network performance for EC2 instances, allowing for faster
and more reliable inter-instance communication.

Q : Your team wants to automate the process of managing

EC2 instances and their configurations. Which AWS service

can you use for this purpose?

You can use AWS Systems Manager to automate the process of

managing EC2 instances and their configurations. Systems Manager
provides a unified interface for managing EC2 instances, including
tasks like patch management, configuration management, and instance
inventory.
Q : You need to run Windows-based applications on EC2

instances, and your team requires remote desktop access for

management purposes. How can you enable remote desktop
access to Windows EC2 instances?

To enable remote desktop access to Windows EC2 instances, you need

to configure the Windows Firewall and EC2 Security Groups to allow
Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) traffic (port 3389). Additionally,
ensure that you have the necessary credentials to log in to the instances
remotely.

Q : Your team wants to monitor the performance of EC2

instances and set up alerts for abnormal behavior. What

AWS service can help you achieve this?

To monitor the performance of EC2 instances and set up alerts, you

can use Amazon CloudWatch. CloudWatch provides a comprehensive
set of monitoring and alerting capabilities, allowing you to collect and
track metrics, set alarms, and automatically react to changes in your
EC2 instances’ performance.
Q : You want to deploy your web application to multiple

regions to ensure high availability and low latency. What

AWS service can you use to automate the deployment
process across regions?

You can use AWS Elastic Beanstalk to automate the deployment

process of your web application across multiple regions. Elastic
Beanstalk simplifies application deployment by automatically handling
capacity provisioning, load balancing, scaling, and application health
monitoring.

Q : Your organization needs to ensure data privacy and

compliance by restricting access to EC2 instances based on

user roles. How can you achieve this?

To restrict access to EC2 instances based on user roles, you can use
AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) to manage user
permissions. Define IAM roles with specific permissions and assign
them to users or groups. Users can access the EC2 instances based on
the permissions associated with their roles.
Q : Your application requires a mix of Linux and Windows

instances to handle different tasks. Can you use the same

security groups for both Linux and Windows instances?

Yes, you can use the same security groups for both Linux and Windows
instances. Security groups are a stateful firewall that controls inbound
and outbound traffic based on rules you define, regardless of the
operating system.

Q : Your team wants to ensure that your EC2 instances are

accessible over the internet while still being protected from

unauthorized access. What security measure can you
implement?

To ensure that your EC2 instances are accessible over the internet
while being protected, you can use a combination of security groups
and Network Access Control Lists (NACLs). Security groups control
inbound and outbound traffic for EC2 instances, while NACLs control
traffic to and from subnets, providing an additional layer of security.
Q : Your application requires persistent data storage that

survives instance termination. What storage option can you

use on EC2 for this purpose?

For persistent data storage that survives instance termination, you can
use Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS) volumes. EBS volumes are
durable, block-level storage devices that can be attached to EC2
instances and persist independently of the instance lifecycle.

Q : Your organization wants to ensure that EC2 instances

are launched only within specific AWS Regions. How can you
enforce this policy?

To enforce the launching of EC2 instances within specific AWS

Regions, you can use AWS Service Control Policies (SCPs) with AWS
Organizations. SCPs allow you to set permissions that apply to the
entire organization or specific organizational units, ensuring that
instances are launched only in approved regions.

Q : Your application processes a large number of data

records, and you want to distribute the workload efficiently

across multiple EC2 instances. What AWS service can you
use for this purpose?

To distribute the workload efficiently across multiple EC2 instances,

you can use Amazon Elastic MapReduce (EMR). EMR is a managed
service that simplifies the processing of large datasets using popular
data processing frameworks like Apache Hadoop and Apache Spark.

Q : Your team is designing a solution for disaster recovery

and business continuity. How can you replicate EC2

instances and data across AWS Regions?

To replicate EC2 instances and data across AWS Regions for disaster
recovery, you can use AWS Disaster Recovery Solutions such as AWS
Backup, AWS Database Migration Service (DMS), and AWS Lambda
functions to automate the replication process.

Q : Your application requires instances with large

amounts of storage for database backups and archiving.

What EC2 instance family is best suited for this use case?

For applications that require instances with large amounts of storage,

you can use EC2 instances from the “i3” or “d2” instance families.
These instance families are optimized for storage-intensive workloads,
with “i3” instances offering high-performance local NVMe SSD storage,
and “d2” instances providing cost-effective HDD storage.

Q : Your application needs to support both IPv4 and IPv6

traffic. How can you ensure that EC2 instances can handle
both types of traffic?

To ensure that EC2 instances can handle both IPv4 and IPv6 traffic,
you need to enable dual-stack networking on your VPC. With dual-
stack enabled, EC2 instances can communicate with both IPv4 and
IPv6 addresses.

Q : Your organization needs to run a highly regulated

workload that requires strict access control and monitoring.

What AWS service can you use to enforce fine-grained access
permissions and logging?

To enforce fine-grained access permissions and logging for a highly

regulated workload, you can use AWS Identity and Access
Management (IAM) with AWS CloudTrail. IAM allows you to manage
user access to AWS resources, while CloudTrail provides detailed logs
of API calls made by users and services.
Q : Your organization wants to reduce costs for

development and testing environments, which are only

required during specific hours of the day. How can you
achieve cost savings?

To reduce costs for development and testing environments, you can

use EC2 Instance Scheduler. EC2 Instance Scheduler allows you to
automatically start and stop EC2 instances based on a defined
schedule, ensuring that instances are only running when needed.