Different types of workloads require different resources. Some applications need more computing power, while others might require more storage or higher network performance. In this article, we’ll discuss the appropriate use of various EC2 instance types, focusing on examples such as compute-optimized and storage-optimized instances, which play an integral role in the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C02) exam.
Amazon EC2 Instance Types
Amazon EC2 provides a variety of instance types that are optimized to fit different use cases, based on the combination of memory, storage, computing capacity, and networking capacity. They are grouped into five major categories:
- Compute optimized (C)
- Memory optimized (R & X)
- Storage optimized (I & D)
- Accelerated computing (P & G)
- General purpose (A, T & M)
Compute Optimized Instances
Compute optimized instances (C) are designed for applications that require high-performance processors. These instances are an excellent fit for compute-bound applications that can benefit from high-performance processors. They are well-suited for batch processing workloads, media transcoding, high-traffic frontend fleets, and distributed analytics.
An example of a compute-optimized instance is the C5 instance. This instance type provides a high ratio of compute resources per dollar, making it cost-effective for compute-intensive workloads. It uses the latest generation Intel Xeon Scalable processors, which deliver a considerable improvement in performance compared to previous generation C4 instances.
Storage Optimized Instances
Storage-optimized instances (I & D) are designed for workloads that require high, sequential read and write access to very large data sets on local storage. They’re optimized to deliver tens of thousands of low-latency, random I/O operations per second (IOPS) to applications.
I3 instances are a great example of storage-optimized instances. These are best suited for NoSQL databases like Cassandra and MongoDB, scale-out transactional databases, data warehousing, Elasticsearch, analytics workloads, and in-memory databases.
Choosing the Right EC2 Instance
Choosing the correct type of EC2 instance for your application depends on the workload and its resource requirements. Here are some of the questions to consider when making your choice:
- Does the application need more CPU, memory, or storage?
- What type of storage does the application require? SSD or HDD?
- How does the application perform network operations, and what performance does it require?
By understanding and categorizing your workload, you can better match it to the most cost-effective and performance-efficient EC2 instance.
To summarize, compute-optimized instances are designed for compute-heavy applications, offering high-performance processors. On the other hand, storage-optimized instances provide high read and write access for large data sets, making them ideal for data warehousing, NoSQL databases, distributed file systems, etc. As an AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, understanding these differences and knowing how to choose the right EC2 instance type based on the workload requirements is key to designing efficient and cost-effective solutions on AWS.
Practice Test
True or False: Compute optimized instances are recommended for data-intensive workloads such as distributed analytics.
- False
Answer: False.
Explanation: Compute optimized instances are designed for compute-bound applications like scientific modelling, whereas storage optimized instances are best for data-intensive tasks.
Multiple Select: Which of the following AWS EC2 instance types are best for memory-intensive applications?
- a) Storage Optimized Instances
- b) Memory Optimized Instances
- c) Compute Optimized Instances
- d) General Purpose Instances
Answer: b. Memory Optimized Instances.
Explanation: Memory optimized instances are designed to deliver fast performance for workloads that process large data sets in memory.
Single Select: What type of EC2 instance would be best for a general-purpose application with an equal balance of memory and computing needs?
- a) Storage Optimized Instances
- b) Memory Optimized Instances
- c) Compute Optimized Instances
- d) General Purpose Instances
Answer: d. General Purpose Instances.
Explanation: General purpose instances provide a balance of compute, memory, and networking resources.
True or False: As per the use case, it’s always better to choose the cheapest instance type.
- False
Answer: False.
Explanation: Choosing the instance type largely depends on the use-case, workload and application requirements, not just cost.
Multiple Select: Which of the following EC2 instance types are best suited for relational databases?
- a) Storage Optimized Instances
- b) Memory Optimized Instances
- c) Compute Optimized Instances
Answer: a. Storage Optimized Instances, b. Memory Optimized Instances.
Explanation: Relational databases require high I/O and good balance between compute and memory, which are offered by memory and storage optimized instances.
Single Select: Which EC2 instance types are optimal for high-performance databases?
- a) Memory Optimized Instances
- b) Compute Optimized Instances
- c) Storage Optimized Instances
Answer: c. Storage Optimized Instances.
Explanation: Storage optimized instances are designed for workloads that require high, sequential read and write access to large data sets.
True or False: It’s not possible to change EC2 instance type after launching it.
- False
Answer: False.
Explanation: You can change the instance type after launching it by stopping the instance, changing its type, and restarting it.
Multiple Select: When are compute-optimized instances typically used?
- a) High performance front-end fleets
- b) Gaming servers
- c) High performance computing
- d) Data warehousing
Answer: a. High performance front-end fleets, b. Gaming servers, c. High performance computing.
Explanation: Compute optimized instances are used for compute-bound applications like gaming servers, high performance front-end fleets, and high-performance computing, not for data warehousing.
Single Select: What EC2 instance type would you use for an application with high network performance needs?
- a) Compute Optimized Instances
- b) GPU Instances
- c) Arm Instances
- d) High Memory Instances
Answer: a. Compute Optimized Instances.
Explanation: Compute Optimized instances deliver high performance for applications that are computationally intensive and require high networking performance.
True or False: Storage optimized instances are ideal for workloads that require low latency and high random I/O rates, like NoSQL databases.
- True
Answer: True.
Explanation: Storage-optimized instances are designed to deliver tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of low-latency, random I/O operations per second (IOPS) to applications.
Interview Questions
What is the main factor that differentiates instance types in AWS EC2?
EC2 instance types vary based on the balance of their resources. They could be compute optimized, memory optimized, storage optimized and more, tailored according to the needs of different applications.
What is a good use case for compute-optimized instances in AWS EC2?
Compute Optimized instances are well suited for compute-bound applications that benefit from high-performance processors. These include applications for scientific modeling, machine learning, and media transcoding.
What does a storage-optimized instance in AWS EC2 provide?
Storage Optimized instances provide high, sequential read and write access to large datasets on local storage, making them ideal for distributed file systems, data warehousing, and high-frequency online transaction processing (OLTP) systems.
Which instance is most appropriate for memory-intensive applications?
Memory Optimized instances are designed to deliver fast performance for workloads that process large data sets in memory such as SAP HANA, Redis, Memcached, and in-memory databases.
What is a key benefit of graphics optimized (G instance) EC2 instances?
Graphics optimized instances provide powerful GPU resources for graphics-intensive applications such as video encoding, 3D rendering, and gaming.
Which type of EC2 instance offers burstable performance?
T2 and T3 instance types offer burstable performance. They are designed to provide a baseline level of CPU performance with the added capability to burst above that baseline when needed.
What EC2 instance type should be used for workloads requiring high random I/O rates?
Storage Optimized (I3) instances would be best for workloads requiring high random I/O rates, such as NoSQL databases, in-memory databases, scale-out transactional databases, distributed file systems, and data warehousing.
When would you use FPGA instances in AWS EC2?
FPGA instances are designed for applications benefitting from custom, hardware acceleration such as genomics research, financial analytics, real-time video processing, big data search, etc.
Which AWS EC2 instances are designed for time-series forecasting, real-time analytics, and business intelligence?
Memory Optimized (R instances) and High Memory Instances are suitable for these tasks as they can quickly process large data sets.
What is the use case of Arm (A1) instances on AWS EC2?
A1 instances are based on AWS Graviton Processors that are custom built by Amazon Web Services using 64-bit Arm Neoverse cores. They are suitable for scale-out workloads such as web servers, containerized microservices, caching fleets, and distributed data stores that are supported by the extensive Arm ecosystem.
What is the primary feature of C5n instances in AWS EC2?
C5n instances feature the most advanced compute-optimized processors and deliver up to 100 Gbps of peak network bandwidth providing significantly more networking throughput and providing better performance.
Which EC2 instance type would be suitable for running a relational database service?
Memory optimized (R instances or X instances) would be suitable for running a relational database service as these databases often require high levels of memory to perform tasks.
When should you use a Bare Metal instance in AWS EC2?
Bare Metal instances should be used when you need to run applications that require access to the hardware feature set (such as Intel VT-x), for applications that need to run in non-virtualized environments for licensing or support requirements, or for those who wish to use their own hypervisor.
In Amazon EC2, which instances would you choose for gaming applications?
G instances or Graphics Optimized instances are best for gaming applications as they provide powerful GPU resources for graphics-intensive tasks.
What EC2 instance type is recommended for running Big Data workloads?
For running Big Data workloads, D2 instances (Dense Storage Instances) are advantageous because they offer high disk throughput and better price-disk ratio.
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