AWS : Relational Database Service (RDS) - Basics Part 4

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How do you maintain my database ? How can I plan for it?

• Any maintenance that causes downtime (typically only a few times per year) will be scheduled in your maintenance window
• Operating system or Amazon RDS software patches are usually performed without restarting databases
• Database engine upgrades require downtime
    • Minor version upgrades — automatic or manually applied (Automatic not applicable in case of SQL Server, always manual)
    • Major version upgrades — manually applied
    • Version deprecations—three-to six-month notification before scheduled upgrades
• View upcoming maintenanceevents in your AWS Personal Health Dashboard

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How am I charged for Amazon RDS ?

• Database instance (instance hours)
    • Combination of Region + instance type + database engine + license (optional)
• Database storage (GB-mo)
    • Can be either provisioned (Amazon EBS) or consumed (Amazon Aurora)
    • Provisioned IOPS (IOPS-Mo) for IO1 storage type
    • Database I/O requests (IOs) for Amazon Aurora and Amazon EBS magnetic-storage types
• Backup storage (GB-mo
    • Size of backups and snapshots stored in Amazon S3
    • No charge for backup storage up to 100% of total database storage
• Data transfer (GB-mo)
    • Uses AWS regional data-transfer pricing

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How can I save money on my database?

• Amazon RDS Reserved Instances (RIs) provide a discount over on-demand prices
• Region, instance family, and engine of on-demand usage must match to apply benefit
• Amazon RDS RIs offer size flexibility for open-source and Oracle BYOL engines
• By default, RIs are shared between allaccounts in consolidated billing
• Use the RI utilization report to determinehow your RIs are being used
    • Support for RI coverage reportcoming soon

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Can I stop my database when it’s not in use?

• Stop and start a running database instance from the console or AWS CLI
• Available for single-AZ DB instances
• While instance is stopped, you only pay for storage
• Backup retention window is maintained while stopped
• Instances are restarted after 7 days
    • Pending maintenance operations are applied
    • Instances can be stopped again if desired

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AWS : Relational Database Service (RDS) - Basics Part 3

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How do I secure my Amazon RDS database?

• Amazon RDS is designed to be secure by default
• Network isolation with Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (Amazon VPC)
• AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM)-based resource-level permission controls
• Encryption at rest using AWS KMS (all engines) or Oracle/Microsoft TDE
• Use SSL protection for data in transit

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What does Amazon VPC provide?

• Places your instance in a private subnet, making it secure from public routes on the Internet
• Database instance IP firewall protection lets you securely control network configuration
• Turn off Public Accessibility in DB instance settings to restrict access outside Amazon VPC
• Use ClassicLink to network with non-VPC resources

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How do I grant access to my database?

• Use IAM to control who can perform actions on RDS resources
• Do not use AWS root credentials to manage Amazon RDS resources—you should create an IAM user for everyone, including yourself
• Can use AWS Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) to provide extra level of protection

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How do I encrypt my database?

- Use AWS KMS-based encryption in the AWS console
- No performance penalty for encrypting data
- Centralized access and audit of key activity
- Best practices
    • Encryption cannot be removed from DB instances
    • If source is encrypted, Read Replicas must be encrypted
    • Add encryption to an unencrypted DB instance by encrypting a snapshot copy

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How do I monitor my Amazon RDS database ?

- Amazon CloudWatch metrics
    • CPU/Storage/Memory•Swap usage
    • I/O (read and write)
    • Latency (read and write)
    • Throughput (read and write)
    • Replica lag
- Amazon CloudWatch Alarms
    • Similar to on-premises monitoring tools
- Enhanced monitoring for Amazon RDS
    • Access to over 50 CPU, memory, file system, and disk I/O metrics
    • Low as 1-second intervals
-Integration with third-party monitoring tools

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How do I improve database performance?

• Introducing Amazon RDS Performance Insights
• Measures DB Load: Average Active Sessions (AAS)
• Identifies database bottlenecks (Top SQL):
    • Easy
    • Powerful
• Identifies source of bottlenecks
• Enables problem discovery
• Adjustable time frame
    • Hour, day, week, and longer
• Coming soon for Amazon EBS-based Amazon RDS engines

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Can I know when service events happen?

• Amazon RDS uses Amazon SNS to receive notification when an event occurs
• Notifications can be in any form supported by Amazon SNS (email, a text message, or a call to an HTTP endpoint)
• Six different source types (DB instance, DB parameter group, DB security group, DB snapshot, DB cluster, DB cluster snapshot)
• 17 different event categories (availability, backup, deletion, configuration change, etc.)

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