BYTE the Cloud

Chris 0:00
Welcome to the deep dive. Oh, awesome.

Kelly 0:01
Glad to be here.

Chris 0:03
Today we're diving deep into AWS Systems Manager. I think this is going to be a really valuable one for a lot of folks out there,

Kelly 0:10
for sure, for sure, it's one of those services that can really make a difference in how you manage your you know, cloud infrastructure, especially

Chris 0:19
for cloud engineers, right, right? Like, I'm thinking of our listener right now, you know, probably mid level cloud engineer dealing with these increasingly complex systems. Yeah,

Kelly 0:27
absolutely. It's like the complexity just keeps growing and growing Exactly.

Chris 0:31
And Systems Manager can kind of be like that, that central control panel that helps them wrangle everything right?

Kelly 0:36
It is, it is, and we'll, you know, we'll get into the nitty gritty of it, of course. But it's, it's really about giving you the tools to automate tasks and force configurations, troubleshoot issues, you know, all that good stuff, perfect.

Chris 0:49
So for our listener, you know, they might be familiar with AWS, but maybe not. Systems Manager specifically, what's the, what's the elevator pitch for this service?

Kelly 0:58
Okay? So imagine you've got this massive collection of AWS resources, right? You've got servers, you've got applications, all sorts of stuff. Systems Manager is, well, it's basically a suite of tools that helps you manage all that at scale. At scale. Okay, that's, that's a keyword. There it is. Because, you know, in the cloud, things can get pretty big pretty quickly,

Chris 1:18
absolutely. So let's get down to brass tacks here. Why should a cloud engineer care about Systems Manager? Like, what are the actual problems it solves? Well,

Kelly 1:29
think about the day to day, right? Like, you've got to patch hundreds of servers, maybe deploy software updates, make sure everything is consistent, and then, of course, there's troubleshooting. It's it can be a lot. Oh yeah, sounds like a headache. It can be, it can be, but that's where Systems Manager steps in. It helps you automate those tedious tasks, ensure things are consistent across your environment, and get real visibility into, well into what's going on with your systems.

Chris 1:55
Okay, yeah, I'm starting to see the appeal here. But can you give us some like, concrete use cases, like, let's say I'm responsible for, I don't know, a global application with servers spread across multiple regions. How does Systems Manager help me sleep better at night?

Kelly 2:09
Okay, So picture this. You need to roll out a critical security patch, like, right now. Oh, right. And you've got, you know, hundreds, maybe 1000s of servers. Instead of manually connecting to each one, you can use Systems Manager Run command to execute that patch installation remotely. Ooh,

Chris 2:27
remotely. That sounds way better than ssoshing into each box. Yeah,

Kelly 2:31
no more jumping from server to server. And you can track the progress of the whole thing in real time, so you know for sure that everything is getting patched and you're, you know you're secure. That's

Chris 2:41
huge, yeah, especially when you know time is of the essence. With these security updates, exactly,

Kelly 2:46
it's about speed and consistency. And speaking of consistency, let's talk about state manager. All right, state manager, what's that all about? So imagine you've got these specific security settings or or really any configuration that needs to be applied across your entire infrastructure. State Manager lets you define those configurations as code, and then it makes sure that every server is sticking to the rules. So it's

Chris 3:09
like an automated enforcer making sure all my servers are playing by the same rules

Kelly 3:14
precisely, and if any server steps out of line, state Manager automatically fixes it so you don't have to constantly be checking and re checking. That

Chris 3:21
sounds like a huge win for,

you know, maintaining security and compliance, especially in the cloud, where things can change so fast. Absolutely

Kelly 3:29
it's it takes a lot of the guesswork out of managing your infrastructure. And speaking of keeping track of things, let's talk about Systems Manager inventory.

Chris 3:39
Okay, inventory. So we're talking about keeping track of all my servers and software and what else

Kelly 3:45
everything. Inventory gives you this comprehensive view of all your AWS resources, operating systems, applications, network configurations, even custom tags you've added. It's like a detailed map of your entire infrastructure.

Chris 3:58
So like, if I need to know, you know, which servers are running a specific version of, I don't know, Java or something, I can just look it up in inventory, exactly.

Kelly 4:06
No more digging through spreadsheets, or, you know, trying to remember what's running where it's all right there. That's,

Chris 4:12
that's got to be a lifesaver for audits too, right? Oh, absolutely.

Kelly 4:15
Compliance becomes a breeze with inventory, you've got all the information you need right at your fingertips. Okay,

Chris 4:21
so we've covered automation, configuration management and inventory. What other goodies does Systems Manager have in store for us?

Kelly 4:29
Well, let's talk about secure access. Systems Manager, session manager, session

Chris 4:33
manager, okay, is that the one that lets you connect to your EC2 instances without needing SSH keys?

Kelly 4:40
That's the one. It uses IAM roles and and AWS managed infrastructure to create secure tunnels so you can ditch the SSH keys and still manage your instances securely

Chris 4:50
wait so I can say goodbye to managing SSH keys that sounds that sounds like a dream come true.

Kelly 4:56
It is pretty slick, and you can control access at a really great. Granular level record sessions for auditing, you know, all the good stuff. Okay, I'm starting

Chris 5:04
to see why they call Systems Manager The Swiss Army knife of AWS Management. But before we get too carried away, let's talk limitations. No tool is perfect, right,

Kelly 5:14
right. Systems Manager is powerful, but there's a, there's definitely a learning curve. It's got a lot of features. So it takes some time to, you know, to really master it. So it's

Chris 5:23
not just point and click. I actually have to, like, learn how to use it properly. Yeah, it's

Kelly 5:27
not a magic bullet. You got to put in some effort. And, you know, you got to be mindful of costs too. Some features are free, but some like automation, you know, those can incur charges, right, right? Always

Chris 5:39
good to keep an eye on the WS bill. But you know, before we move on to exam prep, let's talk about how Systems Manager fits into the bigger AWS ecosystem.

Kelly 5:49
It's designed to play nicely with other services like take CloudWatch, for example. You can use it to monitor all your Systems Manager activity set alarms for potential issues,

Chris 5:59
so if if if a patch deployment fails or something goes wonky with my configuration, I'll know right away

Kelly 6:06
exactly it's about being proactive, you know, preventing problems before they Snowball.

Chris 6:11
I like that. And what about I am? Oh, yeah, I am

Kelly 6:15
is key. You can use it to control who has access to what within Systems Manager, granular permissions and all that exactly. You don't want just anyone messing with your configurations. You need that fine grained control

Chris 6:26
Absolutely. And I'm also curious about AWS organizations, you know, managing policies across multiple accounts that can get messy. Oh, yeah,

Kelly 6:34
for sure. But Systems Manager integrates with organizations so you can manage things centrally. Delegate access to different teams. It keeps things organized. Okay?

Chris 6:44
That makes sense. So I can create, like, organization level policies and then apply them across all my accounts,

Kelly 6:50
exactly, consistency, consistency, consistency. It's the name of the game in the cloud. All

Chris 6:54
right, I think we've laid a good foundation here. Our listeners should have a good grasp of you know what Systems Manager, is why it's important all that. Yeah, we've covered the basics. Now, I know they're probably eager to hear about the exam prep side of things. What kinds of questions might they see on the AWS certification exam, you know, related to Systems Manager?

Kelly 7:15
Ooh, good question. Let's dive into that.

Chris 7:18
All right. Bring on the exam prep. Let's do it so state manager, it can handle a lot more than just security settings, right? Oh, absolutely.

Kelly 7:24
You can use it for, well, pretty much any configuration you can think of, installing software, managing firewalls, tweaking system settings, even deploying entire applications. It's, uh, it's pretty versatile, okay, so

Chris 7:36
let's say I need to make sure all my web servers, let's say they're all running the latest version of, I don't know, in Jinx, or Apache, whatever web server software. How would I do that with state manager? All right,

Kelly 7:49
so you'd create a state manager document. Right. In this document, it outlines the steps, the exact steps, to update that web server software. Okay, so

Chris 7:55
the document is like a set of instructions for state manager, exactly,

Kelly 7:58
and it could involve using a package manager, you know, like apt or Yum, downloading the latest software, maybe even running a custom script, if you need to. So

Chris 8:08
it's pretty flexible. I can tailor it to my specific needs. Oh, absolutely. It's

Kelly 8:12
all about defining that desired state, right? And then state manager make sure your servers match that state.

Chris 8:17
And this works for for both Linux and Windows servers. Yep, both Linux,

Kelly 8:21
Windows, you name it, state manager can handle it so you can manage your entire infrastructure. You know, keep everything consistent regardless of the operating system. This is

Chris 8:31
really making me rethink my whole approach to configuration management. It sounds so much, so much more efficient than what I've been

Kelly 8:38
doing. It is, it is it takes a lot of the manual work out of the equation. You define the state once, and then state manager takes care of the rest. Okay, let's

Chris 8:45
switch back to exam prep for a second. What kind of state manager question might pop up on the AWS certification exam?

Kelly 8:52
Okay, how about this? You're responsible for a bunch of EC2 instances, right? And these instances need to be patched regularly, but you know, you don't want to cause downtime during the patching process. So how would you use Systems Manager to make sure these instances are always up to date with security patches, but without disrupting things?

Chris 9:12
Ooh, that's a good one. Patching is so important, but yeah, downtime is a killer.

Kelly 9:16
It is. It is, and that's where Patch Manager comes in. It's a feature Well, it's specifically designed to handle patching in a in a streamlined and efficient way. Okay,

Chris 9:26
so Patch Manager, it's part of Systems Manager. Yep,

Kelly 9:29
it's one of the tools in the Systems Manager toolbox. Got it. Got it.

Chris 9:32
So how would Patch Manager help me in this scenario with the patching and the downtime and all that? All right?

Kelly 9:38
So with Patch Manager, you can define patching schedules, like you can specify when the patches should be applied, whether to reboot the instances afterward, you know, all that stuff. So

Chris 9:47
I can, like, schedule the patches to run during off peak hours when it's less likely to cause problems. Exactly.

Kelly 9:53
You set it up once, and Patch Manager takes care of the rest. It'll even handle different types of patches. Like. Operating System patches, application patches, even custom patches if you need them.

Chris 10:04
So it's pretty flexible. But what if? What if there's like, a critical security vulnerability, something that needs to be patched immediately? Can I use Patch Manager for that too?

Kelly 10:14
Oh, yeah, definitely. In addition to the scheduled patching, you can also do on demand patching. So if you need to patch something urgently, you could just trigger it manually and Patch Manager will take care of it. Okay, so

Chris 10:25
I've got options that's good. What else? What else about Patch Manager should I know for the exam? Like, are there any gotchas or things I should be aware of? One

Kelly 10:34
thing that's important is the integration with other AWS services, especially Security Hub and maintenance windows,

Chris 10:42
okay? Security hub, I'm familiar with that, but remind me about maintenance windows. What are those? Again? So

Kelly 10:46
a maintenance window, it's basically a predefined time slot, right? And during that time slot, you're giving Systems Manager permission to do its thing, you know, to perform actions like patching. So it's like

Chris 10:57
a window of opportunity for a Systems Manager to do maintenance work without causing disruptions, exactly.

Kelly 11:03
And you can schedule these maintenance windows to align with your you know, with your business needs and your maintenance schedules. Gotcha.

Chris 11:11
So if I combine Patch Manager with maintenance windows, I can make sure that my patching happens when it's least likely to cause problems

Kelly 11:19
Exactly. It's all about minimizing downtime and keeping those applications running smoothly.

Chris 11:25
Okay, that makes sense. Now, you know, we've been talking a lot about, you know, managing servers and patching and all that. But what about cost optimization? Can Systems Manager help with that too? Oh, absolutely.

Kelly 11:35
We talked about inventory earlier, right? Well, it's not just for keeping track of your resources, it can actually help you save money, really? How so well, inventory gives you all this detailed information about your EC2 instances, right? Like what instance type they are, what operating system they're running, all that,

Chris 11:51
right, right? But how does that translate into cost savings? By analyzing all

Kelly 11:56
that data, you can spot instances that are, you know, maybe underutilized, or maybe they're running software they don't actually need.

Chris 12:04
So it's like having an automated cost consultant constantly looking for ways to save me money.

Kelly 12:09
That's a great way to put it, and you can use that information to right size your instances, optimize your storage, maybe even terminate some unused resources.

Chris 12:18
Okay, I'm liking this cost optimization angle. It's like getting more bang for my buck with Systems Manager,

Kelly 12:24
exactly. And it's something that often comes up on the AWS certification exam. They want to see that you understand how to use Systems Manager, not just for managing resources, but also for optimizing costs. All right,

Chris 12:35
I'm definitely going to brush up on that now, before we move on, I'm curious about how Systems Manager handles you know, sensitive information, like, let's say I'm running scripts or commands that have passwords or other secrets in them, are those stored securely? Great.

Kelly 12:49
Question security is, well, it's always a top priority, right? And Systems Manager gives you a couple of ways to handle sensitive information. One option is to use Secrets Manager, okay? Secrets

Chris 13:00
manager, I've heard of that. It's like a vault for storing secrets, right? Exactly.

Kelly 13:05
You can store your passwords ATI, keys, database, credentials, all that stuff in Secrets Manager, and then you can reference those secrets from your Systems Manager documents, so I

Chris 13:16
don't have to hard code those secrets into my scripts or commands. Nope. You just

Kelly 13:19
reference them from Secrets Manager, and Systems Manager will fetch them securely at runtime. Ooh, that's clever and much more secure, definitely. And Systems Manager also has its own way of storing sensitive data called parameter store. It's it's kind of like a hierarchical store for configuration data

Chris 13:36
in secrets. So it's another option for storing those sensitive values. Yep, and you can control

Kelly 13:40
access to those parameters using IAM policies, so you can make sure that only the right people can see or modify them.

Chris 13:48
Okay, that makes sense. It's all about layers of security, right? Absolutely.

Kelly 13:51
And this integration with Secrets Manager and parameter store, it just shows how Systems Manager is designed to work within the, you know, within the whole AWS ecosystem. It all fits together.

Chris 14:02
This is fantastic stuff. I'm really starting to see how powerful Systems Manager is. But I know there's there's still more to explore.

Kelly 14:09
Oh, there's always more. What else do you want to dive into?

Chris 14:13
Well, let's talk about troubleshooting. You know, when things go wrong, what tools does Systems Manager give me to figure out what's going on and fix it.

Kelly 14:22
Ah, troubleshooting. Everyone's favorite topic. Well, one of the most useful tools is actually one we've already talked about, Run command. Run

Chris 14:30
command. I thought that was just for like, installing software and running scripts.

Kelly 14:34
It can do that, but it's also great for troubleshooting. You can use it to run diagnostic scripts, collect log files, even restart services all remotely. So

Chris 14:43
instead of logging into each instance individually, I can use Run command to do all that from a central location

Kelly 14:49
Exactly. It's like having a remote control for your entire infrastructure. And to make things even easier, Systems Manager integrates with CloudWatch logs and

Chris 14:58
X-Ray. Okay, those are familiar names. How do they help with troubleshooting? So

Kelly 15:01
CloudWatch logs, it lets you centralize all your log files. So instead of having to jump between instances, you can view everything in one place. And then you can use CloudWatch logs insights to query those logs, you know, filter them and try to pinpoint the root cause of a problem.

Chris 15:18
So it's like having a powerful search engine for my log files. That's

Kelly 15:21
a good way to put it, an x ray. Well, x ray is all about tracing requests. It shows you how requests flow through your application, so you can see where bottlenecks might be, or you know where errors are happening, so I

Chris 15:32
can get a really detailed view of what's going on, you know under the hood of my application Exactly.

Kelly 15:36
And Systems Manager also has this feature called support automation. It basically lets you automate common support tasks like collecting diagnostic information or even creating support cases with AWS support. So if

Chris 15:50
I'm stumped, I can use Systems Manager to basically say, hey, AWS help me out. Pretty much it takes a lot of the hassle out of getting support. This is all great stuff. Systems Manager is sounding more and more impressive every minute. It's

Kelly 16:02
a powerful tool, that's for sure. But

Chris 16:04
you know, we can't forget about security. How does Systems Manager help me keep my cloud environment secure?

Kelly 16:10
Right? Well, we've already talked about some of the security features, like session manager for secure access and parameter store for for storing secrets, but Systems Manager also plays a big role in compliance and auditing. Okay, tell me more about that. So remember inventory? Well, it doesn't just collect information about your resources. It can also track your compliance posture, like are your instances configured according to specific security standaRDS. Inventory can tell

Chris 16:38
you that. So it's like having a built in compliance checker Exactly.

Kelly 16:41
It'll scan your resources and let you know if anything is out of compliance, and then you can use that information to, you know, to fix any problems and make sure your environment is meeting all the necessary standaRDS. That's

Chris 16:52
got to be huge for companies in, you know, heavily regulated industries where compliance is super important. It

Kelly 16:58
is, it is, and to make things even better, Systems Manager integrates with other AWS security services like Security Hub, config and inspector.

Chris 17:08
Okay, I'm familiar with those names, but remind me how they work with Systems Manager.

Kelly 17:12
So Security Hub, it's kind of like your central security dashboard, right? It aggregates findings from all sorts of security services, including Systems Manager, so you can see everything in one place makes sense. What about config? Config is all about tracking changes. It keeps a history of all the configuration changes in your AWS environment, which is, you know, really useful for auditing purposes.

Chris 17:35
So if I need to see who made a change and when, I can just check config exactly,

Kelly 17:39
and then inspector. Well, Inspector scans your EC2 instances for vulnerabilities. So

Chris 17:45
it's like a security guard making sure my instances are safe. You got it. And all these services,

Kelly 17:49
they work together with Systems Manager to provide this, you know, this layered defense for your cloud environment. Okay,

Chris 17:56
that makes sense. So it's not just about Systems Manager and isolation, it's about how it fits into the bigger picture of AWS security, exactly.

Kelly 18:03
It's all connected. All right, I

Chris 18:05
feel like we've covered a ton of ground today. Our listeners should have a really good understanding of Systems Manager by now.

Kelly 18:11
Yeah, we've hit a lot of the key points. But before we wrap up, I want to put

Chris 18:15
our listener in that exam mindset one more time. All

Kelly 18:18
right, let's do it. Hit him with a tough one.

Chris 18:19
Okay, how about this? Imagine you're working for a company that's migrating a really important application from their own data center to AWS, and this application, it needs to be super reliable, highly available, fault tolerant, all that, and of course, it needs to be secure and meet all the compliance requirements. So how would you use Systems Manager to handle this whole migration process and then manage the application once it's running in AWS?

Kelly 18:47
Ooh, that's a good one. It's a real world scenario, too. A lot of companies are doing this kind of migration these days. Yeah,

Chris 18:52
it's a complex process. So how does Systems Manager fit into all of this? Okay, let's break

Kelly 18:57
it down. First of all, for the migration itself, you'd want to use session manager right to connect to those on premises servers and the new EC2 instances in AWS. So

Chris 19:06
I can securely manage both environments even though they're in different places,

Kelly 19:09
exactly. No need to mess around with SSH keys or open up any firewall ports. It's all secure and managed by AWS.

Chris 19:17
That's a That's a relief. So what about the application itself? How do I make sure it's deployed correctly and securely? Well, that's

Kelly 19:25
where state manager comes in. You would define your configuration policies as code specifying things like security group rules, operating system settings, software packages, all that. And then state manager would make sure that all the instances involved in the application deployment. You know, they're all following those rules.

Chris 19:42
So it's like having an automated checklist making sure everything is set up the way it should be. Yep,

Kelly 19:46
and it'll automatically fix any problems it finds, so you don't have to worry about anything slipping through the cracks. Okay,

Chris 19:52
that makes sense. What about the actual deployment process? Is there a way to automate that? Oh,

Kelly 19:57
absolutely. Automation is your friend. Here you can create an automation document that orchestrates the entire deployment workflow, from provisioning the EC2 instances to configuring load balancers to running those application specific setup scripts.

Chris 20:12
So I could just hit go, and automation will handle everything. Pretty much it takes

Kelly 20:16
all the manual steps and, you know, and puts them into a repeatable, reliable process.

Chris 20:22
That's That's amazing. What about monitoring? How do I keep an eye on the application once it's running? Well, you

Kelly 20:27
would integrate Systems Manager with CloudWatch. You could set up alarms to notify you if there are any performance issues, you know, or security events. That way you can be proactive and fix problems before they become well before they become big problems.

Chris 20:41
So it's like having a 247, monitoring system always keeping an eye on things exactly,

Kelly 20:45
and don't forget about inventory. It'll give you a detailed list of all the resources involved, so you always know what's running where, and you know what software is installed. Okay?

Chris 20:55
So Systems Manager can really handle the whole life cycle of this application, from migration to deployment to monitoring and everything in between.

Kelly 21:03
It can, it can. It's a really versatile tool, and that's what they're looking for on the AWS certification exam. They want to see that you can apply these tools to real world problems, right,

Chris 21:14
right? It's not just about memorizing facts. It's about understanding how to use these services in practice,

Kelly 21:20
exactly, and this scenario with the application migration, it's a great example of how all the different pieces of Systems Manager can fit together.

Chris 21:29
I think our listener is probably feeling pretty overwhelmed right now, in a good way, Systems Manager is, it's a lot to take in. It is,

Kelly 21:36
it is, but it's worth it. Once you get the hang of it, it can really make your life as a cloud engineer a lot easier. Okay,

Chris 21:42
so before we wrap up this deep dive, any final words of wisdom for our listener? Hmm,

Kelly 21:47
how about this? Take some time to think about your own work. You know the challenges you face, the things that take up a lot of your time, and then ask yourself, How could Systems Manager help me? You might be surprised at what you discover.

Chris 22:00
That's a great point. Systems Manager is a powerful tool, and there's always something new to learn,

Kelly 22:05
exactly, and the best way to learn is to just dive in and start experimenting. You know, try things out, break things, fix things. That's how you really get to know a tool. Welcome

Chris 22:14
back to the deep dive. We've been uncovering the power of AWS Systems Manager, and I'm telling you, it's like peeling back layers of an onion. There's always something more

Kelly 22:24
it is. It's a pretty deep service, lots to explore. Before the break,

Chris 22:28
we were geeking out about Systems Manager automation. But, you know, in the real world, things don't always go according to plan, so let's talk about troubleshooting. You know, when those red lights start flashing, what does Systems Manager offer to help us? Well, put out the fires. Good question.

Kelly 22:44
When you're in that you know, heart racing, incident response mode, Systems Manager can be a life saver.

Chris 22:51
Okay, I'm all ears. Tell me about these Lifesaver tools. Well, remember,

Kelly 22:54
Run command. It's not just for deployments and updates. You can actually use it for troubleshooting too. Think running diagnostic scripts across multiple instances, grabbing log files, even restarting services if you need to all from one place,

Chris 23:08
so no more frantically s session into each instance one by one

Kelly 23:13
exactly. Run command lets you act quickly, and, you know, get a handle on the situation. Plus, Systems Manager plays nicely with CloudWatch logs and AWS X-Ray, which can be super helpful for digging deeper into issues. CloudWatch

Chris 23:26
logs and X-Ray, those are familiar friends, but remind me how they tie into Systems Manager for troubleshooting, sure.

Kelly 23:33
So CloudWatch logs, It centralizes all your log data from multiple instances. Instead of jumping between servers, you've got everything in one place, which makes analysis much easier. And with CloudWatch logs insights, you can even query those logs, filter them, you know, really pinpoint the root cause of what's going wrong.

Chris 23:49
It's like having a super powered search engine for all my log files.

Kelly 23:53
That's a great way to put it. Then you've got X-Ray, which is all about tracing requests through your application. It gives you that visual map of how things are flowing, so you can spot bottlenecks, or, you know, those pesky errors that are causing all the trouble. So it's

Chris 24:05
like having X-Ray vision into my application see exactly where things are going wrong. You

Kelly 24:09
got it. And don't forget about AWS support automation. If you hit a wall and need to call in the AWS cavalry Systems Manager can automate those common support tasks like gathering all that diagnostic info and packaging it up neatly for the AWS support team

Chris 24:24
that is slick, saves a ton of time and frustration when you need help ASAP. Okay, so we've got run command cloud, watch logs, X-Ray support, automation, all these tools working together to help us troubleshoot like pros. But what about security? How does Systems Manager contribute to keeping our cloud environment? Client environment safe and sound?

Kelly 24:44
We've touched on a few security features already, session manager, parameter store, but Systems Manager goes deeper than that. Think compliance and auditing?

Chris 24:52
Okay, I'm intrigued tell me more about this compliance and auditing angle.

Kelly 24:56
Well, remember our friends Systems Manager and. Inventory. It's not just for taking stock of your resources. It can also keep tabs on your compliance posture, you know, is everything configured according to security, best practices and industry standaRDS, inventory can tell you. So it's

Chris 25:12
like a built in compliance auditor, constantly checking to make sure we're following the rules. You

Kelly 25:17
got it. It scans your resources, flags any violations and gives you the information you need to get things back on track. That's got

Chris 25:23
to be a huge relief, especially for companies in industries with, you know, strict regulations. No one wants to get slapped with a hefty fine for non compliance.

Kelly 25:32
Absolutely. And Systems Manager doesn't stop there. IT teams up with other AWS security heavy hitters like AWS Security Hub, AWS config and Amazon Inspector to give you that multi layered security shield, okay,

Chris 25:45
remind me how those services work with Systems Manager, it's like an all star security team,

Kelly 25:50
right? So Security Hub, it's like your Central Security Command Center, gathering insights from all those different security services, including Systems Manager. It gives you that big picture view of your security posture, one

Chris 26:02
dashboard to rule them all

Kelly 26:04
exactly. Then you got AWS config, which is all about change management. It keeps track of every configuration change in your AWS environment, creating a detailed audit trail. That's gold for compliance. So

Chris 26:14
if there's every question about who changed what and when, yeah, I can just check config and get the answers precisely.

Kelly 26:20
And last but not least, we've got Amazon Inspector, your vulnerability scanner extraordinaire. It scrutinizes your EC2 instances, searching for any weaknesses that could be exploited. So

Chris 26:33
it's like having a security guard constantly patrolling my instances, looking for any signs of trouble. That's

Kelly 26:38
a great way to put it. And all these services. Working together with Systems Manager, they create a really robust security ecosystem. It

Chris 26:46
sounds like AWS has really thought of everything when it comes to keeping our cloud environment safe and secure. Okay, we've covered a ton of ground today, from the basics of Systems Manager to some pretty advanced use cases. Before we wrap up this deep dive, I want to leave our listener with something to chew on.

Kelly 27:01
Let's do it a final thought to send them off into the cloud computing sunset. So

Chris 27:05
think about your own journey as a cloud engineer. What are your biggest pain points? You know what tasks are eating up all your time? What keeps you up at night, worrying about security or compliance? Now ask yourself, How could Systems Manager be that secret weapon, that tool that helps you conquer those challenges and level up your cloud game.

Kelly 27:27
That's the question. Systems. Manager is a powerful ally, and the best way to discover its full potential is to just dive in, experiment and see how it can transform the way you work in the cloud.

Chris 27:38
Couldn't have said it better myself. Well, on that note, I think it's time to wrap up this deep dive into AWS Systems Manager. Thanks for joining us. We hope you found it valuable. Thanks

Kelly 27:47
for having me. It's

Chris 27:48
been fun, and all our listeners out there, keep exploring, keep learning and keep building awesome things in the cloud. You.