BYTE the Cloud

Chris 0:00
Hey, cloud gurus, welcome back to the deep dive. It's

Kelly 0:02
great to be back.

Chris 0:03
Today. We're going to be diving into Amazon, EKS anywhere.

Kelly 0:08
Yeah, this is a service that I think is really interesting, especially for people who are looking to kind of bridge that gap between on prem and the cloud. Yeah,

Chris 0:16
it seems like there's a lot of buzz around it too, right now, absolutely

Kelly 0:18
everyone's talking about hybrid cloud these days,

Chris 0:21
so maybe the best place to start is for those who aren't familiar. Can you just give us like a real quick what is EKS anywhere? Yeah.

Kelly 0:29
So in a nutshell, imagine you want the simplicity and the power of Amazon EKS, right? That's their managed Kubernetes service, but you want to run it on your own infrastructure. So instead of having AWS manage the underlying infrastructure for you, you're taking control. You're running it in your own data center, or maybe even at the edge. So it's

Chris 0:49
like having your own little minIAWS Kubernetes service, but it's all yours,

Kelly 0:53
exactly. You get the best of both worlds the managed service experience with the flexibility of on premises control. Okay,

Chris 0:59
so I get it. It's like a managed service, but on my own turf. But why is this such a big deal? Like? Why are people so excited about this? Well, it

Kelly 1:05
all boils down to this trend towards hybrid cloud models. Companies these days, they need the agility and scalability of the cloud, right? But they also have these workloads that they need to keep on premises, yeah,

Chris 1:18
for security reasons or maybe compliance, exactly,

Kelly 1:20
and sometimes it's just about having more control over certain applications. So it's

Chris 1:24
all about finding the right balance for each workload,

Kelly 1:27
right precisely. It's about choosing the best deployment model for your specific needs.

Chris 1:32
Can you get some real world examples of where EKS anywhere would really shine, like, what kind of companies would benefit from this?

Kelly 1:39
Absolutely. Let's say you're a financial institution and you've got these core trading applications that need to run on premises,

Chris 1:46
okay for regulatory reasons, I'm guessing,

Kelly 1:48
exactly. But at the same time, you want to leverage the cloud for things like data analytics and machine learning. EKS anywhere allows them to manage both environments seamlessly with a consistent set of tools,

Chris 2:00
so they're not juggling two completely different systems,

Kelly 2:03
right? They get that unified experience across on prem and cloud. That

Chris 2:06
makes a lot of sense, yeah. What about industries where latency is a major concern, like where every millisecond counts?

Kelly 2:12
EKS anywhere is a perfect fit for edge computing scenarios. Think about a manufacturing plant that needs to analyze sensor data in real time to optimize production. Okay,

Chris 2:22
so they'd be deploying EKS anywhere right there on the factory for

Kelly 2:26
exactly minimizing latency and ensuring that data is processed as quickly as possible. Wow.

Chris 2:31
So we've covered what EKS anywhere is and why it's important. Now let's dive a little deeper into the how. What are some of the key features and benefits that make this service stand out from the crowd.

Kelly 2:42
One of the biggest advantages is that EKS anywhere gives you that consistent AWS experience. You're using the same tools, APIs and best practices, as you would with regular EKS.

Chris 2:52
So it's all about simplifying operations and reducing that learning curve Exactly.

Kelly 2:57
It makes it much easier for teams to adopt and manage because they're already familiar with the AWS ecosystem. Okay,

Chris 3:02
so that's a big plus. What about the control plane? How does that work in an EKS anywhere setup?

Kelly 3:08
So the control plane, as we mentioned earlier, is the brain of your Kubernetes cluster. It manages all the worker nodes and schedules your applications that EKS anywhere you have the option to run the control plane on your own infrastructure, right?

Chris 3:21
So that's a key difference from regular EKS, where AWS manages the control plane for

Kelly 3:27
you precisely, this gives you more control, or we the security and configuration of your cluster. You can really tailor it to meet your specific compliance and operational needs.

Chris 3:36
But with more control comes more responsibility, right? What are some of the challenges or limitations that someone might face with EKS anywhere Well,

Kelly 3:46
the biggest one is that you're now responsible for managing the underlying infrastructure.

Chris 3:49
Okay? So, patching servers, configuring networking, all that fun. It's not a set it

Kelly 3:53
and forget it solution, like some cloud services, it requires a certain level of expertise and operational maturity,

Chris 3:59
right? You need to have a solid understanding of both Kubernetes and your own infrastructure,

Kelly 4:04
and you also need to stay up to date with the latest Kubernetes releases and security patches. AWS provides tools and documentation to help, but it's still something you need to be aware of.

Chris 4:13
Okay, so it's not for the faint of heart. Now, how does EKS anywhere fit into the larger AWS ecosystem? Is it a standalone service, or does it integrate with other AWS offerings? It's

Kelly 4:25
definitely integrated. You can leverage a whole host of AWS services to enhance your EKS anywhere deployments. Think about using EC2 instances as worker nodes as three for storing container images, IAM for managing access control. So you're

Chris 4:39
not limited to just your on premises resources. You can tap into the power and flexibility of the cloud exactly,

Kelly 4:45
and let's not forget about AWS support and monitoring tools. You can still get that peace of mind knowing that AWS has your back.

Chris 4:51
Okay, so we've got a pretty good understanding of what EKS anywhere is how it works and how it fits into the AWS ecosystem. Now let's shift gears and talk about exam preparation. And for those of you studying for the AWS Certified Solutions Architect exam, what aspects of EKS anywhere are likely to show up on the test,

Kelly 5:07
they'll definitely want to test your understanding of when to choose EKS versus EKS anywhere. You need to be able to analyze a scenario and determine which service is the best fit based on factors like cost control, latency and security requirements. So

Chris 5:21
it's not just about knowing the technical details of each service, but understanding the business context and the decision making process exactly

Kelly 5:28
you need to be able to think like a solutions architect, not just a technical expert.

Chris 5:33
Okay, makes sense. What else might they ask about?

Kelly 5:36
They'll probably grill you on the architecture of EKS anywhere make sure you're comfortable with the different components, like the control plane, worker nodes, networking and storage

Chris 5:45
right? Architecture is always a biggie on these exams, and

Kelly 5:48
of course, security, expect questions about IAM role security groups, encryption options and how to secure your EKS, anywhere clusters. Effectively, sounds

Chris 5:57
like there's a lot to cover, but don't worry, we'll break it all down with some example questions and answers to help you solidify your knowledge. Are you ready to put your exam mode? Thinking cap on Absolutely. Bring

Kelly 6:08
on the challenge. All

Chris 6:09
right. First question, you're working with a company that needs to process sensitive healthcare data in a highly regulated environment. They require complete control over their data and infrastructure, but they also want to leverage the benefits of containerization in Kubernetes. Which EKS service should you recommend? EKS or EKS anywhere?

Kelly 6:28
That's a great question. The key words here are sensitive healthcare data and complete control. These immediately point us toward EKS anywhere. And why is that? Well, healthcare data is subject to strict regulations like HIPAA, which often mandates that the data be stored and processed within specific geographic boundaries and with robust security measures.

Chris 6:49
So the need for control over both the data and the infrastructure makes EKS anywhere the clear winner in this scenario, exactly,

Kelly 6:55
while regular EKS offers a lot of security features, it doesn't provide the same level of control over the underlying infrastructure, as EKS anywhere does,

Chris 7:03
okay? That makes sense. Now let's say this company is also concerned about cost optimization. How could using EKS anywhere potentially help them save money compared to a cloud only solution?

Kelly 7:14
That's where things get interesting with EKS anywhere they can leverage their existing on premises infrastructure, which could include servers they already own or can procure at a lower

Chris 7:24
cost, so they're not paying for cloud resources they don't necessarily need, right?

Kelly 7:29
They can also optimize their licensing costs by using their existing operating systems and software licenses instead of paying for cloud based equivalents.

Chris 7:38
It's all about finding that sweet spot between cost efficiency and the level of control they

Kelly 7:43
require exactly and don't forget that EKS anywhere can help them avoid data egress charges, which can add up quickly when moving large amounts of data to and from the cloud.

Chris 7:53
That's a great point. So even though managing your own infrastructure comes with added responsibilities, it can also open up opportunities for cost optimization that wouldn't be possible with a cloud only solution. Absolutely,

Kelly 8:04
it's all about weighing those trade offs and making the best decision for your specific needs and priorities. Okay,

Chris 8:10
let's move on to another scenario. You're working with a manufacturing company that's building a new smart factory. They want to deploy sensors and edge devices that collect real time data, and need to process that data with minimal latency to optimize their production processes. Which EKS service would be the best fit for this use case?

Kelly 8:29
This one is a bit more nuanced. While EKS anywhere might seem like the obvious choice for an edge computing scenario, there are a few factors to consider. Okay, what do you mean? Well, managing a Kubernetes cluster at the edge can be quite challenging. You need to think about things like remote access, security in a potentially less controlled environment, and the expertise required to maintain the cluster. So

Chris 8:51
it's not as simple as just deploying EKS anywhere and calling it a day, right?

Kelly 8:55
If the company has the necessary expertise and resources to manage an edge deployment, then EKS anywhere could be a great option. It would allow them to process data locally with minimal latency and ensure that their applications are running close to the source of the data.

Chris 9:10
But what if they're not quite ready to manage Kubernetes at the edge? Are there any alternatives they could consider? They could

Kelly 9:16
consider using AWS IoT Greengrass, which is a service specifically designed for running AWS Lambda functions and other workloads on edge devices,

Chris 9:25
so they wouldn't need to manage a full blown Kubernetes cluster at the edge exactly.

Kelly 9:28
Greengrass integrates seamlessly with AWS services like IoT Core and Lambda, making it easier to build and deploy edge applications.

Chris 9:36
It's like choosing the right tool for the job. If you need the full power and flexibility of Kubernetes at the edge, EKS anywhere is a great option. But if you looking for a simpler way to run lightweight workloads, Greengrass might be a better fit, absolutely

Kelly 9:51
and sometimes the best solution might involve a combination of both. You could use EKS anywhere for more complex applications that require. Full Kubernetes feature set and green grass for simpler tasks like data collection and pre processing. Okay,

Chris 10:05
so it's not always a black and white decision. There are shades of gray and hybrid approaches to consider. Now let's shift gears and dive into some specific exam style questions about the architecture of EKS. Anywhere you got it,

Kelly 10:18
let's put your knowledge to the test. Okay, hit me with a tough one. All right, so which of these is not a key element of the EKS anywhere? Architecture? Is it A, the control plane, B, worker nodes, C, AWS, Lambda functions, or D, the networking layer? Ooh,

Chris 10:36
okay, so this is where it gets tricky. You have to really understand what's core to EKS anywhere, and what's like an add on server? Exactly,

Kelly 10:43
you're thinking like a pro already. So let's break it down. Okay? The control plane is the brains of the operation, right? It manages everything. And worker nodes are the muscles. Those are the ones running your applications. Makes

Chris 10:53
sense. And then you need networking for all those containers to communicate with each other in the outside world, you're

Kelly 10:57
on fire. So that leaves us with AWS Lambda functions. While Lambda is super powerful, and you can totally use it with EKS anywhere, yeah, for event driven stuff and all that, right, but it's not a fundamental part of the EKS anywhere architecture itself. Okay? So

Chris 11:12
the answer is, see AWS Lambda functions? Yeah, it's a tool in your toolbox, but not a core component. You

Kelly 11:17
nailed it, and that's a key concept for the exam, knowing the difference between those core elements and the integrated services.

Chris 11:24
All right, good to know. Now let's dig a little deeper into the control plane. We keep saying it's the brains of the operation, but what exactly does it do in an EKS anywhere

Kelly 11:35
setup? Think of it as the orchestrator. It's managing the state of the cluster, scheduling workloads onto those worker nodes and making sure everything is running smoothly. So it's doing a lot behind the scenes. Oh yeah, it's handling things like API management, container orchestration, service discovery, you name it. Okay. So

Chris 11:54
how does it actually talk to those worker nodes? Good question.

Kelly 11:57
It communicates with them through a secure API, sending instructions like which containers to run, how to scale them, how to handle networking, stuff like that. So

Chris 12:06
it's like a constant back and forth, keeping everything in sync Exactly.

Kelly 12:10
And here's where things get interesting with EKS, anywhere you can actually choose to run the control plane on your own infrastructure, right? We talked about that earlier. This gives you more control over security and configuration, but it also means you're responsible for managing it.

Chris 12:23
So it's that trade off again, control versus convenience Exactly. If

Kelly 12:27
you're comfortable managing it yourself, you can fine tune it to your specific needs, but if you prefer a more hands off approach, you can still leverage AWS managed services for certain aspects like logging and monitoring.

Chris 12:40
Gotcha, okay, let's move on to those worker nodes. We know they're the ones actually running your applications. What are some of the key considerations when it comes to setting them up in an EKS anywhere environment? First

Kelly 12:52
things first, you need to figure out the size and type of worker nodes you'll need. This depends on how resource intensive your applications are, how many containers you need to run and your scalability needs.

Chris 13:02
So it's like choosing the right engine for your car exactly.

Kelly 13:05
You also need to think about the operating system. EKS, anywhere supports a bunch of different ones, including Amazon Linux and bottle rocket, which is specifically designed for running containers. So you have options, yeah, but it's got to be secure, reliable and meet your specific needs. And then there's networking. Yeah, that's always a fun one, right? You have to make sure your worker nodes can talk to each other the outside world and all the AWS services they need, especially in a

Chris 13:29
hybrid environment, they can get complicated. You're telling me you gotta

Kelly 13:33
configure your Virtual Private Cloud VPC just right, to make everything work securely. VPC configuration is crucial, absolutely. And don't forget about storage. Your containers need a place to live, right? EKS, anywhere lets you choose from local storage, network attached storage, NAS or cloud based storage, like Amazon, EBS, so many options. Yeah, it's all about finding the right balance between performance, cost and data durability. Okay,

Chris 14:01
so we've covered control plane, worker nodes, networking, storage. What about security? That seems like it would be a big deal with EKS anywhere. It's

Kelly 14:09
huge. You have to think about securing every layer the control plane, the worker knows your networking and storage. No pressure, not at all. But seriously, one of the most important things is IAM roles and policies, right? You don't

Chris 14:21
want just anyone accessing your cluster exactly.

Kelly 14:23
You got to control who can do what. And then there are security groups to control network traffic, like a firewall around your cluster makes sense. And of course, encryption, you can encrypt your data both at rest and in transit.

Chris 14:35
So it's a layered approach to security. You got it. You're really getting this. I'm trying now. How does EKS anywhere actually fit into the larger AWS world, like, can it talk to other AWS services? Oh,

Kelly 14:48
absolutely. EKS anywhere is designed to work seamlessly with a whole bunch of other AWS offerings. Give me some examples. Let's say you need to store your container images. You could. Use Amazon ECR, their container registry service to store them securely in the cloud,

Chris 15:04
so even though the cluster's on prem, you can still use Cloud Storage

Kelly 15:09
exactly or what if you want to automate your deployments, you could use AWS code pipeline and code build to build, test and deploy your code changes automatically,

Chris 15:18
so you can leverage all those existing AWS tools, right?

Kelly 15:21
And don't forget about monitoring and logging. You can use Amazon CloudWatch to keep an eye on your cluster and get alerts if anything goes wrong, so you're not in dark. And you can use AWS X ray to trace requests through your application, helping you pinpoint performance bottlenecks. Wow, so many possibilities. That's the beauty of it. You can really customize your EKS anywhere deployment to meet your specific needs.

Chris 15:42
Okay, so we've talked about all the good stuff now. What are some of the things that people often get wrong about EKS anywhere? Like, what are some common misconceptions? One big

Kelly 15:52
one is that EKS anywhere means you're completely ditching AWS. It's important to remember that EKS anywhere is still deeply integrated with the AWS ecosystem, you still rely on AWS for support updates and a whole host of services that can enhance your experience, right? It's more

Chris 16:09
about having a choice where you run your Kubernetes clusters, not about abandoning AWS. Exactly.

Kelly 16:14
Another misconception is underestimating the complexity of managing on premises infrastructure. It's not as easy as spinning up a service in the cloud. You need the expertise and resources to handle things like hardware, networking and security. It's important to go in with your eyes open. And here's a sneaky one, people sometimes think that just because they're running on their own infrastructure, security is automatically taken care of,

Chris 16:36
ah, so it's not a magic security bullet, not at all. You're still

Kelly 16:39
responsible for securing those worker nodes, configuring network access and managing IAM roles and policies. Yeah, be proactive. Security is a shared responsibility no matter where you choose to run your workloads. Okay, let's

Chris 16:51
try another exam style question. Imagine you're working with a gaming company that wants to deploy a new multiplayer game server. They need a solution that can scale rapidly to handle bursts of player activity, but they also want to maintain strict control over their game logic and data. Should they go with EKS or EKS anywhere?

Kelly 17:13
This is a perfect example of how real world considerations come into play. It's not just about knowing the technical specs, right? You got to understand the business needs too. So they need that rapid scalability, which points toward EKS the cloud's elasticity is perfect for handling those unpredictable player surges.

Chris 17:29
But they also want control over their game logic and data

Kelly 17:32
exactly. They want the scalability of the cloud, but also that tighter control over their core assets, hmm,

Chris 17:38
tricky. So how do you balance those competing needs. It's

Kelly 17:41
all about finding that sweet spot. They could use EKS for the majority of their game servers, leveraging the cloud scalability, okay, but for those critical components where control is paramount, they could deploy dedicated EKS anywhere, clusters on their own infrastructure,

Chris 17:56
a hybrid approach, best of both worlds precisely,

Kelly 18:00
and this type of hybrid deployment is becoming more and more common. It's all about optimizing for both agility and control. Okay,

Chris 18:08
last scenario for you, you're advising a company that's running a big monolithic application on premises. They want to modernize their architecture make it more scalable and resilient. How could EKS, anywhere help them on that journey. Ooh, this

Kelly 18:22
is a big one. This is about guiding them through a potential architectural transformation. It's more than just picking a service exactly, EKS anywhere could be a key part of their move towards a microservices architecture. They could start by containerizing parts of their application and deploying those containers on an EKS anywhere cluster. So taking baby steps exactly. They can break things down into manageable chunks, and as they get more comfortable with containerization and Kubernetes, they can gradually break down that monolith, further deploying more and more microservices on their EKS anywhere cluster.

Chris 18:53
So it's like they're building a bridge to a more modern, cloud native approach. And

Kelly 18:57
here's the exciting part, as they move to microservices, they can start using cloud services alongside their EKS anywhere deployments. Think about AWS Lambda for serverless functions, S3 for storage and all those other cloud native tools. So

Chris 19:12
EKS anywhere becomes their gateway to the

Kelly 19:16
cloud Exactly. They can move at their own pace adopting cloud services strategically as they modernize their architecture, it's like a choose your own adventure for their cloud journey. I

Chris 19:24
love that analogy. Okay, one last exam tip for our listeners, what's something they should always keep in mind when tackling those EKS anywhere questions, pay close

Kelly 19:33
attention to the details of the scenario. The exam is all about applying your knowledge to real world situations. You

Chris 19:39
give us an example, sure,

Kelly 19:40
let's say the question mentions a company that needs to process real time data from IoT devices in a remote area with limited internet connectivity. That right there tells you EKS anywhere is probably

Chris 19:55
the way to go, because latency and local processing are key in that situation.

Kelly 19:58
Exactly. Let. Look for those contextual clues and think about how they influence the best solution. It's like being a cloud detective. That's a great way to put it. The more you practice applying your knowledge to real world scenarios, the more confident you'll be on exam day. So it really is a game changer for those hybrid setups. Yeah, it

Chris 20:18
seems like it's pushing the boundaries of what's possible with hybrid cloud totally, and

Kelly 20:22
it's only getting better. I think we'll see even tighter integration with other AWS services in the future, so

Chris 20:27
even more seamless management and scaling between on prem and the cloud

Kelly 20:31
Exactly. And I think automation is going to play a huge role too. Yeah, that makes sense. We're already seeing some cool tools, like AWS controllers for Kubernetes. Oh yeah, those are pretty neat. You can manage AWS resources right from your Kubernetes clusters, things like provisioning storage, configuring networking, even deploying serverless functions all from one place exactly. It simplifies everything. And as those tools get even better, hybrid cloud deployments are going to become way easier to manage. Okay, before

Chris 20:56
we wrap up, I want to do a little rapid fire around with you. Oh, rapid fire. I like it. I'm gonna throw out some EKS anywhere, buzzwords, and you give me the exam. Ready? Definition? Ready? I'm ready hit me. Okay. First up, cluster API.

Kelly 21:08
All right. So the cluster API, it's a Kubernetes project that lets you manage clusters across different environments on prem cloud. You name it, it's what makes EKS anywhere so flexible

Chris 21:18
and portable. Okay. Next one, bottle rocket. Bottle Rocket, that's

Kelly 21:22
a lightweight Linux operating system built for running containers. It's super secure and optimized for performance in EKS anywhere deployments. Nice one. Last one flux. Flux is a gitops tool that automates deployments to Kubernetes clusters based on changes to your Git repositories. So it's

Chris 21:37
all about continuous delivery and simplifying the deployment process. Wow, you aced it. Okay, so we've covered a lot of ground in this deep dive into EKS anywhere. What are some of the key things our listeners should take away from all of this? I'd

Kelly 21:53
say the most important thing is knowing when EKS anywhere is the right choice over regular EKS. It's all about those use cases where you need on premises control, or you're dealing with sensitive data, or you need really low latency. So

Chris 22:07
it's about understanding those business requirements and making smart decisions based on them exactly.

Kelly 22:12
And once you've made that decision, you gotta know how to actually set it up, manage it and secure it

Chris 22:17
right, understanding the architecture, those worker nodes and that all important security,

Kelly 22:21
and never forget about all the other AWS services that you can integrate with EKS anywhere. So you're

Chris 22:26
not just limited to your on prem resources. You can tap into the power of the cloud.

Kelly 22:29
It's about having the best of both worlds. All right, cloud gurus, that

Chris 22:33
wraps up our deep dive into Amazon EKS anywhere. Hopefully you're feeling a lot more confident about this awesome service and how it can help you build those hybrid Kubernetes deployments like a pro. And for

Kelly 22:45
those of you studying for the AWS exams, remember those key takeaways we talked about, when to use it, how it works, how to secure it, and don't forget to practice those real world scenarios. Yeah,

Chris 22:55
the more you practice, the better prepared you'll be. And remember, the cloud world is always changing, so keep learning, keep experimenting and stay curious until next time. Happy, coding.