Amazon Web Services (AWS) — 50 QnA

AWS is Amazon’s cloud platform offering compute, storage, and more. Provides services like EC2, S3, and Lambda. Scales globally with regions and availability zones. Troubleshoot via AWS Management Console and logs. Secure with IAM and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven automation. Monitor with CloudWatch for performance. Interviewers expect knowledge of core services and use cases.

EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) provides scalable virtual servers. Supports AMIs, instance types, and auto-scaling. Runs workloads like web servers or apps. Troubleshoot with instance logs and metrics. Secure with security groups and IAM roles. In 2025, integrates AI-optimized instances. Monitor via CloudWatch for CPU and network. Interviewers may ask about instance types and scaling.

S3 (Simple Storage Service) is object storage for data. Offers buckets, versioning, and lifecycle policies. Supports static websites and backups. Troubleshoot with S3 logs and permissions. Secure with bucket policies and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven data tiering. Monitor with CloudTrail for access logs. Interviewers expect details on storage classes and policies.

IAM (Identity and Access Management) controls AWS resource access. Manages users, roles, and policies with JSON. Enforces least privilege and MFA. Troubleshoot with IAM policy simulator. Secure with role-based access and auditing. In 2025, uses AI for access anomaly detection. Monitor with CloudTrail for IAM events. Interviewers may ask about policy structure and best practices.

Lambda is a serverless compute service for event-driven apps. Runs code in response to triggers (e.g., S3, API Gateway). Scales automatically, billed per execution. Troubleshoot with CloudWatch logs and metrics. Secure with IAM execution roles. In 2025, supports AI-driven function optimization. Monitor for cold starts and timeouts. Interviewers expect Lambda triggers and limitations.

VPC (Virtual Private Cloud) creates isolated network environments. Configures subnets, route tables, and gateways. Supports private and public network segments. Troubleshoot with VPC flow logs and routing. Secure with NACLs and security groups. In 2025, aligns with zero trust networking. Monitor for unauthorized VPC access. Interviewers may ask about VPC peering and CIDR.

RDS (Relational Database Service) manages SQL databases. Supports MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, and more. Provides backups, scaling, and high availability. Troubleshoot with RDS logs and performance insights. Secure with encryption and IAM authentication. In 2025, integrates AI for query optimization. Monitor with CloudWatch for DB metrics. Interviewers expect RDS engine types and backups.

DynamoDB is a NoSQL database with low-latency performance. Supports key-value and document data models. Scales automatically with provisioned or on-demand capacity. Troubleshoot with query performance and logs. Secure with IAM and encryption at rest. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven indexing. Monitor with CloudWatch for throughput. Interviewers may ask about DynamoDB vs. RDS.

CloudWatch monitors AWS resources and applications. Collects logs, metrics, and events for analysis. Triggers alarms and automated actions. Troubleshoot with metric filters and log insights. Secure with IAM access to dashboards. In 2025, uses AI for predictive analytics. Monitor for resource overuse and anomalies. Interviewers expect CloudWatch metrics and alarms.

CloudTrail logs API calls and user activity in AWS. Tracks actions for auditing and compliance. Stores events in S3 with retention policies. Troubleshoot with trail configuration and logs. Secure with encryption and restricted access. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven audit insights. Monitor for unauthorized API calls. Interviewers may ask about CloudTrail events and integrations.

ELB distributes traffic across EC2 instances or containers. Supports Application, Network, and Gateway Load Balancers. Ensures high availability and scalability. Troubleshoot with ELB logs and health checks. Secure with TLS termination and WAF. In 2025, integrates AI for traffic optimization. Monitor for load balancing errors. Interviewers expect ELB types and configurations.

Route 53 is AWS’s scalable DNS and domain management service. Supports DNS routing, health checks, and failover. Uses latency-based and geo-routing policies. Troubleshoot with DNS query logs and health checks. Secure with DNSSEC and IAM policies. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven DNS analytics. Monitor for DNS resolution failures. Interviewers may ask about Route 53 routing types.

API Gateway manages and scales REST and WebSocket APIs. Integrates with Lambda, EC2, or HTTP endpoints. Supports throttling, caching, and authentication. Troubleshoot with API logs and tracing. Secure with IAM, Cognito, and WAF. In 2025, uses AI for API usage predictions. Monitor for API errors and latency. Interviewers expect API Gateway setup and scaling.

SQS (Simple Queue Service) manages message queues. Supports standard and FIFO queues for decoupling. Integrates with Lambda and SNS for workflows. Troubleshoot with queue metrics and dead-letter queues. Secure with IAM policies and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven queue optimization. Monitor for message backlog and delays. Interviewers may ask about SQS vs. SNS differences.

SNS (Simple Notification Service) delivers pub/sub messaging. Sends notifications via email, SMS, or Lambda. Supports fan-out to multiple subscribers. Troubleshoot with delivery logs and metrics. Secure with IAM policies and encryption. In 2025, integrates AI for notification filtering. Monitor for delivery failures and costs. Interviewers expect SNS topics and subscription types.

ECS (Elastic Container Service) orchestrates Docker containers. Supports Fargate for serverless or EC2 for control. Scales containers with auto-scaling groups. Troubleshoot with task logs and service events. Secure with IAM roles and VPC networking. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven orchestration. Monitor for container health and scaling. Interviewers may ask about ECS vs. EKS differences.

EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service) manages Kubernetes clusters. Runs containerized apps with Kubernetes orchestration. Supports Fargate and EC2 worker nodes. Troubleshoot with kubectl and CloudWatch logs. Secure with IAM and RBAC policies. In 2025, integrates AI for cluster optimization. Monitor for pod failures and resource usage. Interviewers expect EKS setup and Kubernetes concepts.

Fargate is a serverless compute engine for ECS and EKS. Runs containers without managing underlying servers. Scales automatically based on demand. Troubleshoot with task logs and resource limits. Secure with IAM roles and VPC isolation. In 2025, supports AI-optimized container scheduling. Monitor for task failures and costs. Interviewers may ask about Fargate vs. EC2 trade-offs.

CloudFormation automates AWS resource provisioning with templates. Uses YAML/JSON for infrastructure as code (IaC). Supports stack updates and drift detection. Troubleshoot with stack events and template errors. Secure with IAM permissions and least privilege. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven template optimization. Monitor for stack creation failures. Interviewers expect CloudFormation syntax and use cases.

KMS (Key Management Service) manages cryptographic keys. Supports encryption for S3, EBS, and other services. Uses HSMs for key storage and operations. Troubleshoot with KMS logs and permission errors. Secure with key policies and rotation. In 2025, adopts post-quantum cryptography. Monitor for unauthorized key access. Interviewers may ask about KMS key types and policies.

Secrets Manager stores and rotates sensitive credentials. Integrates with RDS, Redshift, and Lambda. Supports automatic secret rotation via Lambda. Troubleshoot with secret access logs and errors. Secure with IAM policies and encryption. In 2025, uses AI for secret anomaly detection. Monitor for unauthorized secret access. Interviewers expect secrets rotation and integration.

WAF (Web Application Firewall) protects web apps from attacks. Filters traffic with rules for SQL injection, XSS. Integrates with CloudFront and ALB. Troubleshoot with WAF logs and rule matches. Secure with custom rules and rate limiting. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven threat detection. Monitor for blocked traffic and false positives. Interviewers may ask about WAF rules and integrations.

Shield protects against DDoS attacks on AWS resources. Offers Standard (free) and Advanced (paid) tiers. Integrates with CloudFront, Route 53, and ELB. Troubleshoot with DDoS event logs and metrics. Secure with automatic mitigation and WAF rules. In 2025, uses AI for DDoS prediction. Monitor for attack patterns and costs. Interviewers expect Shield tiers and protections.

CloudFront is a CDN for low-latency content delivery. Caches content at edge locations globally. Supports static and dynamic content with HTTPS. Troubleshoot with cache hit ratios and logs. Secure with signed URLs and WAF integration. In 2025, optimizes with AI-driven caching. Monitor for cache misses and latency. Interviewers may ask about CloudFront vs. S3 delivery.

Direct Connect provides dedicated network connections to AWS. Bypasses public internet for consistent performance. Supports private and public VIFs. Troubleshoot with connection metrics and logs. Secure with VPC peering and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven bandwidth optimization. Monitor for connection drops and latency. Interviewers expect Direct Connect vs. VPN trade-offs.

Transit Gateway connects VPCs and on-premises networks. Simplifies routing with a hub-and-spoke model. Scales for large, multi-VPC architectures. Troubleshoot with route table and flow logs. Secure with IAM and NACLs. In 2025, integrates AI for routing analytics. Monitor for routing conflicts and performance. Interviewers may ask about Transit Gateway vs. VPC peering.

Auto Scaling adjusts EC2, ECS, or DynamoDB capacity dynamically. Uses policies based on CloudWatch metrics. Ensures availability and cost efficiency. Troubleshoot with scaling events and metrics. Secure with IAM roles for scaling actions. In 2025, uses AI for predictive scaling. Monitor for scaling failures and costs. Interviewers expect scaling policies and triggers.

Elastic Beanstalk deploys and manages web applications. Supports Java, .NET, Python, and more. Automates scaling, load balancing, and updates. Troubleshoot with application logs and events. Secure with IAM roles and VPC settings. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven deployment optimization. Monitor for deployment failures and performance. Interviewers may ask about Beanstalk vs. ECS.

Redshift is a petabyte-scale data warehouse service. Supports SQL queries for analytics and BI. Uses columnar storage and parallel processing. Troubleshoot with query performance and logs. Secure with IAM, encryption, and VPC. In 2025, integrates AI for query optimization. Monitor for query latency and costs. Interviewers expect Redshift vs. RDS differences.

Aurora is a MySQL/PostgreSQL-compatible relational database. Offers high performance and global replication. Supports serverless and multi-master configurations. Troubleshoot with Aurora logs and metrics. Secure with IAM authentication and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven scaling. Monitor for replication lag and performance. Interviewers may ask about Aurora vs. RDS benefits.

Step Functions orchestrates serverless workflows. Uses state machines to coordinate Lambda, ECS, etc. Supports error handling and retries. Troubleshoot with execution logs and state errors. Secure with IAM roles and encryption. In 2025, uses AI for workflow optimization. Monitor for workflow failures and costs. Interviewers expect Step Functions vs. SWF differences.

Cognito manages user authentication and authorization. Supports user pools for sign-up/sign-in and identity pools for access. Integrates with API Gateway and mobile apps. Troubleshoot with user pool logs and errors. Secure with MFA and OAuth 2.0. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven user analytics. Monitor for unauthorized access attempts. Interviewers may ask about Cognito user vs. identity pools.

Systems Manager automates EC2 and hybrid system management. Supports patching, configuration, and run commands. Centralizes operational tasks and compliance. Troubleshoot with SSM logs and agent issues. Secure with IAM roles and encryption. In 2025, uses AI for predictive maintenance. Monitor for agent connectivity and compliance. Interviewers expect SSM capabilities and use cases.

Glue is a serverless ETL service for data integration. Crawls data, builds catalogs, and runs ETL jobs. Integrates with S3, Redshift, and Athena. Troubleshoot with job logs and crawler errors. Secure with IAM and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven data mapping. Monitor for ETL job failures and costs. Interviewers may ask about Glue vs. Data Pipeline.

Athena queries data in S3 using SQL. Serverless, supports structured and unstructured data. Integrates with Glue for data catalogs. Troubleshoot with query execution logs. Secure with IAM and encryption at rest. In 2025, uses AI for query optimization. Monitor for query performance and costs. Interviewers expect Athena vs. Redshift Spectrum.

SageMaker builds, trains, and deploys ML models. Supports Jupyter notebooks and pre-built algorithms. Integrates with S3 and Lambda for workflows. Troubleshoot with training job logs and metrics. Secure with IAM and VPC endpoints. In 2025, enhances with advanced AI frameworks. Monitor for model drift and training costs. Interviewers may ask about SageMaker workflows and models.

Outposts extends AWS services to on-premises data centers. Runs EC2, EBS, and S3 locally with cloud integration. Supports hybrid cloud for low-latency apps. Troubleshoot with Outposts logs and connectivity. Secure with IAM and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven hybrid management. Monitor for on-premises resource usage. Interviewers expect Outposts vs. hybrid cloud solutions.

Snowball is a physical device for large-scale data transfer. Migrates data to/from AWS bypassing internet. Supports encryption and tamper-evident enclosures. Troubleshoot with Snowball job logs and errors. Secure with KMS encryption and IAM. In 2025, supports AI-driven data transfer optimization. Monitor for transfer delays and failures. Interviewers may ask about Snowball vs. DataSync.

Trusted Advisor provides best practice recommendations. Checks cost, performance, security, and compliance. Integrates with AWS Management Console. Troubleshoot with recommendation reports and errors. Secure with IAM access to insights. In 2025, uses AI for predictive recommendations. Monitor for unaddressed alerts and costs. Interviewers expect Trusted Advisor checks and benefits.

Config tracks AWS resource configurations and changes. Supports compliance auditing and resource history. Uses rules for configuration compliance checks. Troubleshoot with Config logs and rule errors. Secure with IAM and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven compliance insights. Monitor for non-compliant resources. Interviewers may ask about Config rules and auditing.

Security Hub centralizes security findings and compliance checks. Aggregates alerts from GuardDuty, Inspector, and more. Supports CIS and PCI DSS standards. Troubleshoot with findings logs and integrations. Secure with IAM and encryption. In 2025, uses AI for threat correlation. Monitor for unresolved security findings. Interviewers expect Security Hub integrations and workflows.

GuardDuty detects threats using ML and anomaly detection. Monitors CloudTrail, VPC flow logs, and DNS. Generates findings for suspicious activity. Troubleshoot with finding details and false positives. Secure with IAM access to findings. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven threat detection. Monitor for high-severity threats. Interviewers may ask about GuardDuty vs. Security Hub.

Inspector assesses EC2 and container vulnerabilities. Scans for CVEs, misconfigurations, and best practices. Generates findings with remediation steps. Troubleshoot with scan logs and errors. Secure with IAM and restricted access. In 2025, uses AI for vulnerability prioritization. Monitor for unpatched vulnerabilities. Interviewers expect Inspector scan types and results.

Macie identifies and protects sensitive data in S3. Uses ML to detect PII, PHI, and credentials. Generates findings for data security risks. Troubleshoot with Macie logs and false positives. Secure with IAM and encryption policies. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven data classification. Monitor for sensitive data exposure. Interviewers may ask about Macie vs. GuardDuty.

AWS Backup centralizes backup for AWS services. Supports EBS, RDS, DynamoDB, and more. Uses policies for scheduling and retention. Troubleshoot with backup job logs and errors. Secure with IAM and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven backup optimization. Monitor for backup failures and compliance. Interviewers expect Backup policies and integrations.

EventBridge routes events between AWS and third-party services. Supports rules for event filtering and routing. Integrates with Lambda, SNS, and SQS. Troubleshoot with event logs and rule errors. Secure with IAM and encryption. In 2025, uses AI for event pattern optimization. Monitor for undelivered events and costs. Interviewers may ask about EventBridge vs. SNS.

CodePipeline automates CI/CD pipelines for deployments. Integrates with CodeBuild, CodeDeploy, and Lambda. Supports source, build, and deploy stages. Troubleshoot with pipeline logs and stage errors. Secure with IAM roles and encryption. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven pipeline optimization. Monitor for pipeline failures and delays. Interviewers expect pipeline stages and integrations.

CodeBuild compiles and tests code in a managed environment. Supports buildspec.yml for build instructions. Integrates with CodePipeline and GitHub. Troubleshoot with build logs and errors. Secure with IAM roles and VPC settings. In 2025, uses AI for build optimization. Monitor for build failures and resource usage. Interviewers may ask about buildspec and integrations.

X-Ray traces requests across distributed applications. Maps service interactions for performance analysis. Supports Lambda, EC2, and API Gateway. Troubleshoot with trace data and latency issues. Secure with IAM access to traces. In 2025, enhances with AI-driven bottleneck detection. Monitor for application performance issues. Interviewers expect X-Ray tracing and use cases.

In 2025, AWS focuses on AI-driven automation and serverless. Adopts post-quantum cryptography for security. Enhances zero trust with IAM and VPC innovations. Troubleshoot with AI-powered diagnostics. Secure with ML-based threat detection. Monitor for adoption of AI and PQA features. Interviewers may probe AI integration and hybrid trends.