Compute

Question 1

What is Amazon EC2?

Answer 1

A Linux-based/Windows-based/Mac-based virtual server that you can provision

EC2 allows users to run virtual servers in the cloud.

Question 2

What is the AWS Nitro System?

Answer 2

The underlying platform of the next generation of EC2 instances

It offloads functions to dedicated hardware and software, improving performance.

Question 3

What are instance types in Amazon EC2?

Answer 3

• t-type and m-type for general purpose
• c-type for compute optimized
• r-type, x-type, and z-type for memory-optimized
• d-type, h-type, and i-type for storage optimized
• f-type, g-type, and p-type for accelerated computing

Instance types define the configurations of CPU, memory, storage, and networking capacity.

Question 4

What is the purpose of Amazon Machine Images (AMIs)?

Answer 4

A reusable template for the root volume of an instance

AMIs can include the OS, application server, and applications.

Question 5

What are the instance states in Amazon EC2?

Answer 5

• Start
• Stop
• Hibernate
• Terminate

Each state has specific implications for billing and data retention.

Question 6

True or false: You can stop an Instance Store-backed instance.

Answer 6

FALSE

Instance Store-backed instances do not support the Stop action.

Question 7

What happens to data on instance store volumes when an instance is terminated?

Answer 7

Data is deleted

Instance store volumes do not retain data after termination.

Question 8

What is EC2 Hibernation?

Answer 8

A feature that saves the in-memory state to a file in the root EBS volume before shutting down

Hibernation requires an encrypted EBS-backed instance.

Question 9

What are the pricing models for Amazon EC2?

Answer 9

• On-Demand
• Reserved
• Spot

Each model has different billing structures and commitments.

Question 10

What is a Spot Fleet?

Answer 10

A collection of Spot Instances and optionally On-Demand Instances

It attempts to maintain target capacity based on specified requirements.

Question 11

What is the function of a security group in Amazon EC2?

Answer 11

Acts as a virtual firewall controlling traffic for instances

Security groups allow you to specify protocols, ports, and source IP ranges.

Question 12

What does an Elastic IP address do?

Answer 12

Provides a static IPv4 address for dynamic cloud computing

It allows rapid remapping to another instance in case of failure.

Question 13

What is the maximum number of Elastic IP addresses allowed per region by default?

Answer 13

Five (5)

This limit is due to the scarcity of public IPv4 internet addresses.

Question 14

What is Enhanced Networking in Amazon EC2?

Answer 14

Provides higher bandwidth and higher packets per second

It improves network performance for EC2 instances.

Question 15

What does IAM stand for in the context of Amazon EC2 security?

Answer 15

Identity and Access Management

IAM controls access to your instances.

Question 16

What is the purpose of Amazon EC2 Image Builder?

Answer 16

Automates the creation, management, and deployment of AMIs

It allows for the customization and automation of image updates.

Question 17

What is the recycle bin feature for AMIs?

Answer 17

Allows restoration of deleted AMIs

You can set retention rules to protect against modifications and deletions.

Question 18

What is the default behavior of security groups in Amazon EC2?

Answer 18

Allows all outbound traffic

Inbound traffic rules must be explicitly defined.

Question 19

What is the termination protection feature in Amazon EC2?

Answer 19

Prevents accidental termination of an instance

This feature can be enabled to safeguard critical instances.

Question 20

What is the maximum number of network interfaces that can be used?

Answer 20

Varies by instance type

You can attach a network interface to an instance in a different subnet as long as it is within the same AZ.

Question 21

What happens to default interfaces upon instance termination?

Answer 21

Terminated with instance termination

This means that default network interfaces are automatically removed when the instance is stopped or terminated.

Question 22

What is the purpose of EC2 Scaling Groups?

Answer 22

Scale and distribute traffic among instances

They help manage the number of instances based on demand.

Question 23

What are bastion hosts used for in EC2?

Answer 23

Access VPC instances for management

They allow secure access using SSH or RDP protocols.

Question 24

What does Enhanced Networking provide?

Answer 24

• Higher bandwidth
• Higher packet per second (PPS) performance
• Consistent lower inter-instance latencies

It uses single root I/O virtualization (SR-IOV) for high-performance networking.

Question 25

What is an **Elastic Fabric Adapter (EFA)**?

Answer 25

A network device for accelerating machine learning and HPC applications ## Footnote EFA provides lower latency and higher throughput compared to traditional TCP transport.

Question 26

What are the **EC2 items to monitor**?

Answer 26

* CPU utilization * Network utilization * Disk performance * Disk Reads/Writes * Memory utilization * Disk swap utilization * Disk space utilization * Page file utilization * Log collection ## Footnote Monitoring can be done using EC2 metrics and CloudWatch.

Question 27

What are **System Status Checks** used for?

Answer 27

Monitor AWS systems required for instance operation ## Footnote They detect problems needing AWS intervention.

Question 28

What is **Instance Metadata**?

Answer 28

Data about your instance for configuration or management ## Footnote It can be accessed from within a running instance.

Question 29

What types of **user data** can be passed to EC2?

Answer 29

* Shell scripts * Cloud-init directives ## Footnote User data is limited to 16 KB.

Question 30

What is a **placement group** in EC2?

Answer 30

Determines how instances are placed on underlying hardware ## Footnote It can be launched or started in different configurations like cluster, spread, or partition.

Question 31

What is the **maximum number of running instances** per Availability Zone in a spread placement group?

Answer 31

Seven ## Footnote Spread placement groups can span multiple Availability Zones.

Question 32

What does **EBS** stand for?

Answer 32

Elastic Block Store ## Footnote It provides durable, block-level storage volumes for EC2 instances.

Question 33

What is the difference between **Instance Store** and EBS?

Answer 33

* Instance Store: Temporary storage, data lost on instance stop/termination * EBS: Durable storage, data persists ## Footnote EBS allows for snapshots to be created and stored in S3.

Question 34

What is **Amazon FSx for Windows File Server**?

Answer 34

A fully-managed file storage built on Windows Server ## Footnote It is part of the Amazon FSx service offerings.

Question 35

What is the purpose of **Amazon S3**?

Answer 35

Reliable and inexpensive data storage infrastructure ## Footnote It is used for EBS snapshots and instance store-backed AMIs.

Question 36

What is the significance of **resource IDs** in EC2?

Answer 36

Unique identifier assigned to each resource ## Footnote Resources can be global or specific to a region or Availability Zone.