How to AWS - Lecture 5 - Boise State CS 535 Fall 2024

Introduction

This tutorial is designed to guide you through the key concepts and techniques discussed in Lecture 5 of the AWS course offered by Boise State University. It covers essential AWS functionalities and practical applications, making it relevant for both beginners and those looking to enhance their cloud computing skills.

Step 1: Understanding AWS Services

Begin by familiarizing yourself with the core AWS services that are commonly used in cloud computing:

• EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud): Provides scalable computing capacity in the cloud.
• S3 (Simple Storage Service): Offers secure, durable, and highly-scalable object storage.
• RDS (Relational Database Service): Simplifies the setup and management of relational databases.

Practical Tip

Explore the AWS Management Console to get hands-on experience with these services. This will help you understand how to navigate the platform effectively.

Step 2: Setting Up an EC2 Instance

Follow these steps to launch your first EC2 instance:

1. Log in to the AWS Management Console.
2. Navigate to EC2 Dashboard:
   • Click on “Services” and select “EC2”.
3. Launch Instance:
   • Click on the “Launch Instance” button.
4. Choose an Amazon Machine Image (AMI):
   • Select an AMI that suits your needs (e.g., Amazon Linux, Ubuntu).
5. Select Instance Type:
   • Choose an instance type based on your resource requirements (e.g., t2.micro for free tier).
6. Configure Instance Details:
   • Set your desired configurations (number of instances, network settings).
7. Add Storage:
   • Modify storage settings if needed (default settings often suffice).
8. Configure Security Group:
   • Create a new security group or select an existing one, ensuring you allow SSH access.
9. Review and Launch:
   • Review your settings and click “Launch”.
   • Select or create a key pair for SSH access.

Common Pitfalls

• Ensure that the security group allows inbound traffic on necessary ports (e.g., SSH on port 22).
• Remember to keep your key pair safe; losing it can lock you out of your instance.

Step 3: Connecting to Your EC2 Instance

Once your instance is running, connect to it using SSH:

1. Open Terminal (Linux/Mac) or Command Prompt (Windows).
2. Navigate to the directory containing your key pair file.
3. Use the following command to connect:

   ssh -i "your-key-pair.pem" ec2-user@your-instance-public-dns
   

   Replace "your-key-pair.pem" with your actual key file name and your-instance-public-dns with your instance's public DNS.

Practical Tip

If you're using Windows, consider using an SSH client like PuTTY to connect to your EC2 instance.

Step 4: Using S3 for Storage

Learn to utilize S3 for storing files:

1. Go to S3 in the AWS Management Console.
2. Create a New Bucket:
   • Click on “Create bucket”.
   • Provide a unique bucket name and select a region.
3. Upload Files:
   • Open the bucket and click on “Upload” to add files.
4. Set Permissions:
   • Adjust permissions as necessary to control access to your bucket.

Real-World Application

S3 is ideal for static website hosting, backup storage, and serving content for web applications.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, you learned how to navigate AWS services, set up an EC2 instance, connect to it via SSH, and utilize S3 for storage solutions. As you progress, consider exploring more advanced AWS features like Lambda for serverless computing and CloudFormation for infrastructure as code. Continue practicing these steps to solidify your understanding of AWS and its capabilities.