AWS: Systems Operations

This course covers the duties of those who are responsible for implementing, managing, and maintaining a computer systems and networking architecture in the Amazon Web Services cloud environment platform. Amazon Web Services supports an array of cloud service models, including Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Platform-as-a-Service, and Software-as-a-Service. The course provides students with the tools and knowledge they need to support existing cloud resources incorporated in these service models, or on-premises resources that will eventually migrate to the cloud.

Ultimately, Amazon Web Services enables businesses and other organizations to offload a great deal of computing infrastructure to the cloud. This can reduce operational costs, provide access to powerful emerging technologies, and streamline management of that infrastructure. The AWS™ Systems Operations course prepares students to support these advantages in their day-to-day operational duties.

4 days

This course is designed for system administrators and other IT practitioners who will be implementing, supporting, and maintaining Amazon Web Services in their organizations.

This course is also designed for students who are seeking the AWS Certified SysOps Administrator—Associate Level certification and who want to prepare for the requisite exam.

To ensure your success in this course, you should have experience with the features provided by Amazon Web Services. You can obtain this level of skills and knowledge by taking the AWS™ Fundamentals course.

In addition, you should also have a background in IT, preferably in systems administration. You should have a basic knowledge of common networking protocols like TCP/IP and have experience maintaining operating systems in both a Microsoft® Windows® and Linux® command-line environment. A fundamental knowledge of key information security concepts is also recommended. To obtain this level of skills and knowledge, you can take the following course, available from Logical Operations:

• CompTIA® A+®: A Comprehensive Approach (Exams 220-901 and 220-902)
• CompTIA® Network+® (Exam N10-006)
• CompTIA® Security+® (Exam SY0-401)
• CompTIA® Linux+™ Powered by LPI (Exams LX0-103 and LX0-104)

Hardware:

For this course, you will need one computer for each student and one for the instructor. Each computer will need the following minimum hardware configurations:

• 1 gigahertz (GHz) 64-bit processor
• 2 gigabytes (GB) of Random Access Memory (RAM)
• 50 GB storage drive
• Monitor capable of a screen resolution of at least 1,024 x 768 pixels
• Display adapter
• Bootable DVD-ROM and/or USB drive
• Keyboard and mouse (or other pointing device)
• Network cards and cabling for local network access
• Internet access (contact your local network administrator)
• Projection system to display the instructor’s computer screen

Software:

• Microsoft® Windows® 10 64-bit with sufficient licenses.Windows 10 requires activation unless you have volume-licensing agreements. There is a grace period for activation. If the duration of your class will exceed the activation grace period (for example, if you are teaching the class over the course of an academic semester), you should activate the installations at some point before the grace period expires. Otherwise, the operating system may stop working before the class ends.
• A web browser of your choice. Consult the AWS Management Console FAQ to see which browsers are supported ( https://aws.amazon.com/console/faqs/).
• The AWS CLI.
• PuTTY version 0.67 and its companion utilities ( putty-0.67-installer.msi).PuTTY is distributed with the course data files under the MIT License.
• Bro version 2.5 (bro-2.5.tar.gz).Bro is distributed with the course data files under the BSD License.

In this course, you will operate Internet-accessible virtual servers hosted on the Amazon Web Services platform that adhere to best practices for monitoring, security, and availability.

You will:

• Configure virtual servers using Amazon Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2™).
• Configure virtual networks using Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC™).
• Manage data storage in Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS), Simple Storage Service (S3), and more.
• Manage databases like Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) and DynamoDB™.
• Apply best security practices to data, software, and other AWS resources.
• Manage identity and access in AWS.
• Deploy and provision AWS resources using tools like CloudFormation.
• Monitor AWS resources using Amazon CloudWatch.
• Monitor and manage billing to optimize cost.
• Optimize the performance of AWS components using tools like Elastic Load Balancer (ELB) and Trusted Advisor.

Lesson 1: Configuring Virtual Servers

 Topic A: Create an EC2 Instance

 Topic B: Configure an EC2 Instance

Lesson 2: Configuring Virtual Networks

 Topic A: Create an Amazon Virtual Private Cloud

 Topic B: Configure VPCs

 Topic C: Implement Domain Name Services in VPC

 Topic D: Implement VPC Peering

Lesson 3: Managing Data Storage

 Topic A: Manage Elastic Block Store

 Topic B: Manage Elastic File System Storage

 Topic C: Manage Simple Storage Service

 Topic D: Distribute Stored Content with CloudFront

Lesson 4: Managing Databases

 Topic A: Manage Relational Database Service

 Topic B: Manage DynamoDB

 Topic C: Implement Database Caching with ElastiCache

Lesson 5: Securing AWS Resources

 Topic A: Incorporate Security Policies in AWS

 Topic B: Secure Data

 Topic C: Secure Operating Systems and Applications

 Topic D: Secure Network Infrastructure

 Topic E: Prepare for Security Assessments

Lesson 6: Managing Identity and Access

 Topic A: Manage AWS Accounts and IAM Users

 Topic B: Control Access through Security Groups

 Topic C: Implement Network ACLs

Lesson 7: Deploying AWS Resources

 Topic A: Plan Application Deployments

 Topic B: Deploy Infrastructure with CloudFormation

 Topic C: Deploy and Manage Applications with Elastic Beanstalk

 Topic D: Manage the Stack with OpsWorks

Lesson 8: Monitoring AWS Resources

 Topic A: Monitor Resources with CloudWatch

 Topic B: Configure Alarms for CPU, Disk, and Network Usage

 Topic C: Configure Alarms for Memory Usage

 Topic D: Monitor Additional AWS Resources

Lesson 9: Monitoring and Managing Billing

 Topic A: Monitor Billing

 Topic B: Optimize Cost

Lesson 10: Optimizing Performance

 Topic A: Select Remedies for Performance Issues

 Topic B: Implement ELB

 Topic C: Implement Trusted Advisor

Appendix A: Mapping Course Content to AWS Certified SysOps Administrator—Associate Level