Shubham Murti

Posted on Oct 2

EBS Encryption, Snapshots, and AMIs in AWS - Week Thirteen

Hello Community!

In this week's deep dive, we explored critical aspects of Amazon Web Services (AWS), focusing on encrypting Elastic Block Store (EBS) volumes, managing snapshots, automating EBS encryption, and working with Amazon Machine Images (AMIs). These are essential skills for ensuring data security, efficient storage management, and seamless deployment of instances in AWS. Here's an in-depth explanation of what I learned and how you can apply these concepts in your cloud infrastructure.

Encrypting EBS Volumes

Step 1: Creating a Non-Encrypted EBS Volume

Navigate to the Volumes Dashboard:
- Log in to your AWS Management Console.
- Navigate to the EC2 service and select "Volumes" from the left-hand menu.
Create a 5GB Volume:
- Click on the "Create Volume" button.
- Enter the volume size as 5 GB.
- Leave the default settings as they are.
- Click "Create Volume" to finalize.

Outcome: You have successfully created a 5GB EBS volume that is not encrypted.

Step 2: Creating an Encrypted EBS Volume

Navigate to the Volumes Dashboard:
- Follow the same initial steps as above to reach the "Volumes" dashboard.
Create a 5GB Encrypted Volume:
- Click on "Create Volume" again.
- Enter the size as 5 GB.
- Scroll down to the "Encryption" section.
- Ensure the checkbox for "Encrypt this volume" is selected.
- Choose the default KMS (Key Management Service) key.
- Click "Create Volume."

Outcome: This step creates a 5GB encrypted EBS volume, providing additional security for your data.

Creating and Managing Snapshots

Snapshots in AWS allow you to create point-in-time backups of your EBS volumes. These can be encrypted or non-encrypted based on the underlying volume.

Step 1: Creating Snapshots

Select the EBS Volume:
- From the "Volumes" dashboard, select either the encrypted or non-encrypted volume.
Create a Snapshot:
- Click on the "Actions" button and choose "Create Snapshot."
- Provide a descriptive name to help identify the snapshot later.
- Notice that snapshots of encrypted volumes will be labeled as "Encrypted," while those of non-encrypted volumes will not.
- Click "Create Snapshot."

Outcome: You have now created snapshots for both encrypted and non-encrypted volumes.

Step 2: Creating Volumes from Snapshots

Navigate to the Snapshots Dashboard:
- Go to the "Snapshots" section within the EC2 service.
Create Volume from Snapshot:
- Select the snapshot (either encrypted or non-encrypted) you wish to use.
- Click "Actions" and choose "Create Volume from Snapshot."
- If the snapshot was encrypted, the encryption checkbox will be selected by default.
- For non-encrypted snapshots, you can choose to encrypt the volume by selecting the checkbox.
- Click "Create Volume."

Outcome: You can now see how AWS handles encryption settings when creating volumes from snapshots.

Automating EBS Volume Encryption

Manually encrypting each EBS volume can be tedious, especially in large environments. AWS allows you to automate the encryption of new EBS volumes through the EC2 settings.

Steps to Automate EBS Encryption:

Navigate to EC2 Dashboard:
- Go to the EC2 service in the AWS Management Console.
Access Account Attributes:
- Find and click on "Account Attributes" -> "Settings" -> "EBS Encryption."
Manage EBS Encryption:
- Click on "Manage."
- Enable the option to "Always encrypt new EBS volumes."
- Click "Update EBS Encryption" to save your settings.

Outcome: With this configuration, every new EBS volume you create will be encrypted by default, streamlining your security practices.

Deleting EBS Volumes and Snapshots

Properly managing and cleaning up your EBS volumes and snapshots is crucial for cost management and data lifecycle practices.

Steps to Delete EBS Volumes:

Select the Volume:
- Go to the "Volumes" dashboard.
- Select the volume you wish to delete.
Delete the Volume:
- Click "Actions" and choose "Delete Volume."

Outcome: The selected EBS volume is deleted.

Steps to Delete Snapshots:

Select the Snapshot:
- Navigate to the "Snapshots" dashboard.
- Select the snapshot you wish to delete.
Delete the Snapshot:
- Click "Actions" and choose "Delete Snapshot."

Outcome: The selected snapshot is deleted.

Note: Deleted volumes and snapshots will move to the Recycle Bin and will automatically be purged after a set retention period (e.g., 1 day).

What is an Amazon Machine Image (AMI)?

An Amazon Machine Image (AMI) is a template that contains the software configuration (e.g., operating system, application server, and applications) required to launch an instance. When you launch an instance from an AMI, it is essentially a copy of the AMI. This makes AMIs an essential tool for creating standardized environments, scaling applications, and replicating configurations across different instances.

AMIs are categorized into:

Public AMIs: Provided by AWS or third-party vendors for public use.
Private AMIs: Created by you, only accessible within your AWS account.
AWS Marketplace AMIs: Pre-configured AMIs from the AWS Marketplace.

Key Benefits of Using AMIs:

Consistency: Ensure that all instances are launched with the same configuration.
Scalability: Quickly scale your infrastructure by launching multiple instances from the same AMI.
Backup: Use AMIs to back up your instances, making recovery and replication easier.

Creating Your Own AMI

Creating an AMI from an existing EC2 instance allows you to capture a snapshot of the instance, including the operating system, installed applications, and configured settings.

Step 1: Launch an EC2 Instance

Set up an EC2 instance and install necessary applications like Nginx.
Create an HTML file to test the web server.

Step 2: Create an AMI

Option 1:
- Select the instance, right-click, and choose "Image and Templates" -> "Create Image."
Option 2:
- Go to "Actions," select "Image and Templates," then choose "Create Image."
- Enter Image Details:
  - Provide an image name and description.
  - Click "Create Image."

Outcome: AWS will create an AMI, which you can later use to launch identical EC2 instances.

Step 3: Launching a New Instance from AMI

Navigate to the AMI Section:
- Go to the "AMIs" section in the EC2 dashboard.
Launch an Instance:
- Select your newly created AMI.
- Click "Launch Instance."
- Choose the AMI from the "Owned by me" section.
- Complete the instance launch process.

Outcome: You now have a new EC2 instance running with the exact configuration as the original.

Step 4: Deleting an AMI

Once an AMI is no longer needed, you can deregister it to stop incurring storage costs.

Steps to Delete an AMI:

Select the AMI:
- Go to the "AMIs" section and select the AMI you wish to delete.
Deregister the AMI:
- Click "Actions" and choose "Deregister AMI." This will detach the associated EBS snapshot.
Delete the Snapshot:
- Navigate to the "Snapshots" section, select the AMI-related snapshot, and delete it.

Outcome: The AMI and its associated snapshot are now removed from your account.

Closure

Mastering the encryption of EBS volumes, managing snapshots, and working with Amazon Machine Images (AMIs) are critical skills for any cloud engineer. These practices not only enhance the security and efficiency of your AWS infrastructure but also allow for greater scalability and data protection. By automating EBS encryption, you ensure that all new volumes meet security standards without manual intervention. Proper management of snapshots and AMIs further optimizes storage costs and simplifies the deployment of standardized environments.

Understanding these AWS services and implementing best practices ensures that your cloud infrastructure is robust, secure, and capable of meeting the demands of modern applications. Whether you're working on a small project or managing large-scale enterprise environments, these techniques will significantly contribute to the reliability and resilience of your cloud solutions.

Stay tuned for more updates next week!

Shubham Murti — Aspiring Cloud Security Engineer | Weekly Cloud Learning !!

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