AWS Well-Architected Framework — Study Notes

AWS Academy · Module 1

AWS
Well-Architected Framework

A consistent approach to review, measure, and improve cloud designs based on architectural best practices across six core pillars.

6 Core Pillars Well-Architected Tool Sustainability Focus

AWS Well-Architected Framework title slide

01 — Framework Overview

Evaluating Cloud Architectures

The AWS Well-Architected Framework provides a consistent approach to evaluate cloud architectures and implement designs that scale efficiently over time.

Slide 12 · Pillars of the AWS Well-Architected Framework — Overview of the 6 core pillars

The Six Pillars

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1. Operational Excellence

Running and monitoring systems to deliver business value and continuously improve processes and procedures.

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2. Security

Protecting information, systems, and assets while delivering business value through risk assessments and mitigation strategies.

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3. Reliability

Ensuring a workload performs its intended function correctly and consistently when expected.

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4. Performance Efficiency

Using computing resources efficiently to meet system requirements and maintain efficiency as demand changes.

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5. Cost Optimization

Avoiding unnecessary costs and ensuring you pay only for the resources you actually use.

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6. Sustainability

Minimizing the environmental impacts of running workloads in the cloud.

02 — Pillars Deep Dive

Exploring the Architectural Pillars

A deep dive into the design principles, core focus areas, and best practices that form the pillars of a well-architected cloud environment.

Pillar 1 — Operational Excellence

Operational Excellence Pillar

Slide 13 · Operational Excellence Pillar — Run, monitor, and continually improve workloads as code

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Key Objectives

Run and monitor systems that deliver business value
Continually improve supporting processes and procedures
View the entire workload as code

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Core Focus Areas

Ability to run systems and gain insight into operations
Continuously improve processes and procedures
Deploy, update, and operate workloads efficiently
Implement practices for defect reduction and quick fixes
Use logging, instrumentation, and metrics for deep observability
Treat your entire workload as code
Apply Infrastructure as Code (IaC) across the stack

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Best Practices

Make observation possible with comprehensive logging and monitoring
Use business and technical metrics to gain insights
Automate operations activities to maximize productivity and reduce errors
Implement automated responses where possible

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Recommendation — Operational Excellence

Invest in implementing operations activities as code to improve productivity, reduce error rates, and enable automated responses.

Pillar 2 — Security

Security Pillar

Slide 14 · Security Pillar — Protect information, systems, and assets through traceability and controls

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Key Design Principles

Implement a strong identity foundation
Maintain traceability
Apply security at all layers
Implement risk assessment and mitigation strategies
Automate security best practices
Protect data in transit and at rest

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Core Focus

Build a strong security presence in your architecture
Prepare effectively for security events
Protect information and assets while maintaining business value

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Best Practices

Use strong identity and access management
Enable auditing and monitoring for traceability
Apply defense-in-depth (security at every layer)
Regularly perform risk assessments
Automate security controls where possible
Encrypt data both in transit and at rest

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Key Takeaway — Security Pillar

Implementing these principles significantly strengthens your overall security posture.

Pillar 3 — Reliability

Reliability Pillar

Slide 15 · Reliability Pillar — Recover from failure, meet compute demand, and mitigate disruptions

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Design & Focus

Recover quickly from failures
Dynamically meet compute demand
Mitigate disruptions (misconfigurations or transient network issues)
Ensure high availability and fault tolerance
Build systems that can withstand and recover from failures
Achieve elasticity to handle varying workloads
Reduce single points of failure through redundancy

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Main Challenges Addressed

Single points of failure common in traditional environments
Lack of automation
Lack of elasticity (ability to scale)

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Benefits

Prevents many reliability issues before they occur
Enables high availability and fault tolerance
Provides overall redundancy in architecture
Helps deliver consistent performance to customers even during disruptions

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Key Takeaway — Reliability Pillar

Applying Reliability pillar best practices results in a properly designed architecture that is resilient and scalable.

Pillar 4 — Performance Efficiency

Performance Efficiency Pillar

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Key Design Principles

Choose and maintain efficient resources
Democratize advanced technologies
Employ mechanical sympathy

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Core Concepts

Maximize performance by using computation resources efficiently
Use advanced technologies without needing deep expertise (leverage managed services)
Understand how a system or tool works best (“Mechanical Sympathy”)
Select the right technology based on workload characteristics (e.g., data access patterns for databases/storage)

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Goal

Achieve the best performance while optimizing resource usage.

Pillar 5 — Cost Optimization

Cost Optimization Pillar

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Key Design Principles

Measure efficiency
Eliminate unneeded expense
Adopt the right consumption model
Consider using managed services

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Best Practices

Continuously monitor and optimize costs
Remove unnecessary resources and expenses
Choose appropriate pricing models (pay only for what you use)
Leverage managed services for lower cost per transaction
Iterate and refine cost optimization regularly

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Goal

Build cost-aware architectures without sacrificing performance or reliability. Cost Optimization is an ongoing process throughout the lifecycle of a workload.

Pillar 6 — Sustainability

Sustainability Pillar

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Key Design Principles

Establish sustainability goals
Maximize utilization
Choose efficient hardware and software
Reduce downstream impact

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Core Focus

Minimize energy consumption and waste
Reduce long-term environmental, economic, and societal impact
Achieve maximum benefit from provisioned resources
Use efficient programming languages, algorithms, and data storage techniques
Deploy correctly sized and efficient compute infrastructure

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Goal

Create environmentally responsible cloud workloads, maximizing efficiency and minimizing environmental impact.

03 — Well-Architected Tool

Using the AWS Well-Architected Tool

The AWS Well-Architected Tool is a free self-service tool in the AWS Management Console that helps you review and improve your workloads based on the latest AWS best practices.

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Key Benefits

Review the state of workloads and compare them to architectural best practices
Gain access to knowledge and best practices used by AWS architects
Delivers a prioritized action plan with step-by-step guidance on how to build better workloads
Provides a consistent process to review and measure cloud architectures

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How It Works

Define your workload in the AWS Management Console
Answer questions across the six pillars (Operational Excellence, Security, Reliability, Performance Efficiency, Cost Optimization, and Sustainability)
Receive an action plan with specific recommendations
Get guidance to improve security, performance, reliability, cost, and operational efficiency

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What You Can Achieve

Minimize system failures and operational costs
Dive deep into business and infrastructure processes
Receive best practice guidance
Deliver on the full value proposition of cloud computing
Identify next steps for improvement
Support architectural decisions and corporate governance

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Expert Tip — Well-Architected Tool

Use the AWS WA Tool to build secure, high-performing, resilient, and efficient infrastructure on AWS.

Module 1 · Takeaways

Key Takeaways:
AWS Well-Architected Framework

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The AWS Well-Architected Framework provides a consistent approach to evaluate cloud architectures and implement designs.
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It is organized into six pillars (Operational Excellence, Security, Reliability, Performance Efficiency, Cost Optimization, and Sustainability).
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Each pillar includes foundational questions to assess alignment with cloud best practices.
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The AWS Well-Architected Tool helps compare workloads to AWS best practices and provides improvement recommendations.

AWSWell-Architected Framework

Evaluating Cloud Architectures

The Six Pillars

1. Operational Excellence

2. Security

3. Reliability

4. Performance Efficiency

5. Cost Optimization

6. Sustainability

Exploring the Architectural Pillars

Operational Excellence Pillar

Key Objectives

Core Focus Areas

Best Practices

Recommendation — Operational Excellence

Security Pillar

Key Design Principles

Core Focus

Best Practices

Key Takeaway — Security Pillar

Reliability Pillar

Design & Focus

Main Challenges Addressed

Benefits

Key Takeaway — Reliability Pillar

Performance Efficiency Pillar

Key Design Principles

Core Concepts

Goal

Cost Optimization Pillar

Key Design Principles

Best Practices

Goal

Sustainability Pillar

Key Design Principles

Core Focus

Goal

Using the AWS Well-Architected Tool

Key Benefits

How It Works

What You Can Achieve

Expert Tip — Well-Architected Tool

Key Takeaways:AWS Well-Architected Framework

AWS
Well-Architected Framework

Key Takeaways:
AWS Well-Architected Framework