EC2 is essentially a virtual server in the cloud. It can be available within minutes after setting it up. Compare that to how long it would take to provision and prepare a physical server in your own datacenter. Even ordering it and awaiting initial configuration and shipment can take weeks. General knowledge about EC2 is one of the key categories in the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam.

S3 is object-based flat file unlimited storage. It's unlimited, but that doesn't mean we should throw files up there without thinking -- storage still costs money. It's not block-based, so it's not meant for storing operating systems or live databases. But any type of file can be stored (including database file backups), and each can be from 0 bytes up to 5 TB. General knowledge about S3 is one of the key categories in the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam.

In my last article, we discussed S3 pricing, which was an entire topic on its own. In this part, we'll discuss other key service charges, and the options and decisions we need to make when planning. I don’t believe the exams will ask about specific prices,...

In my last article, we discussed the support options' costs and EC2 pricing. This is a large topic, so I'm going to have to have a 3rd part since S3 takes up a lot. I don't believe the exams will ask about specific prices, as these can always change. But the important thing is understanding the relative pricing, so you could be able to make intelligent cost analysis decisions.

One of the critical categories of questions for the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam is billing. It’s estimated to be from 12% to 20% of the exam. Every service and support plan have their own pricing models, and I’ll try to clarify all of these here. This is a large topic, so I’m going to split this over three articles. I don’t believe the exams will ask about specific prices, as these can always change. But the important thing is understanding the relative pricing, so you could be able to make intelligent cost analysis decisions.

One of the first things we'll do after creating an AWS account is add users and groups via the IAM console. We will initially do this as the "root" account user. But be careful -- root accounts are not restricted in any way. Therefore, I strongly recommend following the Security Status checklist FIRST when visiting the IAM console.