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Test mechanisms for best practices in cloud design

Best Clouds

Article from ADMIN 75/2023

By Stefan Christoph , By Frank Blessing , By and Tufan Özduman

Develop resilient and efficient cloud infrastructures for enterprise applications with the AWS Well-Architected Framework. We show you how to implement the solutions from the framework in practical terms by providing an introduction to the AWS Well-Architected tool with an example.

An architecture review is a good way to determine whether best practices are being followed in cloud design and, if so, whether your design or approach carries risks. As a cloud provider, Amazon Web Services (AWS) has developed data-based practices that are reflected in the structure and questions of the Well-Architected Framework Review. Over the years – the framework has been in place since 2015 – AWS has formalized matching test mechanisms. A questionnaire helps you apply this uniform compendium of best practices and lets you explore how well an architecture aligns with best practices for the cloud. Additionally, the framework provides detailed guidance on how to eliminate any vulnerabilities you discover.

The goal of the Well-Architected Framework is to achieve a good application design in the cloud that is appropriate for the application's purpose. One such principle, for example, is that of developing environments in a data-driven way. The aim is to measure the influence of architecture decisions and, accordingly, base further development of the architecture on the facts by collecting metrics for the change process. Each new version of the architecture provides new data points on which organizations can build a continuous evolution process. These data points can then be used in a targeted way to implement improvements.

Six Pillars

The AWS Well-Architected Framework is based on six pillars that look at different aspects:

Operational excellence
Security
Reliability
Performance efficiency
Cost optimization
Sustainability

Operational excellence relates to the design and monitoring of the systems provided. The goals are to generate genuine added value for the business and optimize continuously processes and procedures. Important aspects include automating changes, handling disruptions to

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