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Don't just learn the cloud—BYTE it!
Byte the Cloud is your go-to, on-the-go, podcast for mastering AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud certifications and exam prep!
Chris 0:00
All right, so let's, let's take a look at this AWS storage gateway. Yeah,
Kelly 0:03
it's a it's a pretty interesting service, actually, you know, you can imagine connecting your on premise data centers, you know, with the seemingly limitless storage of AWS. Yeah,
Chris 0:16
it does sound pretty magical. It is kind of, it's like
Kelly 0:19
a virtual doorway, you know, it lets your on premises systems access and manage all that data that's stored in AWS as storage services. It's
Chris 0:26
like bridging that physical gap going to the cloud Exactly,
Kelly 0:28
and that's why it's such a big deal for cloud engineers like you, right? Yeah? It's not always about, you know, getting rid of your entire infrastructure. It's about making it work smarter, you know, integrating it with the cloud? Yeah. So storage gateway lets you do that. Yeah. You get the best of both worlds. You get that, you know, security and control of keeping some data local, but you also get that, you know, scalability, the durability, the cost effectiveness of AWS Cloud Storage. Speaking
Chris 0:54
of cost effectiveness, that's that's a big one for companies nowadays.
Kelly 0:58
It really is. And one of the cool things about storage gateway is the way it, you know, leverages different S3 storage tiers to optimize costs. Oh, interesting, yeah. So, so you're not just, you know, dumping all your data into the most expensive option, right, right? You can set up these life cycle policies, right? So it'll automatically move data to those, you know, less expensive tiers as it's accessed less frequently. So
Chris 1:22
it's like tiered storage, but in the cloud Exactly. That's awesome. It's pretty
Kelly 1:26
slick. It really is, you know, so storage gateway has a lot to offer. It really does. Yeah, it seems like it like, for example, you can think of a healthcare company, right? They might want to use it to securely back up sensitive patient data to S3 while keeping the original data, you know, on premises for compliance reasons. That makes sense, yeah? Or think about like a media company, right? Yeah, dealing with these massive video files, they can use Storage gateway to, you know, seamlessly archive that older content to the cloud, so they free up that expensive on premises storage,
Chris 1:59
but it's still accessible. Oh, that's smart. So it's not just for backups. Then, no, definitely
Kelly 2:03
not. It can act as a primary storage target for certain workloads, like, let's say you're a financial institution that needs that low latency access to frequently used data. You could use Storage gateways, cached volumes feature to keep that data local for those super fast response times, while moving that less used data to the cloud for long term storage. That's
Chris 2:28
pretty smart. It seems like storage gateway can really adapt to all these different needs. It's all about picking the right tool for the job, right? And speaking of tools, I know storage gateway has different I guess what flavors. That's
Kelly 2:40
right? Yeah, it's not a one size fits all service. You've got file gateway for, you know, file sharing, obviously. And then you have volume gateway which acts like a local disk, you know, with options for cached and stored volumes. And then there's tape gateway which emulates a virtual tape library in the cloud.
Chris 2:55
Wow. So there's a gateway for every storage scenario, pretty much.
Kelly 2:59
But each, you know, Gateway type has its own strengths and its own weaknesses, so it's important to understand, you know, those little details to choose the right solution.
Chris 3:07
Okay, I think we've got a pretty good foundation on the basics. I want to kind of dive deeper into, you know, those technical details, yeah, what makes these different gateways tick?
Kelly 3:18
I'm happy to break it down for you, yeah. So let's start with the features and benefits of each of those gateway types, and then, you know, we can explore how they fit into the, you know, the broader AWS ecosystem. Sounds like
Chris 3:29
a plan, Yeah, I'm ready to get into the nitty gritty. Great.
Kelly 3:31
Let's start with file gateway. One of its key strengths is its ability to to seamlessly integrate with your existing on premises file servers. So it's kind of like you're extending your existing file shares into the cloud, gotcha. And it uses those standard NFS and SMB protocols so your applications and your users can access files in S3 just as if they were stored locally. Okay, and here's the kicker, right? It supports all the S3 storage classes, including glacier, which is super cost effective for archiving. Wow, that's pretty awesome. Yeah, no need to rewrite applications or change user workflows. It's all about, you know, smoothing that transition to the cloud. Okay,
Chris 4:10
so file gateway handles the file share. What about volume gateway? I know there's the cached and stored volume options you mentioned
Kelly 4:17
earlier, right? Volume gateway is all about that block level storage that looks and feels like a local hard drive to your servers. So it's perfect for those applications that require you know that high performance and that low latency.
Chris 4:30
Okay? And how do those differ the cached and stored volumes? So
Kelly 4:34
think of cached volumes like a high speed buffer, so your most frequently accessed data is kept locally on that cache volume for super fast
Chris 4:42
access. So it's like a super charged local storage Yeah.
Kelly 4:45
And in the background, storage gateway is transferring the data to S3 for durability and cost effectiveness.
Chris 4:51
That makes sense. But what if you need all your data readily available in the cloud? That's
Kelly 4:55
where stored volumes come in. With stored volumes, all your data is stored in S3 but you. Still access it through the gateway as if it were local. It's great for disaster recovery scenarios, because you can quickly spin up those EC2 instances from those stored volumes if your on premises environment goes down, so you're
Chris 5:11
basically replicating your entire on premise storage in the cloud Exactly.
Kelly 5:15
It's a great way to ensure business continuity. Wow.
Chris 5:18
Okay, we've covered file gateway and volume gateway. What about tape gateway? That one sounds interesting. Yeah, tape gateway
Kelly 5:27
is all about bringing the benefits of cloud storage to those organizations that still rely on, you know, tape backups.
Chris 5:35
Oh, so it's like a virtual tape library in the
Kelly 5:37
cloud. You got it. It allows you to back up your data to virtual tapes that are stored in S3 so you don't need physical tapes and all the, you know, the headaches that come with them, right? That makes a lot of sense. Yeah, it's way more cost effective, scalable and secure than you know, those old school tape backups, plus you get all those S3 benefits, like durability, versioning and life cycle policies. Wow.
Chris 5:57
So it's like a modern take on tape backups.
Kelly 5:59
It is and surprisingly easy to set up and manage. Okay, cool, so
Chris 6:03
we've explored all those different gateway types. Now I'm curious about the bigger picture. You know, how does storage gateway fit into that whole AWS ecosystem? That's
Kelly 6:14
a good question. It's designed to work with other AWS services, creating this powerful toolkit for data management and migration. Okay? It's like a team player, right, right? Like you could use Storage gateway with data sync for efficient data transfer, AWS backup for centralized backup management, and even AWS Migration Hub for planning and orchestrating those large scale migrations. So
Chris 6:37
it's all about integrating storage gateway into your overall cloud strategy,
Kelly 6:41
exactly, and that's where things get really interesting. Speaking of interesting,
Chris 6:46
we know that you're probably gearing up for an AWS exam, and, you know, this service might pop up. It
Kelly 6:51
definitely could. So why don't we shift gears a little bit, and, you know, put your storage gateway knowledge to the tests. Okay, we've got some challenging practice questions lined up for you. Awesome. Bring
Chris 7:01
it on. I'm ready to see what I've learned so far.
Kelly 7:03
Perfect. Let's start with a scenario that's likely to come up in the exam. Okay, sounds good? Let's hear it. Okay. So imagine you're a consultant, right? And you're working with this company that needs low latency access to their most frequently used data, but they also want to archive that older data, you know, to a more cost effective cloud solution. So what type of storage gateway would you recommend and why?
Chris 7:26
Hmm, so they need speed for some of their data, but cost savings for the rest. I think that sounds like a job for a volume gateway, maybe with those cache volumes, yeah,
Kelly 7:36
exactly you got it cache volumes, right? They would keep that frequently accessed data local on that cache volume, those really fast response times, and then storage gateway would automatically, in the background, transfer that less used data to S3 so you get that cost effective cloud storage. Okay, so
Chris 7:51
they get the performance and the affordability. That's awesome. It is.
Kelly 7:54
It's pretty neat. Yeah, now let's switch gears a little bit. Let's say we've got this company, and they're using storage gateway to back up all their critical on premises data to S3 what are some of the security measures they should consider to protect that data, both in transit and at rest?
Chris 8:09
Okay, so security is super important, especially with sensitive data in the cloud. So for in transit security, you definitely want to make sure that connection to AWS is encrypted, maybe using HTTPS or VPN, right?
Kelly 8:21
Like a secure tunnel for your data exactly, and then for that at Rest Encryption storage gateway integrates with AWS, KMS, you know, Key Management Service, right? This lets you manage those encryption keys and create those data encryption policies so you have that added layer of protection. So it's
Chris 8:38
encrypted when it's moving and when it's just sitting there. Awesome. Okay, and what about controlling access to the data? Who can see it? Yeah,
Kelly 8:44
that's where I am. Comes in identity and access management, okay, you can use IAM policies to really specify who can access what it's all about. You know that granular control, maintaining that data security and meeting those compliance requirements, all right? So
Chris 8:59
only the right people have access. I love that. Okay, last question, let's say a company wants to get rid of their physical tapes and they want to create that virtual tape library in the cloud using storage gateway. How does tape gateway compare to traditional tape backups? What are the advantages?
Kelly 9:18
That's a good one. Tape gateway is a game changer for those organizations that are still using, you know, those tape based backup systems. Okay, it's really like a modern take on a very old school practice. So
Chris 9:30
bringing tape backups to the cloud, exactly with tape gateway, you
Kelly 9:34
back up your data to those virtual tapes stored in S3 and it gets rid of all those physical tapes and those headaches that come with managing them. I bet the IT teams are happy about that. Oh, yeah, no more dealing with tapes that get lost or damaged, you know, or degrade over time,
Chris 9:48
makes sense. So besides not having to deal with all the tapes, what are the other advantages?
Kelly 9:52
Well, it's super cost effective. You only pay for the storage that you're using, and you can use those S3 lifecycle policies to opt. Costs even further, plus you get all the benefits of S3 like durability, versioning and that data retrieval flexibility. So it's more than just getting rid of the physical tapes. Yeah, it's a much more modern, secure and cost effective way to manage your long term data archiving and those disaster recovery needs. This has been
Chris 10:18
a really great look into AWS storage gateway. We've covered so much, but before we wrap things up, I'm curious to hear your thoughts on where this service is headed. You know, what do you think the future holds for storage gateway?
Kelly 10:28
Ooh, that's a good question. The world of cloud storage is constantly evolving, and storage gateway is no exception. I think we'll see even tighter integration with other AWS services like AWS backup and AWS Data Sync, and we might even see new gateway types emerge, right, maybe catering to certain industries or specific use cases. It's
Chris 10:49
exciting to think about all the possibilities. Any final words of advice for our listeners who might be preparing for their AWS exams,
Kelly 10:56
absolutely focus on really understanding those different gateway types, right their strengths, their weaknesses, and how they fit into that larger AWS ecosystem. And make sure you're comfortable with those key concepts, like those storage tiers, data encryption, access control and how it all integrates with other AWS services. And don't be afraid to get hands on. You know, spin up those instances, play around with the different gateway configurations and see how it all performs with your own workloads. The more you practice, the more confident you'll become. Great
Chris 11:29
advice. So as we wrap up this episode, what is that one key takeaway you want our listeners to remember about AWS storage gateway? I
Kelly 11:38
think the most important thing to remember is that AWS storage gateway is a powerful and versatile service that can help bridge that gap between your on premises infrastructure and the cloud. Okay, whether you're trying to back up data, archive old files or create that hybrid storage solution, storage gateway has the tools you need. Makes sense, and as you continue on your cloud journey, remember to stay curious, keep learning, and never stop exploring that world of AWS
Chris 12:01
Well, Said, that's a perfect note to end on. Thanks for joining us on this deep dive into AWS storage gateway, and until next time, keep building those amazing things in the cloud. Okay, so we've explored the ins and outs of AWS storage gateway, tackled some practice questions, and now it's time to wrap up this deep dive.
Kelly 12:20
You know, it's all about that bridge between your on premises world and the cloud, finding that right balance. You want to leverage your existing infrastructure but also embrace the agility and scalability of AWS, yeah,
Chris 12:34
building that bridge to the future of data storage,
Kelly 12:36
exactly. But you need a solid foundation, right, choosing that right gateway, the security measures, understanding how it all fits into your cloud strategy. That's essential.
Chris 12:45
And you know, don't be afraid to just experiment. That's right. Get hands on, see how it performs with your workloads. The cloud is your playground. So as you continue on your cloud journey and prepare for that AWS exam, remember, knowledge is power, and when it comes to AWS storage gateway, you've got it.
Kelly 13:02
Yeah, you're gonna ace that exam. Thanks
Chris 13:04
for joining us on this deep dive into AWS storage gateway. Until next time, keep learning, exploring and building amazing things in the cloud.