The company’s critical application needs to be highly available. How would you architect this application on AWS?
Answer: I would design the application with multiple Availability Zones (AZs) for redundancy. I would use services like Amazon RDS Multi-AZ for database redundancy, and implement Elastic Load Balancers to distribute traffic across AZs. I would also set up auto-scaling and health checks for services.
The company is planning to migrate its on-premises databases to AWS. How would you approach this migration?
Answer: I would use the AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) to facilitate the migration. First, I would assess the source database for compatibility and perform a test migration to ensure data integrity. Then, I would schedule a maintenance window for the actual migration, minimizing downtime.
The company requires a secure VPC setup. How would you design the VPC and network configurations?
Answer: I would create a VPC with public and private subnets distributed across multiple Availability Zones. I would configure Network Access Control Lists (NACLs) and Security Groups for fine-grained access control. Additionally, I would set up Virtual Private Gateway (VGW) for VPN connections or Direct Connect for dedicated network connections.
How would you monitor the performance and health of your AWS resources and set up alerts for potential issues?
Answer: I would use AWS CloudWatch to collect and track metrics, create custom dashboards, and set up alarms for resource utilization. I would also integrate AWS CloudTrail for auditing and AWS Config for compliance checks. Additionally, I might use third-party tools for advanced monitoring and analytics.
Your company needs to grant a third-party vendor temporary access to a specific resource in your AWS account. How would you securely provide this access?
Answer: I would create a cross-account IAM role in my AWS account and grant the vendor’s AWS account permission to assume this role. The vendor can then use temporary security credentials to access the specified resource. This ensures security while providing the necessary access.