LogiCast AWS News (Video)

Season 4 Episode 18: Lambda Logging, Just-in-Time Access, and Data Center Debates

In Season 4, Episode 18 Karl & Jon are joined by AWS Hero Renato Losio. They discuss the introduction of tiered pricing for Amazon CloudWatch logs, new logging destinations, and standardized billing for the init phase in AWS Lambda; the launch of just-in-time node access via AWS Systems Manager; the use of AWS Transfer Family and GuardDuty for enhanced malware protection; the ongoing AI data center boom and its potential slowdown; and Jon’s return to the group, gracing them once more despite his rise as an internationally recognized tech conference speaker.
 
08:46 - AWS Lambda introduces tiered pricing for Amazon CloudWatch logs and additional logging destinations 
AWS is now charging for the init phase of Lambda functions across all runtimes, which was previously free for some. This change is seen as a standardization effort but also as a price increase. While it may force developers to optimize their init phase, there are concerns about the impact on costs, especially for larger-scale users.
16:11 - AWS Lambda standardizes billing for init phase 
This new feature allows for temporary, just-in-time access to nodes, improving security by reducing standing access. While the functionality is praised, especially for large enterprises and highly regulated industries, the pricing ($10 per node per month) is considered expensive. The feature includes approval workflows and integration with communication tools like Slack.
23:10 - Introduction of just-in-time node access using AWS Systems Manager 
This new feature allows for temporary, just-in-time access to nodes, improving security by reducing standing access. While the functionality is praised, especially for large enterprises and highly regulated industries, the pricing ($10 per node per month) is considered expensive. The feature includes approval workflows and integration with communication tools like Slack.
31:44 - Using AWS Transfer Family and GuardDuty for malware protection 
The article describes how to use AWS Transfer Family (for SFTP) and GuardDuty for malware scanning of uploaded files. While the solution is praised for its architecture and implementation, there are criticisms about the continued use of SFTP and questions about why AWS doesn't offer this as a managed service.
38:54 - AI data center boom and potential slowdown in big tech companies' data center investments
The article discusses recent news about big tech companies like AWS and Microsoft pulling back on some data center investments. The podcast hosts and guest are not particularly concerned, viewing this as part of the normal cyclical nature of data center investments. They suggest that factors like improved hardware efficiency and geopolitical issues may be influencing these decisions rather than a true slowdown in AI-related growth.
 
Guest was Renato Losio https://cloudiamo.com/
 

Season 4 Episode 17: Prepaid AWS, Prompt Optimization, and Gamified Learning

In Season 4, Episode 17 Karl & Jon are joined by Community Builder and User Group Lead, Damien Jones.They discuss AWS Advanced Payment Option, Amazon Redshift Discounted Pricing, Prompt Optimization in Amazon Bedrock, AWS Well-Architected Generative AI Lens, AWS SkillBuilder Trivia and then the guys joked about Jon's cat being deeply unimpressed with his AWS summit presentation practice, suggesting the audience might have a similar reaction.
 
07:25 - AWS now allows customers in Europe to pay For their usage in advance 
AWS now allows customers in Europe to pay for their usage in advance. This option doesn't offer discounts but allows customers to prepay their AWS bills. The hosts discussed potential use cases, such as for businesses with seasonal usage patterns or those wanting to simplify their finance processes.
15:07 - Announcing Serverless Reservations, a new discounted pricing option for Amazon Redshift Serverless
Amazon Redshift now offers a new discounted pricing option for service reservations. This applies to Redshift Serverless and provides cost savings for customers who can commit to longer-term usage. The hosts discussed how this could make Redshift Serverless more viable for production use cases.
23:30 - Prompt Optimization in Amazon Bedrock now generally available 
Amazon Bedrock's prompt optimization feature is now generally available. This tool helps users create more efficient prompts for AI models, potentially reducing costs by minimizing token usage. The hosts discussed the importance of effective prompt engineering in AI applications.
31:41 - Announcing the AWS Well-Architected Generative AI Lens
AWS announced a new Well-Architected Lens focusing on generative AI. This lens provides guidance for designing and implementing generative AI solutions using AWS best practices. The hosts expressed surprise that this hadn't been introduced earlier, given the growing importance of AI in cloud computing.
37:49 - Game on: Introducing AWS Skill Builder Trivia
AWS introduced a new gamified learning tool called SkillBuilder Trivia. This free feature allows users to create and participate in trivia sessions using AWS-related questions. The hosts discussed its potential use in user group meetings and as a team-building tool for organizations adopting AWS.
 

Season 4 Episode 16: Apex Domains, Backup Testing, and Cloud Sustainability

In Season 4, Episode 16 Karl & Jon are joined by AWS Hero, Sathyajith Bhat. They discuss Amazon CloudFront Anycast static IPs for Apex domains, AWS simplifying VPC peering billing, AWS Backup restore testing, sustainability challenges with AI and hyperscale data centers, CMA probe into cloud provider dominance and licensing costs and the guys went off on a tangent about the carbon footprint of generating AI action figure dolls.
 
08:53 - Amazon CloudFront now supports Anycast static IPs for Apex domains 
This new feature allows users to point their Apex (naked) domains directly to CloudFront without using CNAME flattening or alias records. It simplifies DNS configuration and reduces the number of IPs needed for allowlisting. The feature is particularly useful for organizations still using basic DNS providers and those requiring IP whitelisting for CDNs.
15:08 - AWS simplifies VPC peering billing 
AWS has made changes to simplify billing for VPC peering by separating inter-availability zone data transfer charges from VPC-to-VPC traffic. This change makes it easier for customers to understand their costs related to VPC peering and inter-AZ data transfer. While it doesn't affect the actual charges, it provides more clarity in billing statements.
21:22 - AWS Backup restore testing and its importance
AWS Backup now offers automated restore testing, allowing users to validate their backups regularly. This feature is crucial for ensuring data recoverability and meeting various compliance standards. The article emphasizes the importance of testing backups and provides insights into how the restore testing process works within AWS Backup.
31:04 - Sustainability challenges with AI and hyperscale data centers 
The article discusses the growing concern over the massive energy consumption of AI and hyperscale data centers. It highlights the conflict between tech companies' sustainability pledges and the increasing power demands of AI workloads. The discussion touches on various potential solutions, including nuclear power and carbon capture technologies, while acknowledging the complexity of the issue.
40:04 - CMA probe into cloud provider dominance and licensing costs
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is investigating the dominance of major cloud providers. AWS and Google are claiming that Microsoft's licensing practices for running Windows servers on their clouds are unfair. The article discusses AWS's claim that 50% of Azure workloads would move to other clouds if licensing costs were more favorable, though this claim is met with skepticism by the podcast participants.
 

Season 4 Episode 15: Models, Money, and Monitoring

In Season 4, Episode 15 Karl & Jon are joined by AWS Community Builder and core member of the Armenia UG*, Tigran Gevorgyan. They discuss Meta's Llama 4 models on Amazon SageMaker, prompting for best price performance with AWS AI models, patched vulnerability in the Amazon EC2 SSM agent, using OpenSearch and Managed Grafana for telemetry data correlation, updates to the AWS Well-Architected Framework and then the guys started discussing the merits of different sports teams' merchandise, completely forgetting they were supposed to be talking about AWS news.
 
09:02 - Meta's Llama 4 models on Amazon SageMaker JumpStart 
The article discusses the availability of Meta's Llama 4 models on Amazon SageMaker JumpStart. The speakers highlight the importance of model naming conventions and note that SageMaker is getting new models, which is significant given the recent focus on Bedrock. They discuss the differences between Bedrock and SageMaker, with SageMaker offering more control and customization options.
15:26 -  Prompting for best price performance with AWS AI models 
This article from the AWS Machine Learning blog focuses on optimizing price performance through efficient prompting. The discussion compares the costs of OpenAI's GPT models with Amazon's Nova models, highlighting potential cost savings. The speakers also touch on the differences in prompting techniques between the two systems and the potential challenges of transitioning from GPT to Nova.
22:37 - Amazon EC2 SSM agent vulnerability patched 
The article discusses a recently patched vulnerability in the Amazon EC2 SSM agent. The speakers explain the nature of the vulnerability, which involved privilege escalation via path traversal. They emphasize the importance of keeping systems updated and note that while the vulnerability required multiple steps to exploit, it's crucial to address such issues promptly.
28:29 - Correlating telemetry data with Amazon OpenSearch Service and Amazon Managed Grafana
This article from the AWS Big Data blog discusses using OpenSearch and Managed Grafana for telemetry data correlation. The speakers debate the complexity and cost of this solution, particularly for Kubernetes environments. They suggest considering alternatives like AWS X-Ray or Datadog, depending on specific needs and budget constraints.
34:53 - New guidance in AWS Well-Architected Tool 
The podcast discusses recent updates to the AWS Well-Architected Framework, including 78 new best practices. The speakers emphasize the importance of staying updated with these best practices and encourage solution architects and DevOps professionals to utilize this resource. They also criticize the pricing structure of the Well-Architected Tool, which is tied to AWS support subscription levels.
 
*AWS Armenia user group (https://www.linkedin.com/company/aws-user-group-armenia/), and community day (https://aws-community-day.am/) 

Season 4 Episode 14: Monitoring, Guardrails, and Open Source

In Season 4, Episode 14 Karl & Jon are joined by Tangara Aymen. They discuss Amazon CloudWatch Application Signals, AWS Step Functions SDK Expanded Integrations, Amazon Bedrock Guardrails Image Content Filters, Australian Fintech Data Leak, AWS Commitment to Open Source and then the guys joked about writing horror films called "Attack of the Leaky Buckets" and "Attack of the Bad Internet" after experiencing connectivity issues during the podcast.
 
04:25 - Monitor service dependencies with Amazon CloudWatch Application Signals SLOs 
CloudWatch is getting more features, including application signals for monitoring service dependencies and Service Level Objectives (SLOs). This allows for more precise tracking of performance at the individual request level, improved error budgeting, and cross-account observability. The functionality is becoming comparable to third-party monitoring tools like Datadog or New Relic.
13:27 - AWS Step Functions expands SDK integrations with Amazon Backup Search and 137 additional APIs 
AWS has added 137 new API integrations to Step Functions, including Amazon Backup Search. This allows for easier orchestration of backup discovery and management without writing additional code. While it expands capabilities, it may make Step Functions less testable due to the complexity of testing around these integrations.
20:35 - Amazon Bedrock Guardrails announces the general availability of industry-leading image content filters 
Bedrock Guardrails has released generally available image content filters to detect and block harmful content. This can be useful for protecting sensitive audiences and reducing the need for manual content moderation. However, there are concerns about potential over-blocking of legitimate content.
28:52 - 27,000 records in Australian fintech database were exposed 
An Australian fintech company exposed approximately 27,000 records due to an unsecured S3 bucket. This highlights the ongoing issue of "leaky buckets" and the importance of proper security measures and monitoring for cloud storage.
33:06 - AWS Cloud Credits for Open Source Projects: Affirming Our Commitment
AWS has reaffirmed its commitment to open source projects by offering cloud credits, including $3 million annually to the Kubernetes project. While the credits are beneficial, there was discussion about whether direct financial support would be more valuable for open source communities.

Season 4 Episode 13: Simulating Failures, Scanning Resources, and Securing Secrets

In Season 4, Episode 13 Karl & Jon are joined by Sam Waweru They discuss Amazon Application Recovery Controller's new AWS FIS recovery action, AWS CloudFormation's targeted resource scans, Secrets Management, AWS's detailed geographic information, S3 bucket data leak and then the guys joked about Jon's ever-changing office furniture, wondering if he'd finally settle on a therapist's couch given how often he needs therapy after recording the podcast.
 
03:11 - Amazon Application Recovery Controller announces AWS FIS recovery action for zonal autoshift 
This new feature allows users to simulate the loss of an AWS availability zone, helping to validate multi-AZ architectures and disaster recovery plans. It's particularly useful for industries like finance and healthcare that require rigorous testing of failover scenarios. The feature can help identify overlooked issues in complex environments with multiple microservices.
 
09:43 - AWS CloudFormation now supports targeted resource scans in the IaC generator 
This update to the IAC generator allows users to specify which types of resources they want to include in their CloudFormation templates. This makes the tool more viable for real-world use, as it reduces the amount of unnecessary resources included in the generated templates. The feature is particularly useful for those working within the AWS ecosystem, though it may not sway users away from other tools like Terraform.
 
15:38 - Why Secrets Management Should Be A Central Pillar Of Cloud Security 
The article discusses the importance of proper secrets management in cloud security. It covers common ways secrets are exposed, such as hardcoded credentials and misconfigured cloud storage. The piece also outlines best practices, including centralizing secret storage, implementing least privilege access, and automated secret rotation. The discussion highlighted the ongoing challenges of secrets management and access control in cloud environments.
 
23:50 - Detailed geographic information for all AWS Regions and Availability Zones is now available 
AWS has released more explicit information about the geographic locations of its regions and availability zones. While much of this information could be inferred before, it's now clearly stated, potentially to appease regulators. The information includes specific countries and cities for regions and edge locations, which can help organizations select locations to reduce latency and meet compliance requirements.
 
29:52 - Juicy customer data’ leaked from Nine 
The article reports on a data leak from a misconfigured S3 bucket, exposing customer names, addresses, and contact information. While the leaked data wasn't as "juicy" as the headline suggested, it highlights the ongoing issue of misconfigured cloud storage. The incident emphasizes the importance of proper access controls, regular audits, and careful management of third-party contractors who may have access to sensitive data.

Season 4 Episode 12 - Code Pipeline, KMS Metrics, and AI-Powered Contact Centers

In Season 4, Episode 12 Karl & Jon are joined by AWS DevTools Hero and User Group Lead Johannes Koch. They discuss AWS CodePipeline new feature, AWS KMS CloudWatch metrics, Amazon Q Business browser extension upgrades, AWS SNS potential abuse, AI-powered features in Amazon Connect and then the guys started comparing their gym routines, completely forgetting they were supposed to be talking about AWS news.
 
03:55 - AWS CodePipeline supports invoking pipeline execution with a new action type 
The new feature allows direct execution of other CodePipelines within an existing pipeline. This enables better orchestration of complex deployments, especially in enterprise environments. The speakers discussed the evolution of CodePipeline and its positioning in the AWS ecosystem.
17:23 - AWS KMS CloudWatch metrics help you better track and understand how your KMS keys are being used 
This feature helps track and understand KMS key usage through CloudWatch metrics. The discussion touched on the importance of monitoring KMS usage for cost optimization and security purposes. The speakers noted that this feature should have been available earlier.
25:17 - AWS announces new upgrades to the Amazon Q Business browser extension 
The update allows users to access company knowledge bases and handle images/attachments within the browser extension. The speakers discussed the potential benefits for businesses but also raised concerns about data security and AWS's strategy in targeting end-users.
34:05 - AWS SNS Abused To Exfiltrate Data & Phishing Attack
The article discussed how AWS Simple Notification Service could potentially be used to exfiltrate data in certain scenarios. The speakers agreed that while possible, this requires multiple security failures and emphasized the importance of following security best practices.
41:01 - Introducing the next generation of Amazon Connect: AI-powered interactions that strengthen customer relationships and improve business outcomes 
AWS introduced new AI capabilities in their contact center solution, Amazon Connect. The speakers discussed the potential improvements in customer service, analytics, and efficiency that these features could bring to contact centers.

Season 4 Episode 11: Dynamo DB Myths, Database Backups, and Leaky Buckets

In Season 4, Episode 11 Karl & Jon are joined by AWS Community Builder, Joe Stech. They discuss Amazon EC2 allowing AMIs now integrating with AWS Config, Amazon DynamoDB on-demand capacity mode, long-term backup options for Amazon RDS and Amazon Aurora, DeepSeek R1 model, misconfigured AWS S3 bucket exposing US nurses' data and then the guys started debating whether to call it "Glacier Potato" or "Deep Freeze Fries" as the next AWS storage tier!
 
04:00 - Amazon EC2 Allowed AMIs now integrates with AWS Config 
This feature allows easier monitoring of the impact of enabling allowed AMIs in EC2. It's particularly useful for regulated and secure environments where only approved, hardened images can be used. The integration with AWS Config simplifies the process of tracking and auditing AMI usage across accounts.
 
07:52 - Demystifying Amazon DynamoDB on-demand capacity mode 
The article addresses 11 myths about DynamoDB's on-demand capacity mode, covering cost, performance, scaling, and implementation misconceptions. The discussion highlights that many of these "myths" are not widely held beliefs among experienced users, but may be helpful for those less familiar with the service or dealing with outdated information.
 
19:00 - Long-term backup options for Amazon RDS and Amazon Aurora 
The article outlines various options for long-term database backups beyond the standard 35-day retention period. These include manual snapshots, using AWS Database Migration Service, exporting snapshots to S3, and database-specific dump tools. The discussion emphasized that while long-term backups are rarely used for recovery, they may be necessary for compliance and auditing purposes.
 
27:26 - DeepSeek-R1 now available as a fully managed serverless model in Amazon Bedrock
The DeepSeek R1 model is now available as a fully managed serverless model in Amazon Bedrock. This means users don't need to run the model themselves, and it's now priced per token like other managed models. The discussion touched on potential concerns about the model's Chinese origins and data security.
 
34:26 - Misconfigured AWS S3 Bucket Exposes Us Nurses' Data 
A misconfigured S3 bucket led to the exposure of sensitive data belonging to 86,000 US nurses. The discussion highlighted that while such incidents have become less common due to AWS's improved security measures, there might be a potential increase in similar incidents due to the rise of AI-assisted coding by less experienced developers.
 
Our guest's  blog: https://joeste.chand: https://learn.arm.com

Season 4 Episode 10 - Clippy's Comeback, CLI Confusion, and Cloud Competition

In Season 4, Episode 10, Karl & Jon are joined once again by AWS Hero, Brian Tarbox. They discuss automating Amazon RDS credential rotation with AWS Secrets Manager, Microsoft Amazon Q Business integrations, an enhanced local IDE experience for AWS Step Functions, a new agentic coding experience within Amazon Q Developer, the ongoing UK Competition and Markets Authority probe, and the guys joke that Amazon Q Business is the new Clippy (or Qlippy!).04:08 - Automating Amazon RDS credential rotation with AWS Secrets Manager The article discusses a complex process for managing credential rotation for RDS instances with read replicas using Secret Manager. The hosts criticize the approach as overly complicated and question why this isn't a built-in feature, given that both read replicas and secret rotation are recommended best practices.
10:31 - Microsoft 365 for Word and Outlook integrations for Amazon Q BusinessThis integration is compared to Microsoft's old Clippy feature. The hosts question its usefulness, especially for those already using Microsoft's Copilot. They discuss the challenges of AI-generated content matching a user's tone and style.
18:15 - Enhanced local IDE experience for AWS Step FunctionsThe article introduces improvements to the Step Functions experience in VS Code. While the functionality is acknowledged as potentially useful, there's criticism about it being limited to VS Code and not available in other IDEs. The discussion touches on the complexity of large Step Functions workflows and the balance between visual and code-based approaches.
24:24 - Agentic coding experience within Amazon Q Developer CLIThis feature introduces AI-assisted coding within the command-line interface. The hosts express skepticism about its necessity and usefulness, with concerns raised about potential security risks of giving AI access to the shell environment.
31:18 - UK Competition and Markets Authority probe into AWS and Microsoft cloud market dominanceThe article discusses the ongoing investigation into cloud market competition in the UK. The hosts note that the major players (AWS and Microsoft) refute the concerns, while smaller providers endorse the findings. They discuss the complexity of fairly assessing the cloud market and the potential outcomes of such investigations.

Season 4 Episode 9 - Chainsaws, Chatbots, and Cross-Account Access

In Season 4, Episode 9 Karl & Jon are joined by AWS Community Builder, Craig Johnson. They discuss Centralized Root Access Management for Organizations, Anthropic Claude 3.7 Sonnet, ways to grant cross-account access in AWS, Q Developer, AWS being named a leader in Gartner Magic Quadrant for data integration tools and the guys go off on a tangent about chainsaws!
 
04:43 - AWS Introduces Centralized Root Access Management for Organizations 
AWS has introduced centralized route access management for organizations, allowing easier management of root users across multiple accounts. While not entirely new, this feature consolidates existing capabilities and aligns with best practices for securing root accounts. It's particularly useful for large organizations managing numerous AWS accounts.
10:00 - Anthropic's Claude 3.7 Sonnet is now available in Amazon Bedrock 
The latest version of Anthropic's Claude AI model is now available in Amazon Bedrock. It offers improved capabilities, including extended thinking modes. However, its availability is still limited to certain US regions, which may be problematic for users concerned with data sovereignty or those outside the US.
16:48 - Four ways to grant cross-account access in AWS 
The AWS Security blog outlines four methods for granting cross-account access. The article provides insights into the nuances of each method, such as the differences between trusting an entire account versus a specific role. While informative, the article doesn't offer specific recommendations for which method to use in different scenarios.
20:08 - AWS Chatbot is now named Amazon Q Developer 
AWS has rebranded its Chatbot service as Amazon Q Developer, adding it to the growing Amazon Q product line. This change is seen as primarily a marketing move, with some concerns about potential confusion and the actual benefits of integrating generative AI features into what was previously a straightforward chatbot service.
26:24 - Amazon Web Services named a Leader in the 2024 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Data Integration Tools 
AWS has been positioned in the leaders' quadrant of Gartner's Magic Quadrant for data integration tools. While this recognition highlights AWS's growing presence in the data integration space, the discussion also touched on the limitations and potential biases of Gartner's Magic Quadrant methodology.