Learning AWS : Cloud Foundations & Resilience by Design
Exploring the ‘why’ behind the cloud, not just the ‘what'
This is the first in a series where I’m learning cloud computing in public. I’m taking the AWS Skill Builder course and documenting my progress, not just what I’m learning, but how I’m thinking through it and what it might mean in the real world.
If you're new to the cloud or brushing up after a break, this is a beginner-first space, no jargon, just real concepts.
What I’ve Learned So Far
In this early phase, I focused on three core ideas that form the backbone of cloud computing:
Global infrastructure
Shared responsibility
Designing for things to break (fault tolerance)
Let’s break these down with everyday examples.
1. Global Infrastructure
Cloud platforms aren’t one giant computer in a secret basement somewhere. Instead, they’re more like a network of hubs around the world.
Imagine a delivery company. They don’t ship every package from one country. They have distribution centers in different cities and countries, so your parcel gets to you faster and more reliably.
In cloud terms:
A “region” is like a country with several warehouses (data centers).
Each “availability zone” is a separate warehouse inside that country.
These warehouses are close enough to work together but far enough apart that if one catches fire (or has a power cut), the others keep delivering.
Takeaway:
If you're building something important, you shouldn't run it from just one building. Use more than one, so if one breaks, your thing still works.
2. Shared Responsibility
Using the cloud is like renting an apartment.
The landlord (cloud provider) handles the walls, plumbing, power, and security at the gate. But you are in charge of your room.
If you leave your door unlocked, that’s on you.
If you leave food out and get ants, that's also on you.
If the roof leaks, now that’s on the landlord.
This is the idea of shared responsibility.
The cloud gives you the space, but it’s up to you to keep it safe and in order.
Takeaway:
Just because your app or site is “in the cloud” doesn’t mean it’s automatically secure. You still have to manage who has access, how data is handled, and what happens inside your setup.
3. Designing for Failure (a.k.a. Fault Tolerance)
Things break. The question is: does everything fall apart when they do?
Imagine running a smoothie shop with just one blender.
If that blender breaks, you’re done for the day.
Now imagine having three blenders. If one stops, you still have two. You might be a bit slower, but you’re still serving smoothies.
That’s fault tolerance, setting things up so failure doesn’t mean shutdown.
Takeaway:
In the cloud, this means planning for failure before it happens. Build things so they can continue working even when a piece goes down.
Questions I'm Still Thinking About
Here are a few questions that came up for me; maybe they'll get you thinking too:
Can I launch a server in two regions at once, and would that even make sense?
What actually happens if a whole region goes down? Does my app just disappear?
If I have two servers in different zones but one database, what happens if the database’s zone goes offline or burns?
Where should I keep my data so it's safe and available?
The next topic I’ll be learning is Compute in the Cloud, so stay tuned.
If you're learning too, feel free to follow along or share what tripped you up in the beginning.
