Storage Types#

AWS offers storage at different layers — block, file, and object — each optimized for different access patterns:

flowchart TD
    Storage["AWS Storage"]
    Storage --> Block["Block Storage<br>(EBS, Instance Store)"]
    Storage --> Object["Object Storage<br>(S3, S3 Glacier)"]
    Storage --> File["File Storage<br>(EFS, FSx)"]
    
    Block --> |"Attached to EC2"| Disk["Like a hard drive"]
    Object --> |"HTTP API"| Bucket["Like a file server with infinite capacity"]
    File --> |"NFS/SMB"| Share["Like a network share"]

S3 (Simple Storage Service)#

Object storage with virtually unlimited capacity. The most-used AWS service.

Core Concepts#

Storage Classes#

S3 Features#

flowchart LR
    Upload["Upload Object"] --> Encrypt["Encryption<br>(SSE-S3, SSE-KMS)"]
    Encrypt --> Version["Versioning<br>(keep all versions)"]
    Version --> Lifecycle["Lifecycle Rules<br>(auto-transition classes)"]
    Lifecycle --> Replicate["Replication<br>(cross-region backup)"]

Lifecycle rules automate cost optimization:

Day 0:   Standard (frequent access)
Day 30:  → Standard-IA (infrequent)
Day 90:  → Glacier Flexible (archive)
Day 365: → Deep Archive (compliance)
Day 730: → Delete

Access Control#

S3 Use Cases#

• Static website hosting
• Data lake storage
• Backup and disaster recovery
• Log storage and analytics
• Application assets (images, videos)
• Terraform state backend

EBS (Elastic Block Store)#

Network-attached block storage for EC2 instances — like a virtual hard drive.

Volume Types#

EBS Characteristics#

• AZ-scoped — volume must be in same AZ as EC2 instance
• Snapshots — point-in-time backups stored in S3 (cross-AZ, cross-region)
• Encryption — AES-256, transparent to the instance
• Resizable — increase size without downtime
• Detachable — move between instances in same AZ

EFS (Elastic File System)#

Managed NFS file system that multiple EC2 instances can mount simultaneously:

flowchart TD
    subgraph AZ1["AZ 1a"]
        EC2a["EC2 Instance A"]
    end
    subgraph AZ2["AZ 1b"]
        EC2b["EC2 Instance B"]
    end
    subgraph AZ3["AZ 1c"]
        EC2c["EC2 Instance C"]
    end
    
    EFS["EFS File System<br>(shared across AZs)"]
    
    EC2a --> EFS
    EC2b --> EFS
    EC2c --> EFS

Choosing Storage#

Key Takeaways#

1. S3 for everything that isn’t a disk — objects, backups, logs, static sites, data lakes
2. EBS gp3 is the default — better price/performance than gp2
3. EFS for shared access — when multiple instances need the same files
4. Use lifecycle rules — automatically move data to cheaper tiers
5. Enable versioning — protect against accidental deletion
6. Encrypt everything — SSE-KMS for S3, encryption for EBS
7. Block public access by default — enable only when intentionally hosting public content