Week 1 Worklog

Week 1 Objectives:

• Get to know members of the First Cloud Journey (FCJ) program and understand the rules and regulations at the internship unit.
• Understand basic concepts of cloud computing and the AWS service ecosystem (Compute, Storage, Networking, Database, Security…).
• Practice creating and managing an AWS Free Tier account following best practices: IAM User, Group, Role; minimize use of the root account; set up Budgets to monitor costs.
• Use both AWS Management Console and AWS CLI for resource operations and get familiar with scripting for automation.
• Learn cost optimization mechanisms: Spot Instances, AWS Pricing Calculator, Budgets/Cost Budgets.
• Get familiar with Serverless concepts (Lambda, DynamoDB) and the Hugo tool to publish static workshop sites.
• Understand and practice basic AWS Networking: VPC, Subnet, Route Table, Security Group, NACL, IGW, NAT GW, VPC Endpoint, VPC Flow Logs, VPN, Direct Connect, Elastic Load Balancing.

Tasks to carry out this week:

Week 1 Achievements:

• Fundamental AWS knowledge

  • Understand what AWS is and the main service groups: Compute, Storage, Networking, Database, Security…
  • Distinguish between AWS Management Console, AWS CLI, and AWS SDK.

• Hands-on with AWS Free Tier

  • Successfully created and configured an AWS Free Tier account.
  • Installed and configured AWS CLI (Access Key, Secret Key, default Region).
  • Managed AWS resources via both Console (Web) and CLI.

• AWS CLI skills

  • Checked account info & CLI configuration.
  • Listed available Regions.
  • Worked with EC2: view instances, create/manage key pairs, check running services.
  • Learned to write basic scripts to automate tasks.

• IAM (Identity and Access Management)

  • Created & managed IAM Users, Groups, Roles.
  • Attached managed and inline policies.
  • Signed in as IAM User and practiced Role switching.
  • Understood importance of avoiding root account use.

• AWS cost optimization

  • Understood Spot Instance behavior (up to ~90% cost reduction, but can be reclaimed).
  • Created Budgets and Cost Budgets to track credits.
  • Used AWS Pricing Calculator to estimate and compare costs by region.

• Serverless & Workshop

  • Understood Serverless concepts: Lambda, DynamoDB, and other managed services.
  • Got familiar with Hugo for building static workshop sites on AWS.

• AWS Networking

  • Understood VPC (Virtual Private Cloud): virtual private network in a Region.
  • Differentiated public/private subnets, Route Tables, IGW, NAT GW.
  • Learned about Elastic IP, ENI, VPC Endpoints, VPC Flow Logs.
  • Compared Security Groups (stateful) vs NACLs (stateless).
  • Learned about VPC Peering, Transit Gateway, and limitations.
  • Got an introduction to Site-to-Site VPN, Client VPN, and Direct Connect.
  • Understood types of Elastic Load Balancers (ALB, NLB, CLB, global LB).

✅ After week 1, foundations are in place for:

• Secure AWS account management (IAM, Budgets).
• Using CLI/Console for AWS operations.
• Basic Networking knowledge (VPC, Subnet, VPN, ELB).
• Understanding cost optimization techniques.
• Ready for advanced labs (Route 53, Peering, Hybrid DNS, …).

Reflection – Self-assessment and challenges in week 1

• Strengths achieved:

  • Clear understanding of AWS basics and multiple ways to manage resources (Console, CLI, SDK).
  • Proficient in account setup and IAM best practices (avoiding root account).
  • Better system-level view of AWS service organization, especially Networking.

• Challenges encountered:

  • Initially confused between AWS CLI and SDK → clarified after hands-on practice.
  • VPC concepts (subnet, CIDR, NACL, Security Group) are complex and easy to mix up while learning theory and labs simultaneously.
  • Could not find EC2:Running Hours option when creating Budget Usage → likely due to lack of real account usage data.
  • Estimating costs in Pricing Calculator was initially difficult due to unfamiliarity with service types and region choices.
  • Advanced labs (VPC Peering, Route 53 Resolver, Hybrid DNS) were challenging on first exposure → required extra documentation and repeated attempts to understand workflows.

• Improvement plan:

  • Continue practicing labs to gain familiarity with CLI & Networking.
  • Add practical Spot Instance and cost optimization exercises to deepen cost management skills.
  • Study official AWS Docs in parallel to reduce confusion between similar services.
  • After each advanced lab, create diagrams/summaries of workflows to aid retention.