Articles & Guides
Read from top to bottom for a structured learning path — each series builds on the previous one, taking you from absolute beginner to cloud architect.
Weekly AWS Insights
Free articles on cloud architecture, career tips, and certification prep.
You will finish subscribing on Substack. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Getting Started
New to cloud? Start here.
How to Change Careers into Cloud Computing (No CS Degree Required)
A practical roadmap for career changers who want to break into cloud computing, including the skills you already have, the learning path, and realistic salary expectations.
AWS Free Tier Guide 2026: Everything You Get for Free
A complete breakdown of every AWS Free Tier offering in 2026, including the expanded CloudFront and DynamoDB on-demand allowances, Graviton instance options, time limits, gotchas, and how to avoid surprise charges.
Cloud Foundations
Core AWS concepts every cloud practitioner needs.
Cloud Computing Explained for Beginners: What It Actually Is and Why It Matters
A plain-English explanation of cloud computing, the three service models (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS), and why companies are racing to migrate from on-premises infrastructure.
AWS IAM Guide for Beginners: Users, Roles, Policies, and Least Privilege
A beginner-friendly guide to AWS Identity and Access Management covering users, groups, roles, policies, and why least privilege is the most important security concept in the cloud.
AWS VPC Networking Explained: Your Own Private Network in the Cloud
A beginner-friendly guide to Amazon VPC, subnets, route tables, internet gateways, NAT gateways, and security groups, explained with real-world analogies.
Servers and Storage
Compute and storage fundamentals on AWS.
EC2 Instance Types Guide: How to Choose the Right One (and Save Money)
A practical guide to EC2 instance types, how the naming convention works, when to use each instance family, and how to compare On-Demand, Reserved, Spot, and Savings Plans pricing.
S3 Storage Classes Explained: When to Use Standard, IA, Glacier, and Everything In Between
A practical guide to all Amazon S3 storage classes, when to use each one, how to set up lifecycle policies to automate transitions, and how to avoid the most common S3 cost mistakes.
Data and Traffic
Databases and traffic management.
RDS vs DynamoDB: Which AWS Database Should You Use?
A clear comparison of Amazon RDS (SQL) and Amazon DynamoDB (NoSQL) with a practical decision framework, real-world scenarios, and guidance on when to use each database service.
AWS Load Balancers Explained: ALB vs NLB, Health Checks, and DNS with Route 53
A beginner-friendly guide to Elastic Load Balancing on AWS, covering how ALB and NLB work, when to use each, how health checks keep your app reliable, and how Route 53 ties it all together.
Going Serverless
Event-driven architecture and functions.
SQS vs SNS vs EventBridge: Choosing the Right AWS Messaging Service
A practical comparison of AWS SQS, SNS, and EventBridge with real-world scenarios, a decision tree, and clear guidance on when to use each messaging service.
AWS Lambda for Beginners: The Complete Guide to Serverless Computing
A plain-English guide to AWS Lambda and serverless computing, covering how it works, when to use it, cold starts, pricing, and hands-on CLI examples.
EC2 vs Lambda: When to Use Each (and When to Use Fargate or App Runner Instead)
A clear comparison of Amazon EC2, AWS Lambda, AWS Fargate, and App Runner with concrete scenarios, cost examples, and a decision framework to pick the right compute service for any workload.
Containers and Automation
Package and automate your deployments.
Docker and Containers on AWS: A Beginner's Guide to ECS and Fargate
A practical introduction to Docker containers and AWS ECS for beginners, covering what containers are, how they differ from VMs and Lambda, and how to run your first container on Fargate.
Infrastructure as Code on AWS: CloudFormation vs SAM vs CDK
A practical guide to Infrastructure as Code on AWS, comparing CloudFormation, SAM, and CDK with examples, trade-offs, and clear guidance on which tool to start with.
Deploy and Defend
CI/CD pipelines and security layers.
CI/CD on AWS: A Beginner's Guide to Building Your First Pipeline
A practical introduction to CI/CD pipelines on AWS, covering what continuous integration and delivery mean, how to build a pipeline with CodePipeline, and deployment strategies explained simply.
AWS Security Best Practices 2026: Defense in Depth for Your Cloud
A practical guide to securing your AWS environment with defense in depth, covering WAF, Shield, GuardDuty, Security Hub, and a hands-on checklist you can follow today.
Production Ready
Monitoring, cost, reliability, and best practices.
CloudWatch Monitoring Guide: Metrics, Alarms, Logs, and Dashboards on AWS
A practical guide to monitoring your AWS applications with CloudWatch, covering metrics, alarms, logs, dashboards, the Four Golden Signals, and a step-by-step setup walkthrough.
How to Cut Your AWS Bill: A Practical Guide to Cost Optimization
Learn the proven strategies to reduce your AWS spending, from right-sizing instances to Spot pricing, Savings Plans, and the hidden costs that catch everyone off guard.
Disaster Recovery on AWS: RTO, RPO, and the Four Strategies You Need to Know
Understand RTO and RPO, compare the four AWS disaster recovery strategies from backup-and-restore to multi-site active-active, and learn how to choose the right one for your workload.
The AWS Well-Architected Framework: Six Pillars Explained Simply
A plain-English guide to the six pillars of the AWS Well-Architected Framework, how to run a review, and why this framework matters for interviews and real-world architecture.
Architect and Ship
Advanced patterns and your capstone project.
Microservices vs. Monolith on AWS: When to Use Each (Decision Framework)
A practical guide to choosing between monolithic, microservices, and serverless architectures on AWS, with a clear decision framework and real-world trade-offs.
CloudFront and Caching on AWS: The Complete Performance Optimization Guide
Learn how CDNs work, set up CloudFront step by step, understand caching strategies with ElastiCache, and optimize your AWS application performance from edge to origin.
AWS Portfolio Projects: What to Build and How to Impress Hiring Managers
Concrete AWS project ideas for your portfolio, what hiring managers actually look for, and how to present your cloud skills in a way that gets you interviews.
These articles are also available on: