Skip to content

Leveraging Reserved Instances

1. Analyzing Historical Usage Patterns:

  • Usage Data Collection: Gather historical usage data from AWS CloudWatch or other monitoring tools to understand the customer’s EC2 usage patterns over time.
  • Workload Stability: Identify instances or instance families with stable and predictable workloads that are consistently running at a certain capacity.

 

2. Recommending Reserved Instances (RIs):

  • Instance Analysis: Evaluate instances that match the criteria for RI purchases, such as steady usage and long-term requirements.
  • RI Planning: Determine the appropriate RI type (Standard, Convertible) and term (1-year, 3-year) based on the customer’s usage patterns and budgetary considerations.
  • Savings Estimation: Calculate potential cost savings from purchasing RIs compared to On-Demand instances for the identified workloads.

 

3. Committing to Savings Plans:

  • Understanding Savings Plans: Educate the customer on the concept of Savings Plans, which offer flexible pricing options for EC2 and Fargate usage, with the ability to apply savings across instance families and regions.
  • Matching Workloads to Savings Plans: Identify workloads that align well with Savings Plans, considering their flexibility and scalability requirements.
  • Cost Comparison: Compare potential cost savings and benefits between RIs and Savings Plans for the customer’s specific use case.

 

4. Implementation and Optimization:

  • RI Purchase Execution: Assist the customer in purchasing RIs through the AWS Management Console or programmatically via AWS API.
  • Savings Plan Commitment: Help the customer commit to appropriate Savings Plans based on their workload projections and budget constraints.
  • Monitoring and Adjustment: Continuously monitor RI and Savings Plan utilization to ensure optimal usage and make adjustments as workload patterns evolve.

 

5. Flexible and Scalable Infrastructure:

  • Maintaining Flexibility: Advise the customer on maintaining a balance between cost optimization and flexibility by combining RIs with On-Demand instances or utilizing convertible RIs.
  • Scaling Strategies: Develop scaling strategies that accommodate changes in workload demand while maximizing cost savings from RIs and Savings Plans.
  • Periodic Review: Schedule regular reviews to reassess RI and Savings Plan commitments and adjust as needed based on changes in workload patterns or AWS pricing updates.

 

By guiding customers through the process of analyzing their usage patterns, recommending appropriate RI or Savings Plan commitments, and implementing optimization strategies, you can help them achieve significant cost savings on their EC2 usage while maintaining the flexibility and scalability needed for their workloads.