Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service Infrastructure Foundation

The Amazon EKS Foundation Offering is a comprehensive solution designed to simplify the process of setting up an application-ready Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) cluster. This service aims to reduce the learning curve associated with deploying the first application-ready EKS cluster, allowing customers to focus on deploying and testing applications rather than the setup process. The service includes several key components:

1. Amazon EKS Platform Overview: This section discusses the differences and benefits of using managed Kubernetes services like EKS over open-source Kubernetes. It reviews the base configuration variants of EKS and their pros and cons based on key decision factors such as control plane access, application and service access, and networking models.
2. AWS-Native EKS Ecosystem Components: This includes native integration with AWS services like IAM for authentication and access control, seamless integration with AWS load balancers, direct integration with Amazon ECR for container images, and built-in support for AWS VPC networking.
3. Security Features: Amazon EKS integrates with AWS security services like KMS for encryption, provides pod identity through IAM roles for service accounts, and manages security patches and updates.
4. Deployment Options: The service covers both manual and automated deployment options, including CI/CD pipelines and GitOps operators.
5. Observability and Backup: The service includes integration with Amazon CloudWatch for monitoring and observability, and third-party tools for backup and restore functionalities.
6. Enablement Sessions: These sessions are part of the EKS Design and Enablement engagement, which is the second phase of the EKS Foundation program. They aim to educate customers on the specifics of the Amazon Elastic Kubernetes platform (EKS) and assist them in designing an EKS-centric ecosystem of technologies.