News and announcements:
- New look for Amazon ECS in the AWS Management Console
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/containers/new-look-for-amazon-ecs-in-the-aws-management-console/
- AWS is the first global cloud service provider to comply with the new K-ISMS-P standard
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/security/aws-is-the-first-global-cloud-service-provider-to-comply-with-the-new-k-isms-p-standard/
- New – Multiple Private Marketplace Catalogs
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/new-multiple-private-marketplace-catalogs/
- Amazon GuardDuty enhances security incident investigation workflows through new integration with Amazon Detective
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-guardduty-enhances-security-incident-investigation-workflows-through-new-integration-with-amazon-detective/
- Amazon Redshift doubles managed storage quota to 128 TB per node for RA3.16XL and RA3.4XL node-types
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-redshift-doubles-managed-storage-quota-128-tb-per-mode/
- AWS Shield Advanced now provides mitigation metrics and network traffic timelines
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/aws-shield-advanced-now-provides-mitigation-metrics-and-network-traffic-timelines/
- Amazon EBS announces CloudWatch metrics with 1-minute granularity on all EBS volume types
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-ebs-announces-cloudwatch-metrics-with-1-minute-granularity-on-all-ebs-volume-types/
- Amazon RDS for SQL Server now supports tempdb on local instance store with R5d and M5d instance types
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-rds-for-sql-server-now-supports-tempdb-on-local-instance-store-with-r5d-and-m5d-instance-types/
- Amazon Timestream can now be used for workloads subject to HIPAA, ISO, and PCI DSS
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-timestream-can-now-be-used-for-workloads-subject-to-hipaa-iso-and-pci-dss/
- Discover, review, and remediate unintended access to Secrets Manager secrets using IAM Access Analyzer
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/discover-review-remediate-unintended-access-secrets-manager-iam-access-analyzer/
- Amazon Elasticsearch Service extends encryption at rest and node-to-node encryption to existing domains
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-elasticsearch-service-extends-data-encryption-rest-node-to-node-encryption-support-existing-domains/
- AWS Control Tower now provides bulk account update
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/aws-control-tower-provides-bulk-account-update/
- Amazon Transcribe Medical now provides automatic Protected Health Information (PHI) identification
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-transcribe-medical-now-provides-automatic-protected-health-information-phi-identification/
- Amazon SNS now supports 1-minute CloudWatch metrics
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-sns-now-supports-1-minute-cloudwatch-metrics/
- Amazon Elastic File System triples read throughput
https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/01/amazon-elastic-file-system-triples-read-throughput/
- General availability: Azure HDInsight extends capabilities for encryption of data in transit and at rest
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/updates/azure-hdinsight-extends-capabilities-for-encryption-of-data-in-transit-and-at-rest/
- Microsoft Defender for Endpoint for Windows Virtual Desktop support is now generally available
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/microsoft-defender-for-endpoint/windows-virtual-desktop-support-is-now-generally-available/ba-p/2103712
- Google AppSheet: Hands-On with the No-Code Service
https://www.itprotoday.com/devops/google-appsheet-hands-no-code-service
- New Cloud DNS response policies simplify access to Google APIs
https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/networking/introducing-cloud-dns-response-policies
- Database observability for developers: introducing Cloud SQL Insights
https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/databases/get-ahead-of-database-performance-issues-with-cloud-sql-insights
- Introducing VM Manager: Operate large Compute Engine fleets with ease
https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/compute/introducing-vm-manager
- Bare Metal Solution: new regions, new servers, and new certifications
https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/databases/migrate-oracle-workloads-easily-to-cloud-in-10-global-regions
- How Cloud Storage delivers 11 nines of durability - and how you can help
https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/storage-data-transfer/understanding-cloud-storage-11-9s-durability-target
- Eventarc brings eventing to Cloud Run and is now GA
https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/serverless/eventarc-is-ga
- Announcing the general availability of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Database Management
https://blogs.oracle.com/cloud-infrastructure/announcing-the-general-availability-of-oracle-cloud-infrastructure-database-management
- Alibaba Cloud and LGMS Form Partnership to Offer Enhanced Security
https://www.alibabacloud.com/blog/alibaba-cloud-and-lgms-form-partnership-to-offer-enhanced-security_597216
- Red Hat Adds Data Protection to Container Storage Platform
https://containerjournal.com/features/red-hat-data-protection-tools-container-storage-platform/
- Moving your applications to the cloud with Red Hat Enterprise Linux
https://www.redhat.com/en/blog/moving-your-applications-cloud-red-hat-enterprise-linux
- Open-Source Apache CloudStack 4.15 Gets New Look
https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/open-source/open-source-apache-cloudstack-415-gets-new-look
Trends and opinions:
- What are the things to consider before moving to the cloud?
https://betanews.com/2021/01/26/what-to-consider-before-moving-to-the-cloud/
- Strengthening Operational Resilience in Financial Services by Migrating to Google Cloud
https://services.google.com/fh/files/misc/google_cloud_operational_resilience_fin_serv.pdf
- Performance Analysis for Arm vs x86 CPUs in the Cloud
https://www.infoq.com/articles/arm-vs-x86-cloud-performance/
- Multi-Cloud Management and Best Practices in 2021
https://www.alibabacloud.com/blog/multi-cloud-management-and-best-practices-in-2021_597217
- The Development Trends of Six Major Container Technologies in 2021
https://www.alibabacloud.com/blog/the-development-trends-of-six-major-container-technologies-in-2021_597227
- Survey finds a third of businesses go up to 40% over their initial cloud budget
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/survey-finds-a-third-of-businesses-go-up-to-40-over-their-initial-cloud-budget/
- Survey Shows Microservices Prefer Key-Value, NoSQL Databases
https://containerjournal.com/topics/survey-shows-microservices-prefer-key-value-nosql-databases/
Cost Management:
- Running cost optimized Spark workloads on Kubernetes using EC2 Spot Instances
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/compute/running-cost-optimized-spark-workloads-on-kubernetes-using-ec2-spot-instances/
- The 2021 guide to Azure cost optimization
https://spot.io/blog/the-2021-guide-to-azure-cost-optimization/
- BigQuery cost optimization
https://sudsk.medium.com/bigquery-cost-optimization-f0b2eb3edaa5
Security Related:
- Configuring an audit log to capture database activities for Amazon RDS for MySQL and Amazon Aurora with MySQL compatibility
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/database/configuring-an-audit-log-to-capture-database-activities-for-amazon-rds-for-mysql-and-amazon-aurora-with-mysql-compatibility/
- Securing data in a virtual private cloud using Amazon S3 Access Points
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/storage/securing-data-in-a-virtual-private-cloud-using-amazon-s3-access-points/
- Protecting multi-cloud environments with Azure Security Center
https://www.microsoft.com/security/blog/2021/01/27/protecting-multi-cloud-environments-with-azure-security-center/
- Designing and deploying a data security strategy with Google Cloud
https://services.google.com/fh/files/misc/designing_and_deploying_data_security_strategy.pdf
- Setting the Record Straight on 5 Cloud Security Myths
https://www.isaca.org/resources/news-and-trends/isaca-now-blog/2021/setting-the-record-straight-on-5-cloud-security-myths
- Secure Service Configuration in AWS, Azure and GCP
https://www.sans.org/security-resources/posters/secure-service-configuration-aws-azure-gcp/265/download
- NSA - Mitigating Cloud Vulnerabilities
https://media.defense.gov/2020/Jan/22/2002237484/-1/-1/0/CSI-MITIGATING-CLOUD-VULNERABILITIES_20200121.PDF
Privacy and Data Protection:
- Cisco 2021 - Forged by the Pandemic: The Age of Privacy Data - Privacy Benchmark Study
https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en_us/about/doing_business/trust-center/docs/cisco-privacy-benchmark-study-2021.pdf
- The Art of Privacy - Dan Or-Hof on Building Blocks for Global Compliance
https://www.dataguidance.com/video/art-privacy-dan-or-hof-building-blocks-global
- Macron Tells Google and Microsoft to Get On Board With EU Rules
https://www.itprotoday.com/cloud-computing/macron-tells-google-and-microsoft-get-board-eu-rules
Training and Certifications:
- Microsoft rolls out big certification renewal, expiration changes for 2021
https://acloudguru.com/blog/engineering/microsoft-rolls-out-big-certification-renewal-expiration-changes-for-2021
- How to prepare for a Microsoft Azure Certification Exam
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/itops-talk-blog/how-to-prepare-for-a-microsoft-azure-certification-exam/ba-p/2103417
- Level up with Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Engineer Associate
https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/microsoft-learn-blog/level-up-with-microsoft-certified-azure-data-engineer-associate/ba-p/2096458
- Google Cloud Professional Machine Learning Engineer Exam: Impression and Advice
https://yingyingh.medium.com/google-cloud-professional-machine-learning-engineer-exam-impression-and-advice-e069d8d0a971
- How to ace the Google Cloud Associate Cloud Engineer Certification Exam!
https://medium.com/weareservian/ace-the-google-cloud-associate-cloud-engineer-certification-exam-8f3fdea87fb5
- Passing the Google Cloud professional developer exam
https://hilliao.medium.com/passing-the-google-cloud-professional-developer-exam-a52d29d1869d
- Alibaba Cloud Academy Certification Courses - A Visual Guide
https://www.alibabacloud.com/blog/alibaba-cloud-academy-certification-courses---a-visual-guide_597219
- CKA Exam Study Guide: Certified Kubernetes Administrator
https://scriptcrunch.com/kubernetes-exam-guide/
