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Amazon S3 Express One Zone Storage Class

Dayanantha Shanmugaradnam

1.Introduction

Amazon S3 Express One Zone is a high-performance storage class designed for low-latency, high-throughput applications that need frequent data access in a single AWS Availability Zone (AZ). Unlike other S3 storage classes that distribute data across multiple AZs, S3 Express One Zone keeps data in a single zone, making it a more cost-effective solution for specific workloads.

Amazon S3 Express One Zone, offering single-digit millisecond request latency and data access speeds up to 10x faster than S3 Standard, with a potential 50% reduction in request costs.

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2.Key Benefits of Amazon S3 Express One Zone

  1. High Performance & Low Latency:

  • Designed for applications requiring extremely low latency, such as machine learning, AI training, and interactive data analytics.

  • Delivers consistent single-digit millisecond request latency.

  • Data access speeds up to 10x faster and request costs up to 50% lower than S3 Standard.

  1. Single-Availability Zone Storage:

  • Stores data in a single AWS Availability Zone, allowing for the co-location of storage and compute resources.

  • Optimized for workloads with many small objects and can handle hundreds of thousands of requests per second.

  1. Directory Buckets:

  • Uses a new type of S3 bucket called a "directory bucket" to store data.

  • Directory buckets are designed to support high transaction throughput and can handle hundreds of thousands of transactions per second (TPS).

  1. Security Features:

  • All S3 Block Public Access settings are enabled by default at the bucket level, and these settings cannot be modified.

  • S3 Object Ownership is set to "bucket owner enforced" and access control lists (ACLs) are disabled.

  1. Cost-Effective Storage

  • Lower costs compared to S3 Standard since data is stored in a single AZ.

  • Eliminates multi-zone replication costs, reducing total storage expenses.

  1. Optimized for Frequent Access

  • Unlike S3 Glacier or S3 Intelligent-Tiering, this storage class is built for rapid and frequent access.

  1. No Retrieval Fees

  • Unlike S3 Standard-IA (Infrequent Access), there are no retrieval fees for accessing data.

  1. Simple and Flexible Storage Management

  • Works seamlessly with Amazon S3 APIs, AWS SDKs, and AWS CLI.

  • Easily integrates with analytics, machine learning, and high-performance applications.

3.How Amazon S3 Express One Zone Works

  • S3 Express One Zone operates differently from other Amazon S3 storage classes:

  • Data is stored in a single Availability Zone (AZ) instead of being replicated across multiple zones.

  • It provides fast access and low-latency performance for frequently accessed data.

  • No cross-AZ replication means lower costs, making it suitable for applications that do not require multi-AZ resilience.

  • Data durability remains 99.9%, lower than S3 Standard's 99.999999999% (11 9s) durability, but still highly reliable.

  • Designed for frequent-access workloads, avoiding retrieval costs that exist in infrequent-access storage classes.

4.Express One Zone Architecture

We’ve explored the capabilities of S3 Express One Zone, but what sets it apart? The distinction lies in its unique architecture, marked by three significant changes that empower it with remarkable capabilities.

  1. One Zone Deployment: While other S3 storage classes are deployed across an entire region, Express One Zone operates within a single availability zone. This strategic deployment facilitates colocation with compute resources, enhancing data transfer efficiency with low latency.

  2. S3 Directory Buckets: Introducing the S3 directory bucket, a novel bucket type designed to support thousands of transaction processing systems (TPS). This functionality enables users to rapidly scale their object storage, providing a flexible and scalable solution.

  3. Session-Based Access: S3 Express One Zone adopts a new session-based authorization model, meticulously optimized to deliver the lowest latency on requests. This session is automated by the Amazon SDK, granting access to the bucket through two access modes: ReadOnly and ReadWrite. To leverage this functionality, S3:CreateSession can be employed.

4.1Architectural Implications

While the new architecture introduces impressive capabilities to Express One Zone, there are several points to consider when utilizing this storage class.

  • Directory Bucket Placement: In alignment with its architectural behavior, placing the directory bucket in a single Availability Zone (AZ) is crucial. Understanding your existing compute workload is essential for achieving efficient performance. However, if placed in a separate availability zone, there won’t be any added network cost since AWS does not incur Inter AZ data transfer costs.

  • Durability: Express One Zone operates with a distinct durability model compared to other storage classes. It boasts 99.999999999% durability, but this is within a single availability zone. This level of durability is achieved through end-to-end integrity checks of requests, storing data in redundant devices, and periodic durability tests. It’s important to note that there is a possibility of data loss in the event of damage to the availability zone due to any natural conditions.

5.S3 Express One Zone Supported Regions and Availability Zones

6.Use Cases for Amazon S3 Express One Zone

  1. AI/ML and Analytics Workloads:

  • Machine Learning Model Training: S3 Express One Zone accelerates training by providing fast access to large datasets, which is crucial for AI/ML models.

  • Interactive Analytics: The low latency and high throughput enable interactive exploration and analysis of large datasets, such as those used in data warehousing and business intelligence.

  • Data Preprocessing and Deep Learning: It can significantly reduce the time required for data preprocessing and deep learning training, leading to faster model development and deployment.

  • Integration with AWS Services: It integrates well with services like Amazon SageMaker Model Training, Amazon Athena, Amazon EMR, and AWS Glue Data Catalog, further streamlining AI/ML and analytics workflows.

  1. Media Content Creation:

  • High-Performance Storage for Media: S3 Express One Zone provides the necessary speed and performance for editing, transcoding, and managing large media files.

  • Co-location for Efficiency: Storing media assets close to the compute resources used for editing and processing can significantly improve workflow efficiency.

  1. Other Use Cases:

  • Frequently Accessed Data: It's well-suited for storing data that is accessed frequently, such as application logs, user profiles, and other data that needs to be readily available.

  • Demanding Applications: S3 Express One Zone can handle the demands of applications that require low latency and high throughput, such as real-time data processing and streaming applications.

  • Large Datasets with Many Small Objects: It is optimized for workloads that involve many small objects, which are common in many data-intensive applications.

  • Cost Optimization: S3 Express One Zone lowers API request costs by 50% compared to S3 Standard, providing a compelling reason to migrate for those looking to optimize their cloud expenditure.

7.Amazon S3 Express One Zone Pricing

S3 Express One Zone offers competitive pricing based on:

  1. Storage Costs

  • Lower than S3 Standard due to single-AZ storage.

  1. No Retrieval Fees

  • Unlike S3-IA, you don’t pay for data retrieval.

  1. Request and Data Transfer Pricing

  • Pricing depends on the number of API requests and data transfer usage.

8.Considerations

While S3 Express One Zone is a great cost-saving option, it comes with trade-offs:

  • Reduced Redundancy: Without multi-zone replication, there's a higher risk of data unavailability if the zone experiences downtime.

  • Limited Applicability: Not suitable for mission-critical applications requiring high availability or disaster recovery.

9.Conclusion

Amazon S3 Express One Zone is a game-changing storage class for high-performance workloads requiring frequent access at a lower cost than multi-AZ options. It is perfect for big data analytics, machine learning, media processing, and real-time applications.

If your workload doesn't need cross-AZ resilience but demands high-speed, cost-efficient storage, S3 Express One Zone is the perfect solution.

10.Reference

  1. Amazon S3 Express One Zone storage class

  2. Tutorial: Getting started with S3 Express One Zone - Amazon Simple Storage Service

  3. S3 Express One Zone Availability Zones and Regions - Amazon Simple Storage Service

  4. Optimizing S3 Express One Zone performance - Amazon Simple Storage Service

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