In the old days of IT, you and I would rent an ACTUAL server in a data centre. You might have even been able to visit that data centre and stare at your server in person. Nowadays, much like video tapes, physical servers are a distant memory. And boy, am I glad that is the case! Why would I bother driving to an actual data centre to punch a few commands into a terminal when now I can open my laptop and connect directly to my server anytime, anywhere in the world?
Enter the Virtual Private Server.
This is great, but what if my website takes off and my VPS gets flooded with traffic? If only I had known to buy a bigger server, this wouldn't have happened. Thankfully, we now have Cloud Computing as we know it. We don't have to buy a single CPU core; we simply upload our web files, and the Cloud will scale up and down depending on how many people view it. They then send us a bill at the end of the month 💸.
What you've just read is the exact type of service, among many others, that AWS offers. You can start creating your own server-less instances for FREE, and all you have to do is create an AWS Free Tier Account.
But before we create an account, why AWS?
1. Diverse Service Offerings
AWS is not just about hosting websites. It boasts over 200 fully featured services spanning across computing, storage, databases, IoT, security, and more.
AWS Lambda allows you to run code without provisioning or managing servers, showcasing the power of server-less computing.
With Amazon RDS, you can operate several types of database engines, from MySQL to Oracle, reducing administrative tasks like backups, patch management, and failover.
2. Global Reach
With data centers in multiple regions across the world, AWS ensures that your content is delivered swiftly, and your data is stored resiliently.
The AWS Global Accelerator improves the availability and performance of applications by routing user traffic through Amazon's vast, highly reliable global network infrastructure.
3. Pioneering in Security
AWS is designed to be the most flexible and secure cloud network. It provides an end-to-end approach ensuring stringent data protection.
Amazon GuardDuty is a threat detection service that continuously monitors malicious or unauthorized behaviours, helping you protect your AWS accounts and workloads.
4. Cost-Effective and Scalable
AWS’s pay-as-you-go approach means you only pay for the services you use. As your business scales, AWS scales with you, making it cost-effective without upfront expenses.
With AWS's Auto Scaling, your application maintains peak performance by automatically adjusting capacity to keep your application responsive at the lowest possible cost.
5. Continuous Innovation
AWS is constantly innovating and introducing new tools, features and services. They value customer feedback, often shaping their advancements.
In recent years, AWS introduced AWS Wavelength, which brings AWS services to the edge of the 5G network, minimising latency to deliver applications that require single-digit millisecond latencies.
So, Why Wait? Let's make an account!
You will need:
Computer
Phone
Phone Number
Email
Credit Card
Full Name
Step 1: Open up your Web Browser and navigate to the AWS Free Tier Page and click on the Create a Free Account button
Step 2: Fill out the required registration details:
Email: Provide an email not linked to an existing AWS account
Account Name: Any name you desire, don't worry you can change this!
Step 3: Verify your email, check your email for a 6 digit code from AWS then enter it here and click Verify
Step 4: Enter your Details:
How do you plan to use AWS: For Free Tier choose Personal
Enter your details: Make sure you use a REAL PHONE NUMBER for the verification code.
Click the "I have read and agree to the terms of the AWS Customer Agreement" checkbox and press continue.
Step 5: Enter Billing Information
You will need a real Credit Card as AWS with take a $1 payment for verification.
Step 6: Go to your payment gateway and approve the payment - I have a Starling Bank Account
Step 7: Confirm your identity, AWS will send you an SMS with a verification code
Step 8: Enter the verification code you received
Step 9: Choose your level of tech support
Being a tutorial on how to create a Free Tier account, we recommend choosing the Free option.
Step 10: Congratulations you now have an AWS Free Tier Account!
Picture the scene, you have just created your AWS Free Tier account and are ready to get stuck in!
What will you make first?
Launch a virtual machine, store data and even dip your toes in machine learning, the potential for innovation has never been more accessible.