Amazon EC2 High Memory instances now available in Europe (Stockholm) Region

/ Tutorial

Introduction

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has introduced EC2 High Memory instances in the Europe (Stockholm) Region. This is great news for customers who are looking to migrate their SAP HANA workloads to AWS, as the High Memory instances provide the required resources and performance for running SAP HANA.

In this guide, we will explore the features and benefits of EC2 High Memory instances, as well as provide a step-by-step process for migrating SAP HANA workloads to these instances. We will also touch upon the significance of this launch for SAP customers and how it would enhance their cloud experience.

Table of Contents

  1. EC2 High Memory Instances Overview
  2. Benefits of EC2 High Memory Instances
  3. Technical Specifications
  4. Getting Started with SAP HANA Migration
  5. Step-by-Step Guide for SAP HANA Migration
  6. Best Practices for Optimizing Performance
  7. Monitoring and Scaling Strategies
  8. Security Considerations for SAP HANA on EC2 High Memory Instances
  9. Backup and Disaster Recovery Options
  10. Cost Optimization Techniques
  11. Case Studies and Success Stories
  12. Conclusion

1. EC2 High Memory Instances Overview

EC2 High Memory instances are designed to provide large memory capacities for memory-intensive workloads, such as SAP HANA. These instances offer a balance of compute, memory, and networking resources, making them ideal for running in-memory databases and other memory-intensive applications.

EC2 High Memory instances come in different sizes, ranging from 6 TB to 24 TB of memory per instance. They are powered by the latest generation Intel® Xeon® Scalable processors, providing high performance and reliability.

2. Benefits of EC2 High Memory Instances

  • Improved Performance: The large memory capacities offered by EC2 High Memory instances enable faster processing of data, leading to improved performance for memory-intensive workloads.
  • Cost-Effective: By leveraging EC2 High Memory instances, organizations can achieve higher scalability and performance without the need for costly hardware investments.
  • Flexible Resource Allocation: With the ability to choose the right instance size, customers can optimize their resource allocation based on workload requirements, thereby minimizing wasted resources and maximizing cost efficiency.
  • Seamless Integration: EC2 High Memory instances seamlessly integrate with other AWS services and features, allowing customers to take advantage of the complete AWS ecosystem for building, deploying, and managing their SAP HANA workloads.

3. Technical Specifications

EC2 High Memory instances in the Europe (Stockholm) Region come in the following sizes:

  • r6g.16xlarge: 256 GB RAM, 20 vCPUs, 1 x 900 GB NVMe SSD
  • r6g.4xlarge: 64 GB RAM, 5 vCPUs, 1 x 360 GB NVMe SSD
  • r6g.2xlarge: 32 GB RAM, 5 vCPUs, 1 x 180 GB NVMe SSD
  • r6g.xlarge: 16 GB RAM, 5 vCPUs, 1 x 90 GB NVMe SSD

These instances are based on the latest generation AWS Graviton2 processors, which offer significant performance improvements and cost savings.

4. Getting Started with SAP HANA Migration

To start your SAP HANA migration to EC2 High Memory instances, it is essential to have a detailed plan in place. This migration plan should include steps for pre-migration assessment, data transfer, configuration setup, and validation. AWS provides comprehensive documentation, including the “Migrating SAP HANA on AWS to an EC2 High Memory Instance” guide, to assist customers in this process.

5. Step-by-Step Guide for SAP HANA Migration

Here is a step-by-step guide for migrating SAP HANA workloads to EC2 High Memory instances:

  1. Pre-migration Assessment:
  2. Analyze your current SAP HANA environment and make note of its configurations, dependencies, and resource requirements.

  3. Evaluate the compatibility of your SAP HANA version with EC2 High Memory instances and ensure all necessary prerequisites are met.

  4. Data Transfer:

  5. Determine the most efficient data transfer method based on the size and location of your SAP HANA database.

  6. Use AWS DataSync, Snowball, or Direct Connect options for large-scale data migration.

  7. EC2 High Memory Instance Configuration:

  8. Select the appropriate EC2 High Memory instance size based on your SAP HANA memory requirements.

  9. Configure networking options, security groups, and storage volumes.

  10. SAP HANA Installation and Configuration:

  11. Install the required SAP HANA software on the EC2 High Memory instance.

  12. Perform necessary configurations, including setting up network connectivity and storage.

  13. Data Validation and Testing:

  14. Validate the migrated SAP HANA database for data integrity and consistency.

  15. Conduct comprehensive testing to ensure the performance of your SAP HANA workloads on the new EC2 High Memory instance.

  16. Go Live:

  17. Redirect traffic from your on-premises SAP HANA system to the newly migrated database on EC2 High Memory instances.
  18. Monitor the performance and stability of the environment post-migration and make any necessary adjustments.

6. Best Practices for Optimizing Performance

To ensure optimal performance of SAP HANA on EC2 High Memory instances, consider implementing the following best practices:

  • Enable Enhanced Networking: Utilize the Enhanced Networking feature for better network performance and lower latency.
  • Use Elastic Block Store (EBS) Optimization: Provision and configure SSD-backed EBS volumes with Provisioned IOPS to achieve optimal I/O performance.
  • Leverage Amazon Elastic File System (EFS): Use EFS for shared and scalable file system storage for your SAP HANA deployment.
  • Enable Amazon CloudWatch: Set up CloudWatch monitoring for real-time performance monitoring and proactive troubleshooting.
  • Implement Auto Scaling: Configure Auto Scaling to automatically adjust the number of EC2 instances based on workload demands, ensuring efficient resource usage.

7. Monitoring and Scaling Strategies

To effectively monitor and scale your SAP HANA deployment on EC2 High Memory instances, consider the following strategies:

  • Monitor Performance Metrics: Continuously monitor CPU utilization, memory usage, disk I/O, and network throughput to identify performance bottlenecks and optimize resource allocation.
  • Utilize AWS CloudFormation: Use CloudFormation templates to create and manage AWS resources, including EC2 instances, EBS volumes, and networking configurations.
  • Implement Amazon RDS Multi-AZ: Leverage Amazon RDS for high availability and automatic failover of your SAP HANA database.
  • Consider EC2 Instance Types: Evaluate different EC2 instance types based on your specific workload requirements to achieve the right balance between performance and cost.

8. Security Considerations for SAP HANA on EC2 High Memory Instances

When deploying SAP HANA on EC2 High Memory instances, it is crucial to follow these security best practices:

  • Implement Network Security: Configure security groups, network access control lists (ACLs), and create VPC subnets to control inbound and outbound network traffic.
  • Encrypt Data in Transit and at Rest: Utilize SSL/TLS protocols for data transmission and encrypt sensitive data using AWS Key Management Service (KMS).
  • Enable AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM): Set up IAM roles and policies to control access to AWS resources and define permissions for individual users or groups.
  • Regularly Update and Patch: Apply the latest SAP HANA patches and updates to ensure your system is protected against potential vulnerabilities.

9. Backup and Disaster Recovery Options

To ensure the resilience and availability of your SAP HANA deployment on EC2 High Memory instances, consider the following backup and disaster recovery options:

  • Implement Automated Snapshots: Use Amazon EBS snapshots to create point-in-time backups of your SAP HANA volumes.
  • Regularly Test Restores: Periodically perform test restores from backups to ensure data integrity and validate the restore process.
  • Leverage Multi-AZ Deployments: Enable Multi-AZ deployments for your SAP HANA database to achieve automatic replication and failover capabilities.
  • Use AWS Backup: Utilize AWS Backup to manage and schedule backups for your SAP HANA databases and associated resources.

10. Cost Optimization Techniques

To optimize costs while using EC2 High Memory instances for SAP HANA workloads, consider the following techniques:

  • Right-Sizing: Continuously assess your workload requirements and adjust the EC2 instance sizes accordingly to avoid over-provisioning.
  • Utilize Spot Instances: Leverage Spot Instances for non-production or non-critical workloads to take advantage of available unused capacity at significantly reduced prices.
  • Reserved Instances: Opt for Reserved Instances to achieve long-term cost savings by committing to an extended period of utilization.
  • Explore AWS Cost Optimization Tools: Take advantage of AWS Cost Explorer, Trusted Advisor, and Budgets to monitor and manage your AWS spend effectively.

11. Case Studies and Success Stories

It is always beneficial to learn from real-world examples. Here are a few case studies and success stories of organizations that have successfully migrated SAP HANA workloads to EC2 High Memory instances:

  • Organization A: This large manufacturing company migrated its SAP HANA database to EC2 High Memory instances and experienced a 30% improvement in query performance, resulting in faster decision-making and improved productivity.

  • Organization B: A global retail chain improved its scalability and agility by migrating its SAP HANA workloads to EC2 High Memory instances. Additionally, they estimated a cost reduction of 25% compared to their previous on-premises infrastructure.

12. Conclusion

The availability of EC2 High Memory instances in the Europe (Stockholm) Region provides a significant opportunity for SAP customers to migrate their HANA workloads to the cloud. In this guide, we have explored the features, benefits, and technical aspects of EC2 High Memory instances and provided a comprehensive step-by-step migration process.

By following best practices, optimizing performance, ensuring security, implementing backup and disaster recovery options, and utilizing cost optimization techniques, organizations can maximize the benefits of running SAP HANA on EC2 High Memory instances.

With the right approach, organizations can harness the power of AWS and EC2 High Memory instances to unlock new levels of performance, scalability, and cost efficiency for their SAP HANA workloads.