What is AWS EKS, and how does it work with Kubernetes?

This managed AWS Kubernetes service scales, manages, and deploys containerized applications. Through EKS, you can run Kubernetes without installing or operating a control plane or worker nodes — significantly simplifying Kubernetes deployment on AWS.

So what does it all mean? What is the relationship between AWS and Kubernetes, what are the benefits of using Kubernetes with AWS, and what are the next steps when implementing AWS EKS? Let’s jump in.

Importance of container orchestration  

Container orchestration automates container movement, supervision, expansion, and networking. It can be used in every scenario where containers are used and will help you position the same applications across different environments. Today, Kubernetes remains the most popular container orchestration platform offered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform, IBM Cloud, and Microsoft Azure.

As companies rapidly expand, the number of containerized applications they use also increases. However, managing them in larger quantities can become challenging. You’ll benefit from this process if your organization manages hundreds or thousands of containers. Data shows approximately 70% of developers use container orchestration tools. 

Due to its automation properties, container orchestration greatly benefits organizations. It reduces manhours, the number of employees needed, and the financial budget for containerized applications. It can also enhance the benefits of containerization, such as automated resource allocation and optimum use of computing resources.

An overview of Kubernetes

Often called K8s, Kubernetes is an open-source container orchestration tool and industry standard. Google developed this system to automate containerized applications- or microservices- development, management, and scaling. This platform was created for several reasons but was primarily developed with optimization in mind. Automating many DevOps processes, which developers once handled manually, has significantly simplified the work of software developers, allowing them to focus on more pressing, complex tasks.

Based on its applications, Kubernetes is the fastest-growing project in open-source software history after Linux. Data shows that from 2020 to 2021, the number of Kubernetes engineers skyrocketed by 67%, reaching 3.9 million. This figure represents 31% of all backend developers.

One of the main reasons Kubernetes is so popular is the increasing demand for businesses to support their microservice architecture. Kubernetes makes apps more flexible, productive, and scalable by providing load balancing and simplifying container management. 

Other benefits include:

• Container orchestration savings: Once Kubernetes is configured, apps run with minimal downtown while performing well.
• Increased efficiency among DevOps teams, allowing for faster development and deployment times.
• The ability to deploy workloads across several cloud services.
• Since Kubernetes is an open-source tool and community-led project, there is strong support for continuous improvement and innovation. A large ecosystem of tools has been designed to use with this platform.

What is EKS?

Data shows that of those running containers in the public cloud, 78% are using AWS, followed by Azure (39%), GCP (35%), IBM Cloud (6%), Oracle Cloud (4%), and Other (4%). AWS remains the dominant provider. 

AWS offers a commercial Kubernetes service — Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS). This managed service allows you to run Kubernetes on AWS and on-premises, benefiting from the vast number of available services. By integrating with AWS services, you’ll benefit from supply scalability and security for your applications. For example, IAM is used for reliability, Elastic Load Balancer for load distribution, and Amazon ECR for container image. 

Adding a system like AWS EKS allows you to run Kubernetes applications on various systems, like AWS Fargate. Along with benefiting from greater performance, scalability, and reliability, you can integrate with AWS networking and security services such as AWS Virtual Private Cloud. It will enhance your Kubernetes system, which will optimize your business overall.  

AWS EKS can help you gain greater control over your servers or simplify cluster setup. 

Amazon EKS functionality

Amazon EKS simplifies Kubernetes management by handling the control plane while giving users flexibility over worker node configurations. Its architecture is designed for scalability, reliability, and seamless integration with the AWS ecosystem.

1. Core architecture

Amazon EKS operates through two primary components: the Kubernetes control plane and worker nodes.

• Kubernetes control plane: This plan is managed entirely by AWS and includes Kubernetes API servers and management services spread across multiple AWS Availability Zones, ensuring high availability.
• Worker nodes: These are deployed within a customer’s Amazon VPC, allowing full administrative control over scaling, upgrades, and security configurations.

2. Deployment options

Amazon EKS supports several deployment models to meet varying business needs:

• Managed node groups: AWS provisions, scales, and automatically manages worker nodes.
• Self-managed nodes: Users deploy and manage their own worker nodes with complete customization.
• Fargate: Serverless Kubernetes deployment where AWS manages both the control plane and the underlying infrastructure, enabling container execution without EC2 instances.
• Hybrid deployments: Kubernetes clusters can be extended to on-premises infrastructure using Amazon EKS Anywhere.

3. AWS service integrations

Amazon EKS integrates with a broad range of AWS services for enhanced functionality:

• Networking: Amazon VPC provides isolated networking environments, Elastic Load Balancing ensures traffic distribution, and AWS PrivateLink secures data exchange.
• Storage: Amazon EBS is used for persistent storage, Amazon S3 is used for object storage, and Amazon EFS is used for file storage.
• Security: IAM manages user access, AWS Key Management Service (KMS) secures sensitive data, and AWS Shield protects against DDoS attacks.
• Monitoring and logging: Amazon CloudWatch collects performance metrics, AWS CloudTrail tracks activity logs, and AWS X-Ray provides distributed tracing.

How does AWS EKS work with Kubernetes?

AWS EKS supplies an expandable and available Kubernetes control panel. For optimum performance, it runs this control panel across three availability zones. AWS EKS and Kubernetes collaborate in several different areas to ensure your company receives the best performance.

1. AWS Controller lets you manage and control your AWS service from your Kubernetes environment. Using AWS EKS, you can simplify building a Kubernetes application.
2. EKS can integrate with Kubernetes clusters. Developers can use it as a single interface to organize and resolve issues in any Kubernetes application implemented on AMS.
3. EKS add-ons are pieces of operational software. These add-ons will increase the functionality of Kubernetes operations. When you start an AMS cluster, you can select any applicable add-ons. Some of these add-ons include Kubernetes tools for networking and AWS service integrations.

Benefits of AWS EKS over standalone Kubernetes

There are several benefits of AWS EKS when compared to native Kubernetes.

• Implementing AWS EKS will remove time-consuming processes like creating the Kubernetes master cluster. With standalone Kubernetes, your employees would have to spend many company hours designing and building different infrastructures.
• AMS EKS eliminates a singular point of failure as the Kubernetes control plane is spread across various AWS availability zones.  
• EKS is embedded with a range of AWS monitoring services, which means it has scalability and can grow as your company expands. It makes features like AWS Identity Access Management and Elastic Load Balancing straightforward and convenient for your employees.

Amazon EKS use cases

Amazon EKS supports a variety of enterprise use cases, making it a versatile platform for running containerized applications. Below are some of the most common applications where Amazon EKS excels:

1. Deploying in hybrid environments

Amazon EKS enables consistent Kubernetes management across cloud, on-premises, and edge environments. This flexibility allows enterprises to run sensitive workloads on-premises while leveraging cloud scalability for other applications.

2. Supporting machine learning workflows

Amazon EKS simplifies the deployment of machine learning models by enabling scalable and efficient data processing. Frameworks like TensorFlow and PyTorch can run seamlessly on EKS, with access to AWS services like Amazon S3 for data storage and AWS SageMaker for model training and deployment.

3. Building web applications

Web applications benefit from Amazon EKS’s automatic scaling and high availability features. EKS supports microservices-based architectures, allowing developers to build and deploy resilient web applications using services such as Amazon RDS for databases and Amazon ElastiCache for caching.

4. Running CI/CD pipelines

Development teams can use Amazon EKS to build and manage CI/CD pipelines, automating software release processes. Integration with tools like Jenkins, GitLab, and CodePipeline ensures continuous integration and deployment for modern applications.

Amazon EKS best practices

To ensure smooth operation and maximum efficiency when managing Amazon EKS clusters, following best practices centered around automation, security, and performance optimization is essential. These practices help minimize downtime, improve scalability, and reduce operational overhead.

1. Automate Kubernetes operations

Automation reduces manual intervention and increases reliability. Infrastructure-as-code tools like Terraform or AWS CloudFormation can be used to define and deploy clusters. CI/CD pipelines can streamline code deployment and updates. Kubernetes-native tools like Helm can be used for package management, and ArgoCD can be used for GitOps-based continuous delivery.

2. Strengthen security

Securing your Kubernetes environment is crucial. Implement the following security best practices:

• Access control: Use AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) roles and policies to manage access rights.
• Network security: Enable Amazon VPC for isolated network environments and restrict inbound/outbound traffic.
• Data encryption: Use AWS Key Management Service (KMS) for data encryption at rest and enforce TLS for data in transit.
• Cluster hardening: Regularly update Kubernetes versions and EKS node groups to apply the latest security patches.

3. Optimize cluster performance

Performance optimization ensures workloads run efficiently without overspending on resources. Consider the following strategies:

• Auto-scaling: Enable Kubernetes Cluster Autoscaler to adjust the number of worker nodes based on demand automatically.
• Right-sizing resources: Use AWS Compute Optimizer to recommend the best EC2 instance types and sizes.
• Monitoring and logging: Amazon CloudWatch and AWS X-Ray are used to monitor and trace application performance.

AWS EKS operation

AWS EKS has two main components — a control plane and worker nodes. The control plane has three Kubernetes master nodes that will be installed in three different availability zones. It runs on the cloud controlled by AMS. You cannot manage this control panel directly; it is managed through AMS.

The other component is worker nodes, which run on the organization’s private cloud and can be accessed through Secure Shell (SSH). The worker nodes control your organization’s containers, and the control panels organize and monitor the containers’ creation and place of origin.

As EKS operations are flexible, you can position an EKS cluster for every organization or use an EKS cluster from multiple applications. Without EKS, you would have to run and monitor the worker nodes and control panel, as it would not be automated. Implementing an EKS operation frees organizations from the burden of operating Kubernetes and all the infrastructure that comes with it. AWS does all the heavy lifting.

Here is how to get started with AWS EKS.

Amazon EKS pricing

Understanding Amazon EKS pricing is essential for effectively managing costs. Pricing is determined by various factors, including cluster management, EC2 instance types, vCPU usage, and additional AWS services used alongside Kubernetes.

Amazon EKS cluster pricing

All Amazon EKS clusters have a per-cluster, per-hour fee based on the Kubernetes version. Standard Kubernetes version support lasts for the first 14 months after release, followed by extended support for another 12 months at a higher rate.

Kubernetes Version Support Tier	Pricing
Standard Kubernetes version support	$0.10 per cluster per hour
Extended Kubernetes version support	$0.60 per cluster per hour

Amazon EKS auto mode

EKS Auto Mode pricing is based on the duration and type of Amazon EC2 instances launched and managed by EKS Auto Mode. Charges are billed per second with a one-minute minimum and are independent of EC2 instance purchase options such as Reserved Instances or Spot Instances.

Amazon EKS hybrid nodes pricing

Amazon EKS Hybrid Nodes enable Kubernetes management across cloud, on-premises, and edge environments. Pricing is based on monthly vCPU-hour usage and varies by usage tier.

Usage Range	Pricing (per vCPU-hour)
First 576,000 monthly vCPU-hours	$0.020
Next 576,000 monthly vCPU-hours	$0.014
Next 4,608,000 monthly vCPU-hours	$0.010
Next 5,760,000 monthly vCPU-hours	$0.008
Over 11,520,000 monthly vCPU-hours	$0.006

Other AWS services pricing

When using Amazon EKS, additional charges may apply based on the AWS services you use to run applications on Kubernetes worker nodes. For example:

• Amazon EC2: For instance capacity
• Amazon EBS: For volume storage
• Amazon VPC: For public IPv4 addresses

AWS Fargate pricing: Charges are based on vCPU and memory resources from container image download to pod termination, billed per second with a one-minute minimum.

To estimate your costs, use the AWS Pricing Calculator.

Maximize your Kubernetes investment with LogicMonitor 

AWS EKS is a system that can streamline and optimize your company. However, many need to be using it to its full potential. Monitoring will help you get the most out of your investment via key metrics and visualizations. 

LogicMonitor offers dedicated Kubernetes monitoring dashboards, including insights into Kubernetes API Server performance, container health, and pod resource usage. These tools provide real-time metrics to help you detect and resolve issues quickly, ensuring a reliable Kubernetes environment. These insights help drive operational efficiency, improve performance, and overcome common Kubernetes challenges.

Learn more here:

• LogicMonitor & AWS: Maximize your Kubernetes Investment with Monitoring
• LogicMonitor’s Kubernetes Monitoring Overview

If you need a cloud monitoring solution, LogicMonitor can help you maximize your investment and modernize your hybrid cloud ecosystem. Sign up for a free trial today!