AWS Transfer Family for FTPAS2

AWS Transfer Family is a secure file transfer service designed to enable seamless transfer of files into and out of AWS storage services. It supports both Amazon S3 and Amazon EFS, making it an ideal solution for migrating data from on-premises data centers to the cloud.

AWS Transfer Family is distinct from other services like DataSync. While DataSync primarily focuses on data migration, AWS Transfer Family delivers a fully managed, highly available FTP server. This means you no longer need to set up and manage your own FTP infrastructure. The service supports multiple protocols including SFTP, FTPS, FTP, and AS2, all while eliminating manual server configuration and maintenance.

Managed Service Advantage

AWS Transfer Family handles the infrastructure setup, ensuring high availability, scalability, and robust security. This allows you to concentrate on your core business needs instead of managing servers.

When setting up AWS Transfer Family, AWS provides a public access endpoint for the FTP server, allowing access over the internet. If your requirements demand restricted access—such as internal resources within a specific VPC—you can configure the service to use a VPC endpoint. In addition, files can be directly transferred to S3 or EFS, and Amazon CloudWatch integration offers comprehensive logging and monitoring capabilities.

The image is a diagram of a Transfer Family Server setup, showing connections between an internet endpoint, file processing workflows, a virtual private cloud, and services like S3 Standard, Amazon EFS, and Amazon CloudWatch.

The AWS SFTP Connector enhances the capabilities of AWS Transfer Family by enabling secure communication with remote servers—be they in the cloud or on-premises. This integration facilitates the merging of externally generated and stored data with AWS-hosted data warehouses, supporting robust analytics, business applications, reporting, and auditing.

The image is a diagram illustrating the AWS Transfer Family SFTP Connector, showing the flow of files between a remote SFTP server and Amazon S3, with options for processing, analytics, archival, machine learning, and content distribution.

From an integration standpoint, AWS Transfer Family works seamlessly with S3 and EFS by directly copying files to these services. This smooth integration with AWS storage options, along with its support for multiple transfer protocols and robust CloudWatch logging, positions AWS Transfer Family as a versatile and efficient solution.

Key Use Cases

Some key use cases for AWS Transfer Family include:

Modernizing File Transfer: Ideal for financial and healthcare institutions that require secure file transfers for regulated data under standards such as PCI and HIPAA.
Real-Time Data Insights: Connect business applications and IoT devices to data lakes for real-time analysis and processing.
Enhanced Collaboration: Improve connectivity among supply chain trading partners to drive real-time insights across various business applications like ERP and transportation management systems.
Expanding Subscriber Reach: Offer diverse connectivity options with built-in fine-grained access controls that protect revenue across different channels.

The image shows four use cases for the "Transfer Family": Modernize File Transfer, Data Lake Insights, Improve Collaboration, and Expand Content Distribution, each represented by an icon.

Summary

AWS Transfer Family offers a fully managed platform for secure file transfer, simplifying the process of migrating data to AWS while ensuring high availability, scalability, and security. This cloud-native solution is powerful for organizations looking to modernize their file transfer processes without the overhead of managing traditional FTP servers.

For more detailed information on AWS Transfer Family and its integration with AWS services, please refer to the AWS Documentation.

Watch Video

Watch video content