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In this lesson, we cover file system storage with a focus on Amazon’s Elastic File System (EFS). Amazon EFS is one of the two primary file system storage services provided by AWS—the other being Amazon FSx. It supports the Network File System (NFS) protocol, allowing any NFS-dependent application to work seamlessly with the EFS service. Once you create an EFS file system within your Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), your Linux-based EC2 instances and other compute services can mount it remotely. Note that EFS is not supported on Windows-based EC2 instances.
One of the major advantages of EFS is its ability to be mounted on multiple EC2 instances simultaneously. This feature allows efficient data sharing across instances.
When deploying EFS, you associate it with your VPC by creating mount targets in selected subnets. A mount target is assigned its own IP address, which EC2 instances use to connect to the file system. For high availability, it is highly recommended to create mount targets in multiple availability zones. This ensures that if one mount target becomes unavailable, an alternative is readily available.
The image illustrates how an EFS (Elastic File System) works within a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), showing two availability zones with mount targets connected to an EFS filesystem.

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EFS Storage Classes

Amazon EFS offers different storage classes to address a variety of use cases:
  • Standard Storage Classes:
    • EFS Standard
    • EFS Standard Infrequent Access
      These storage classes provide multi-AZ resilience with high durability and availability.
  • One Zone Storage Classes:
    • EFS One Zone
    • EFS One Zone Infrequent Access
      These options help reduce costs by storing data in a single availability zone.
The image is a diagram explaining Elastic File System (EFS) storage classes, divided into "Standard Storage Classes" and "One Zone Storage Classes," with brief descriptions of each.

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Performance Modes in EFS

EFS provides various performance modes tailored to different throughput, IOPS, and latency requirements:
  • General Purpose Performance Mode:
    Ideal for latency-sensitive environments such as web applications, content management systems, home directories, and typical file serving operations.
  • Elastic Throughput Mode:
    Automatically adjusts throughput performance based on your workload requirements.
  • Max I/O Performance Mode:
    Supports extremely high aggregate throughput and a large number of operations per second, though it may exhibit higher latencies for certain operations.
  • Provisioned Throughput Mode:
    Allows specification of a throughput level independent of the file system size.
  • Bursting Throughput Mode:
    Scales throughput with the amount of storage and supports burst performance for up to 12 hours per day.

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Setting Up EFS on an EC2 Linux Instance

This section outlines the process for mounting an EFS file system on an Amazon EC2 Linux instance.

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Step 1: Install Amazon EFS Utilities

Depending on your package manager, install the Amazon EFS utilities using one of the following commands: For systems that use DNF: 
sudo dnf -y install amazon-efs-utils
For systems using APT: 
sudo apt install amazon-efs-utils
For systems using YUM: 
sudo yum install amazon-efs-utils
Ensure that you have appropriate permissions for installing packages on your EC2 instance.

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Step 2: Mount the EFS File System

After installing the utilities, mount your EFS file system to a directory. Replace efs:id with your actual EFS file system ID (available from the AWS Console) and /directory with your chosen mount point: 
sudo mount.efs efs:id /directory
This command mounts the EFS file system similarly to other file system types, with the configuration necessary for EFS connectivity.

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Summary

FeatureDetails
File System ServiceManaged service provided by AWS
ProtocolSupports NFS for seamless integration with NFS-based applications
Supported InstancesLinux-based EC2 instances only
Multi-Instance MountingCan be mounted on multiple EC2 instances simultaneously
Mount TargetsProvide an IP address for connecting to the EFS file system within a VPC
Storage Classes- Standard (multi-AZ resilience)
- One Zone (cost-saving, single-AZ option)
Performance ModesGeneral Purpose, Elastic Throughput, Max I/O, Provisioned Throughput, and Bursting Throughput
Boot Storage LimitationCannot be used as boot storage for operating systems; EBS is recommended for boot volumes
The image is a summary slide about EFS (Elastic File System), detailing its availability in a VPC, storage classes, modes, and limitations regarding booting and operating system installation.
Remember, EFS is ideal for shared file systems used by Linux-based applications but is not a substitute for block storage solutions like EBS, especially when used for booting operating systems.

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