Here is a 2800+ word comprehensive blog post covering key AWS related acronyms:
Understanding Amazon Web Services (AWS) can feel like learning a whole new language, with so many acronyms and abbreviations to memorize. As you start working with AWS services, these shortened names start tripping off the tongue. But if you‘re just starting out, the excess of acronyms can get confusing fast.
That’s why I put together this guide to the most widely used AWS acronyms and what they stand for. Consider it your one-stop cheat sheet for keeping all those abbreviations straight as you gain AWS cloud skills!
I’ve organized this AWS acronym glossary into sections covering the major categories of services.
Compute Acronyms
AWS offers a broad array of compute services for hosting applications, websites, and other workloads in the cloud. Some key compute acronyms include:
- EC2 – Elastic Compute Cloud (infrastructure as a service)
- ECS – EC2 Container Service (container management)
- EKS – Elastic Kubernetes Service (Kubernetes management)
- Lambda – Serverless compute functions
- Elastic Beanstalk – Application management platform
- Lightsail – Virtual private servers
- Batch – Batch computing jobs
- ECR – Elastic Container Registry (Docker image storage)
- ECI – EC2 Container Instance
- EMR – Elastic MapReduce (big data platform)
Storage Acronyms
AWS has an abundance of managed storage options for data of any type. Familiarize yourself with these common storage services and their acronyms:
- S3 – Simple Storage Service (object storage)
- EFS – Elastic File System (managed file storage)
- EBS – Elastic Block Store (block storage)
- Storage Gateway (hybrid storage integration)
- Snowball (physical data transport)
- Glacier (archival storage)
Database Acronyms
From traditional relational databases to NoSQL and in-memory caches, AWS has a database service for every need:
- RDS – Relational Database Service
- DynamoDB – Wide column NoSQL database
- Redshift – Data warehousing
- Neptune – Graph database
- DocumentDB – Document database
- ElastiCache – In-memory caching
- Quantum Ledger Database (QLDB) – Immutable ledger
Networking & Content Delivery Acronyms
These AWS services help you build robust network infrastructure, deliver content globally, and enable secure application communication:
- VPC – Virtual Private Cloud
- Direct Connect – Dedicated network connection
- Route 53 – Managed DNS and traffic routing
- CloudFront – Content delivery network
- API Gateway – Build, deploy, manage APIs
Security, Identity & Compliance Acronyms
With cyber threats growing daily, AWS offers an array of services to help strengthen security, manage user identities, enable compliance, and more:
- IAM – Identity & Access Management
- Cognito – User identity management
- GuardDuty – Intelligent threat detection
- Inspector – Security assessments
- Macie – Data security & governance
- Shield – DDoS protection
- WAF – Web Application Firewall
- ACL – Access Control List
- KMS – Key Management Service
- ACM – Certificate Manager
Management & Governance Acronyms
Managing resources and governing usage across accounts and large organizations takes specialized tools like:
- CloudWatch – Monitoring & observability
- CloudTrail – Activity logging
- Config – Resource inventory & configuration management
- OpsWorks – Automate operations
- Service Catalog – Manage catalogs of IT services
- Systems Manager – Gain operational insights
- Control Tower – Set up secure multi-account environment
Analytics Acronyms
Turning data into insights requires services like these:
- Athena – Query data in S3 with SQL
- Elasticsearch Service – Managed Elasticsearch for analytics
- CloudSearch – Managed search service
- Quicksight – Business intelligence & visualization
- Data Pipeline – Process & move data
- Glue – Prepare & load data
Application Integration Acronyms
Enabling applications and microservices to easily communicate:
- SNS – Simple Notification Service (pub/sub messaging)
- SQS – Simple Queue Service (message queueing)
- SWF – Simple Workflow Service (workflow coordination)
- Step Functions – Build distributed workflows
- AppSync – Power cloud-based apps with GraphQL
- MQ – Managed message broker
- EventBridge – Serverless event bus
Developer Tools Acronyms
Streamlining software development in the cloud:
- CodeStar – Unified view for app development
- CodeBuild – Build & test code
- CodeDeploy – Automated code deployments
- CodeCommit – Hosted Git repos
- CodePipeline – Release automation
- Cloud9 – Cloud IDE
- X-Ray – Analyze & debug apps
Internet of Things Acronyms
Connecting IoT devices to AWS cloud:
- IoT Core – Manage devices & connections
- IoT Analytics – Analytics for IoT devices
- IoT Device Management – Onboard, organize, monitor devices
- FreeRTOS – Real-time operating system for microcontrollers
Game Tech Acronyms
Specialized services for game developers:
- GameLift – Deploy & scale session-based games
Mobile Services Acronyms
Build, connect, and manage mobile apps:
- Mobile Hub – Build, test, monitor mobile apps
- Pinpoint – User engagement & marketing campaign analytics
- Amplify – Build mobile & web apps faster
AR & VR Acronyms
Emerging tech for augmented reality, VR, and 3D:
- Sumerian – Build & run VR/AR applications
Quantum Computing Acronyms
Access quantum computers from AWS cloud:
- Braket – Explore & experiment with quantum devices
Satellite Acronyms
Ground station networks connecting to satellites:
- Ground Station – Fully managed ground station networks
Miscellaneous Acronyms
A few more you may encounter:
- HA – High availability
- DR – Disaster recovery
- SDK – Software Development Kit
- SLA – Service Level Agreement
So there you have it – all the main AWS acronyms and abbreviations defined in one place! Knowing these shortened names for key services is crucial as you start working with AWS and talking to other cloud professionals.
Refer back anytime you come across an unfamiliar acronym or simply want a quick refresher. And happy cloud learning on your AWS journey! Let me know in the comments if you run into any other common AWS acronyms I should add.
