Optimizing Amazon DynamoDB with CloudCheckr

Amazon DynamoDB is one of AWS’ most powerful tools. It is a fully managed cloud database that provides consistent, single-digit millisecond latency at any scale. Its speed and flexibility make it particularly attractive for use within mobile, web, gaming, ad tech, IoT, and many other applications. The fundamental advantage of NoSQL databases such as Amazon DynamoDB is their ability to scale and have flexible schema, meaning users can easily change how data is structured and run multiple queries against it. Many new web-based applications, such as social, mobile and gaming-centric ones, are being built using NoSQL databases.
AWS makes management of DynamoDB easier through CloudWatch metrics that include:

• ConsumedReadCapacityUnits,
• ConsumedWriteCapacityUnits (Average + Maximum)
• ProvisionedReadCapacityUnits,
• ProvisionedWriteCapacityUnits
• ThrottledRequests

CloudWatch automatically stores these metrics for 14 days, but users often want a longer samples and more detailed analysis.
This is where CloudCheckr fits in. We store the metrics for the life of project and then provide alerting on key metrics, offer advice on purchasing strategies to optimize the balance between performance and spend, and allow users to properly allocate costs attached to DynamoDB usage.
 

Alerting on DynamoDB Metrics

CloudCheckr integrates with CloudWatch and performs an analysis to alert and provide remediation instructions for the following key issues:

• Idle DynamoDB Tables
• Unused DynamoDB Tables
• DynamoDB System Errors
• DynamoDB System Errors
• DynamoDB Throttled Requests
• Over-Utilized DynamoDB Table Reads
• Over-Utilized DynamoDB Table Writes
• Under-Utilized DynamoDB Table Reads
• Under-Utilized DynamoDB Table Writes

Each of these issues directly impacts app performance. Recognizing that manually monitoring the metrics can be tedious, but with CloudCheckr the process is automated. The pre-built alerts are delivered through a number of channels to ensure that users can be confident in their DynamoDB usage.
 

Advice on Purchasing Amazon DynamoDB

Users can purchase DynamoDB through two methods:  on-demand or reserved capacity. Importantly, if purchased wisely, reserved capacity purchases offer discounts of up to 76% for a 3 year term. CloudCheckr assists users by tracking usage over the life of your engagement and generating purchasing recommendations based upon actual needs. With simplified reporting, users can instantly identify opportunities, costs, and ROI.
 

Cost Allocation

Cost allocation for DynamoDB can be a little tricky because AWS does not record the Resource ID for DynamoDB in the Detailed Billing Record. CloudCheckr bridges this gap by uniting CloudWatch metrics with the DBR. This enables CloudCheckr users to accurately chargeback their DynamoDB costs to tables based on provisioned capacity.
 
For more reading on Amazon DynamoDB, check out Amazon developer resource page. To get started with your no obligation trial of CloudCheckr, go to the sign up page or contact our team of experts who can show you how CloudCheckr helps you optimize your investment in Amazon AWS and DynamoDB.