AWS Snow Family

The AWS Snow Family is a collection of physical devices that help migrate large amounts of data into and out of AWS. It is important because it enables customers to securely transfer petabytes of data to AWS when moving data over networks is impractical due to limited bandwidth or high network costs.

The Snow Family consists of:

• AWS Snowcone: A small, rugged, and secure edge computing and data transfer device, with 8 TB of usable storage.
• AWS Snowball: A petabyte-scale data transport solution that uses devices designed to be secure to transfer large amounts of data into and out of AWS.
• AWS Snowmobile: An exabyte-scale data transfer service that uses a 45-foot long ruggedized shipping container, pulled by a semi-trailer truck.

To use the Snow Family devices, you start by ordering the device from the AWS Management Console. Once it arrives, you connect it to your local network, configure it, and copy your data onto the device using the AWS OpsHub application or the file interface. After the data is copied, the device is shipped back to AWS, where the data is transferred to Amazon S3 or Amazon EBS.

Exam Tips: Answering Questions on AWS Snow Family

• Remember the differences between Snowcone, Snowball, and Snowmobile in terms of their storage capacities and use cases.
• Know that the Snow Family devices are used for secure, offline data transfer when moving large amounts of data to AWS.
• Understand that the devices are ordered from AWS, loaded with data on-premises, and then shipped back to AWS for data transfer.
• Recognize scenarios where using the Snow Family is more appropriate than transferring data over the network, such as when bandwidth is limited or network costs are high.