Aurora Global Database is a feature of Amazon Aurora that enables a single database to span multiple AWS regions, providing low-latency global reads and disaster recovery capabilities for business-critical applications.
Key Features:
1. **Cross-Region Replication**: Aurora Global Database uses st…Aurora Global Database is a feature of Amazon Aurora that enables a single database to span multiple AWS regions, providing low-latency global reads and disaster recovery capabilities for business-critical applications.
Key Features:
1. **Cross-Region Replication**: Aurora Global Database uses storage-based replication with typical latency under one second between the primary region and secondary regions. This is significantly faster than traditional logical replication methods.
2. **Read Scaling**: Secondary regions can serve read traffic, allowing applications to provide low-latency reads to users worldwide. Each secondary region can have up to 16 read replicas.
3. **Disaster Recovery**: In case of a regional outage, you can promote a secondary region to become the new primary. The Recovery Point Objective (RPO) is typically one second, and Recovery Time Objective (RTO) is usually under one minute.
4. **Architecture**: A Global Database consists of one primary region where all write operations occur, and up to five secondary regions for read-only operations. The primary cluster handles both reads and writes.
5. **Use Cases**: Ideal for globally distributed applications requiring fast local reads, applications needing robust disaster recovery plans, and scenarios where regional compliance requires data presence in multiple locations.
6. **Managed Failover**: AWS provides managed planned failover for maintenance scenarios and unplanned failover for disaster recovery situations.
7. **Storage**: Aurora Global Database leverages Aurora's distributed storage system, replicating data across three Availability Zones within each region.
For SysOps Administrators, understanding Aurora Global Database is essential for implementing multi-region architectures, meeting business continuity requirements, and ensuring application reliability. Key operational tasks include monitoring replication lag, planning failover procedures, and managing read traffic distribution across regions.
Aurora Global Database
Why Aurora Global Database is Important
Aurora Global Database is a critical feature for organizations requiring cross-region disaster recovery and low-latency global reads. In the AWS SysOps Administrator exam, understanding this service demonstrates your ability to architect highly available and resilient database solutions that span multiple AWS regions.
What is Aurora Global Database?
Aurora Global Database is a feature of Amazon Aurora that allows a single Aurora database to span multiple AWS regions. It consists of:
• Primary Region: Contains the primary DB cluster that handles all write operations • Secondary Regions: Up to 5 secondary regions with read-only Aurora Replicas • Storage-based replication: Data is replicated at the storage layer, not the database layer
Aurora Global Database supports both Aurora MySQL and Aurora PostgreSQL compatible editions.
How Aurora Global Database Works
Replication Mechanism: • Uses dedicated infrastructure for replication at the storage level • Typical replication lag is under 1 second across regions • Replication has minimal impact on database performance
Failover Process: • Managed Planned Failover: Used for controlled region switches with zero data loss (RTO typically under 1 minute) • Unplanned Failover: Manual promotion of a secondary region during disasters (RPO typically under 1 second)
Read Scaling: • Secondary regions can serve read traffic locally • Reduces latency for globally distributed applications • Each secondary region can have up to 16 Aurora Replicas
Key Configuration Considerations
• Global database endpoints remain the same after failover • Application connection strings may need updating after regional failover • Secondary clusters cannot accept writes until promoted • Write forwarding feature allows secondary regions to forward write requests to the primary region
Exam Tips: Answering Questions on Aurora Global Database
1. Recognize Disaster Recovery Scenarios: When questions mention cross-region disaster recovery for Aurora or RDS, Aurora Global Database is typically the correct answer.
2. Understand RPO and RTO Values: • RPO: Less than 1 second (storage-based replication) • RTO: Under 1 minute for managed failover These values are commonly tested.
3. Differentiate from Other Solutions: • Aurora Global Database vs Aurora Replicas: Global Database spans regions; regular replicas are within a single region • Aurora Global Database vs Read Replicas: Global Database uses storage-layer replication for faster sync
4. Know the Limits: • Maximum of 5 secondary regions • Up to 16 Aurora Replicas per region • Primary region handles all writes (unless write forwarding is enabled)
5. Watch for Keywords: • Global disaster recovery • Cross-region read performance • Sub-second replication lag • Regional outage protection
6. Managed Planned Failover vs Unplanned: Questions about planned migrations or region switches refer to managed planned failover. Questions about regional disasters or unexpected outages involve unplanned failover with manual promotion.
7. Use Case Recognition: • Global applications needing low-latency reads: Aurora Global Database • Business continuity with minimal data loss: Aurora Global Database • Single region high availability: Standard Aurora with Multi-AZ