A DevOps team is managing an application that runs on Amazon EC2 instances. They use AWS Systems Manager to automate operational tasks. To ensure that all EC2 instances are consistently configured with the necessary agents (e.g., CloudWatch agent, custom monitoring scripts) and that these configurations are automatically applied to new instances and maintained on existing ones, even if they drift, which Systems Manager capability should be utilized?
- ASystems Manager Run Command
- BSystems Manager State Manager
- CSystems Manager Parameter Store
- DSystems Manager Automation
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Systems Manager State Manager
Systems Manager State Manager is designed to maintain a desired state on instances by automatically applying configurations and enforcing compliance. It ensures that specified agents and scripts are installed and configured consistently across all instances, and will re-apply the configuration if drift is detected, directly addressing the requirement for consistent and maintained configurations.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Run Command executes commands on demand but doesn't continuously enforce a desired state.
- C. Parameter Store stores configuration data but doesn't apply or enforce it on instances.
- D. Automation orchestrates workflows but isn't primarily for maintaining a continuous desired state on instances.
Systems Manager State Manager
AWS Systems Manager State Manager is a secure and scalable configuration management service that automates the process of keeping your Amazon EC2 instances and on-premises servers in a defined state. It ensures your instances are configured consistently, with necessary software, patches, or settings, and remediates drift.
- Maintains a desired configuration state for instances.
- Automatically applies configurations (e.g., agents, scripts).
- Continuously monitors and remediates configuration drift.
- Uses associations to link documents to target instances.
Memory trick: State Manager keeps your instances in the desired 'state' always.