Top 100 AWS Interview Questions and Answers for 2024

Are you preparing for an AWS interview questions, specifically in the field of DevOps or as a fresher? You might be wondering what kind of questions you might face during your interview. AWS, a prominent cloud computing platform, demands a solid grasp of fundamental concepts. If targeting a DevOps role, delve deeper into AWS services and their integration with DevOps tools. In this comprehensive article, discover 100 interview questions on AWS, covering basics, advanced topics, and specific inquiries for AWS interview questions for DevOps. Whether a fresher or seasoned professional, these questions, including AWS Glue interview questions, are invaluable for interview preparation, enhancing your chances of success.

AWS Interview Questions for Freshers

Let's explore fundamental AWS interview questions and answers as we delve into the top AWS basic interview questions.

1. What is AWS?

Answer: AWS (Amazon Web Services) is a cloud service platform that offers a variety of cloud-based services such as computing power, storage, and database services to businesses, individuals, and governments.

2. What is the significance of the Amazon EC2 service in AWS?

Answer: EC2 is a virtual server that enables users to run their applications on a cloud-based infrastructure. This means that users can access their applications from anywhere in the world and at any time.

3. What is Amazon S3 and what is it used for?

Answer: S3 stands for Simple Storage Service, which is an object storage service that provides a highly scalable and durable cloud-based storage solution. It is used for storing and retrieving data, backup and recovery, and for hosting static websites.

4. What is Amazon RDS and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon RDS (Relational Database Service) is a managed database service that simplifies the setup, operation, and scaling of relational databases. It is used for running databases such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Oracle in a cloud-based environment.

5. What is Amazon VPC?

Answer: Amazon VPC (Virtual Private Cloud) is a service that enables users to create a virtual network in the AWS cloud. It provides a logically isolated section of the AWS cloud that users can use to launch AWS resources in a virtual network.

6. What is Amazon Lambda?

Answer: Amazon Lambda is a serverless computing service that allows users to run code without the need for managing servers. It is used for building event-driven applications, data processing, and real-time stream processing.

7. What is Amazon CloudFront?

Answer: Amazon CloudFront is a content delivery network (CDN) service that speeds up the delivery of static and dynamic web content, such as HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and images. It is used for delivering content from AWS origins to end users around the world.

8. What is Amazon DynamoDB?

Answer: Amazon DynamoDB is a NoSQL database service that provides fast and predictable performance with seamless scalability. It is used for storing and retrieving any amount of data, and for serving millions of requests per second.

9. What is Amazon Redshift and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Redshift is a data warehouse service that makes it simple and cost-effective to analyze data using standard SQL queries. It is used for analyzing large amounts of data and for creating business intelligence dashboards.

10. What is AWS IAM?

Answer: AWS IAM (Identity and Access Management) is a service that enables users to manage access to AWS resources securely. It provides a central place to control access to AWS services and resources, and to create and manage users, groups, and permissions.

11. What is AWS CloudFormation and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS CloudFormation is a service that enables users to define and deploy infrastructure as code. It is used for creating and managing a collection of related AWS resources, and for automating the deployment of infrastructure.

12. What is Amazon Elastic Beanstalk and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Elastic Beanstalk is a platform as a service (PaaS) that makes it easy to deploy, manage, and scale applications in the AWS cloud. It is used for deploying web applications, mobile backends, and other types of applications.

13. What is Amazon ECS and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon ECS (Elastic Container Service) is a scalable and highly available container management service that makes it easy to run, stop, and manage Docker containers on a cluster. It is used for deploying and managing containerized applications.

14. What is Amazon Route 53 and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Route 53 is a highly available and scalable DNS service that routes end users to internet applications by translating human-readable domain names into the numeric IP addresses that computers use to identify each other on the internet. It is used for registering and managing domain names and for routing traffic to AWS resources.

15. What is Amazon SQS, and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon SQS (Simple Queue Service) is a message queuing service that enables the decoupling and scaling of distributed systems by allowing components to communicate asynchronously. It is used for reliably transmitting messages between distributed components of an application.

16. What is Amazon SNS, and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon SNS (Simple Notification Service) is a fully managed messaging service that enables the delivery of notifications to mobile devices, email, and other endpoints. It is used for sending push notifications, SMS messages, and email notifications to users.

17. What is AWS CloudTrail, and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS CloudTrail is a service that enables governance, compliance, operational auditing, and risk auditing of AWS accounts. It provides a record of actions taken by a user, role, or AWS service in a specific AWS account.

18. What is AWS Elastic Load Balancing, and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Elastic Load Balancing is a service that automatically distributes incoming application traffic across multiple targets, such as EC2 instances or containers, in one or more Availability Zones. It is used for improving the availability and fault tolerance of applications.

19. What is Amazon Glacier, and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Glacier is a low-cost, long-term storage service that provides secure and durable storage for data archives and backups. It is used for storing data that is accessed infrequently and needs to be retained for long periods of time.

20. What is Amazon Kinesis, and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Kinesis is a real-time data streaming service that makes it easy to collect, process, and analyze streaming data such as website clickstreams, IoT telemetry data, and social media feeds. It is used for building real-time dashboards, detecting anomalies, and triggering alerts.

21. What is AWS Direct Connect and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Direct Connect is a network service that enables users to establish a dedicated network connection from their premises to AWS. It is used for bypassing the internet and achieving a more reliable and secure connection to AWS services.

22. What is Amazon EMR and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon EMR (Elastic MapReduce) is a managed big data processing service that makes it easy to run Apache Hadoop, Spark, and other big data frameworks on AWS. It is used for processing large amounts of data and for running big data analytics.

23. What is Amazon Elastic File System and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Elastic File System is a scalable and highly available file system that provides shared access to files across multiple EC2 instances. It is used for sharing files between applications, migrating data, and storing data backups.

24. What is AWS Glue and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Glue is a fully managed ETL (Extract, Transform, and Load) service that makes it easy to move data between data stores. It is used for discovering, cataloging, and preparing data for analysis.

25. What is Amazon CloudWatch and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon CloudWatch is a monitoring service that provides visibility into the performance of AWS resources and applications. It is used for collecting and tracking metrics, monitoring log files, and setting alarms.

26. What is Amazon SageMaker and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon SageMaker is a fully managed machine learning service that makes it easy to build, train, and deploy machine learning models. It is used for solving business problems, such as predicting customer behavior and fraud detection.

27. What is Amazon Aurora and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Aurora is a high-performance and highly available relational database service that is compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL. It is used for running production workloads, such as e-commerce platforms and financial applications.

28. What is AWS Step Functions and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Step Functions is a serverless workflow service that enables users to coordinate the components of distributed applications and microservices. It is used for building and running complex workflows that involve multiple AWS services.

29. What is AWS Snowball and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Snowball is a petabyte-scale data transfer service that enables users to transfer large amounts of data into and out of AWS. It is used for migrating data to the cloud, creating backups, and archiving data.

30. What is Amazon MQ and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon MQ is a managed message broker service that supports standard messaging protocols such as MQTT and AMQP. It is used for decoupling applications and microservices, and for building event-driven architectures.

31. What is AWS IoT and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS IoT (Internet of Things) is a platform that enables users to connect and manage IoT devices, and to process and analyze the data generated by these devices. It is used for building IoT solutions, such as smart homes and industrial automation.

32. What is Amazon WorkSpaces and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon WorkSpaces is a managed desktop computing service that enables users to provision and manage cloud-based desktops for their employees. It is used for providing remote access to applications and data, and for reducing the cost of managing desktops.

33. What is AWS Backup and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Backup is a fully managed backup service that makes it easy to centralize and automate the backup of data across AWS services. It is used for backing up data to the cloud, and for restoring data in case of accidental deletion or data loss.

34. What is AWS WAF and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS WAF (Web Application Firewall) is a managed service that helps protect web applications from common web exploits that could affect application availability, compromise security, or consume excessive resources. It is used for blocking malicious traffic and preventing DDoS attacks.

35. What is AWS Certificate Manager and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Certificate Manager is a service that makes it easy to provision, manage, and deploy SSL/TLS certificates for use with AWS services. It is used for securing web applications and improving user trust.

36. What is AWS Systems Manager and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Systems Manager is a service that enables users to manage and configure their AWS resources and on-premises infrastructure from a single dashboard. It is used for automating common administrative tasks, such as patching and compliance management.

37. What is Amazon GuardDuty and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon GuardDuty is a threat detection service that provides continuous monitoring of AWS accounts and workloads for malicious activity and unauthorized behavior. It is used for detecting and alerting on potential security threats.

38. What is AWS CloudHSM and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS CloudHSM is a hardware security module (HSM) that provides secure key storage and cryptographic operations for sensitive workloads. It is used for securing sensitive data and meeting regulatory compliance requirements.

39. What is AWS Marketplace and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Marketplace is a digital catalog of software products from independent software vendors that can be deployed on AWS. It is used for finding and purchasing software solutions that meet specific business needs.

40. What is Amazon Kendra and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Kendra is a managed enterprise search service that uses natural language processing to deliver accurate answers to user queries. It is used for improving the productivity of employees and customers by providing relevant information quickly and efficiently.

41. What is AWS IoT Greengrass and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS IoT Greengrass is a software that enables users to run local compute, messaging, and data caching for connected IoT devices. It is used for building IoT solutions that require low latency and offline capabilities.

42. What is Amazon Chime and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Chime is a unified communications service that enables users to collaborate using voice, video, and messaging. It is used for improving communication and productivity among team members.

43. What is AWS Elemental MediaConvert and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Elemental MediaConvert is a file-based video transcoding service that provides high-quality video transcoding for broadcast and multiscreen delivery. It is used for converting video files to different formats and resolutions.

44. What is AWS Elemental MediaLive and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Elemental MediaLive is a broadcast-grade live video processing service that enables users to create and deliver live video streams. It is used for broadcasting live events, such as sports matches and concerts.

45. What is AWS Elemental MediaPackage and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Elemental MediaPackage is a video origination and packaging service that enables users to securely and reliably deliver video to multiple devices and platforms. It is used for delivering video content to a global audience.

46. What is AWS Elemental MediaStore and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Elemental MediaStore is a storage service that enables users to store and retrieve video assets at scale. It is used for building video-on-demand (VOD) and live streaming applications.

47. What is AWS Elemental MediaTailor and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Elemental MediaTailor is a personalization and monetization service that enables users to deliver targeted advertising to viewers. It is used for maximizing the revenue from video content.

48. What is AWS X-Ray and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS X-Ray is a debugging and analysis service that enables users to analyze and debug distributed applications. It is used for identifying performance issues and errors in distributed applications.

49. What is Amazon WorkDocs and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon WorkDocs is a fully managed document collaboration and storage service that enables users to share, collaborate, and store files securely. It is used for improving team collaboration and productivity.

AWS Interview Questions for Experienced Professionals

Let's delve into key AWS concepts with top-notch interview questions, focusing on AWS DevOps and AWS Lambda interview questions for a comprehensive understanding.

50. What is AWS Batch and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Batch is a service that enables users to run batch computing workloads on AWS. It is used for running batch jobs, such as data processing and scientific computing.

51. What is Amazon Elastic Inference and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Elastic Inference is a service that enables users to attach GPU-powered inference acceleration to any Amazon EC2 instance for faster inference. It is used for accelerating machine learning inference.

52. What is AWS IoT Analytics and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS IoT Analytics is a service that enables users to process and analyze IoT data at scale. It is used for generating insights from IoT data and making real-time decisions.

53. What is AWS Secrets Manager and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Secrets Manager is a service that enables users to store and manage secrets such as database credentials, API keys, and SSH keys. It is used for securely storing sensitive information.

54. What is Amazon Textract and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Textract is a machine learning service that extracts text and data from scanned documents. It is used for automating document processing and improving accuracy.

55. What is AWS Lambda@Edge and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Lambda@Edge is a service that enables users to run Lambda functions at the edge locations of the AWS global infrastructure. It is used for customizing the content delivered by Amazon CloudFront.

56. What is Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) is a managed service that makes it easy to run Kubernetes on AWS. It is used for deploying and scaling containerized applications.

57. What is AWS Key Management Service and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Key Management Service (KMS) is a managed service that makes it easy to create and control the encryption keys used to encrypt data. It is used for encrypting and decrypting data at rest and in transit.

58. What is AWS Certificate Manager Private CA and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Certificate Manager Private CA is a managed private certificate authority service that makes it easy to create and manage private certificates. It is used for securing communication between AWS services and on-premises applications.

59. What is Amazon Neptune and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Neptune is a fast, reliable, and scalable graph database service that is optimized for storing and querying highly connected data. It is used for building recommendation engines, fraud detection systems, and social network applications.

60. What is AWS Outposts and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Outposts is a fully managed service that extends AWS infrastructure and services to customer premises. It is used for running applications in locations where full cloud functionality is not available.

61. What is Amazon AppStream 2.0 and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon AppStream 2.0 is a fully managed application streaming service that enables users to stream desktop applications to any device. It is used for providing secure access to applications from anywhere.

62. What is Amazon FSx and what is it used for1?

Answer: Amazon FSx is a fully managed file storage service that provides highly scalable and durable file storage for Windows and Lustre workloads. It is used for storing and accessing files across multiple compute instances.

63. What is AWS Firewall Manager and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Firewall Manager is a security management service that makes it easy to centrally manage firewall rules across multiple AWS accounts and resources. It is used for enforcing security policies across AWS resources.

64. What is AWS Global Accelerator and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Global Accelerator is a network service that improves the performance of applications by routing traffic over the AWS global network. It is used for improving the availability and performance of applications.

65. What is AWS IoT Device Defender and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS IoT Device Defender is a fully managed service that helps customers secure their IoT devices by continuously monitoring and auditing device configurations. It is used for detecting and responding to security threats.

Learn more from our latest blog on "How to Control IoT Devices"

66. What is Amazon CodeGuru and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon CodeGuru is a machine learning service that provides automated code reviews and performance recommendations. It is used for improving code quality and application performance.

67. What is AWS Transfer for SFTP and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Transfer for SFTP is a fully managed service that enables users to transfer files over the Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP). It is used for migrating and sharing data securely.

68. What is AWS Elemental Appliance and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Elemental Appliance is a physical device that provides high-quality video processing for broadcast and multiscreen delivery. It is used for encoding, decoding, and transcoding video content.

69. What is Amazon Elastic Transcoder and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Elastic Transcoder is a media transcoding service that enables users to convert media files from one format to another. It is used for creating adaptive bitrate streaming and video-on-demand content.

70. What is AWS Control Tower and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Control Tower is a service that enables users to set up and govern a multi-account AWS environment. It is used for automating the creation of new accounts, setting up guardrails, and enforcing security policies.

71. What is Amazon EventBridge and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon EventBridge is a serverless event bus service that enables users to create event-driven architectures. It is used for building and integrating event-driven applications.

72. What is Amazon Pinpoint and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Pinpoint is a fully managed service that enables users to engage with their customers through email, SMS, and push notifications. It is used for improving customer engagement and retention.

73. What is AWS App Mesh and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS App Mesh is a service mesh that enables users to control and monitor microservices running on AWS. It is used for managing and scaling microservices.

74. What is Amazon Detective and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Detective is a service that enables users to analyze, investigate, and identify the root cause of security issues in their AWS environments. It is used for identifying and responding to security threats.

75. What is Amazon Transcribe and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Transcribe is a machine-learning service that converts speech to text. It is used for transcribing audio and video files, and for improving the accessibility of content.

76. What is Amazon Translate and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Translate is a machine learning service that provides automatic translation between languages. It is used for translating text from one language to another.

77. What is Amazon Comprehend and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Comprehend is a machine learning service that enables users to analyze and understand text. It is used for analyzing customer feedback, social media posts, and other text-based data sources.

78. What is Amazon Lex and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Lex is a service that enables users to build conversational interfaces using voice and text. It is used for building chatbots and voice assistants.

79. What is Amazon Polly and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Polly is a service that converts text into lifelike speech. It is used for creating voiceovers, podcasts, and other spoken content.

80. What is AWS CloudFormation and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS CloudFormation is a service that enables users to create and manage AWS resources using templates. It is used for automating the deployment and management of infrastructure.

81. What is AWS AppSync and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS AppSync is a managed service that enables users to build GraphQL APIs for their applications. It is used for building real-time and offline-enabled applications.

82. What is AWS IoT SiteWise and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS IoT SiteWise is a service that enables users to collect, organize, and analyze data from industrial equipment. It is used for optimizing industrial operations and reducing downtime.

83. What is Amazon Redshift and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Redshift is a fast, scalable, and secure data warehousing service that enables users to analyze large amounts of data. It is used for business intelligence, reporting, and analytics.

84. What is AWS Cloud9 and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Cloud9 is a cloud-based integrated development environment (IDE) that enables users to write, run, and debug code from anywhere. It is used for collaborative development and remote coding.

85. What is Amazon Lex V2 and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Lex V2 is a service that enables users to build conversational interfaces using voice and text with improved accuracy and natural language understanding. It is used for building chatbots and voice assistants.

86. What is Amazon DevOps Guru and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon DevOps Guru is a machine learning service that provides automated insights and recommendations for improving application availability and performance. It is used for optimizing application performance and reducing downtime.

87. What is AWS Lambda Layers and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Lambda Layers is a feature that enables users to manage code and library dependencies separately from their function code. It is used for simplifying the development and maintenance of serverless applications.

88. What is AWS Data Pipeline and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Data Pipeline is a managed service that enables users to move and process data between different AWS services and on-premises data sources. It is used for data integration, processing, and analysis.

89. What is AWS Glue and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Glue is a fully managed extract, transform, and load (ETL) service that enables users to prepare and load data for analytics. It is used for processing and analyzing data from different sources.

90. What is Amazon S3 Glacier and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon S3 Glacier is a low-cost storage service that enables users to archive and retrieve data over longer timescales. It is used for long-term backup and archive storage.

91. What is AWS Security Hub and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Security Hub is a security management service that enables users to centrally view and manage security alerts and compliance status across their AWS accounts. It is used for improving security and compliance posture.

92. What is AWS Direct Connect and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Direct Connect is a dedicated network connection between AWS and customer premises that enables users to access AWS services without using the public internet. It is used for improving network performance and reducing costs.

93. What is AWS Organizations and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Organizations is a service that enables users to manage multiple AWS accounts and resources in a centralized manner. It is used for simplifying the management of AWS resources across an organization.

94. What is Amazon Simple Notification Service and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon Simple Notification Service (SNS) is a fully managed messaging service that enables users to send and receive messages from different AWS services and endpoints. It is used for sending notifications, alerts, and messages.

95. What is Amazon CloudFront and what is it used for?

Answer: Amazon CloudFront is a content delivery network (CDN) service that enables users to deliver static and dynamic web content, including streaming videos and live events, to viewers globally. It is used for improving the performance and scalability of web applications.

96. What is AWS Service Catalog and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Service Catalog is a service that enables users to create and manage catalogs of approved IT services that can be deployed to their AWS accounts. It is used for simplifying and streamlining the deployment of IT services.

97. What is AWS CloudTrail and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS CloudTrail is a service that enables users to log, monitor, and retain events related to their AWS resources and accounts. It is used for improving compliance and auditing, and for troubleshooting.

98. What is AWS Fargate and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Fargate is a serverless compute engine for containers that enables users to run containers without managing the underlying infrastructure. It is used for deploying and scaling containerized applications.

99. What is AWS Cost Explorer and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS Cost Explorer is a service that enables users to view and analyze their AWS costs and usage over time. It is used for optimizing AWS spending and identifying cost savings opportunities.

100. What is AWS IoT Things Graph and what is it used for?

Answer: AWS IoT Things Graph is a service that enables users to easily and quickly create IoT applications and workflows. It is used for building and deploying IoT solutions with minimal coding.

Conclusion

In conclusion, preparing for an AWS interview can be a challenging task, especially if you are a fresher or preparing for a DevOps role. However, by reviewing and practicing the 100 AWS interview questions and answers we have compiled, you can increase your confidence and demonstrate your knowledge and skills. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced AWS professional, having a good understanding of AWS services and their integration with DevOps tools can be valuable for your career growth. So, don't hesitate to review these questions and prepare for your upcoming AWS interview.