This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Ravindra Singh
If you've ever struggled with questions like:
- How do I securely deploy my containerized application on AWS?
- How do I integrate ECS, Fargate, PostgreSQL, and AWS security services?
- How can I ensure high availability while keeping costs under control?
Then this blog is for you.
In this blog post, we will explore how to deploy a Node Js Microservice in AWS ECS Fargate with connectivity to Amazon RDS (PostgreSQL). This architecture ensures high availability, security, and scalability while leveraging fully managed AWS services.
Git Link: https://github.com/ravindrasinghh/ECS-FinHacks-Scaling-Microservices-with-AWS-ECS-Fargate-and-RDS
Why Use AWS ECS?
- Fully Managed: Eliminates the need to manage EC2 instances.
- Scalability: Supports automatic scaling based on demand.
- Security: Integrates with AWS IAM, Security Groups, and VPC.
- Cost Efficiency: Pay only for the resources used.
- Integration: Works seamlessly with AWS services like RDS, S3, and CloudWatch.
Advanced Architecture Benefits:
- ECS Circuit Breaker
- ECS Capacity Provider(ECS Fargate SPOT + ECS Fargate)
- VPC Endpoint
- Route 53 Health check
- AWS Config
1. Architecture Overview
The architecture follows AWS best practices by leveraging containerized workloads on ECS (Fargate), a multi-AZ database layer (PostgreSQL), and various AWS security and monitoring services.
- ECS Fargate: Fully managed container orchestration.
- Amazon RDS (PostgreSQL): Managed relational database service.
- AWS ALB (Application Load Balancer): Distributes traffic among ECS tasks.
- AWS Secrets Manager: Stores database credentials securely.
- AWS CloudWatch: Monitors logs and metrics.
- AWS Route 53: Domain Name System (DNS) for routing traffic.
- AWS WAF (Web Application Firewall): Protects against common web threats. AWS Config: Tracks and records AWS configuration changes.
- AWS CloudTrail: Logs all API requests for auditing.
- AWS CloudWatch Alarms: Triggers notifications based on metrics.
- VPC Endpoint: Enables secure, private connectivity to AWS services.
- KMS (Key Management Service): Encrypts data at rest and in transit.
- ENI (Elastic Network Interface): Provides network connectivity for ECS tasks.
- Health Check & Route 53 Health Check: Ensures high availability by monitoring service health.
2. Step-by-Step Breakdown of the AWS Architecture
Let's dive deeper into how each AWS service fits into the architecture.
2.1 Networking & Security
VPC (Virtual Private Cloud):
- A private and secure network for hosting all resources. Contains public and private subnets for better isolation.
AWS WAF (Web Application Firewall):
- Protects against common attacks like SQL injection and XSS.
AWS GuardDuty:
- Detects and alerts on security threats.
AWS KMS (Key Management Service):
- Encrypts sensitive data, database records, and API secrets.
2.2 Load Balancing & Traffic Routing
Amazon Route 53:
- Provides global DNS resolution and failover routing.
Application Load Balancer (ALB):
- Distributes traffic to ECS containers.
- Performs health checks and ensures high availability.
2.3 Compute & Containers
Amazon ECS (Elastic Container Service):
- Manages containerized workloads with Fargate & Spot instances.
Fargate (On-demand & Spot):
- Serverless compute for containers, reducing management overhead. Spot pricing optimizes costs by using spare AWS capacity.
Task Definitions & IAM Roles:
- Defines how containers run within ECS.
- IAM Roles ensure secure communication between services.
2.4 Database Layer
Amazon RDS (PostgreSQL Multi-AZ):
- High availability using a Master-Replica setup.
- KMS encryption ensures data security.
2.5 Monitoring & Logging
Amazon CloudWatch:
- Logs container performance, database health, and API requests. AWS Config & CloudTrail:
- Tracks infrastructure changes and compliance.
3. Scalability & High Availability
This architecture ensures scalability at multiple levels:
✅ ECS Auto-scaling: Dynamically adjusts the number of running containers based on load.
✅ Database Auto-scaling: Supports read replicas for handling increased query loads.
✅ Multi-AZ Deployment: Ensures uptime even if one availability zone fails.
✅ ALB Health Checks: Automatically reroutes traffic in case of failure.
This combination allows applications to handle traffic spikes without downtime.
4. Security Best Practices
Security is a top priority, and this architecture follows best practices:
🔐 IAM Roles & Policies: Grant the least privilege access to services.
🔐 WAF & GuardDuty: Blocks malicious requests and detects threats.
🔐 KMS Encryption: Protects database and sensitive data.
🔐 Secrets Manager: Manages database credentials securely.
By implementing these security layers, the architecture remains resilient against cyber threats.
5. Cost Optimisation Strategies
AWS provides multiple ways to reduce costs while maintaining performance.
💰 Fargate Spot: Uses AWS's spare capacity for containerized workloads, reducing costs by up to 70%.
💰 Reserved Instances for PostgreSQL: Locks in lower pricing for predictable workloads.
💰 Auto-scaling Policies: Ensures you only pay for what you use.
💰 EFS Infrequent Access Storage: Saves money on unused storage.
By leveraging these strategies, you can run a cost-efficient architecture without sacrificing performance.
6. Troubleshooting Tips
👉🏻 To resolve below error.
If you are using a VPC endpoint for ECR, please enable private DNS in the VPC endpoint.
- Use the following command to create the ECR repositories.
aws ecr create-repository --repository-name nodejs-api --endpoint-url https://api.ecr.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com
👉🏻 endpoint url will get from https://api.ecr.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com
Navigate to VPC Endpoints and select the API URL.
👉🏻 Amazon ECS tasks hosted on Fargate using platform version 1.4.0 or later require both Amazon ECR VPC endpoints and the Amazon S3 gateway endpoints.
7. Conclusion
Building a scalable, secure, and cost-effective AWS architecture doesn't have to be complicated. By integrating ECS, Fargate, PostgreSQL, and AWS security services, you can:
✅ Achieve high availability and fault tolerance
✅ Protect your workloads with advanced security measures
✅ Optimize cloud costs using AWS best practices
This architecture provides a blueprint for running production-grade applications in AWS. Whether you're scaling a startup or managing enterprise workloads, these principles will help you build a robust cloud infrastructure.
Reference:
If you prefer a video tutorial to help guide you through the setup of Scaling Microservices with AWS ECS Fargate and RDS
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Ravindra Singh
Ravindra Singh | Sciencx (2025-02-17T02:59:59+00:00) ECS FinHacks: Scaling Microservices with AWS ECS Fargate and RDS. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/02/17/ecs-finhacks-scaling-microservices-with-aws-ecs-fargate-and-rds/
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