AWS Greengrass lets customers run AWS Lambda
functions and AWS IoT functionality locally on virtually any
connected device; preview starts today
AWS Snowball Edge appliance stores 100 TB of
data and includes on-board compute and storage
Today at AWS re:Invent, Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), an
Amazon.com company (NASDAQ:AMZN), announced AWS Greengrass,
software which allows customers to run AWS compute, messaging, data
caching, and sync capabilities on connected devices. With AWS
Greengrass, devices can run AWS Lambda functions to perform tasks
locally, keep device data in sync, and communicate with other
devices while leveraging the full processing, analytics, and
storage power of the AWS Cloud. AWS also announced a new Snowball
data transfer appliance, the AWS Snowball Edge, that can transport
two times more data than the original AWS Snowball (up to 100 TB),
and includes AWS Greengrass, making it a purpose-built hybrid edge
device that can transfer data to and from Amazon Simple Storage
Service (Amazon S3), cluster with other Snowball Edge devices to
form an on-premises storage pool, and run AWS Lambda to process and
analyze data. To get started with AWS Greengrass, visit
https://aws.amazon.com/greengrass/, and to get started with AWS
Snowball Edge, visit https://aws.amazon.com/snowball-edge/.
AWS Greengrass brings local compute, messaging, data caching,
and sync to connected devices
With the proliferation of IoT devices, enterprises are
increasingly managing on-premises infrastructure that is not
located in a data center, such as connected devices in factories,
oil wells, agricultural fields, hospitals, cars, and various other
venues. Because these devices are powered by microprocessors that
have limited processing power and memory, they often rely heavily
on AWS and the cloud for processing, analytics, and storage.
However, there are circumstances when relying exclusively on the
cloud isn’t optimal due to latency requirements or intermittent
connectivity that make a round trip to the cloud unfeasible. In
these situations, IoT devices must be able to perform some tasks
locally. Programming and updating software functionality on IoT
devices is challenging and complex. Relatively few developers have
the expertise to update these embedded systems, and even fewer can
do so without creating unwanted downtime.
AWS Greengrass is software for running AWS Lambda functions and
AWS IoT functionality locally on virtually any connected device.
AWS Greengrass eliminates the complexity involved in programming
and updating IoT devices by allowing customers to use AWS Lambda to
run code locally on virtually any connected device in the same way
they do on the AWS Cloud. With AWS Greengrass, developers can add
AWS Lambda functions to a connected device right from the AWS
Management Console, and the device executes the code locally so
that devices can respond to events and take actions in near
real-time. AWS Greengrass also includes AWS IoT messaging and
synching capabilities so devices can send messages to other devices
without connecting back to the cloud. AWS Greengrass allows
customers the flexibility to have devices rely on the cloud when it
makes sense, perform tasks on their own when it makes sense, and
talk to each other when it makes sense – all in a single, seamless
environment.
“For our customers who are pioneering large-scale IoT
deployments, connected devices represent a growing percentage of
their infrastructure, and as they move quickly to migrate their
servers to the cloud, these IoT devices will become the primary
on-premises infrastructure customers are managing – this is the
next generation of hybrid IT,” said Marco Argenti, Vice President,
Mobile and IoT at AWS. “Customers want their IoT devices to be able
to perform computing tasks and process data locally, functioning as
a seamless extension of their AWS environment. AWS Greengrass makes
this possible by putting a ‘mini AWS,’ a select set of AWS
capabilities, inside connected devices. With AWS Lambda and AWS IoT
messaging and security, customers can run IoT applications
seamlessly across local IoT devices and the AWS Cloud using the
same programming model.”
AWS Greengrass works on almost any device with a general-purpose
CPU that runs Ubuntu or Amazon Linux, and supports ARM and x86
architectures. Programming AWS Greengrass devices is as easy as
creating AWS Lambda functions; developers can use the same
programming language and model that they use in their existing AWS
environments and deploy the AWS Lambda functions to their connected
devices. This also means that developers can create and test their
device software in the cloud, and then seamlessly deploy it to all
of their devices. With AWS IoT’s messaging functionality, devices
can send messages to one another on a local network when there is
no available connection to AWS. AWS Greengrass authenticates and
encrypts device data at all points of connection using AWS IoT’s
security and access management capabilities so that data is never
exchanged between devices or the cloud without proven identity.
A growing ecosystem of semiconductor manufacturers, including
Intel, Qualcomm, and Annapurna Labs are integrating AWS Greengrass
into their platforms so devices will come with AWS Greengrass
built-in. Customers that want to use AWS Greengrass with existing
connected devices that are AWS Greengrass-capable can download the
AWS Greengrass execution environment from Amazon S3 or the AWS
Management Console. In addition, Canonical will distribute AWS
Greengrass through the Ubuntu Snap software channel app store for
Ubuntu Linux software.
Technicolor is a leader in digital innovation for the media and
entertainment industry, partnering with content creators, device
manufacturers, and network service providers – including mobile,
cable and telco operators – to deliver immersive experiences to
audiences around the world. “On the content distribution front, we
improve consumer access to content through IPTV set-top boxes,
gateways, and Connected Life tablets,” said Gary Gutknecht, Senior
Vice President, Connected Home Division at Technicolor. “On
average, one million Technicolor devices are shipped to people’s
homes worldwide, every week. As content and services grow in size
and complexity, network service providers are flooded with calls
concerning home networking issues that are difficult and time
consuming to resolve. With AWS Greengrass, our devices can monitor
connection quality in the home and automatically troubleshoot the
steps that used to require a phone call to customer service, often
automatically correcting issues before the customer even notices a
problem. AWS Greengrass works with Technicolor gateways to help
network service providers gain insight into new revenue
opportunities by gathering and analyzing operational data in the
cloud, and then deploying enhancements back down to connected homes
quickly and easily.”
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) operates complex
machinery such as Mars Rovers in the harshest environments in space
or on Earth. JPL relies on the ability of its robots to
execute code locally on Earth, Mars, and elsewhere in the solar
system. At re:Invent 2016, JPL will demonstrate AWS Greengrass
running on "Rov-E" (Remotely Operated Vehicle for
Education), showing how JPL can speed up the programming and
testing of its robots. JPL is working with AWS Greengrass to
perform big data calculations and analytics in the cloud with the
same code working online and offline, maximizing the value of
data collected, and better translating expert insights into
physical actions.
Snowball Edge: Petabyte-scale data transport with compute on
board
AWS Snowball is a petabyte-scale data transfer service that uses
secure appliances to allow customers to transfer large amounts of
data to and from AWS at as little as one-fifth of the cost of using
high-speed internet connections. Since AWS introduced
the AWS Snowball data transfer service in October 2015, customers
have sent AWS Snowball devices a distance equal to circling the
world more than 100 times. The new Snowball Edge appliance has all
the durability, portability, security, and ease-of-use of a
Snowball, but can hold twice as much data as the original Snowball
– up to 100 TB – and has four times the network speed, built in
WiFi and cellular wireless communication, and a Network File System
(NFS) interface with an Amazon S3-compatible endpoint that allows
the Snowball Edge to connect to the cloud and pass data back and
forth with Amazon S3. Customers can also cluster multiple AWS
Snowball Edge devices to create a storage pool and easily mount the
Snowball Edge devices into existing data center rack
environments.
The new AWS Snowball Edge also comes with AWS Greengrass
embedded, and computing power equivalent to an Amazon Elastic
Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) m4.4 xlarge instance for local
processing tasks. This means customers can execute AWS Lambda
functions and process data locally on the AWS Snowball Edge, making
it possible to collect and analyze sensor data streams, transcode
multimedia content, compress images in-real time, or run a local
Amazon S3-compatible file server. Ordering an AWS Snowball Edge is
as easy as a few clicks in the AWS Management Console where
customers can configure Amazon S3 buckets and AWS Lambda functions.
When the AWS Snowball Edge arrives, customers simply connect it to
their network, set the IP address, and use the included Snowball
Validation tool to unlock the AWS Snowball Edge for use. AWS
Snowball Edge includes the same embedded cryptography and security
as the original AWS Snowball, and all data stored is automatically
encrypted using 256 bit encryption keys, which customers own and
manage in the AWS Key Management Service (AWS KMS). With AWS
Snowball Edge, encryption is now performed on the device, instead
of on the client, producing higher performance and data throughput
rates.
“We were blown away by customer response to AWS Snowball when we
launched last year – we ran out of Snowballs in less than a week.
When we talked to customers about what they liked most and what
they would like to see next, they told us they would like to be
able to transfer more data, cluster multiple Snowballs, and perform
some data processing on the device,” said Bill Vass, Vice
President, Storage Services at AWS. “We are excited to introduce
AWS Snowball Edge, a true hybrid edge device. Not only does it
allow customers to transport 100 TB of data in less than a week,
but Snowball Edge also gives them the flexibility to transfer data
back and forth between the Snowball Edge’s location and Amazon S3,
to cluster Snowballs into an on-premises storage pool, and to
process data on-premises before shipping the Snowball Edge back to
AWS.”
Philips is a leading health technology company focused on
improving people's health and enabling better outcomes across the
health continuum from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis,
treatment, and home care. “As a global leader in health technology,
we support many thousands of care providers and millions of
patients around the world with our innovations that aim to improve
patient outcomes anytime and anywhere,” said Dale Wiggins, Business
Leader, HealthSuite digital platform at Philips. “Snowball Edge is
a promising new technology that could further enhance how we
deliver our critical services to medical facilities, with secure
and continuous connectivity at all times. Snowball Edge enables us
to extend the innovative capabilities of HealthSuite, our
cloud-enabled connected health ecosystem of devices, applications
and digital tools supported by AWS, even when there is no network
support.”
The Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) is a leading marine
laboratory and the campus for the Oregon State University’s
research, education, and outreach in marine and coastal sciences,
collecting and analyzing hundreds of terabytes of real-time oceanic
and coast images every year to improve environmental sustainability
and provide strategic insights to coastal process and planning.
“Our original method for capturing oceanic image data involved many
small hard drives, and we had to hand-carry each one to our
computing center and loaded them one at a time. It would take weeks
to months before we could analyze the images we collected, so it
really slowed down our research. It also cost us tens of thousands
of dollars per year,” said Bob Cowen, Director of Hatfield Marine
Research Center at Oregon State University. “With AWS Snowball
Edge, we can now collect 100 TB of data with no intermediate steps,
and we can also analyze the images immediately using the onboard
compute capabilities. This allows us to do deeper analysis, and we
can upload all the raw data to the AWS Cloud by simply shipping the
AWS Snowball Edge device back. AWS Snowball Edge allows us to
access AWS storage and compute capabilities in our coastal
explorations where no internet is available and allows us to move
petabytes to the AWS Cloud quickly and easily where we can continue
to use all the power of the AWS platform.”
AWS Snowball Edge is available immediately to customers in the
United States, and we expect to make it available to customers
outside of the United States in the coming months.
Hybrid Cloud Architectures with AWS
AWS Greengrass and AWS Snowball Edge are the latest additions to
the comprehensive set of capabilities AWS offers to make it easy
for customers to run all of their on-premises infrastructure
alongside AWS. Customers use AWS services such as Amazon Virtual
Private Cloud (VPC) and Amazon Direct Connect for integrated
networking, AWS Storage Gateway and AWS Snowball for data
integration, and AWS Directory Service for identity integration.
For customers that want to run the same software on servers in
their data centers and on the AWS Cloud, the recently announced
VMware Cloud on AWS, to be launched in mid-2017, allows customers
to extend their VMware environment to AWS with the flexibility to
run applications seamlessly between the two environments.
About Amazon Web Services
For 10 years, Amazon Web Services has been the world’s most
comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform. AWS offers over
70 fully featured services for compute, storage, databases,
analytics, mobile, Internet of Things (IoT) and enterprise
applications from 38 Availability Zones (AZs) across 14 geographic
regions in the U.S., Australia, Brazil, China, Germany, Ireland,
Japan, Korea, Singapore, and India. AWS services are trusted by
more than a million active customers around the world -- including
the fastest growing startups, largest enterprises, and leading
government agencies -- to power their infrastructure, make them
more agile, and lower costs. To learn more about AWS, visit
http://aws.amazon.com.
About Amazon
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than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to
operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews,
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by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets,
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