Tobias Schmidt
@tpschmidt.com
Helping aspiring engineers master the cloud
👨💻 Freelance Software Engineer
✍️ Book #1: http://awsfundamentals.com
📕 Book #2: http://cloudwatchbook.com
Learn AWS for Free: https://awsfundamentals.com/newsletter
👨💻 Freelance Software Engineer
✍️ Book #1: http://awsfundamentals.com
📕 Book #2: http://cloudwatchbook.com
Learn AWS for Free: https://awsfundamentals.com/newsletter
My personal favorites for the pre:Invent announcements 🪄
Didn't plan to end up with the heavy serverless focus! ⚡️
You can find the detailed review on our blog ✍️
awsfundamentals.com/blog/aws-pr...
Didn't plan to end up with the heavy serverless focus! ⚡️
You can find the detailed review on our blog ✍️
awsfundamentals.com/blog/aws-pr...
November 27, 2025 at 3:20 PM
My personal favorites for the pre:Invent announcements 🪄
Didn't plan to end up with the heavy serverless focus! ⚡️
You can find the detailed review on our blog ✍️
awsfundamentals.com/blog/aws-pr...
Didn't plan to end up with the heavy serverless focus! ⚡️
You can find the detailed review on our blog ✍️
awsfundamentals.com/blog/aws-pr...
I really love how easy it is to set up OpenTelemetry with Lambda through the official layers.
But the cold start times are pretty rough! 🥶
I guess there's nothing to be fine-tuned to improve this? 🐌
But the cold start times are pretty rough! 🥶
I guess there's nothing to be fine-tuned to improve this? 🐌
November 27, 2025 at 2:01 PM
I really love how easy it is to set up OpenTelemetry with Lambda through the official layers.
But the cold start times are pretty rough! 🥶
I guess there's nothing to be fine-tuned to improve this? 🐌
But the cold start times are pretty rough! 🥶
I guess there's nothing to be fine-tuned to improve this? 🐌
If this works as written here, it seems like a great feature addition. Pretty tired of requesting 30 quota increases for Lambda when using CloudFront for new accounts! ⚡️
November 27, 2025 at 8:04 AM
If this works as written here, it seems like a great feature addition. Pretty tired of requesting 30 quota increases for Lambda when using CloudFront for new accounts! ⚡️
Reminder: if your compute runs in a VPC and you need to access other services like DynamoDB or S3 for large datasets, set up VPC endpoints or your bill will explode quickly! 💸
There's no downside, only upside.
Less cost, better security!
www.geocod.io/code-and-co...
There's no downside, only upside.
Less cost, better security!
www.geocod.io/code-and-co...
November 26, 2025 at 2:04 PM
Reminder: if your compute runs in a VPC and you need to access other services like DynamoDB or S3 for large datasets, set up VPC endpoints or your bill will explode quickly! 💸
There's no downside, only upside.
Less cost, better security!
www.geocod.io/code-and-co...
There's no downside, only upside.
Less cost, better security!
www.geocod.io/code-and-co...
AWS quietly offers a stack of free, hands-on workshops at workshops.aws 🛠️ Most engineers I know have never tried them. That’s a missed opportunity. They are quite nice hands-on, step-by-step guides!
The ECS Immersion Day is one that I will keep recommending!
The ECS Immersion Day is one that I will keep recommending!
November 26, 2025 at 7:58 AM
AWS quietly offers a stack of free, hands-on workshops at workshops.aws 🛠️ Most engineers I know have never tried them. That’s a missed opportunity. They are quite nice hands-on, step-by-step guides!
The ECS Immersion Day is one that I will keep recommending!
The ECS Immersion Day is one that I will keep recommending!
Lambda will likely get Node.js v24 support this month! ⚡️
If you haven't updated from Node.js v20 to v22 yet, note that you won't be able to update your function after July 1, 2026!
docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/late...
If you haven't updated from Node.js v20 to v22 yet, note that you won't be able to update your function after July 1, 2026!
docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/late...
November 25, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Lambda will likely get Node.js v24 support this month! ⚡️
If you haven't updated from Node.js v20 to v22 yet, note that you won't be able to update your function after July 1, 2026!
docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/late...
If you haven't updated from Node.js v20 to v22 yet, note that you won't be able to update your function after July 1, 2026!
docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/late...
AWS just dropped 4 new advanced Skill Builder courses for AWS Organizations! 🏗️
Best: they are free and actually useful! 🛠️
Rant: I hate that AWS Organizations is still often considered optional for enterprises.
Best: they are free and actually useful! 🛠️
Rant: I hate that AWS Organizations is still often considered optional for enterprises.
November 25, 2025 at 7:56 AM
AWS just dropped 4 new advanced Skill Builder courses for AWS Organizations! 🏗️
Best: they are free and actually useful! 🛠️
Rant: I hate that AWS Organizations is still often considered optional for enterprises.
Best: they are free and actually useful! 🛠️
Rant: I hate that AWS Organizations is still often considered optional for enterprises.
S3 is rather cheap (~$0.02/GB/m) but what if you need a file system?
Yes, EFS works but costs 15x more (~$0.30/GB/m). 💸
Is this a "pick one" thing in the cloud? 😅
AWS sum down to:
Yes, EFS works but costs 15x more (~$0.30/GB/m). 💸
Is this a "pick one" thing in the cloud? 😅
AWS sum down to:
November 24, 2025 at 9:57 AM
S3 is rather cheap (~$0.02/GB/m) but what if you need a file system?
Yes, EFS works but costs 15x more (~$0.30/GB/m). 💸
Is this a "pick one" thing in the cloud? 😅
AWS sum down to:
Yes, EFS works but costs 15x more (~$0.30/GB/m). 💸
Is this a "pick one" thing in the cloud? 😅
AWS sum down to:
Did you know about CloudWatch's 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗲𝘅 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱𝘀?
You can create your own indexes for free, which speeds up your Log Insights queries and reduces their costs! ⚡️
Here’s how it works in practice:
You can create your own indexes for free, which speeds up your Log Insights queries and reduces their costs! ⚡️
Here’s how it works in practice:
November 24, 2025 at 7:57 AM
Did you know about CloudWatch's 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗲𝘅 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱𝘀?
You can create your own indexes for free, which speeds up your Log Insights queries and reduces their costs! ⚡️
Here’s how it works in practice:
You can create your own indexes for free, which speeds up your Log Insights queries and reduces their costs! ⚡️
Here’s how it works in practice:
Reminder: AWS X-Ray SDKs are moving to maintenance mode next year!
If you're still instrumenting with the old X-Ray SDKs or the Daemon, this is a signal to get serious about OpenTelemetry! 💪
The old SDKs will only get security fixes from February 2026!
If you're still instrumenting with the old X-Ray SDKs or the Daemon, this is a signal to get serious about OpenTelemetry! 💪
The old SDKs will only get security fixes from February 2026!
November 23, 2025 at 8:00 AM
Reminder: AWS X-Ray SDKs are moving to maintenance mode next year!
If you're still instrumenting with the old X-Ray SDKs or the Daemon, this is a signal to get serious about OpenTelemetry! 💪
The old SDKs will only get security fixes from February 2026!
If you're still instrumenting with the old X-Ray SDKs or the Daemon, this is a signal to get serious about OpenTelemetry! 💪
The old SDKs will only get security fixes from February 2026!
CloudFront lets me run code at the edge, like it’s 2025 or something.
Azure Front Door just misses this completely.
And that's not the only missing feature.
CloudFront’s rules are flexible. Front Door’s rules are super narrow and missing a lot of essentials.
Azure Front Door just misses this completely.
And that's not the only missing feature.
CloudFront’s rules are flexible. Front Door’s rules are super narrow and missing a lot of essentials.
November 22, 2025 at 7:57 AM
CloudFront lets me run code at the edge, like it’s 2025 or something.
Azure Front Door just misses this completely.
And that's not the only missing feature.
CloudFront’s rules are flexible. Front Door’s rules are super narrow and missing a lot of essentials.
Azure Front Door just misses this completely.
And that's not the only missing feature.
CloudFront’s rules are flexible. Front Door’s rules are super narrow and missing a lot of essentials.
I really like where AWS is taking CloudWatch with the new Application Signals, Application Map & Transaction Search.
The entry barrier could be lower though!
I get that it's work in progress! 🛠️
The entry barrier could be lower though!
I get that it's work in progress! 🛠️
November 21, 2025 at 7:57 AM
I really like where AWS is taking CloudWatch with the new Application Signals, Application Map & Transaction Search.
The entry barrier could be lower though!
I get that it's work in progress! 🛠️
The entry barrier could be lower though!
I get that it's work in progress! 🛠️
Not every product needs this, but if you’re running large-scale event-driven systems, this is a real upgrade for Lambda’s SQS integration. ⚡️
Default SQS event source mapping is fine for steady workloads or ones that don't have too tight latency requirements.
Default SQS event source mapping is fine for steady workloads or ones that don't have too tight latency requirements.
November 20, 2025 at 2:04 PM
Not every product needs this, but if you’re running large-scale event-driven systems, this is a real upgrade for Lambda’s SQS integration. ⚡️
Default SQS event source mapping is fine for steady workloads or ones that don't have too tight latency requirements.
Default SQS event source mapping is fine for steady workloads or ones that don't have too tight latency requirements.
Is the increased payload size for Lambda really a thing?
Never thought about it, maybe because with Powertools for AWS Lambda you don't really have to think about it.
It can automatically store oversized payloads in S3 and handles references transparently. 🪄
Never thought about it, maybe because with Powertools for AWS Lambda you don't really have to think about it.
It can automatically store oversized payloads in S3 and handles references transparently. 🪄
November 20, 2025 at 8:04 AM
Is the increased payload size for Lambda really a thing?
Never thought about it, maybe because with Powertools for AWS Lambda you don't really have to think about it.
It can automatically store oversized payloads in S3 and handles references transparently. 🪄
Never thought about it, maybe because with Powertools for AWS Lambda you don't really have to think about it.
It can automatically store oversized payloads in S3 and handles references transparently. 🪄
Deployments with ECS got better once again! 🏗️
If your old tasks die, but new ones can’t start, you won't have issues anymore! ⚡️
Previous problem: You push a new task definition version, it fails health checks, and suddenly your service availability tanks.
If your old tasks die, but new ones can’t start, you won't have issues anymore! ⚡️
Previous problem: You push a new task definition version, it fails health checks, and suddenly your service availability tanks.
November 19, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Deployments with ECS got better once again! 🏗️
If your old tasks die, but new ones can’t start, you won't have issues anymore! ⚡️
Previous problem: You push a new task definition version, it fails health checks, and suddenly your service availability tanks.
If your old tasks die, but new ones can’t start, you won't have issues anymore! ⚡️
Previous problem: You push a new task definition version, it fails health checks, and suddenly your service availability tanks.
AWS launched 𝗳𝗹𝗮𝘁-𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘀 for CloudFront 💸
This was definitely not on my pre/:reInvent bingo card!
Even CloudWatch's log ingest seems to be completely included.
This was definitely not on my pre/:reInvent bingo card!
Even CloudWatch's log ingest seems to be completely included.
November 19, 2025 at 5:50 AM
AWS launched 𝗳𝗹𝗮𝘁-𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘀 for CloudFront 💸
This was definitely not on my pre/:reInvent bingo card!
Even CloudWatch's log ingest seems to be completely included.
This was definitely not on my pre/:reInvent bingo card!
Even CloudWatch's log ingest seems to be completely included.
Rust is finally 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 in AWS Lambda! 🦀 ⚡️
You can now ship critical workloads in Rust on Lambda!
This changes the serverless landscape for all performance enthusiasts!
You can now ship critical workloads in Rust on Lambda!
This changes the serverless landscape for all performance enthusiasts!
November 18, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Rust is finally 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 in AWS Lambda! 🦀 ⚡️
You can now ship critical workloads in Rust on Lambda!
This changes the serverless landscape for all performance enthusiasts!
You can now ship critical workloads in Rust on Lambda!
This changes the serverless landscape for all performance enthusiasts!
Both last month's Azure Front Door outages hit us hard. 💥
The incident and late acknowledgment by Microsoft didn't make me mad, but a small note on the Azure health board did....
The incident and late acknowledgment by Microsoft didn't make me mad, but a small note on the Azure health board did....
November 18, 2025 at 7:58 AM
Both last month's Azure Front Door outages hit us hard. 💥
The incident and late acknowledgment by Microsoft didn't make me mad, but a small note on the Azure health board did....
The incident and late acknowledgment by Microsoft didn't make me mad, but a small note on the Azure health board did....
"Is this feature/service actually available in our AWS regions?" is easy to answer now!
AWS launched the 𝗔𝗪𝗦 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻 tool! ⚡️
It lets you compare service, feature and API availability across any combination of regions! 💪
AWS launched the 𝗔𝗪𝗦 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻 tool! ⚡️
It lets you compare service, feature and API availability across any combination of regions! 💪
November 17, 2025 at 7:57 AM
"Is this feature/service actually available in our AWS regions?" is easy to answer now!
AWS launched the 𝗔𝗪𝗦 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻 tool! ⚡️
It lets you compare service, feature and API availability across any combination of regions! 💪
AWS launched the 𝗔𝗪𝗦 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻 tool! ⚡️
It lets you compare service, feature and API availability across any combination of regions! 💪
I've read a lot of scary stuff, but this is nightmare level:
Putting long-lived AWS keys into your JS 💥
You can never argue about this, not even in the tiniest, fastest-moving startup.
In this case, it was a multi-billion dollar company.
Putting long-lived AWS keys into your JS 💥
You can never argue about this, not even in the tiniest, fastest-moving startup.
In this case, it was a multi-billion dollar company.
November 16, 2025 at 8:01 AM
I've read a lot of scary stuff, but this is nightmare level:
Putting long-lived AWS keys into your JS 💥
You can never argue about this, not even in the tiniest, fastest-moving startup.
In this case, it was a multi-billion dollar company.
Putting long-lived AWS keys into your JS 💥
You can never argue about this, not even in the tiniest, fastest-moving startup.
In this case, it was a multi-billion dollar company.
Do you know every part of your distributed system and how they work together?
CloudWatch helps with this now, as it can auto-discover and map your whole application stack, even across accounts and regions.
(Almost) without any manual setup! 👀
CloudWatch helps with this now, as it can auto-discover and map your whole application stack, even across accounts and regions.
(Almost) without any manual setup! 👀
November 15, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Do you know every part of your distributed system and how they work together?
CloudWatch helps with this now, as it can auto-discover and map your whole application stack, even across accounts and regions.
(Almost) without any manual setup! 👀
CloudWatch helps with this now, as it can auto-discover and map your whole application stack, even across accounts and regions.
(Almost) without any manual setup! 👀
Took the time to start building a proper CloudWatch dashboard for AWS Fundamentals, just using out-of-the-box service metrics. More things to come, but already feels quite nice ✨
Dashboard was created via IaC with Pulumi.
Can't lie: experience isn't too good.
Dashboard was created via IaC with Pulumi.
Can't lie: experience isn't too good.
November 14, 2025 at 7:56 AM
Took the time to start building a proper CloudWatch dashboard for AWS Fundamentals, just using out-of-the-box service metrics. More things to come, but already feels quite nice ✨
Dashboard was created via IaC with Pulumi.
Can't lie: experience isn't too good.
Dashboard was created via IaC with Pulumi.
Can't lie: experience isn't too good.
Always loved this at the HTTP API Gateway, now it's also available at the ALB: JWT validation - including claims! 🔑
Excited to see what other pre:Invent releases we get! 💛
aws.amazon.com/about-aws/w...
Excited to see what other pre:Invent releases we get! 💛
aws.amazon.com/about-aws/w...
November 13, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Always loved this at the HTTP API Gateway, now it's also available at the ALB: JWT validation - including claims! 🔑
Excited to see what other pre:Invent releases we get! 💛
aws.amazon.com/about-aws/w...
Excited to see what other pre:Invent releases we get! 💛
aws.amazon.com/about-aws/w...
Can't lie: still struggling to create software that easily deals with huge traffic!
That's why I'm always mind-blown about Amazon's Prime Day numbers 🧠 💥
An outtake of the most thrilling ones:
That's why I'm always mind-blown about Amazon's Prime Day numbers 🧠 💥
An outtake of the most thrilling ones:
November 13, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Can't lie: still struggling to create software that easily deals with huge traffic!
That's why I'm always mind-blown about Amazon's Prime Day numbers 🧠 💥
An outtake of the most thrilling ones:
That's why I'm always mind-blown about Amazon's Prime Day numbers 🧠 💥
An outtake of the most thrilling ones:
If you still think CloudWatch is an expensive, outdated observability service with a sluggish UI, take a look at Joseph Alioto's recent talk. You'll be surprised! 🎁
November 12, 2025 at 7:57 AM
If you still think CloudWatch is an expensive, outdated observability service with a sluggish UI, take a look at Joseph Alioto's recent talk. You'll be surprised! 🎁