Beginner LevelCloud Computing (AWS/GCP/Azure)
What is the difference between Elastic Block Store (EBS) and EC2 Instance Store volumes?
❓ Interview Prompt: Compare persistent network-attached EBS block volumes vs ephemeral physically-attached Instance Store SSDs.
EC2 instances support two primary block storage options:
1. Amazon EBS (Elastic Block Store - Persistent Network Storage):
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Architecture: Network-attached block storage running on dedicated storage SAN servers.
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Persistence: Persistent. Data survives instance stops, starts, and terminations.
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Features: Supports automated snapshots to S3, encryption, dynamic resizing, and volume detachment.
2. EC2 Instance Store (Ephemeral Physical Storage):
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Architecture: NVMe SSD disks physically attached to the host hardware server.
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Persistence: Ephemeral. Data is PERMANENTLY LOST if the EC2 instance is stopped or host hardware fails!
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Use Case: Ultra-high IOPS buffers, temporary scratch disks, and distributed database caches.
Code Implementation Example
typescript
function selectBlockStorage(needsDataPersistence: boolean, needsMaxPhysicalIops: boolean) {
if (needsDataPersistence) {
return 'Amazon EBS (gp3 / io2 network block storage)';
}
return 'EC2 Instance Store (Ephemeral physical NVMe SSD)';
}💡Block storage selection helper: EBS vs Instance Store.
🎯 Interview Key Takeaway
EBS is network-attached persistent storage; Instance Store is ephemeral physical NVMe storage lost on instance stop.
#EBS#Instance Store#Block Storage#EC2#Beginner
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