# Sustainability
The Sustainability pillar includes understanding the impacts of the services used, quantifying impacts through the entire workload lifecycle, and applying design principles and best practices to reduce these impacts when building cloud workloads. You can find prescriptive guidance on implementation in the [Sustainability Pillar whitepaper](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/wellarchitected/latest/sustainability-pillar/sustainability-pillar.html?ref=wellarchitected-wp).
**Topics**
+ [Region selection](a-region-selection.md)
+ [User behavior patterns](a-user-behavior-patterns.md)
+ [Software and architecture patterns](a-sus-software-architecture-patterns.md)
+ [Data patterns](a-sus-data-patterns.md)
+ [Hardware patterns](a-sus-hardware-patterns.md)
+ [Development and deployment process](a-sus-development-deployment.md)
# Region selection
**Topics**
+ [SUS 1 How do you select Regions to support your sustainability goals?](sus-01.md)
# SUS 1 How do you select Regions to support your sustainability goals?
Choose Regions where you will implement your workloads based on both your business requirements and sustainability goals.
**Topics**
+ [SUS01-BP01 Choose Regions near Amazon renewable energy projects and Regions where the grid has a published carbon intensity that is lower than other locations (or Regions)](sus_sus_region_a2.md)
# SUS01-BP01 Choose Regions near Amazon renewable energy projects and Regions where the grid has a published carbon intensity that is lower than other locations (or Regions)
Choose Regions near Amazon renewable energy projects and Regions where the grid has a published carbon intensity that is lower than other locations (or Regions).
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Medium
## Implementation guidance
Choose Regions near Amazon renewable energy projects and Regions where the grid has a published carbon intensity that is lower than other locations (or Regions).
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [How to select a Region for your workload based on sustainability goals](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/architecture/how-to-select-a-region-for-your-workload-based-on-sustainability-goals/)
+ [Amazon Around the Globe](https://sustainability.aboutamazon.com/about/around-the-globe?energyType=true)
+ [Renewable Energy Methodology](https://sustainability.aboutamazon.com/amazon-renewable-energy-methodology)
+ [What to Consider when Selecting a Region for your Workloads](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/architecture/what-to-consider-when-selecting-a-region-for-your-workloads/)
# User behavior patterns
**Topics**
+ [SUS 2 How do you take advantage of user behavior patterns to support your sustainability goals?](sus-02.md)
# SUS 2 How do you take advantage of user behavior patterns to support your sustainability goals?
The way users consume your workloads and other resources can help you identify improvements to meet sustainability goals. Scale infrastructure to continually match user load and ensure that only the minimum resources required to support users are deployed. Align service levels to customer needs. Position resources to limit the network required for users to consume them. Remove existing, unused assets. Identify created assets that are unused and stop generating them. Provide your team members with devices that support their needs with minimized sustainability impact.
**Topics**
+ [SUS02-BP01 Scale infrastructure with user load](sus_sus_user_a2.md)
+ [SUS02-BP02 Align SLAs with sustainability goals](sus_sus_user_a3.md)
+ [SUS02-BP03 Stop the creation and maintenance of unused assets](sus_sus_user_a4.md)
+ [SUS02-BP04 Optimize geographic placement of workloads for user locations](sus_sus_user_a5.md)
+ [SUS02-BP05 Optimize team member resources for activities performed](sus_sus_user_a6.md)
# SUS02-BP01 Scale infrastructure with user load
Identify periods of low or no utilization and scale down resources to eliminate excess capacity and improve efficiency.
**Common anti-patterns:**
+ You do not scale your infrastructure with user load.
+ You manually scale your infrastructure all the time.
+ You leave increased capacity after a scaling event instead of scaling back down.
**Benefits of establishing this best practice:** Configuring and testing workload elasticity will help reduce workload environmental impact, save money, and maintain performance benchmarks. You can take advantage of elasticity in the cloud to automatically scale capacity during and after user load spikes to make sure you are only using the exact number of resources needed to meet the needs of your customers.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Medium
## Implementation guidance
+ Elasticity matches the supply of resources you have against the demand for those resources. Instances, containers, and functions provide mechanisms for elasticity, either in combination with automatic scaling or as a feature of the service. Use elasticity in your architecture to ensure that workload can scale down quickly and easily during the period of low user load:
[\[See the AWS documentation website for more details\]](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/wellarchitected/2022-03-31/framework/sus_sus_user_a2.html)
+ Verify that the metrics for scaling up or down are validated against the type of workload being deployed. If you are deploying a video transcoding application, 100% CPU utilization is expected and should not be your primary metric. You can use a [customized metric](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/mt/create-amazon-ec2-auto-scaling-policy-memory-utilization-metric-linux/) (such as memory utilization) for your scaling policy if required. To choose the right metrics, consider the following guidance for Amazon EC2:
+ The metric should be a valid utilization metric and describe how busy an instance is.
+ The metric value must increase or decrease proportionally to the number of instances in the Auto Scaling group.
+ Use [dynamic scaling](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/as-scale-based-on-demand.html) instead of [manual scaling](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/as-manual-scaling.html) for your Auto Scaling group. We also recommend that you use [target tracking scaling policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/as-scaling-target-tracking.html) in your dynamic scaling.
+ Verify that workload deployments can handle both scale-up and scale-down events. Create test scenarios for scale-down events to ensure that the workload behaves as expected. You can use [Activity history](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/as-verify-scaling-activity.html) to test and verify a scaling activity for an Auto Scaling group.
+ Evaluate your workload for predictable patterns and proactively scale as you anticipate predicted and planned changes in demand. Use [Predictive Scaling with Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/compute/introducing-native-support-for-predictive-scaling-with-amazon-ec2-auto-scaling/) to eliminate the need to overprove capacity.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Getting Started with Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/GettingStartedTutorial.html)
+ [Predictive Scaling for EC2, Powered by Machine Learning](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/new-predictive-scaling-for-ec2-powered-by-machine-learning/)
+ [Analyze user behavior using Amazon OpenSearch Service, Amazon Data Firehose and Kibana](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/database/analyze-user-behavior-using-amazon-elasticsearch-service-amazon-kinesis-data-firehose-and-kibana/)
+ [What is Amazon CloudWatch?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/monitoring/WhatIsCloudWatch.html)
+ [What is AWS X-Ray?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/xray/latest/devguide/aws-xray.html)
+ [VPC Flow Logs](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/vpc/latest/userguide/flow-logs.html)
+ [Monitoring DB load with Performance Insights on Amazon RDS](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_PerfInsights.html)
+ [Introducing Native Support for Predictive Scaling with Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/compute/introducing-native-support-for-predictive-scaling-with-amazon-ec2-auto-scaling/)
+ [How to create an Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling policy based on a memory utilization metric (Linux)](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/mt/create-amazon-ec2-auto-scaling-policy-memory-utilization-metric-linux/)
+ [Introducing Karpenter - An Open-Source, High-Performance Kubernetes Cluster Autoscaler](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/introducing-karpenter-an-open-source-high-performance-kubernetes-cluster-autoscaler/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Better, faster, cheaper compute: Cost-optimizing Amazon EC2 (CMP202-R1)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dvh4P2FVbw)
**Related examples:**
+ [Lab: Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling Group Examples](https://github.com/aws-samples/amazon-ec2-auto-scaling-group-examples)
+ [Lab: Implement Autoscaling with Karpenter](https://www.eksworkshop.com/beginner/085_scaling_karpenter/)
# SUS02-BP02 Align SLAs with sustainability goals
Define and update Service Level Agreements (SLAs) such as availability or data retention periods to minimize the number of resources required to support your workload while continuing to meet business requirements.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Define SLAs that support your sustainability goals while meeting your business requirements.
+ Redefine SLAs to meet business requirements, not exceed them.
+ Make trade-offs that significantly reduce sustainability impacts in exchange for acceptable decreases in service levels.
+ Use design patterns that prioritize business-critical functions, and allow lower service levels (such as response time or recovery time objectives) for non-critical functions.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [AWS Service Level Agreements (SLAs)](https://aws.amazon.com/legal/service-level-agreements/?aws-sla-cards.sort-by=item.additionalFields.serviceNameLower&aws-sla-cards.sort-order=asc&awsf.tech-category-filter=*all)
+ [Importance of Service Level Agreement for SaaS Providers](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/apn/importance-of-service-level-agreement-for-saas-providers/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
# SUS02-BP03 Stop the creation and maintenance of unused assets
Analyze application assets (such as pre-compiled reports, datasets, and static images) and asset access patterns to identify redundancy, underutilization, and potential decommission targets. Consolidate generated assets with redundant content (for example, monthly reports with overlapping or common datasets and outputs) to remove the resources consumed when duplicating outputs. Decommission unused assets (for example, images of products that are no longer sold) to free consumed resources and reduce the number of resources used to support the workload.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Manage static assets and remove assets that are no longer required.
+ Manage generated assets and stop generating and remove assets that are no longer required.
+ Consolidate overlapping generated assets to remove redundant processing.
+ Instruct third parties to stop producing and storing assets managed on your behalf that are no longer required.
+ Instruct third parties to consolidate redundant assets produced on your behalf.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Optimizing your AWS Infrastructure for Sustainability, Part II: Storage](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/architecture/optimizing-your-aws-infrastructure-for-sustainability-part-ii-storage/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
# SUS02-BP04 Optimize geographic placement of workloads for user locations
Analyze network access patterns to identify where your customers are connecting from geographically. Select Regions and services that reduce the distance network traffic must travel to decrease the total network resources required to support your workload.
** Common anti-patterns: **
+ You select the workload's Region based on your own location.
**Benefits of establishing this best practice:** Placing a workload close to its customers provides the lowest latency while decreasing data movement across the network and lowering environmental impact.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Medium
## Implementation guidance
+ Select the Regions for your workload deployment based on the following key elements:
+ **Your Sustainability goal:** as explained in [Region selection](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/wellarchitected/latest/sustainability-pillar/region-selection.html).
+ **Where your data is located:** For data-heavy applications (such as big data and machine learning), application code should execute as close to the data as possible.
+ **Where your users are located:** For user-facing applications, choose a Region close to your workload’s customer base.
+ **Other constraints:** Consider constraints such as security and compliance as explained in [What to Consider when Selecting a Region for your Workloads](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/architecture/what-to-consider-when-selecting-a-region-for-your-workloads/).
+ Use [AWS Local Zones](https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/global-infrastructure/localzones/) to run workloads like video rendering and graphics-intensive virtual desktop applications. Local Zones allow you to benefit from having compute and storage resources closer to end users.
+ Use local caching or [AWS Caching Solutions](https://aws.amazon.com/caching/aws-caching/) for frequently used resources to improve performance, reduce data movement, and lower environmental impact.
[\[See the AWS documentation website for more details\]](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/wellarchitected/2022-03-31/framework/sus_sus_user_a5.html)
+ Use services that can help you run code closer to users of your workload:
[\[See the AWS documentation website for more details\]](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/wellarchitected/2022-03-31/framework/sus_sus_user_a5.html)
+ Use connection pooling to enable connection reuse, and reduce required resources.
+ Use distributed data stores that don’t rely on persistent connections and synchronous updates for consistency to serve regional populations.
+ Replace pre-provisioned static network capacity with shared dynamic capacity, and share the sustainability impact of network capacity with other subscribers.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Optimizing your AWS Infrastructure for Sustainability, Part III: Networking](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/architecture/optimizing-your-aws-infrastructure-for-sustainability-part-iii-networking/)
+ [Amazon ElastiCache Documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/elasticache/index.html)
+ [What is Amazon CloudFront?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudFront/latest/DeveloperGuide/Introduction.html)
+ [Amazon CloudFront Key Features](https://aws.amazon.com/cloudfront/features/)
+ [Lambda@Edge](https://aws.amazon.com/lambda/edge/)
+ [CloudFront Functions](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudFront/latest/DeveloperGuide/cloudfront-functions.html)
+ [AWS IoT Greengrass](https://aws.amazon.com/greengrass/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
**Related examples:**
+ [AWS Networking Workshops](https://catalog.workshops.aws/networking/en-US)
# SUS02-BP05 Optimize team member resources for activities performed
Optimize resources provided to team members to minimize the sustainability impact while supporting their needs. For example, perform complex operations, such as rendering and compilation, on highly utilized shared cloud desktops instead of on underutilized high-powered single-user systems.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Provision workstations and other devices to align with how they’re used.
+ Use virtual desktops and application streaming to limit upgrade and device requirements.
+ Move processor or memory-intensive tasks to the cloud.
+ Evaluate the impact of processes and systems on your device lifecycle, and select solutions that minimize the requirement for device replacement while satisfying business requirements.
+ Implement remote management for devices to reduce required business travel.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [What is Amazon WorkSpaces?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/workspaces/latest/adminguide/amazon-workspaces.html)
+ [Amazon AppStream 2.0 Documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/appstream2/)
+ [NICE DCV](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/dcv/)
+ [AWS Systems Manager Fleet Manager](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/fleet.html)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
# Software and architecture patterns
**Topics**
+ [SUS 3 How do you take advantage of software and architecture patterns to support your sustainability goals?](sus-03.md)
# SUS 3 How do you take advantage of software and architecture patterns to support your sustainability goals?
Implement patterns for performing load smoothing and maintaining consistent high utilization of deployed resources to minimize the resources consumed. Components might become idle from lack of use because of changes in user behavior over time. Revise patterns and architecture to consolidate under-utilized components to increase overall utilization. Retire components that are no longer required. Understand the performance of your workload components, and optimize the components that consume the most resources. Be aware of the devices your customers use to access your services, and implement patterns to minimize the need for device upgrades.
**Topics**
+ [SUS03-BP01 Optimize software and architecture for asynchronous and scheduled jobs](sus_sus_software_a2.md)
+ [SUS03-BP02 Remove or refactor workload components with low or no use](sus_sus_software_a3.md)
+ [SUS03-BP03 Optimize areas of code that consume the most time or resources](sus_sus_software_a4.md)
+ [SUS03-BP04 Optimize impact on customer devices and equipment](sus_sus_software_a5.md)
+ [SUS03-BP05 Use software patterns and architectures that best support data access and storage patterns](sus_sus_software_a6.md)
# SUS03-BP01 Optimize software and architecture for asynchronous and scheduled jobs
Use efficient software designs and architectures to minimize the average resources required per unit of work. Implement mechanisms that result in even utilization of components to reduce resources that are idle between tasks and minimize the impact of load spikes.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Queue requests that don’t require immediate processing.
+ Increase serialization to flatten utilization across your pipeline.
+ Modify the capacity of individual components to prevent idling resources waiting for input.
+ Create buffers and establish rate limiting to smooth the consumption of external services.
+ Use the most efficient available hardware for your software optimizations.
+ Use queue-driven architectures, pipeline management, and On-Demand Instance workers to maximize utilization for batch processing.
+ Schedule tasks to avoid load spikes and resource contention from simultaneous execution.
+ Schedule jobs during times of day where carbon intensity for power is lowest.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [What is Amazon Simple Queue Service?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSSimpleQueueService/latest/SQSDeveloperGuide/welcome.html)
+ [What is Amazon MQ?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/amazon-mq/latest/developer-guide/welcome.html)
+ [Scaling based on Amazon SQS](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/as-using-sqs-queue.html)
+ [What is AWS Step Functions?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/step-functions/latest/dg/welcome.html)
+ [What is AWS Lambda?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/latest/dg/welcome.html)
+ [Using AWS Lambda with Amazon SQS](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/latest/dg/with-sqs.html)
+ [What is Amazon EventBridge?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/eventbridge/latest/userguide/what-is-amazon-eventbridge.html)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
+ [Moving to event-driven architectures](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h46IquqjF3E)
# SUS03-BP02 Remove or refactor workload components with low or no use
Monitor workload activity to identify changes in utilization of individual components over time. Remove components that are unused and no longer required, and refactor components with little utilization to limit wasted resources.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Analyze load (using indicators such as transaction flow and API calls) on functional components to identify unused and underutilized components.
+ Retire components that are no longer needed.
+ Refactor underutilized components.
+ Consolidate underutilized components with other resources to improve utilization efficiency.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [What is AWS X-Ray?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/xray/latest/devguide/aws-xray.html)
+ [What is Amazon CloudWatch?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/monitoring/WhatIsCloudWatch.html)
+ [Using ServiceLens to monitor the health of your applications](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/monitoring/ServiceLens.html)
+ [Automated Cleanup of Unused Images in Amazon ECR](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/compute/automated-cleanup-of-unused-images-in-amazon-ecr/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
# SUS03-BP03 Optimize areas of code that consume the most time or resources
Monitor workload activity to identify application components that consume the most resources. Optimize the code that runs within these components to minimize resource usage while maximizing performance.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Monitor performance as a function of resource usage to identify components with high resource requirements per unit of work as targets for optimization.
+ Use a code profiler to identify the areas of code that use the most time or resources as targets for optimization.
+ Replace algorithms with more efficient versions that produce the same result.
+ Use hardware acceleration to improve the efficiency of blocks of code with long execution times.
+ Use the most efficient operating system and programming language for the workload.
+ Remove unnecessary sorting and formatting.
+ Use data transfer patterns that minimize the resources used based on how frequently the data changes and how it is consumed. For example, push state change information to a client instead of having it consume resources to poll and receive valueless ‘no change’ messages.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [What is Amazon CloudWatch?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/monitoring/WhatIsCloudWatch.html)
+ [What is Amazon CodeGuru Profiler?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/codeguru/latest/profiler-ug/what-is-codeguru-profiler.html)
+ [FPGA instances](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/fpga-getting-started.html)
+ [The AWS SDKs on Tools to Build on AWS](https://aws.amazon.com/tools/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
# SUS03-BP04 Optimize impact on customer devices and equipment
Understand the devices and equipment your customers use to consume your services, their expected lifecycle, and the financial and sustainability impact of replacing those components. Implement software patterns and architectures to minimize the need for customers to replace devices and upgrade equipment. For example, implement new features using code that is backward compatible with older hardware and operating system versions, or manage the size of payloads so they don’t exceed the storage capacity of the target device.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Inventory the devices your customers use.
+ Test using managed device farms with representative sets of hardware to understand the impact of your changes, and iterate development to maximize the devices supported.
+ Account for network bandwidth and latency when building payloads, and implement capabilities that help your applications work well on low-bandwidth, high-latency links.
+ Pre-process data payloads to reduce local processing requirements and limit data transfer requirements.
+ Perform computationally intense activities server-side (such as image rendering), or use application streaming to improve the user experience on older devices.
+ Segment and paginate output, especially for interactive sessions, to manage payloads and limit local storage requirements.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [What is AWS Device Farm?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/devicefarm/latest/developerguide/welcome.html)
+ [Amazon AppStream 2.0 Documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/appstream2/)
+ [NICE DCV](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/dcv/)
+ [Amazon Elastic Transcoder Documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/elastic-transcoder/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
# SUS03-BP05 Use software patterns and architectures that best support data access and storage patterns
Understand how data is used within your workload, consumed by your users, transferred, and stored. Select technologies to minimize data processing and storage requirements.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Analyze your data access and storage patterns.
+ Store data files in efficient file formats such as Parquet to prevent unnecessary processing (for example, when running analytics) and to reduce the total storage provisioned.
+ Use technologies that work natively with compressed data.
+ Use the database engine that best supports your dominant query pattern.
+ Manage your database indexes to ensure index designs support efficient query execution.
+ Select network protocols that reduce the amount of network capacity consumed.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Athena Compression Support file formats](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/athena/latest/ug/compression-formats.html)
+ [COPY from columnar data formats with Amazon Redshift](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/redshift/latest/dg/copy-usage_notes-copy-from-columnar.html)
+ [Converting Your Input Record Format in Firehose](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/firehose/latest/dev/record-format-conversion.html)
+ [Format Options for ETL Inputs and Outputs in AWS Glue](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/glue/latest/dg/aws-glue-programming-etl-format.html)
+ [Improve query performance on Amazon Athena by Converting to Columnar Formats](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/athena/latest/ug/convert-to-columnar.html)
+ [Loading compressed data files from Amazon S3 with Amazon Redshift](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/redshift/latest/dg/t_loading-gzip-compressed-data-files-from-S3.html)
+ [Monitoring DB load with Performance Insights on Amazon Aurora](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/AuroraUserGuide/USER_PerfInsights.html)
+ [Monitoring DB load with Performance Insights on Amazon RDS](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_PerfInsights.html)
+ [AWS IoT FleetWise](https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2021/11/aws-iot-fleetwise-transferring-vehicle-data-cloud/)
**Related videos:**
+ [Building Sustainably on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARAitMSIxc8)
# Data patterns
**Topics**
+ [SUS 4 How do you take advantage of data access and usage patterns to support your sustainability goals?](sus-04.md)
# SUS 4 How do you take advantage of data access and usage patterns to support your sustainability goals?
Implement data management practices to reduce the provisioned storage required to support your workload, and the resources required to use it. Understand your data, and use storage technologies and configurations that best support the business value of the data and how it’s used. Lifecycle data to more efficient, less performant storage when requirements decrease, and delete data that’s no longer required.
**Topics**
+ [SUS04-BP01 Implement a data classification policy](sus_sus_data_a2.md)
+ [SUS04-BP02 Use technologies that support data access and storage patterns](sus_sus_data_a3.md)
+ [SUS04-BP03 Use lifecycle policies to delete unnecessary data](sus_sus_data_a4.md)
+ [SUS04-BP04 Minimize over-provisioning in block storage](sus_sus_data_a5.md)
+ [SUS04-BP05 Remove unneeded or redundant data](sus_sus_data_a6.md)
+ [SUS04-BP06 Use shared file systems or object storage to access common data](sus_sus_data_a7.md)
+ [SUS04-BP07 Minimize data movement across networks](sus_sus_data_a8.md)
+ [SUS04-BP08 Back up data only when difficult to recreate](sus_sus_data_a9.md)
# SUS04-BP01 Implement a data classification policy
Classify data to understand its significance to business outcomes. Use this information to determine when you can move data to more energy-efficient storage or safely delete it.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Determine requirements for the distribution, retention, and deletion of your data.
+ Use tagging on volumes and objects to record the metadata that’s used to determine how it’s managed, including data classification.
+ Periodically audit your environment for untagged and unclassified data, and classify and tag the data appropriately.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Data Classification Process](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/whitepapers/latest/data-classification/data-classification-process.html)
+ [Leveraging AWS Cloud to Support Data Classification](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/whitepapers/latest/data-classification/leveraging-aws-cloud-to-support-data-classification.html)
+ [Tag policies from AWS Organizations](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/organizations/latest/userguide/orgs_manage_policies_tag-policies.html)
# SUS04-BP02 Use technologies that support data access and storage patterns
Use storage that best supports how your data is accessed and stored to minimize the resources provisioned while supporting your workload. For example, Solid State Devices (SSDs) are more energy intensive than magnetic drives and should be used only for active data use cases. Use energy-efficient, archival-class storage for infrequently accessed data.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Medium
## Implementation guidance
+ Monitor your data access patterns.
+ Migrate data to the appropriate technology based on access pattern.
+ Migrate archival data to storage designed for that purpose.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Amazon EBS volume types](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/ebs-volume-types.html)
+ [Amazon EC2 instance store](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/InstanceStorage.html)
+ [Amazon S3 Intelligent-Tiering](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonS3/latest/userguide/intelligent-tiering.html)
+ [Using Amazon S3 storage classes](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonS3/latest/userguide/storage-class-intro.html)
+ [What is Amazon CloudWatch?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/monitoring/WhatIsCloudWatch.html)
+ [What is Amazon Glacier?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/amazonglacier/latest/dev/introduction.html)
**Related videos:**
+ [Architectural Patterns for Data Lakes on AWS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpTly4XHmqc&ab_channel=AWSEvents)
# SUS04-BP03 Use lifecycle policies to delete unnecessary data
Manage the lifecycle of all your data and automatically enforce deletion timelines to minimize the total storage requirements of your workload.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Define lifecycle policies for all your data classification types.
+ Set automated lifecycle policies to enforce lifecycle rules.
+ Delete unused volumes and snapshots.
+ Aggregate data where applicable based on lifecycle rules.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Amazon ECR Lifecycle policies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonECR/latest/userguide/LifecyclePolicies.html)
+ [Amazon EFS lifecycle management](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/efs/latest/ug/lifecycle-management-efs.html)
+ [Amazon S3 Intelligent-Tiering](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonS3/latest/userguide/intelligent-tiering.html)
+ [Evaluating Resources with AWS Config Rules](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/config/latest/developerguide/evaluate-config.html)
+ [Managing your storage lifecycle on Amazon S3](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonS3/latest/dev/object-lifecycle-mgmt.html)
+ [Object lifecycle policies in AWS Elemental MediaStore](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/mediastore/latest/ug/policies-object-lifecycle.html)
**Related videos:**
+ [Amazon S3 Lifecycle](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53eHNSpaMJI&ab_channel=AmazonWebServices)
# SUS04-BP04 Minimize over-provisioning in block storage
To minimize total provisioned storage, create block storage with size allocations that are appropriate for the workload. Use elastic volumes to expand storage as data grows without having to resize storage attached to compute resources. Regularly review elastic volumes and shrink over-provisioned volumes to fit the current data size.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Monitor the utilization of your data volumes.
+ Use elastic volumes and managed block data services to automate allocation of additional storage as your persistent data grows.
+ Set target levels of utilization for your data volumes, and resize volumes outside of expected ranges.
+ Size read-only volumes to fit the data.
+ Migrate data to object stores to avoid provisioning the excess capacity from fixed volume sizes on block storage.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Amazon EBS Elastic Volumes](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/ebs-modify-volume.html)
+ [Amazon FSx Documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/fsx/index.html)
+ [What is Amazon CloudWatch?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/monitoring/WhatIsCloudWatch.html)
+ [What is Amazon Elastic File System?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/efs/latest/ug/whatisefs.html)
# SUS04-BP05 Remove unneeded or redundant data
Duplicate data only when necessary to minimize total storage consumed. Use backup technologies that deduplicate data at the file and block level. Limit the use of Redundant Array of Independent Drives (RAID) configurations except where required to meet Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Use mechanisms that can deduplicate data at the block and object level.
+ Use backup technology that can make incremental backups and deduplicate data at the block, file, and object level.
+ Use RAID only when required to meet your SLAs.
+ Centralize log and trace data, deduplicate identical log entries, and establish mechanisms to tune verbosity when needed.
+ Pre-populate caches only where justified.
+ Establish cache monitoring and automation to resize cache accordingly.
+ Remove out-of-date deployments and assets from object stores and edge caches when pushing new versions of your workload.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Amazon EBS snapshots](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/EBSSnapshots.html)
+ [Change log data retention in CloudWatch Logs](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/logs/Working-with-log-groups-and-streams.html#SettingLogRetention)
+ [Data deduplication on Amazon FSx for Windows File Server](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/fsx/latest/WindowsGuide/using-data-dedup.html)
+ [Features of Amazon FSx for ONTAP including data deduplication](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/fsx/latest/ONTAPGuide/what-is-fsx-ontap.html#features-overview)
+ [Invalidating Files on Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudFront/latest/DeveloperGuide/Invalidation.html)
+ [Using AWS Backup to back up and restore Amazon EFS file systems](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/efs/latest/ug/awsbackup.html)
+ [What is Amazon CloudWatch Logs?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudWatch/latest/logs/WhatIsCloudWatchLogs.html)
+ [Working with backups on Amazon RDS](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_WorkingWithAutomatedBackups.html)
**Related examples:**
+ [Lab: Optimize Data Pattern Using Amazon Redshift Data Sharing](https://wellarchitectedlabs.com/sustainability/300_labs/300_optimize_data_pattern_using_redshift_data_sharing/)
# SUS04-BP06 Use shared file systems or object storage to access common data
Adopt shared storage and single sources of truth to avoid data duplication and reduce the total storage requirements of your workload. Fetch data from shared storage only as needed. Detach unused volumes to make more resources available.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Migrate data to shared storage when the data has multiple consumers.
+ Fetch data from shared storage only as needed.
+ Delete data as appropriate for your usage patterns, and implement time-to-live (TTL) functionality to manage cached data.
+ Detach volumes from clients that are not actively using them.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Amazon FSx](https://aws.amazon.com/fsx/)
+ [Caching strategies](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonElastiCache/latest/mem-ug/Strategies.html)
+ [What is Amazon Elastic File System?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/efs/latest/ug/whatisefs.html)
+ [What is Amazon S3?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonS3/latest/dev/Welcome.html)
# SUS04-BP07 Minimize data movement across networks
Use shared storage and access data from regional data stores to minimize the total networking resources required to support data movement for your workload.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Store data as close to the consumer as possible.
+ Partition regionally consumed services so that their Region-specific data is stored within the Region where it is consumed.
+ Use block-level duplication instead of file or object-level duplication when copying changes across the network.
+ Compress data before moving it over the network.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Optimizing your AWS Infrastructure for Sustainability, Part III: Networking](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/architecture/optimizing-your-aws-infrastructure-for-sustainability-part-iii-networking/)
+ [AWS Global Infrastructure](https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/global-infrastructure/)
+ [Amazon CloudFront Key Features including the CloudFront Global Edge Network](https://aws.amazon.com/cloudfront/features/)
+ [Compressing HTTP requests in Amazon OpenSearch Service](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/opensearch-service/latest/developerguide/gzip.html)
+ [Intermediate data compression with Amazon EMR](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/emr/latest/ManagementGuide/emr-plan-output-compression.html#HadoopIntermediateDataCompression)
+ [Loading compressed data files from Amazon S3 into Amazon Redshift](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/redshift/latest/dg/t_loading-gzip-compressed-data-files-from-S3.html)
+ [Serving compressed files with Amazon CloudFront](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonCloudFront/latest/DeveloperGuide/ServingCompressedFiles.html)
# SUS04-BP08 Back up data only when difficult to recreate
To minimize storage consumption, only back up data that has business value or is needed to satisfy compliance requirements. Examine backup policies and exclude ephemeral storage that doesn’t provide value in a recovery scenario.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Use your data classification to establish what data needs to be backed up.
+ Exclude data that you can easily recreate.
+ Exclude ephemeral data from your backups.
+ Exclude local copies of data, unless the time required to restore that data from a common location exceeds your service level agreements (SLAs).
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Using AWS Backup to back up and restore Amazon EFS file systems](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/efs/latest/ug/awsbackup.html)
+ [Amazon EBS snapshots](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/EBSSnapshots.html)
+ [Working with backups on Amazon Relational Database Service](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_WorkingWithAutomatedBackups.html)
# Hardware patterns
**Topics**
+ [SUS 5 How do your hardware management and usage practices support your sustainability goals?](sus-05.md)
# SUS 5 How do your hardware management and usage practices support your sustainability goals?
Look for opportunities to reduce workload sustainability impacts by making changes to your hardware management practices. Minimize the amount of hardware needed to provision and deploy, and select the most efficient hardware for your individual workload.
**Topics**
+ [SUS05-BP01 Use the minimum amount of hardware to meet your needs](sus_sus_hardware_a2.md)
+ [SUS05-BP02 Use instance types with the least impact](sus_sus_hardware_a3.md)
+ [SUS05-BP03 Use managed services](sus_sus_hardware_a4.md)
+ [SUS05-BP04 Optimize your use of GPUs](sus_sus_hardware_a5.md)
# SUS05-BP01 Use the minimum amount of hardware to meet your needs
Using the capabilities of the cloud, you can make frequent changes to your workload implementations. Update deployed components as your needs change.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Medium
## Implementation guidance
+ Enable horizontal scaling, and use automation to scale out as loads increase and to scale in as loads decrease.
+ Scale using small increments for variable workloads.
+ Align scaling with cyclical utilization patterns (for example, a payroll system with intense bi-weekly processing activities) as load varies over days, weeks, months, or years.
+ Negotiate service level Agreements (SLAs) that allow for a temporary reduction in capacity while automation deploys replacement resources.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [AWS Compute Optimizer Documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/compute-optimizer/index.html)
+ [Operating Lambda: Performance optimization](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/compute/operating-lambda-performance-optimization-part-2/)
+ [Auto Scaling Documentation](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/index.html)
# SUS05-BP02 Use instance types with the least impact
Continually monitor the release of new instance types and take advantage of energy efficiency improvements, including those instance types designed to support specific workloads such as machine learning training, inference, and video transcoding.
**Common anti-patterns:**
+ You are only using one family of instances.
+ You are only using x86 instances.
+ You specify one instance type in your Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling configuration.
+ You use AWS instances in a manner that they were not designed for (for example, you use compute-optimized instances for a memory-intensive workload).
+ You do not evaluate new instance types regularly.
+ You do not check recommendations from AWS rightsizing tools such as [AWS Compute Optimizer.](https://aws.amazon.com/compute-optimizer/)
**Benefits of establishing this best practice:** By using energy-efficient and right-sized instances, you are able to greatly reduce the environmental impact and cost of your workload.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Learn and explore instance types which can lower your workload environmental impact.
+ Subscribe to [What's New with AWS](https://aws.amazon.com/new/) to be up-to-date with the latest AWS technologies and instances.
+ Learn about different AWS instance types.
+ Learn about AWS Graviton-based instances which offer the best performance per watt of energy use in Amazon EC2 by watching [re:Invent 2020 - Deep dive on AWS Graviton2 processor-powered Amazon EC2 instances](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLysl0QvqXU) and [Deep dive into AWS Graviton3 and Amazon EC2 C7g instances](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDKwwFQKfSI&ab_channel=AWSEvents).
+ Plan and transition your workload to instance types with the least impact.
+ Define a process to evaluate new features or instances for your workload. Take advantage of agility in the cloud to quickly test how new instance types can improve your workload environmental sustainability. Use proxy metrics to measure how many resources it takes you to complete a unit of work.
+ If possible, modify your workload to work with different numbers of vCPUs and different amounts of memory to maximize your choice of instance type.
+ Consider transitioning your workload to Graviton-based instances to improve the performance efficiency of your workload (see [AWS Graviton Fast Start](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/graviton/fast-start/) and [AWS Graviton2 for ISVs](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/whitepapers/latest/aws-graviton2-for-isv/welcome.html)). Keep in mind the [considerations when transitioning workloads to AWS Graviton-based Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud instances.](https://github.com/aws/aws-graviton-getting-started/blob/main/transition-guide.md)
+ Consider selecting the AWS Graviton option in your usage of [AWS managed services.](https://github.com/aws/aws-graviton-getting-started/blob/main/managed_services.md)
+ Migrate your workload to Regions that offer instances with the least sustainability impact and still meet your business requirements.
+ For machine learning workloads, use Amazon EC2 instances which are based on custom Amazon Machine Learning chips such as [AWS Trainium](https://aws.amazon.com/machine-learning/trainium/), [AWS Inferentia](https://aws.amazon.com/machine-learning/inferentia/), and [Amazon EC2 DL1.](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/dl1/)
+ Use [Amazon SageMaker AI Inference Recommender](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/sagemaker/latest/dg/inference-recommender.html) to right size ML inference endpoint.
+ For workloads with real time video transcoding, use [Amazon EC2 VT1 Instances.](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/vt1/)
+ For spikey workloads (workloads with infrequent requirements for additional capacity), use [burstable performance instances.](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/burstable-performance-instances.html)
+ For stateless and fault-tolerant workloads, use [Amazon EC2 Spot Instances](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/using-spot-instances.html) to increase overall utilization of the cloud, and reduce the sustainability impact of unused resources.
+ Operate and optimize your workload instance.
+ For ephemeral workloads, evaluate [instance Amazon CloudWatch metrics](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/viewing_metrics_with_cloudwatch.html#ec2-cloudwatch-metrics) such as `CPUUtilization` to identify if the instance is idle or under-utilized.
+ For stable workloads, check AWS rightsizing tools such as [AWS Compute Optimizer](https://aws.amazon.com/compute-optimizer/) at regular intervals to identify opportunities to optimize and right-size the instances.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Optimizing your AWS Infrastructure for Sustainability, Part I: Compute](https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/architecture/optimizing-your-aws-infrastructure-for-sustainability-part-i-compute/)
+ [AWS Graviton Processor](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/graviton/)
+ [AWS Inferentia](https://aws.amazon.com/machine-learning/inferentia/)
+ [AWS Trainium](https://aws.amazon.com/machine-learning/trainium/)
+ [Amazon EC2 DL1](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/dl1/)
+ [Amazon EC2 Burstable performance instances](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/burstable-performance-instances.html)
+ [Amazon EC2 Capacity Reservation Fleets](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/cr-fleets.html)
+ [Amazon EC2 Spot Fleet](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/spot-fleet.html)
+ [Amazon EC2 Spot Instances](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/using-spot-instances.html)
+ [Amazon EC2 VT1 Instances](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/vt1/)
+ [Amazon EC2 instance types](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/instance-types.html)
+ [AWS Compute Optimizer](https://aws.amazon.com/compute-optimizer/)
+ [Functions: Lambda Function Configuration](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/latest/dg/best-practices.html#function-configuration)
**Related videos:**
+ [Deep dive on AWS Graviton2 processer-powered Amazon EC2 instances](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLysl0QvqXU)
+ [Deep dive into AWS Graviton3 and Amazon EC2 C7g instances](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDKwwFQKfSI&ab_channel=AWSEvents)
**Related examples:**
+ [Lab: Rightsizing Recommendations](https://wellarchitectedlabs.com/cost/100_labs/100_aws_resource_optimization/)
+ [Lab: Rightsizing with Compute Optimizer](https://wellarchitectedlabs.com/cost/200_labs/200_aws_resource_optimization/)
+ [Lab: Optimize Hardware Patterns and Observe Sustainability KPIs](https://wellarchitectedlabs.com/sustainability/200_labs/200_optimize_hardware_patterns_observe_sustainability_kpis/)
# SUS05-BP03 Use managed services
Managed services shift responsibility for maintaining high-average utilization, and sustainability optimization of the deployed hardware to AWS. Use managed services to distribute the sustainability impact of the service across all tenants of the service, reducing your individual contribution.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Migrate from self-hosted services to managed services. For example, use managed [Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS)](https://aws.amazon.com/rds/) instances instead of maintaining your own Amazon RDS instances on [Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2)](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/), or use managed container services, such as [AWS Fargate](https://aws.amazon.com/fargate/), instead of implementing your own container infrastructure.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [AWS Fargate](https://aws.amazon.com/fargate/)
+ [Amazon DocumentDB](https://aws.amazon.com/documentdb/)
+ [Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS)](https://aws.amazon.com/eks/)
+ [Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka (Amazon MSK)](https://aws.amazon.com/msk/)
+ [Amazon Redshift](https://aws.amazon.com/redshift/)
+ [Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)](https://aws.amazon.com/rds/)
# SUS05-BP04 Optimize your use of GPUs
Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) can be a source of high-power consumption, and many GPU workloads are highly variable, such as rendering, transcoding, and machine learning training and modeling. Only run GPU instances for the time needed, and decommission them with automation when not required to minimize resources consumed.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Use GPUs only for tasks where they’re more efficient than CPU-based alternatives.
+ Use automation to release GPU instances when not in use.
+ Use flexible graphics acceleration rather than dedicated GPU instances.
+ Take advantage of custom-purpose hardware that is specific to your workload.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [Accelerated Computing](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/#Accelerated_Computing)
+ [AWS Inferentia](https://aws.amazon.com/machine-learning/inferentia/)
+ [AWS Trainium](https://aws.amazon.com/machine-learning/trainium/)
+ [Accelerated Computing for EC2 Instances](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/#Accelerated_Computing)
+ [Amazon EC2 VT1 Instances](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/instance-types/vt1/)
+ [Amazon Elastic Graphics](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/WindowsGuide/elastic-graphics.html)
# Development and deployment process
**Topics**
+ [SUS 6 How do your development and deployment processes support your sustainability goals?](sus-06.md)
# SUS 6 How do your development and deployment processes support your sustainability goals?
Look for opportunities to reduce your sustainability impact by making changes to your development, test, and deployment practices.
**Topics**
+ [SUS06-BP01 Adopt methods that can rapidly introduce sustainability improvements](sus_sus_dev_a2.md)
+ [SUS06-BP02 Keep your workload up-to-date](sus_sus_dev_a3.md)
+ [SUS06-BP03 Increase utilization of build environments](sus_sus_dev_a4.md)
+ [SUS06-BP04 Use managed device farms for testing](sus_sus_dev_a5.md)
# SUS06-BP01 Adopt methods that can rapidly introduce sustainability improvements
Test and validate potential improvements before deploying them to production. Account for the cost of testing when calculating potential future benefit of an improvement. Develop low-cost testing methods to enable delivery of small improvements.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Medium
## Implementation guidance
+ Add requirements for sustainability to your development process.
+ Allow resources to work in parallel to develop, test, and deploy sustainability improvements.
+ Test and validate potential sustainability impact improvements before deploying into production.
+ Test potential improvements using the minimum viable representative components.
+ Deploy tested sustainability improvements to production as they become available.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [AWS enables sustainability solutions](https://aws.amazon.com/sustainability/)
**Related examples:**
+ [Lab: Turning](https://www.wellarchitectedlabs.com/sustainability/300_labs/300_cur_reports_as_efficiency_reports/) cost & usage reports into efficiency reports
# SUS06-BP02 Keep your workload up-to-date
Up-to-date operating systems, libraries, and applications can improve workload efficiency and enable easier adoption of more efficient technologies. Up-to-date software might also include features to measure the sustainability impact of your workload more accurately, as vendors deliver features to meet their own sustainability goals.
**Common anti-patterns:**
+ You assume your current architecture will become static with no updates over time.
+ You do not have any systems or a regular cadence to evaluate if updated software and packages are compatible with your workload.
+ You introduce architecture changes over time without justification.
**Benefits of establishing this best practice:** By establishing a process to keep your workload up to date, you will be able to adopt new features and capabilities, resolve issues, and improve workload efficiency.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Define a process and a schedule to evaluate new features or instances for your workload. Take advantage of agility in the cloud to quickly test how new features can improve your workload to:
+ Reduce sustainability impacts.
+ Gain performance efficiencies.
+ Remove barriers for a planned improvement.
+ Improve your ability to measure and manage sustainability impacts.
+ Inventory your workload software and architecture and identify components that need to be updated. You can use [AWS Systems Manager Inventory](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/systems-manager-inventory.html) to collect operating system (OS), application, and instance metadata from your Amazon EC2 instances and quickly understand which instances are running the software and configurations required by your software policy and which instances need to be updated.
+ Understand how to update the components of your workload.
[\[See the AWS documentation website for more details\]](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/wellarchitected/2022-03-31/framework/sus_sus_dev_a3.html)
+ Use automation for the update process to reduce the level of effort to deploy new features and limit errors caused by manual processes. Use tools such as [AWS Systems Manager Patch Manager](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/systems-manager-patch.html) to automate the process of system updates, and schedule the activity using [AWS Systems Manager Maintenance Windows](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/systems-manager-maintenance.html).
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [AWS Architecture Center](https://aws.amazon.com/architecture)
+ [What's New with AWS](https://aws.amazon.com/new/?ref=wellarchitected&ref=wellarchitected)
+ [AWS Developer Tools](https://aws.amazon.com/products/developer-tools/)
+ [AWS Systems Manager Patch Manager](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/systems-manager-patch.html)
**Related examples:**
+ [Well-Architected Labs: Inventory and Patch Management](https://wellarchitectedlabs.com/operational-excellence/100_labs/100_inventory_patch_management/)
+ [Lab: AWS Systems Manager](https://mng.workshop.aws/ssm.html)
# SUS06-BP03 Increase utilization of build environments
Use automation and infrastructure-as-code to bring pre-production environments up when needed and take them down when not used. A common pattern is to schedule periods of availability that coincide with the working hours of your development team members. Hibernation is a useful tool to preserve the state and rapidly bring instances online only when needed. Use instance types with burst capacity, Spot Instances, elastic database services, containers, and other technologies to align development and test capacity with use.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
+ Use automation to maximize utilization of your development and test environments.
+ Use automation to manage the lifecycle of your development and test environments.
+ Use minimum viable representative environments to develop and test potential improvements.
+ Use On-Demand Instances to supplement your developer devices.
+ Use automation to maximize the efficiency of your build resources.
+ Use instance types with burst capacity, Spot Instances, and other technologies to align build capacity with use.
+ Adopt native cloud services for secure instance shell access rather than deploying fleets of bastion hosts.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [AWS Systems Manager Session Manager](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/session-manager.html)
+ [Amazon EC2 Burstable performance instances](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/burstable-performance-instances.html)
+ [What is AWS CloudFormation?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSCloudFormation/latest/UserGuide/Welcome.html)
# SUS06-BP04 Use managed device farms for testing
Managed device farms spread the sustainability impact of hardware manufacturing and resource usage across multiple tenants. Managed device farms offer diverse device types so you can support older, less popular hardware, and avoid customer sustainability impact from unnecessary device upgrades.
**Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established:** Low
## Implementation guidance
Test using managed device farms with representative sets of hardware to understand the impact of your changes, and iterate development to maximize the devices supported.
## Resources
**Related documents:**
+ [What is AWS Device Farm?](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/devicefarm/latest/developerguide/welcome.html)