Amazon ElastiCache – Memcached server cloud hosting for Amazon AWS

Amazon ElastiCache Functionality

Amazon ElastiCache gives you access to the capabilities of a familiar Memcached compatible caching environment.

To use Amazon ElastiCache, you simply:

• Use the AWS Management Console or Amazon ElastiCache APIs to launch a Cache Cluster selecting a Cache Cluster Name, Cache Node Type and Number of Nodes that best meets your needs.
• Connect to your Cache Nodes using your favorite Memcached clients or programming language. Since Amazon ElastiCache is Memcached compatible, your code and most clients should work unmodified.
• Get detailed monitoring statistics of your Cache Nodes for no additional charge via Amazon CloudWatch (you will find these in the Amazon ElasticCache tab of the AWS Management Console).
• If at any point you need additional capacity, you can add more Cache Nodes to your Cache Cluster with a few clicks of the console or a simple API call.
• Pay only for the resources you actually consume, based on your Cache Node hours used.

Features

• Pre-configured Parameters – Amazon ElastiCache Nodes are pre-configured with a sensible set of parameters and settings appropriate for the Node Type you have selected. You can simply launch a Memcached Cluster and connect your application within minutes without additional configuration. If you desire additional control, you can achieve it via Cache Parameter Groups.

• Automatic failure detection and recovery – Amazon ElastiCache monitors the health of your Cache Clusters and automatically replaces your Cache Nodes in the event of network partitioning, host hardware or software failure. The replaced Cache Nodes are designed to have the same DNS name as the failed Cache Nodes, avoiding the need for client-side refresh of end-point lists.

• Detailed Monitoring and Metrics – Amazon ElastiCache provides detailed Amazon CloudWatch metrics for your Memcached deployments at no additional charge. You can use the AWS Management Console to view key operational metrics for your Cache Nodes, including memory/compute capacity utilization, cache hits, cache misses, and number of cache connections.

• Automatic Software Patching – Amazon ElastiCache updates the cache software powering your deployment with the latest patches. You can control when and if your Cache Clusters are patched viaCache Engine Version Management.

• Push-Button Scaling – Using a few clicks of the AWS Management Console or a simple API call, you can scale the memory resources powering your deployment in minutes by adding or deleting Cache Nodes.

Cache Node Types

Amazon ElastiCache currently supports the following Cache Node Types:

Standard

• Small Cache Node (cache.m1.small): 1.3 GB memory, 1 ECU (1 virtual core with 1 ECU), 64-bit platform, Moderate I/O Capacity
• Large Cache Node (cache.m1.large): 7.1 GB memory, 4 ECUs (2 virtual cores with 2 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity
• Extra Large Cache Node (cache.m1.xlarge): 14.6 GB of memory, 8 ECUs (4 virtual cores with 2 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity

High-Memory

• High-Memory Extra Large Cache Node (cache.m2.xlarge): 16.7 GB memory, 6.5 ECU (2 virtual cores with 3.25 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity
• High-Memory Double Extra Large Cache Node (cache.m2.2xlarge): 33.8 GB memory, 13 ECUs (4 virtual cores with 3,25 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity
• High-Memory Quadruple Extra Large Cache Node (cache.m2.4xlarge): 68 GB memory, 26 ECUs (8 virtual cores with 3.25 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity

High-CPU

• High-CPU Extra Large Cache Node (cache.c1.xlarge): 6.6 GB memory, 26 ECUs (8 virtual cores with 2.5 EC2 Compute Units each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity

Note: Each Cache Node Type above lists the memory available to Memcached after taking System Software overhead into account.
One ECU provides the equivalent CPU capacity of a 1.0-1.2 GHz 2007 Opteron or 2007 Xeon processor

Pricing

Pay only for what you use. There is no minimum fee. Estimate your monthly bill using the AWS Simple Monthly Calculator.

Amazon ElastiCache is currently available in the US East (Virginia) Region. It will be available in other AWS Regions in the coming months.

On-Demand Cache Nodes

On-Demand Cache Nodes let you pay for cache capacity by the hour your Cache Node runs with no long-term commitments. This frees you from the costs and complexities of planning, purchasing, and maintaining hardware and transforms what are commonly large fixed costs into much smaller variable costs.

Region:US East (Virginia) $  US Dollar

Price Per Hour

Standard Cache Node Type (On-Demand)

• Small $0.095
• Large $0.38
• Extra Large $0.76

High-Memory Cache Node Type (On-Demand)

• Extra Large $0.56
• Double Extra Large $1.12
• Quadruple Extra Large $2.24

High-CPU Cache Node Type (On-Demand)

• Extra Large $0.76

Pricing is per Cache Node-hour consumed, from the time a Cache Node is launched until it is terminated. Each partial Cache Node-hour consumed will be billed as a full hour.

Data Transfer

Amazon ElastiCache provides strong network level security by allowing access/data transfer only from or to the Amazon EC2 Instances you define as part of your Cache Security Groups.

• There is no charge for data transfer between Amazon EC2 and Amazon ElastiCache within the same Availability Zone.
• While standard Amazon EC2 Regional Data Transfer charges of $0.01 per GB in/out apply when transferring data between an Amazon EC2 instance and an Amazon ElastiCache Node in different Availability Zones of the same Region, you are only charged for the Data Transfer in or out of the Amazon EC2 instance. There is no Amazon ElastiCache Data Transfer charge for traffic in or out of the Amazon ElastiCache Node itself.

As part of AWS’s Free Usage Tier, new AWS customers will receive free 15 GB of data transfer out each month aggregated across all AWS services for one year.