AWS Snowball Edge

AWS Snowball Edge is a data migration and edge computing device that comes in two options. Snowball Edge Storage Optimized provides both block storage and Amazon S3-compatible object storage, and 24 vCPUs. It is well suited for local storage and large scale-data transfer. Snowball Edge Compute Optimized provides 52 vCPUs, block and object storage, and an optional GPU for use cases such as advanced machine learning and full motion video analysis in disconnected environments. Customers can use these two options for data collection, machine learning and processing, and storage in environments with intermittent connectivity (such as manufacturing, industrial, and transportation) or in extremely remote locations (such as military or maritime operations) before shipping it back to AWS. These devices may also be rack mounted and clustered together to build larger, temporary installations. Snowball Edge supports specific Amazon EC2 instance types as well as AWS Lambda functions, so customers may develop and test in AWS then deploy applications on devices in remote locations to collect, pre-process, and return the data. Common use cases include data migration, data transport, image collation, IoT sensor stream capture, and machine learning. BENEFITS EASY DATA MOVEMENT Snowball Edge moves terabytes of data in about a week. Customers use it to move things like databases, backups, archives, healthcare records, analytics datasets, IoT sensor data and media content, especially when network conditions prevent realistic timelines for transferring large amounts of data both into and out of AWS. SIMPLE TO USE Jobs are created in the AWS Management Console. Once a job is created, AWS automatically ships a pre-provisioned Snowball Edge device to your location. When you receive the device, simply attach it to your local network and connect your applications. Once the device is ready to be returned, the E Ink shipping label automatically updates and your freight carrier transports it to the correct AWS facility where the upload begins. Job status can be tracked via Amazon SNS generated text or email messages or directly in the Console. PROCESS & ANALYZE DATA LOCALLY Run EC2 AMIs and deploy AWS Lambda code on Snowball Edge to run local processing or analysis with machine learning or other applications. Developers and administrators can run applications directly on the device as a consistent AWS environment without network connectivity. This capability helps customers develop their machine learning and analysis tools and test them in the cloud but operate them in locations with limited or non-existent network connections before shipping the data back to AWS. Snowball Edge can capture the data from the remote site and any additional unrecognized data so the machine learning models can be refined and propagated. STAND-ALONE STORAGE Snowball Edge devices can provide local storage to existing on-premises applications through a file sharing protocol (NFS) or object storage interface (the S3 API). Additionally, you can use on-board block storage volumes for applications running on Amazon EC2 instances on the Snowball Edge. You can also cluster Snowball Edge devices together into a single, larger, storage tier with increased durability. If a Snowball Edge needs to be replaced, it can be removed from the cluster and replaced with a new Snowball Edge. SECURE Snowball Edge devices use tamper-evident enclosures, 256-bit encryption, and industry-standard Trusted Platform Modules (TPM) designed to ensure both security and full chain-of-custody for your data. Encryption keys are managed with the AWS Key Management Service (KMS) and they are never stored on the device. SCALABLE Snowball Edge devices can transport multiple terabytes of data and multiple devices can be used in parallel or clustered together to transfer petabytes of data into or out of AWS. Snowball Edge is currently available in select regions and your location will be verified once you create a job in the AWS Management Console.