Amazon RDS – Informational

Guidelines for use at Merck

Database Services

Version 1.0

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 Publication Record

Version Date Author Description

#

1.0 10/15/2013 Rob Hendrzak Amazon RDS – Informational Guideline for use at
Merck

1.1 10/182013 Reddy Loka Update Operational Support and SQL and Oracle
restrictions

1.2 10/24/2013 Rob Updates to Pricing section

Hendrzak/
Reddy Loka

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Contents
Purpose.......................................................................................................................................................... 4
Scope ............................................................................................................................................................. 4
Definitions..................................................................................................................................................... 4
Advantages of using Amazon RDS .............................................................................................................. 5
Disadvantages of using Amazon RDS .......................................................................................................... 6
Good candidates ............................................................................................................................................ 7
Undesirable Candidate .................................................................................................................................. 7
RDS Options ................................................................................................................................................. 8
Pricing Models .............................................................................................................................................. 9
Process for setup of instance ......................................................................................................................... 9
Appendix A ................................................................................................................................................. 10

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Purpose
The objective of this document is to provide items to consider when deciding on whether Amazon RDS for
SQL Server or Oracle is an appropriate database option for a given project.

Scope
This document is specifically intended to cover Amazon RDS for SQL Server and ORACLE.

Definitions
The following table contains terms and/or acronyms used in this document and the corresponding
definition.

Table 1: Definitions

Term/Acronym Definition

AD Active Directory
AWS Amazon Web Services
IOPS I/O Per Second
RDS Relational Data Service
VPC Virtual Private Cloud

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Advantages of using Amazon RDS
Time to deliver
 The Amazon RDS service allows for rapid deployment of new database instances that can be
setup in minutes rather than the traditional time required for server setup, database
instance install/configuration and customization.
 Proof of concept projects can now quickly stand up and test and idea and increase chances
of successfully proving an idea in a timely fashion.

Scalability
 The Amazon RDS allow for on demand scaling. Projects can now scale the infrastructure up
or down depending on current need. In house solutions had generally provided for the
highest use scenario which in many cases drove project costs up significantly. Amazon RDS
helps alleviate some of the burden early on in a project when it is difficult to determine the
proper sizing of a database in terms of resource utilization.

Operational
 Patching ,maintenance, backups done by vendor

Cost

 Amazon RDS can also help reduce the overall project cost in numerous ways. Eliminating
the need to purchase, setup, and maintain servers and database instances along with the
footprint reduction in data centers can greatly reduce cost.
 The model for usage is pay for utilization. Projects that only require infrastructure for a
specific period of time such as acceptance testing can now stand up a database instance for
a designated timeframe and then shut down the instance when complete. Project will only
pay for the instance during the time is was in use.

Predictable Performance

 The Amazon RDS Service allows the project to set/determine the IOPS requirement of the
database application. Amazon guarantees IOPS thereby providing our clients with consistent
database performance.

Regional independence

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  For projects that require a regional presence of the database instance, Amazon RDS provide
for locating services in the same region allowing for greater flexibility when deploying
solutions.

Disadvantages of using Amazon RDS

Vendor dependence

 Loss of control over the software application and becomes dependent on the provider to
maintain, update and manage it. If something goes wrong, the user does not have direct
access to the software and must depend on the provider to fix the problem. If the provider
is unresponsive or unable to fix the problem quickly, the user can experience significant
issues.
 May take longer to support newer product versions

Security/ Privacy and confidentiality areas

 By using a cloud system, Merck’s company sensitive data and information will be stored on
third-party servers. We rely on the provider security and encryption. If a breach of these
systems or procedures occurs for any reason, company’s private and confidential data may
become compromised. This could have many negative effects, and could cause legal
problems for Merck if third party confidential information (for example, customer
information) is compromised. Although VPC could can help mitigate this risk.

Technical Obstacles for SQL Server

 Amazon RDS for SQL Server does not support windows authentication. SQL
authenticated accounts are needed for application usage. Generally SQL Authentication
is considered less secure than windows authentication.
 Amazon RDS for SQL Server currently only supports static ports. Dynamic ports allows
for application code to exclude the port number in the connection string which provides
greater flexibility in code. Static ports will need to be included in application code.
 Loss of control over administrative functions thru normal SQL methods. Need to
provide training on Amazon procedures for administration.
 Merck monitoring tools not supported.
 SQL Server Enterprise Edition is not currently supported in the “license include” model.
SQL Enterprise Edition is only supported in the “bring your own license” model.
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 Technical Obstacles for Oracle

 Segregation of data, log, and control files is not possible.

 No access to OS
 No allowance for transaction log backups although snapshots are possible.
 Feature set is limited

Good candidates
 Non critical app although this does not rule out critical applications from using.
 Application and DB Tiers split and both are hosted in cloud
 Standard database features
 Merck user based only (no third party)

Undesirable Candidate
 Shop Floor and building management systems not good candidate due to the nature of
the application requirement to be physically located within the building where the work
is being done.
 Applications that require AD authentication would not be considered good candidates
for Amazon RDS since windows authentication is currently not supported.
 Application requiring SQL Server Enterprise Edition but not in a position to fund the
license cost upfront.
 Colocation of database and application on same node
 Applications requiring third party access outside of the Merck network
 SQL Server projects requiring :
o Reporting Services
o Analysis Services
o Maintenance Plans
o Database Mail
o Distributed Queries (i.e., Linked Servers)
o Transparent Data Encryption
o Database Log Shipping
o Database Mirroring
o Windows Authentication

 Oracle projects requiring :

o Real Application Clusters (RAC)
o Real Application Testing

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 o Data Guard / Active Data Guard
o Oracle Enterprise Manager Grid Control
o Automated Storage Management
o Database Vault
o Streams
o Java Support
o Locator
o Spatial
o Oracle XML DB Protocol Server
o Network access utilities such as utl_http, utl_tcp, utl_smtp, and utl_mail, are not
supported at this time.

RDS Options
Amazon RDS for SQL Server & Oracle
 Bring your own license - Microsoft’s License Mobility program allows customers who
already own SQL Server licenses to run SQL Server deployments on Amazon RDS.
This benefit is available to Microsoft Volume Licensing (VL) customers with SQL
Server licenses (currently including Standard and Enterprise Editions) covered by
active Microsoft Software Assurance (SA) contracts. Oracle also allows customers to
bring an existing license and utilize this model.
 License Included model - Under the "License Included" service model, you do not need
separately purchased Microsoft SQL Server licenses. "License Included" pricing is inclusive of
software, underlying hardware resources, and Amazon RDS management capabilities.
 On demand instance - On-Demand DB Instances for the License Included model let you pay
for compute capacity by the hour your DB Instance runs with no long-term commitments.
This may be a good option for projects requiring an instance for a very short period of time
during a POC or for a development /test instance which will only be used prior to go-live.
 Reserved instance – This option differs from the on-demand in that you pay upfront for a
longer term commitment such as 1 or 3 years. Amazon RDS provides three RDS Reserved
Instance types (Light, Medium, and Heavy Utilization Reserved Instances. See the following
link for a detailed description of each type and its appropriate use:
http://aws.amazon.com/rds/reserved-instances/
 Within each type of reserved instance you can further customize the type of instance class:

o Micro DB Instance: 630 MB memory, Up to 2 ECU (for short periodic bursts), 64-
bit platform, Low I/O Capacity, Provisioned IOPS Optimized: No

o Small DB Instance: 1.7 GB memory, 1 ECU (1 virtual core with 1 ECU), 64-bit
platform, Moderate I/O Capacity, Provisioned IOPS Optimized: No

o Medium DB Instance: 3.75 GB memory, 2 ECU (1 virtual core with 2 ECU), 64-bit
platform, Moderate I/O Capacity, Provisioned IOPS Optimized: No
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 o Large DB Instance: 7.5 GB memory, 4 ECUs (2 virtual cores with 2 ECUs each), 64-
bit platform, High I/O Capacity, Provisioned IOPS Optimized: 500Mbps

o Extra Large DB Instance: 15 GB of memory, 8 ECUs (4 virtual cores with 2 ECUs

each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity, Provisioned IOPS Optimized: 1000Mbps

o High-Memory Extra Large DB Instance 17.1 GB memory, 6.5 ECU (2 virtual cores
with 3.25 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity, Provisioned IOPS
Optimized: No

o High-Memory Double Extra Large DB Instance: 34 GB of memory, 13 ECUs (4

virtual cores with 3,25 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity, Provisioned
IOPS Optimized: 500Mbps

o High-Memory Quadruple Extra Large DB Instance: 68 GB of memory, 26 ECUs (8

virtual cores with 3.25 ECUs each), 64-bit platform, High I/O Capacity, Provisioned
IOPS Optimized: 1000Mbps

Pricing Models

 Utility based model for pricing (pay for what you use)
 On demand – flat hourly rate based on hours the instance is up and running
 Reserved – up-front yearly amount + lower hourly rate as compared to the on-demand.
Less expensive option for longer term instances.
 Per GB monthly charge
 For complete details pricing, please see : http://aws.amazon.com/rds/sqlserver/#pricing

Note: Distributed refreshes - Monthly charges for deploying a database in Amazon RDS are
computed based on multiple factors including network usage. Applications deployed in
heterogeneous locations (between AWS and Merck data centers) that need scheduled data
refreshes using MViews, DB links, etc. should be understood by the application teams.

Process for setup of instance

 EEA must be signed and approved
 Provide application requirements to DBA team so that proper sized environment can be
built. Memory, CPU, IOPS and storage needs.
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Operational Support
Standard Merck Operational Support model does not exist for Amazon deployed environments.

While the support model is being developed, application teams need to understand the risk associated
with support before proceeding with Amazon Deployment.

Application teams must agree to perform end to end testing of their applications if migrating from
Merck Standard platform to Amazon RDS. To avoid functional inconsistencies, all SDLC tiers must be
migrated to the new platform, when an application is being deployed in Amazon.

Appendix A
For further information about the Amazon RDS offering for SQL Server:

http://aws.amazon.com/rds/oracle/

http://aws.amazon.com/rds/sqlserver/

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