AWS Systems Manager (SSM) service use case explained in the STAR method

Situation: A large financial services company with over 10,000 employees and multiple data centers needed to streamline their server management and maintenance processes.

Task: The company needed a solution that could help them efficiently manage their large fleet of servers, across multiple regions and data centers, while maintaining high security standards.

Action: The company decided to implement AWS Systems Manager (SSM) to automate their server management tasks and ensure consistent server configurations across their environment. They used the following AWS SSM features:

Run Command: They used Run Command to remotely execute commands on their servers, such as running updates, installing patches, and configuring settings, without having to log in to each server individually.

Patch Manager: They used Patch Manager to automate the process of patching their servers, ensuring that all servers were up to date with the latest security patches.

State Manager: They used State Manager to define and enforce server configurations, ensuring that all servers were configured to meet the company's security standards.

Inventory: They used Inventory to collect metadata about their servers, including installed software, network configuration, and system resource utilization, which helped them with compliance audits and troubleshooting.

Result: By implementing AWS SSM, the company was able to significantly reduce the time and effort required to manage their server fleet, while maintaining high security standards. They were also able to gain better visibility into their server environment, which helped them improve their compliance posture and reduce the risk of security breaches.