Case Study - Corporate Warranties

Corporate Warranties was operating a Windows-based, database-intensive AWS environment supporting customer-facing and backend workloads. As transaction volumes and data size increased, the organization faced challenges around:

• Sustaining application performance under high load
• Managing large storage volumes and backups efficiently
• Reducing operational risk from legacy configurations
• Strengthening security and access controls
• Gaining visibility into infrastructure utilization and costs

They required a trusted AWS MSP to provide proactive operations, monitoring, optimization, and governance.

Key Challenges

• High Application Load:
  The core application server (CW-APP) consistently operated at ~99% CPU utilization, risking performance degradation and service instability.
• Large Database Footprint:
  The database server (CW-DB) ran on a high-memory instance with large attached volumes, requiring careful backup, monitoring, and cost control.
• Legacy Security Configurations:
  Several security groups had multiple public ports open, increasing exposure and compliance risk.
• Limited Observability:
  RAM and disk metrics were unavailable on key servers due to missing CloudWatch Agent configuration.
• Cost Management:
  Rising monthly AWS bills required proactive cost governance and storage optimization.

i2k2 Networks implemented a structured AWS Managed Services model focused on performance stability, data protection, security hardening, and cost efficiency.

Key AWS Services Managed

• Amazon EC2 (Windows & Linux workloads)
• Amazon EBS (gp3 volumes)
• Amazon S3
• AWS Backup
• AWS Lambda
• Amazon CloudWatch
• Amazon SNS
• AWS IAM
• Amazon Route 53

Solution Highlights

1. Compute & Infrastructure Management

• Managed business-critical EC2 instances:
• CW-APP: Application server (Windows, m5.xlarge)
• CW-DB: Database server (Windows, m5a.8xlarge)
• CW-OpenVPN: Secure remote access server
• Continuous monitoring of CPU utilization and system health
• Identified performance risks due to sustained high CPU usage on CW-APP

2. Storage & Backup Management

• Reviewed and managed multiple large gp3 EBS volumes (up to 550 GB)
• Identified unused and underutilized volumes to reduce storage costs
• Implemented AWS Backup plans:
• 7-day retention for short-term recovery
• 1-year retention for long-term compliance
• Automated backup coverage for application and database servers

3. Automation & Housekeeping

• AWS Lambda functions used for:
• AMI backup automation
• AMI cleanup and lifecycle management
• Reduced manual effort and improved operational consistency

Security & Compliance

i2k2 Networks strengthened the security posture through:

• IAM Governance
• Identified IAM users with access keys older than 90 days
• Recommended key rotation and MFA enforcement
• Network Security Review
• Audited security groups with publicly exposed ports
• Recommended restricting access to:
• Required ports only (80/443 where applicable)
• Trusted IP ranges for admin and database access
• DNS Governance
• Managed Route 53 hosted zones for multiple domains across regions

Monitoring & Operational Visibility

• CloudWatch metrics analyzed for CPU, RAM, and disk utilization
• Identified gaps where CloudWatch Agent was not installed
• Recommended:
• Enabling full OS-level monitoring
• Configuring alarms for CPU, RAM, and disk thresholds
• SNS integrated for operational alerts and notifications

Performance Optimization

• Observed sustained 99% CPU utilization on CW-APP, indicating:
• Need for instance resizing, or
• Application-level optimization
• Provided recommendations to:
• Upgrade instance type
• Review application architecture and load patterns

Cost Optimization & Financial Governance

• Identified unused EBS volumes contributing to unnecessary costs
• Reviewed bandwidth consumption and monthly AWS spend
• Monthly AWS bill trends ranged from USD 3,200 to USD 8,300+
• Provided actionable recommendations for:
• Storage cleanup
• Resource optimization
• Ongoing cost monitoring

• Improved Reliability
  Proactive monitoring reduced the risk of unplanned outages.
• Enhanced Data Protection
  Automated backups ensured application and database recoverability.
• Stronger Security Posture
  Reduced exposure by tightening IAM and network access.
• Operational Efficiency
  Automation reduced manual intervention and operational overhead.
• Cost Transparency
  Clear visibility into infrastructure utilization and AWS spend.

• 26+ years of experience in hosting and cloud services
• Dedicated AWS Managed Services practice
• 24×7 monitoring and support
• Strong expertise in Windows-based and database-heavy workloads
• Proven ability to stabilize and optimize legacy AWS environments