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Allocate costs based on workload metrics

Establishing policies to allocate costs based on workload metrics is essential for understanding and improving the cost efficiency of your AWS workloads. By linking costs to specific usage metrics or business outcomes, organizations can gain insight into where their resources are being utilized effectively and identify areas for improvement.

Best Practices

  • Utilize AWS Cost Allocation Tags: Implement AWS cost allocation tags to categorize and track costs by different workloads or projects. This practice allows for detailed reporting and better visibility into where costs are incurred, enabling informed decisions on resource optimization.
  • Use AWS Cost Explorer: Leverage AWS Cost Explorer to analyze cost and usage data over time. This tool helps visualize spending patterns, identify anomalies, and forecast future costs, allowing teams to adjust usage based on predicted expenses.

Supporting Questions

  • Are you measuring and analyzing costs in relation to workload performance metrics?
  • Do you have a structured process for reallocating costs based on usage analytics?

Roles and Responsibilities

  • Financial Analyst: Responsible for tracking and analyzing AWS spending, the Financial Analyst uses data from AWS Cost Explorer and allocation tags to provide insights and recommendations for cost optimization.
  • DevOps Engineer: The DevOps Engineer implements tagging policies and automates reporting to ensure accurate tracking of resources against workload metrics.

Artifacts

  • Cost Allocation Report: A report detailing the costs associated with each workload, segmented by defined cost categories such as service type, project, or center of cost.
  • Budget Forecast Document: An analytical document used to predict future budget requirements based on historical cost data and projected usage growth.

Cloud Services

AWS

  • AWS Cost Explorer: A tool that allows users to view and analyze their costs and usage patterns over time, helping them to identify trends and set budgets.
  • AWS Budgets: A service that provides alerts when costs exceed planned budgets, enabling proactive management of financial resources.
  • AWS Organizations: Facilitates cross-account billing, allowing businesses to manage multiple AWS accounts and allocate shared resources while maintaining control over costs.

Question: How do you monitor your cost and usage?
Pillar: Cost Optimization (Code: COST)

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