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Julius Mboya - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief technical officer at Solvezy Technology Kenya Limited
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
May 12, 2024
Ensures we can provision resources on demand, and we can grow and shrink them as per the traffic
Pros and Cons
  • "There's a lot of encryption across the setups to ensure that database credentials and everything related to security are well managed."
  • "We faced a challenge in regard to billing. It took a lot of time because our state is set up in Kenya, so we needed to pay in Kenya currency. We have to go around in circles."

What is our primary use case?

We have a business-to-business platform where we connect micro-enterprises to financial services. The solution is hosted in AWS and also has mobile components on the Google Play Store.

We use authorization on Kubernetes and various AWS services like S3 and databases. The entire suite can host a comprehensive ERP system within AWS.

What is most valuable?

Some of the good features are, first of all, due to scaling. It ensures we can provision resources on demand, and we can grow and shrink them as per the traffic. 

There are definitely security features around IAM and WAF that ensure the information is secured. There's a lot of encryption across the setups to ensure that database credentials and everything related to security are well managed. Their database product is good, and we are making maximum benefit out of it.

What needs improvement?

We faced a challenge in regard to billing. There was a time when we were working on changing the mode of payment from card to wire. It took a lot of time because our state is set up in Kenya, so we needed to pay in Kenya currency. We have to go around in circles.  There was a lot of documentation required, but we managed to go through successfully.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using it for one year. 

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Amazon EC2
March 2026
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would rate the stability a ten out of ten. It's a very stable product. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is a scalable product because it's IaaS and PaaS. You use it on demand, so it's computing on demand. That works for us. And there are also opportunities for enhanced cost savings in terms of serverless computing. We've used a couple, and at least it's good. So it's helping us to further reduce AWS costs.

The user base is approximately 120. As more users join the platform, the user base will definitely increase.

How are customer service and support?

I've had the best technical support experience I've ever had. Everything is resolved within the service level agreement. I'm happy.

How was the initial setup?

We did it ground up. We started from zero, created the account, set up the control tower, and started provisioning the resources. It was simplistic. It only requires you to have knowledge of AWS infrastructure, and from there, it's a straight sail.

What was our ROI?

I can't quantify ROI because it varies. Currently, my AWS bills from services that I use across various accounts.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We pay monthly. 

What other advice do I have?

Overall, I would rate the solution a ten out of ten. 

I would suggest using the free tier first. 

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Head Of Information Technology at Bquate Music
Real User
Apr 26, 2023
Simple setup, powerful computing capacity, and flexible.
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of Amazon EC2 is the computing capacity."
  • "The scalability could improve."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Amazon EC2 for two purposes for our customers, hosting the platform and storing assets.

How has it helped my organization?

If we were not able to use Amazon EC2, our customers would not be able to use the services we provide. The solution is critical for the services we provide.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of Amazon EC2 is the computing capacity.

What needs improvement?

The scalability could improve.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Amazon EC2 for approximately three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We have not had any issues.

I rate the stability of Amazon EC2 a ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable and flexible. However, it could improve.

We have approximately three instances running internally. We are expected to have more customers using this solution in the future.

I rate the scalability of Amazon EC2 a nine out of ten.

How are customer service and support?

I have not used the support from the vendor.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of Amazon EC2 is easy.

What was our ROI?

We have received a return on investment using Amazon EC2.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

When we did the deployment of Amazon EC2 we found it to be less expensive than other solutions.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate Amazon EC2 a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Amazon EC2
March 2026
Learn what your peers think about Amazon EC2. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2026.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.
MARCOS JUNIOR - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Instructor Coordinator at ELFA MEDICAMENTOS SA
Real User
Top 10
Apr 7, 2023
Extremely scalable, reliable, and simple to set up
Pros and Cons
  • "The initial setup is straightforward."
  • "It is a little too expensive."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution as a server. 

What is most valuable?

The scalability is very good. 

It is very stable. 

The initial setup is straightforward. 

What needs improvement?

We'd like to be able to scale without turning down the EC2 server. As of now, we have to turn it off in order to scale resources and then turn it on again. We'd like to upgrade and/or downgrade the server without shutting it down.

It is a little too expensive.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for a year or two. I haven't used it for that long. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable and reliable. There are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn't crash or freeze. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is very scalable. I'd rate the scalability a ten out of ten.

How are customer service and support?

I've never used the solution's technical support.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I'm also familiar with other cloud providers. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is not difficult at all. It is not overly complex. I'd rate the ease of setup eight out of ten.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I've found the pricing to be very expensive. I find it pricey compared to other options. 

What other advice do I have?

We're customers and end-users.

I'd advise new users to practice sizing and try to keep their environment according to their needs. If you have an oversized server, it will cost too much money.

I'd rate the solution at a ten out of ten overall. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Ibidapo Ibrahim - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of IT Infrastructure at a non-tech company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Apr 4, 2023
Good bandwidth, easy setup, and does not crash
Pros and Cons
  • "The amount of bandwidth has been most valuable."
  • "They have to provide clarity on pricing. It's not transparent."

What is our primary use case?

I've used it as a VBI. I've used it as a web application server. I'm also using it as an RGS server.

How has it helped my organization?

AWS has always been my go-to for labs, as I can't afford massive machines at home. Therefore, I go to AWS to test new services. It's a space and energy saver. 

What is most valuable?

The amount of bandwidth has been most valuable. 

It is stable and does not crash.

The product can scale.

Initially, setting up the product is easy.

What needs improvement?

They have to provide clarity on pricing. It's not transparent. I've never gone to production on AWS, as I've never been clear on what it would cost.

I'd like to test the sign-ons of AWS with Google or Microsoft.

For how long have I used the solution?

I started using the solution since 2016.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is very stable. I've never had a machine go down. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I'd rate the scalability very high. It can scale to however big you want. 

How are customer service and support?

I've never used technical support. I cannot speak to how helpful or responsive they would be. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. It is not overly complex. 

What was our ROI?

We have witnessed an ROI while using the solution. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing is too complex. I can't understand it. If I have a service and want to launch in AWS, I need to know what it would cost to run it over the course of the year. I need to know the cost of bandwidth and storage. They need to lay out what they are charging and what clients can expect. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I did not evaluate other options previously. 

What other advice do I have?

I'm not sure which version of the solution we're using. 

I'd advise others to make sure they understand pricing before diving in.

I would rate the solution nine out of ten. I really don't have anything bad to say about its capabilities. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Owner at MATR
Real User
Top 5
Mar 23, 2023
Beneficial VMs, highly scalable, and straightforward setup
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of Amazon EC2 is the virtual machines that are available."
  • "We have had some downtime using the solution."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Amazon EC2 for automation testing.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of Amazon EC2 is the virtual machines that are available.

What needs improvement?

If the cost of the solution was lower it would be a benefit.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Amazon EC2 for approximately four years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We have had some downtime using the solution.

I rate the stability of Amazon EC2 a nine out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have approximately 25 people using the solution. We do not plan to increase our usage.

I rate the scalability of Amazon EC2 a ten out of ten.

How are customer service and support?

The support in my limited usage was satisfactory.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I did not use other solutions similar to Amazon EC2.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of Amazon EC2 was straightforward and did not take long approximately 20 minutes. We deployed the solution manually.

What about the implementation team?

The solution was deployed in-house with two to three people.

What was our ROI?

We have received a return on investment using Amazon EC2.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Reducing the price of the solution could lead to an improvement.

What other advice do I have?

I rate Amazon EC2 a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Victor Bergman - PeerSpot reviewer
Executive Head of Technology at Imbali Customised Solutions (Pty) Ltd.
Real User
Aug 14, 2022
It is simple to install and deploy, but it makes installing an LLS certificate on WordPress difficult
Pros and Cons
  • "The flexibility of the security features is what is interesting."
  • "The only issue with EC2 is that it makes it difficult to install an LLS certificate on your WordPress website that you have deployed inside that virtual machine. That becomes complicated."

What is our primary use case?

We use Amazon EC2 for our virtual machines. For example, if a client wants thier website to work with WordPress, we can use EC2 to spin up a virtual machine and then run WordPress in that environment.

What is most valuable?

The flexibility of the security features is what is interesting.

What needs improvement?

The only issue with EC2 is that it makes it difficult to install an LLS certificate on your WordPress website that you have deployed inside that virtual machine. That becomes complicated. S3 is straightforward. But when you're hosting with EC2 then it becomes a problem.

I would like to see more user-friendly WordPress licensing. I am referring to WordPress LLS certificates. WordPress-hosted websites, otherwise, are very stable because the RDP never has these issues. 

I am a software developer, I also use it to host my own application service. In our company, we also create systems. I use it to run other servers inside an EC2 virtual machine. It's accessible, and it is stable.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with Amazon EC2 for three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Amazon EC2 is very stable. I have no issues with the stability of Amazon EC2.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Amazon EC2 is a scalable solution.

We have two Amazon EC2 clients.

How are customer service and support?

I have never had to use technical support for Amazon Web Services in general.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I am a consultant on all of the services that I have listed. F3, EC2, WorkMail. Obviously, F3 goes with Route 53.

I have been working with all of the products listed for three years.

I am starting from scratch with support and everything.

WorkMail is a bit expensive per user. That is something they must correct.

They provide excellent service, but it is too expensive for South Africans. We are losing clients because the price my clients pay for email alone is nearly equal to the price they pay for an entire Microsoft Office license, which includes email.

Where they will have Microsoft Word and other productivity tools, as well as email. And you will pay nearly that much for an email with WorkMail. It's far too costly. That is unaffordable.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward.

It works immediately. It's fast.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

You pay as you use it.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others who are interested in using it.

I would rate Amazon EC2 a seven out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
PeerSpot user
BharathKumar2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Database Administrator at Cartrack
Real User
Jun 3, 2022
You can adjust the instance type according to your needs
Pros and Cons
  • "EC2 provides a lot of flexibility. If you don't want to have a separate on-premise database, you can put it on the cloud with EC2. You can adjust the instance type according to your needs. You select a size and get a certain amount of specific memory, CPUs, etc. You set the redirect limit, and from there, you install the software, database servers, application servers, and whatever you want."
  • "The monitoring part could be improved. When we're building and configuring things or doing database replication, EC2's monitoring could provide more information. It's hard to find the information I need in the graphs they provide."

What is our primary use case?

We are using EC2 only for our test and backup servers, not really as a proxy server. Few users are working with EC2. It's only 10 people.

What is most valuable?

EC2 provides a lot of flexibility. If you don't want to have a separate on-premise database, you can put it on the cloud with EC2. You can adjust the instance type according to your needs. You select a size and get a certain amount of specific memory, CPUs, etc. You set the redirect limit, and from there, you install the software, database servers, application servers, and whatever you want. 

What needs improvement?

The monitoring part could be improved. When we're building and configuring things or doing database replication, EC2's monitoring could provide more information. It's hard to find the information I need in the graphs they provide.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using EC2 for about seven years.

How are customer service and support?

Amazon support is good.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We didn't switch to EC2 per se. We are still using all the solutions we had before. We still have our on-premise databases.

How was the initial setup?

Installing EC2 is straightforward. You set your user access and build it. It only takes about 10 to 20 minutes next. A single person can deploy it.

What was our ROI?

EC2 costs more than typical on-prem solutions, but there are tradeoffs because you can reduce infrastructure and staffing costs.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price of EC2 is on the higher end. There is no license. You pay for server data and usage like Amazon RDS.

What other advice do I have?

I rate Amazon EC2 10 out of 10. I highly recommend EC2. You should go for it if you can afford it.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
ASHOK YADAV - PeerSpot reviewer
Solutions Architect at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Apr 29, 2022
Customizable AMI, good on-prem connectivity, and good load balancing
Pros and Cons
  • "I like the AMI-related features. A very good feature of this solution is the customizable AMI. It is a very good feature provided by Amazon. The encryption technologies are also very good. We are using KMS, etc."
  • "They can build automatic features for ENSS or network drive. They have the Control-M feature. Similarly, they should have a feature for the network drive that can be mapped. I have not seen such a feature. They have a lot of products but those are quite costly. There is no cheaper option available for the EC2 instance for syncing two drives. If these features are available, it would be good."

What is our primary use case?

We are using EC2 for a couple of things. We have integration with Control-M. We have on-prem integration with the on-prem Control-M systems, and we are using EC2 for that. We are also using EC2 for ECS as a worker node.

What is most valuable?

I like the AMI-related features. A very good feature of this solution is the customizable AMI. It is a very good feature provided by Amazon. The encryption technologies are also very good. We are using KMS, etc.

Load balancing of EC2 is another good feature. If we have a group of EC2s, automated load balancing or auto-scaling is there. Auto Scaling features are very good features.

The connectivity with on-prem is also very much supported. We didn't face any problems there. We had a requirement to integrate with the Control-M system, which transfers the files from one system to another system. For some reason, we were not able to use the ready-made or out-of-box feature provided by Amazon. We had to basically simulate the whole thing with EC2, and we didn't face any problems with this integration.

Another good feature is that we can go and create EC2 over the cloud service. It has also been very useful for data science purposes.

What needs improvement?

They can build automatic features for ENSS or network drive. They have the Control-M feature. Similarly, they should have a feature for the network drive that can be mapped. I have not seen such a feature. They have a lot of products but those are quite costly. There is no cheaper option available for the EC2 instance for syncing two drives. If these features are available, it would be good.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is stable. So far, there have been no issues. I didn't get any complaints regarding EC2.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

There might be more than 200 people working on EC2.

How are customer service and support?

I didn't contact them for this solution.

How was the initial setup?

It is straightforward. When I first brought up the EC2 instance, I was still learning, and it hardly took 5 to 10 minutes.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others. I would rate it an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user