Coding Challenge: Deploying a Web Server in AWS EKS

Description

Welcome to the G2 DevOps coding challenge! This challenge is designed to assess your ability to deploy and manage a web server in a cloud environment using modern DevOps tools and practices. You will create a running web server that displays "Welcome to G2" when accessed via a web browser. The challenge involves setting up an Nginx container within an EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service) cluster on AWS, managing infrastructure as code with Terraform, and implementing a CI/CD pipeline using GitHub Actions for automated deployments.

Objective

Create a running web server that displays "Welcome to G2" when accessed via a web browser.

Challenge Requirements

1. Web Server URL:

   • The web server should be accessible at: https://interview.devops.g2.com

2. Deployment Environment:

   • The web server must run in an Nginx container within an EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service) cluster on AWS.

3. Infrastructure as Code:

   • All AWS and EKS resources should be provisioned using Terraform.

4. Continuous Deployment:

   • Implement automated deployment of code changes to AWS using GitHub Actions.

5. Security and Cost Optimization:

   • Ensure that security best practices and cost optimization strategies are applied throughout the solution.

6. Real-Time Content Updates:

   • Demonstrate the ability to update the web page content in real-time by modifying the code in the GitHub repository.

Access Provided

1. AWS Account:

   • Read-only access to the G2 devops-sandbox AWS account console.

2. GitHub Repository:

   • Admin access to the GitHub repository named devops-interview.
   • The repository will contain AWS keys stored as secrets.

Steps to Complete the Challenge

1. Set Up EKS Cluster:

   • Use Terraform to create an EKS cluster in AWS.
   • IMPORTANT: all AWS resources must be creates in us-east-1 region (Virginia)

2. Configure Nginx Web Server:

   • Deploy an Nginx container in the EKS cluster that serves the "Welcome to G2" page.

3. Automate Infrastructure Deployment:

   • Ensure all infrastructure (EKS, networking, IAM roles, etc.) is managed and deployed using Terraform scripts.

4. Implement CI/CD Pipeline:

   • Set up GitHub Actions to automatically deploy changes to the Nginx web server in AWS.

5. Security and Cost Management:

   • Apply best practices for securing AWS resources and optimizing costs, such as using IAM roles with least privilege, enabling logging and monitoring, and selecting cost-effective instance types.

6. Real-Time Content Update:

   • Modify the web page content in the GitHub repository and demonstrate that changes are automatically reflected on the web server.

Resources

• G2 devops-sandbox AWS account (read-only access)
• devops-interview GitHub repository (admin access with AWS keys stored as secrets)

By following these steps, you will demonstrate your ability to set up and manage a scalable, secure, and cost-effective web server infrastructure in AWS, leveraging modern DevOps practices and tools. This challenge will test your proficiency in Terraform, Kubernetes, AWS, CI/CD pipelines, and best practices in security and cost management.