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  • 7 min read

A Beginner's Guide to AWS S3 Block Public Access

S3 is an incredibly useful service for storing and sharing a vast variety of files. Due to its ability to store files in a bucket accessible to a broad audience, it is even possible to host a static website. The first "S" in the acronym S3 stands for "Simple." But is it actually so simple when it comes to public access? In this article, I will try to comprehensively figure out the thing that baffles me each time I come across it: the "Block public access" configuration.

  • 8 min read

Deploying React application with AWS Amplify

AWS has long allowed users to host their static websites using S3 buckets. While this is a very simple and reliable solution, sometimes there is a need for a more complex application. AWS addresses this need with AWS Amplify Gen 2. In this article, I'm going to show you how to create and serve a React application utilizing its power.

  • 6 min read

Hidden files in an S3 bucket

Recently, during a routine backup procedure for personal files, I discovered that my private bucket, which should contain only one archive, for some reason has approximately 500 objects in it. This surprised me greatly, and I decided to investigate what the issue was and how it happened.

  • 9 min read

How to minimize docker image size: 4 key approaches

Containers have been a dominant force in the Internet landscape for nearly two decades. Their popularity stems not only from their convenience but also from the ease of creation and setup. I’m certainly not the first to acknowledge that containers are an incredibly useful tool, and I won’t be the last. Like any tool, however, they can be used quickly or they can be used effectively. Today, we will focus on the latter: optimizing application efficiency by reducing the container's size and examining the trade-offs in terms of size, complexity, and build time.

  • 15 min read

Solving Sad Servers scenarios: part 2

In this series of articles, I will attempt to solve scenarios from the website "Sad Servers" and provide detailed explanations of the tasks and solutions. The website is described as "Like LeetCode for Linux", offering opportunities to train and improve debugging and operating skills with Linux.

Part 2 includes scenarios 11 to 20.

  • 2 min read

First year overview

Exactly one year ago, on August 24, 2023, I published my first blog post. Since then, one year has passed, 14 posts have been written, and some other events have happened. I love numbers, so I decided to gather some statistics for the past year and publish them here for your, dear reader, joy, and my own clarity.

  • 11 min read

Solving Sad Servers scenarios: part 1

In this series of articles, I will attempt to solve scenarios from the website "Sad Servers" and provide detailed explanations of the tasks and solutions. The website is described as "Like LeetCode for Linux", offering opportunities to train and improve debugging and operating skills with Linux.

Part 1 includes scenarios 1 to 11 (scenario 10 is locked behind a paywall and will be discussed in another article).

  • 6 min read

AWS open-sourced Secrets Manager Agent: what does that mean?

A few days ago, AWS open-sourced1 its Secrets Manager Agent, which is designed to help us users fetch secrets more easily and securely. Let's take a look at what it is, compare it with existing solutions, discuss its potential applications and limitations and how it may help us (or not) in our day-to-day operations.

  • 3 min read

Checking IAM policy length using Terraform

Terraform, apart from being an incredible tool overall, is very good for managing IAM policies: it's straightforward, easy to maintain, and very flexible. I've seen a lot of guides on using Terraform for managing infrastructure in general and IAM specifically, but I haven't seen any implementing an important but not very common feature — validating IAM policy length. So I decided to create one.

  • 4 min read

Story time: how I locked myself out of root account and how I fixed it

Yet another reason why I love Linux is the ability to shoot myself in the leg and still be able to do something about it (or not). This approach allows very deep configuration and understanding of the system, but at the same time, it teaches users to be cautious of their actions. Today, I would like to tell a story about how I locked myself out of root access (easy) and fixed it afterward (not easy).