A Cloud Architect plays a pivotal role in developing the computing strategy in an organisation. The primary responsibility of a cloud architect is to provide expertise on cloud infrastructure to the development teams. Armed with a good understanding of cloud concepts, networking, cloud security and such, a Cloud Architect runs the cloud environments and offers expert guidance to the development teams in an organisation.
Here are the top eight interview questions for aspiring cloud architects.
1|Name some cloud providers. Compare any two popular Cloud Service Providers
Solution: Some of the best and fastest growing cloud service providers for B2B data analytics, AI and more-
- Amazon Web Services
- Google Cloud Platform
- Microsoft Azure
- IBM Cloud
- Snowflake
- Databricks
- DataRobot
- Sisense
Amazon Web Service (AWS) is the oldest player in the cloud computing services market. AWS brought in nearly $10 billion in quarterly sales, hitting a $40 billion annual run rate, four times the projection for Google.
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2| How can you speed up large data transfers on cloud?
Solution: One of the best methods for transferring big data files to the cloud is to use hybrid transfer protocol, also known as Accelerated File Transfer Protocol or AFTP. This protocol is a TCP/UDP hybrid with the capability to boost file transfer speeds up to 100%. Also, sometimes poor network conditions can limit you from exploring the potential of big data cloud computing. One of the best ways to handle this problem is by avoiding an internet file transfer altogether and shipping the portable storage devices containing data to the cloud service providers.
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3| Discuss the strategy for application migration to the cloud
Solution: The complexity of migrating existing applications differs as it depends on the architecture and existing licensing arrangements. Some of the important cloud migration strategies include-
- Outlining the business objectives through the cloud.
- Getting the right professionals
- Conducting a comprehensive business as well as technical analysis of the current environment, apps, and infrastructure.
- Deciding on cloud vendors
- Creating a cloud roadmap
- Getting your application cloud-ready using migration models, such as Lift and Shift (Rehost) and Rearchitect (Refactor).
- Creating a data migration plan
- Testing and switching to production
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4| What is the use/ importance of API Gateway?
Solution: An API gateway is an API management tool which lies between clients and a collection of backend services. API gateway acts as a reverse proxy in order to accept all the application programming interface calls, aggregate the different services needed to fulfill them, and return the appropriate result.
API gateways are the way to decouple the client interface from backend implementation. When a client makes a request, the API gateway breaks it into various requests and routes them to the right places, produces a response, as well as keeps track of everything.
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5| Why do you use subnets?
Solution: A subnet, or subnetwork, is a segmented piece of a larger network. More specifically, subnets are a logical partition of an IP network into multiple, smaller network segments. Organisations use them to sub-divide larger networks into smaller, more efficient subnetworks. One key goal of a subnet is to split a large network into a grouping of smaller, interconnected networks to help minimise traffic. This way, traffic doesn’t have to flow through unnecessary routes, increasing network speeds.
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6| Mention some best practices for Cloud Security.
Solution: From storing data to accessing productivity tools, cloud services are used for multiple purposes in corporate environments. Here are some of the best practices-
- Focus on understanding your current state and assessing risk
- Strategically apply protection to your cloud services as per the level of risk
- Adjust cloud access policies as new services emerge
- Remove malware from a cloud service.
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7| What is a cloud migration strategy? How do you orchestrate one?
Solution: A cloud migration strategy is the plan an organisation makes to move its data and applications from an on-premises architecture to the cloud. There are various approaches, such as Rehosting (“lift and shift”), replatforming, repurchasing, refactoring, etc. Some of the basic cloud migration steps are as follows-
- Planning your migration
- Choosing your cloud environment
- Migrating your apps and data
- Validating post-move success
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8| How do you connect on-premise applications to cloud infrastructure?
Solution: An effective way to utilise the cloud is to connect on premise systems to a cloud system by creating a hybrid cloud environment. One of the options for connecting on-premise environment and your cloud environment is a VPN. For instance, in case of AWS VPC VPN, it creates an encrypted private channel for transferring data between your on premise network and your Amazon VPC network. AWS Direct Connect is another method to connect an on premise system to the cloud. It operates by linking the internal network to an AWS Direct Connect location.
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Wrapping Up
If you are prepping for your cloud architect interview, the above-mentioned questions will surely help you to ace the test. Also, it is important to mention that based on your experience in the cloud computing environment, you may be asked a few questions such as-
- If something were to go wrong in your organisation’s cloud, how do you make it right?
- Explain how you helped your organisation benefit from cloud-based solutions.
- Describe your experience in cloud migration in which you played a hands-on role.
