AWS ELB
Elastic Load Balancing automatically distributes incoming traffic across EC2 instances, containers, Lambda functions, and IP addresses in multiple Availability Zones.
What is ELB? (Simple Explanation)
Think of ELB like a traffic cop at a busy intersection. It directs incoming requests to the least busy server, so no single server gets overwhelmed.
When Would You Use ELB?
- High-availability application architectures
- Microservices traffic routing
- SSL/TLS termination
- Internal service communication
Who Uses ELB?
From startups to enterprises, ELB powers:
What Makes ELB Powerful
ELB Pricing & Free Tier
Free Tier: 1GB data transfer out (12 months), 750 hours of ELB (12 months). Pay-as-you-go from ~$0.025/GB for CloudFront.
ELB Best Practices
- 1Use VPC Flow Logs for network traffic monitoring and threat detection
- 2Restrict security group inbound rules to specific CIDR ranges (never 0.0.0.0/0 for SSH/RDP)
- 3Use VPC Endpoints to keep traffic to AWS services off the public internet
- 4Enable WAF with managed rules (AWS Managed Core Rule Set) on all public-facing load balancers
- 5Use Transit Gateway instead of VPC peering mesh for >5 VPCs
Getting Started with ELB in 5 Minutes
- 1Open the AWS Console and navigate to ELB
- 2Click "Create" and define your network scope (VPC, subnets, region)
- 3Configure routing, security, and access controls
- 4Review and create — test connectivity before routing production traffic
ELB CLI Quick Reference
2 production-ready commands. Full CLI Library (225+ services) →
aws elbv2 describe-load-balancers --query 'LoadBalancers[*].{Name:LoadBalancerName,Type:Type,Scheme:Scheme,DNS:DNSName,State:State.Code}' --output tableList all ALBs/NLBs with type and DNSaws elbv2 describe-target-health --target-group-arn arn:aws:elasticloadbalancing:us-east-1:xxx:targetgroup/my-tg/xxxCheck target health statusPros & Cons of ELB
Pros
- ALB — Layer 7 HTTP/HTTPS routing
- NLB — Layer 4 ultra-high performance
- GWLB — transparent network appliance deployment
- Path-based, host-based, and header-based routing
- Built-in ACM integration for TLS certificates
Cons
- ✕Data transfer costs are notoriously difficult to predict — egress is the #1 hidden cost
- ✕Network ACL and Security Group rules can conflict in complex multi-tier apps
- ✕VPC design mistakes (overlapping CIDRs) are painful to fix after resources are deployed
ELB vs Alternatives
ELB vs EC2
Choose ELB for High-availability application architectures and Microservices traffic routing. It excels at alb — layer 7 http/https routing.
Choose EC2 as an alternative when your requirements differ. Each service in the Network category serves different architectural patterns.
Services That Work with ELB
ELB is rarely used alone. It is typically combined with:
Compliance & Security
How AWS ELB fits into major compliance standards. Browse all 41 frameworks →
ELB configuration is audited by CIS Benchmarks v1.5–v3.0 for secure cloud defaults.
NIST 800-53ELB access controls, encryption, and audit logging map to NIST 800-53 AC, SC, and AU control families.
PCI DSS 4.0ELB encryption, access control, and logging support PCI DSS for cardholder data environments.
SOC 2ELB security, availability, and confidentiality controls evaluated under SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria.
ISO 27001ELB configuration and monitoring controls map to ISO 27001 Annex A information security management.
Frequently Asked Questions About ELB
What is AWS ELB?
Elastic Load Balancing automatically distributes incoming traffic across EC2 instances, containers, Lambda functions, and IP addresses in multiple Availability Zones.
What is ELB used for?
ELB is commonly used for: High-availability application architectures; Microservices traffic routing; SSL/TLS termination; Internal service communication. It's a core service in the network category of AWS.
Is ELB free?
Free Tier: 1GB data transfer out (12 months), 750 hours of ELB (12 months). Pay-as-you-go from ~$0.025/GB for CloudFront.
What are the key features of ELB?
ELB's most important capabilities include: ALB — Layer 7 HTTP/HTTPS routing. NLB — Layer 4 ultra-high performance. GWLB — transparent network appliance deployment. Path-based, host-based, and header-based routing. Built-in ACM integration for TLS certificates. Each of these is designed to help teams high-availability application architectures.
How does ELB compare to alternatives?
ELB competes with both AWS-native alternatives (EC2, ECS, Lambda) and third-party equivalents. The right choice depends on your specific requirements for scalability, cost, and operational overhead. See the comparisons section below for detailed guidance.
Which compliance frameworks apply to ELB?
CIS AWS v3.0: ELB configuration is audited by CIS Benchmarks v1.5–v3.0 for secure cloud defaults. NIST 800-53: ELB access controls, encryption, and audit logging map to NIST 800-53 AC, SC, and AU control families. PCI DSS 4.0: ELB encryption, access control, and logging support PCI DSS for cardholder data environments. SOC 2: ELB security, availability, and confidentiality controls evaluated under SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria. ISO 27001: ELB configuration and monitoring controls map to ISO 27001 Annex A information security management.
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