Web companies that rely on Amazon’s cloud computing service experienced downtime over the weekend when a problem with the AWS DynamoDB database resulted in outages. Affected services included Tinder, IMDb and Amazon’s own Instant Video and Books sites. Netflix, a well-known AWS user, experienced only a minimal disruption because the company had failover precautions in place that allowed it to switch quickly from the affected AWS region to a fully operational region.
Rob Enderle, principal analyst with Enderle Group, said this should be “a cautionary tale for any AWS customer.” He added, “In the end, Amazon does not have adequate failover protection, which means its customers need to make sure they do.”
