assignment

AWS VPC Lab Session: Step-by-Step Practice Guide

Follow these detailed instructions to replicate the AWS VPC class lab, building a functional multi-subnet VPC with routing, gateways, and EC2 instances.

1

Preparation

• Log into AWS Console with your credentials.

• Ensure your AWS region is set (preferably the default from your organization or "N. Virginia" for practice).

2

Create the VPC

• Go to Services > VPC.

• Click "Create VPC".

  • Name: svm-vpc-01

  • IPv4 CIDR block: 10.0.0.0/27 (provides 32 IPs: 10.0.0.0–10.0.0.31)

  • Leave IPv6 CIDR empty (unless needed)

  • Tenancy: Default

• Click Create VPC.

3

Add Subnets

• Navigate to "Subnets" > Create subnet.

• VPC: Select svm-vpc-01.

For Public Subnet:

• Subnet name: Nimbus-public

• Availability Zone: Pick one (e.g., us-east-1a)

• IPv4 CIDR block: 10.0.0.0/28 (IPs 10.0.0.0–10.0.0.15)

• Click Add subnet.

For Private Subnet:

• Subnet name: Nimbus-private

• Availability Zone: Pick another or same

• IPv4 CIDR block: 10.0.0.16/28 (IPs 10.0.0.16–10.0.0.31)

• Click Create subnet.

4

Create Route Tables

• Go to "Route Tables" > Create route table.

  • Name: rd-public

  • VPC: svm-vpc-01

• Click Create route table.

Repeat for private subnet:

• Name: rd-private

• VPC: svm-vpc-01

• Click Create route table.

You should now have two custom route tables.

5

Set Up Internet Gateway (IGW)

• Navigate to "Internet Gateways" > Create internet gateway.

  • Name: Nimbus-icw

• Click Create internet gateway.

• Select the gateway and click Actions > Attach to VPC.

  • Select svm-vpc-01.

• Click Attach internet gateway.

6

Allocate Elastic IP (EIP)

• Go to "Elastic IPs" > Allocate Elastic IP address.

  • Click Allocate (leave settings at default).

You now have a static EIP for NAT Gateway use.

7

Create NAT Gateway

• Navigate to "NAT Gateways" > Create NAT gateway.

  • Subnet: Select Nimbus-public.

  • Elastic IP: Choose the one just allocated.

  • Name: e.g., windows-nat

• Click Create NAT gateway.

• Wait for the NAT Gateway status to become "Available".

8

Associate Subnets to Route Tables

• Go to "Route Tables".

Select rd-public:

• Click Subnet associations > Edit subnet associations.

• Check Nimbus-public.

• Save.

Select rd-private:

• Click Subnet associations > Edit subnet associations.

• Check Nimbus-private.

• Save.

9

Configure Route Table Routes

Public Route Table (rd-public):

• Select rd-public.

• Under Routes > Edit routes > Add route:

  • Destination: 0.0.0.0/0

  • Target: Internet Gateway > Select Nimbus-icw

• Save changes.

Private Route Table (rd-private):

• Select rd-private.

• Under Routes > Edit routes > Add route:

  • Destination: 0.0.0.0/0

  • Target: NAT Gateway > Select your NAT

• Save changes.

10

(Optional) Review Security Groups

• Default security group allows all outbound, but restricts inbound. For practice, you can adjust or create a new group as needed:

  • Allow SSH (port 22) or RDP (port 3389) from your own IP to connect to EC2.

11

Launch EC2 Instances

• Go to "EC2 > Instances" > Launch Instance.

For the public instance:

• Name: public-instance

• AMI: Amazon Linux 2 or Windows (as preferred)

• Subnet: Nimbus-public

• Auto-assign Public IP: Enable (for public instance)

• Security Group: Select one allowing SSH/RDP from your IP

• Click Launch instance

For the private instance:

• Name: private-instance

• Subnet: Nimbus-private

• Auto-assign Public IP: Disable (will not be internet-accessible directly)

• Security Group: As above

12

Test Connectivity

• SSH/RDP into your public instance using the public IP.

• From the public instance, attempt to access the private instance (private IP).

• For outbound internet:

  • From the private instance, use CLI (ping, curl, etc.) to verify outbound connectivity (internet works via NAT Gateway).

• Private instance is not reachable directly from the internet (secured).

13

Clean Up

• Delete Elastic IP if no longer needed (otherwise, charges may apply).

• Terminate EC2 instances and remove resources after practice.

Best Practices

• Always associate NAT Gateway with a public subnet.

• Never keep unused Elastic IP addresses.

• Use least privilege on security group rules.

• Map subnets deliberately to correct route tables for proper traffic flow.