Shocking Cloud Costs: How AWS Charged My Customer $800,000 for Egress Data Transfer in a Single Month

A shocking tale of cloud costs and the dirty secret of cloud vendors to maintain customer loyalty

In today’s tech-centric world, the decision to migrate to the cloud can be a game-changer for businesses.

This story unravels a shocking and unexpected turn of events in the cloud journey of one of my customers, a company in the Oil and Gas industry.

Little did they know that their choice to move 13 petabytes of data to an AWS region in Stockholm, Sweden, would lead to unforeseen egress data transfer charges that would send their AWS bill skyrocketing.

Let’s cut to the chase and dive right in!

A Bold Move to the Cloud

Migrating to the cloud is a monumental step for any business.

For my customer in the Oil and Gas sector, this move promised more scalability, flexibility, and accessibility to their data.

With the trusty AWS services by their side, they successfully migrated 13 petabytes of data to the AWS Stockholm region, setting the stage for their cloud adventure.

A Twist in the Tale

Just when things seemed to be going smoothly, the Norwegian governing body threw a curveball.

They mandated that the customer keep a local copy of their data in Norway, revealing a surprising and unplanned requirement.

However, AWS had no data centers in Norway at the time (and they still don’t). This unexpected twist sent shockwaves through the customer’s migration plans.

Bandwidth Battles

With a tight one-month window to comply with the Norwegian requirement, the customer initiated the process of moving their data back from the AWS Stockholm region to a Microsoft Azure data center in Norway.

The scale of this operation was immense, and the customer’s data transfer efforts consumed the entire AWS bandwidth in the Stockholm region.

Other AWS customers began to feel the consequences, with throttled API calls and degraded S3 performance.

The Shocker — A Hefty AWS Bill

When my customer received their AWS bill for the following month, they were in for a staggering surprise.

Their average monthly AWS spend, which typically hovered around 1 million dollars, had spiked to 1.8 million dollars.

Panic set in as they grappled with the sudden and substantial increase in costs.

Unveiling the Egress Data Transfer Charges

The customer reached out to me for help, and we embarked on a mission to uncover the mystery behind the exorbitant bill.

Utilizing AWS Cost Explorer, we meticulously examined their cost breakdown and pinpointed the $800,000 surge in Amazon S3 costs.

The revelation? Egress data transfer charges were the primary culprits behind this shocking cost spike.

The Cloud Vendor’s Strategy

Cloud vendors have devised a clever pricing model that spares customers from incurring ingress charges but takes a significant toll when data departs the cloud.

This approach, though unexpected to many, plays a crucial role in cementing vendor loyalty.

It effectively dissuades customers from transitioning back to on-premises solutions or exploring alternative cloud providers, thereby molding the landscape of the cloud industry.

Lessons Learned and Implications

Reflecting on this eye-opening experience, we discover valuable lessons for customers in the cloud era.

Understanding pricing structures and proactively managing costs become critical skills.

This section shares insights on how customers can navigate cloud costs effectively and make informed decisions.

In a Nutshell

As we wrap up this shocking tale of egress data transfer charges, we encourage readers to ponder the broader implications of cloud vendor pricing strategies.

The story of my customer serves as a reminder that the world of cloud services is not as straightforward as it may seem.

Informed decision-making and vigilant cost management are key to a successful and cost-effective cloud journey.

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Author: Usman Aslam (Principal AWS Solutions Architect)

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