Metrics data are available for 2 weeks. If you want to store metrics data beyond that duration, you can retrieve it using our GetMetricStatistics API as well as a number of applications and tools offered by AWS partners.

Reference:

https://aws.amazon.com/cloudwatch/faqs/

This is the complete list of Intrinsic Functions...: Fn::Base64, Fn::And, Fn::Equals, Fn::If, Fn::Not, Fn::Or, Fn::FindInMap, Fn::GetAtt, Fn::GetAZs, Fn::Join,

Fn::Select -

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSCloudFormation/latest/UserGuide/intrinsic-functionreference.html

Code is a property of the AWS::Lambda::Function resource that enables to you specify the source code of an AWS Lambda (Lambda) function. You can point to a file in an Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) bucket or specify your source code as inline text (for nodejs runtime environments only).

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSCloudFormation/latest/UserGuide/template-customresources.html

Latency Based Records allow request distribution when all is well with both regions, and the Failover component enables fallbacks between regions. By adding in the ELB and ASG, your system in the surviving region can expand to meet 100% of demand instead of the original fraction, whenever failover occurs.

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/Route53/latest/DeveloperGuide/dns-failover.html

Standard volumes, or Magnetic volumes, are best for: Cold workloads where data is infrequently accessed, or scenarios where the lowest storage cost is important.

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/EBSVolumeTypes.html

Custom resources provide a way for you to write custom provisioning logic in AWS CloudFormation template and have AWS CloudFormation run it during a stack operation, such as when you create, update or delete a stack. For more information, see Custom Resources.

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSCloudFormation/latest/UserGuide/template-customresources.html

You must use AD Connector as a power-user of Microsoft Active Directory. Simple AD only works with a subset of AD functionality. Sync Domains do not exist; they are made up answers. AD Connector is a directory gateway that allows you to proxy directory requests to your on-premises Microsoft Active Directory, without caching any information in the cloud. AD Connector comes in 2 sizes; small and large. A small AD Connector is designed for smaller organizations of up to

500 users. A large AD Connector is designed for larger organizations of up to 5,000 users.

Reference:

https://aws.amazon.com/directoryservice/details/

AWS OpsWorks supports the following instance types, which are characterized by how they are started and stopped. 24/7 instances are started manually and run until you stop them.Time-based instances are run by AWS OpsWorks on a specified daily and weekly schedule. They allow your stack to automatically adjust the number of instances to accommodate predictable usage patterns. Load-based instances are automatically started and stopped by AWS

OpsWorks, based on specified load metrics, such as CPU utilization. They allow your stack to automatically adjust the number of instances to accommodate variations in incoming traffic. Load-based instances are available only for Linux-based stacks.

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/opsworks/latest/userguide/welcome.html

This is the complete list of CloudFormation Helper Scripts: cfn-init, cfn-signal, cfn-get-metadata, cfn-hup

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSCloudFormation/latest/UserGuide/cfn-helper-scriptsreference.html

Putting all resources in one stack is a bad idea, since different tiers have different life cycles and frequencies of change. For additional guidance about organizing your stacks, you can use two common frameworks: a multi-layered architecture and service-oriented architecture (SOA).

Reference:

http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSCloudFormation/latest/UserGuide/bestpractices.html#organizingstacks