Enhancing CloudFormation Deployments with SNS Notifications in AWS

Module 8: CloudFormation Assignment - 3

Problem Statement: You work for XYZ Corporation. Your team is asked to deploy similar architecture multiple times for testing, development, and production purposes. Implement CloudFormation for the tasks assigned to you below.

Tasks To Be Performed:

1. Use the template from CloudFormation task 1.
2. Add Notification to the CloudFormation stack using SNS so that you get a notification via mail for every step of the stack creation process.

1. I’ll Create the SNS Topic in the AWS Console:

   • I’ll log into my AWS Management Console.
   • I’ll search for “SNS” or “Simple Notification Service” in the Services dropdown and select it.
   • I’ll click on “Topics” in the left sidebar and then on “Create topic”.
   • I’ll make sure to select “Standard” as the type because FIFO topics don’t offer email subscription
   • I’ll provide a name for my topic CloudFormationNotifications, and then click on “Create topic”.
   • Once my topic is created, I’ll click on it to see its details. I need to remember to copy the Topic ARN because I’ll use it later.
     ARN: arn:aws:sns:us-east-1:838427752759:CloudFormationNotifications

2. I’ll Subscribe My Email to the SNS Topic:

   • While I’m in the topic details in the SNS console, I’ll click on “Create subscription”.
   • For the “Protocol”, I’ll choose Email.
   • In the “Endpoint”, I’ll type in my email address where I want to receive the notifications.
   • I’ll click on “Create subscription”.
     
   • I’ll then check my email. I should find a message from AWS asking me to confirm the subscription. I’ll click on the link in that email to confirm.
     

3. I’ll Deploy the CloudFormation Stack:

   • I’ll head over to the CloudFormation service in the AWS Console.
   • I’ll click on “Create stack”.
   • I’ll choose the “Upload a template file” option and upload the CloudFormation template used in Assignment 2 – CloudFormation VPC Template.
     
   • I’m prompted to provide an email address for receiving CloudFormation notifications.
     
   • After clicking “Next”, I’ll give a unique name for my stack EC2VPC.
   • I’ll go through the prompts until I reach the “Configure stack options” page.
   • In the “Advanced options” section, I’ll find the “Amazon SNS topics” heading. Here, I’ll paste the Topic ARN I copied earlier.
     
   • I’ll continue with the stack creation process, reviewing everything, and then start the creation by clicking “Create stack”.

4. I’ll Monitor the Stack Creation and Check My Notifications:

   • The CloudFormation Dashboard will show me the progress of my stack. As the stack gets created, I’ll also start receiving email notifications because of the SNS topic I set up.
     Lets open one email
     

5. Clean Up When I’m Done:

   • If I’m done testing or just want to clean things up, I’ll head to the CloudFormation dashboard. I’ll select my stack and then choose “Delete”. I’ll confirm that I want to delete it.
   • If I decide I don’t want the SNS topic anymore, I’ll head back to the SNS dashboard and delete it. This will stop any further notifications and ensure I don’t get any unexpected charges.