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AWS App Runner

What is it​

A fully managed service that makes it easy to create, deploy, and run web applications and API services in containers, without the need to manage the underlying infrastructure.

What it's for​

Simplifying the process of putting applications into production, automatically handling building, deployment, scaling, and load balancing.

Use cases​

  • Quick deployment of web applications and APIs
  • Running microservices and application backends
  • Development and testing of containerized applications
  • Hosting websites and front-end applications
  • Scenarios where simplicity and deployment speed are priorities

Key points​

  • Fully managed: AWS handles infrastructure, load balancing, auto-scaling, and SSL certificate management
  • Deployment from source code or container image: Supports direct deployment from code repositories (e.g., GitHub) or container images (e.g., ECR)
  • Automatic scaling: Automatically scales up and down based on traffic
  • Cost-effective: Pay only for the resources you use
  • Integration: Integrates with AWS VPC, AWS IAM, and other AWS services

Comparison with Amazon ECS/EKS/Fargate​

  • AWS App Runner: The simplest and fastest option for deploying containerized applications, ideal for developers who want to focus on code rather than infrastructure. Offers less granular control over the container environment.
  • Amazon ECS (Elastic Container Service): A container orchestration service that offers more control and flexibility over container deployment and management. Can run on EC2 instances (EC2 Launch Type) or in a serverless model with AWS Fargate.
  • Amazon EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service): A managed Kubernetes service that offers the highest level of control and flexibility for container orchestration, ideal for teams already using Kubernetes or needing its portability and ecosystem.
  • AWS Fargate: A serverless compute engine for Amazon ECS and EKS that allows running containers without provisioning or managing servers. App Runner uses Fargate under the hood but abstracts away even more complexity.