Skip to main content Design multi-cloud architectures using a decision framework to select and integrate services across AWS, Azure, and GCP. Use when building multi-cloud systems, avoiding vendor lock-in, or leveraging best-of-breed services from multiple providers.
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Multi-Cloud Architecture
Decision framework and patterns for architecting applications across AWS, Azure, GCP, and OCI.
Purpose
Design cloud-agnostic architectures and make informed decisions about service selection across cloud providers.
When to Use
Design multi-cloud strategies
Migrate between cloud providers
Select cloud services for specific workloads
Implement cloud-agnostic architectures
Optimize costs across providers
Cloud Service Comparison
Compute Services
AWS Azure GCP OCI Use Case EC2 Virtual Machines Compute Engine Compute IaaS VMs ECS Container Instances Cloud Run Container Instances Containers EKS AKS GKE OKE Kubernetes
Lambda Functions Cloud Functions Functions Serverless
Fargate Container Apps Cloud Run Container Instances Managed containers
Storage Services AWS Azure GCP OCI Use Case S3 Blob Storage Cloud Storage Object Storage Object storage EBS Managed Disks Persistent Disk Block Volumes Block storage EFS Azure Files Filestore File Storage File storage Glacier Archive Storage Archive Storage Archive Storage Cold storage
Database Services AWS Azure GCP OCI Use Case RDS SQL Database Cloud SQL MySQL HeatWave Managed SQL DynamoDB Cosmos DB Firestore NoSQL Database NoSQL Aurora PostgreSQL/MySQL Cloud Spanner Autonomous Database Distributed SQL ElastiCache Cache for Redis Memorystore OCI Cache Caching
Reference: See references/service-comparison.md for complete comparison
Multi-Cloud Patterns
Pattern 1: Single Provider with DR
Primary workload in one cloud
Disaster recovery in another
Database replication across clouds
Automated failover
Pattern 2: Best-of-Breed
Use best service from each provider
AI/ML on GCP
Enterprise apps on Azure
Regulated data platforms on OCI
General compute on AWS
Pattern 3: Geographic Distribution
Serve users from nearest cloud region
Data sovereignty compliance
Global load balancing
Regional failover
Pattern 4: Cloud-Agnostic Abstraction
Kubernetes for compute
PostgreSQL for database
S3-compatible storage (MinIO)
Open source tools
Cloud-Agnostic Architecture
Use Cloud-Native Alternatives
Compute: Kubernetes (EKS/AKS/GKE/OKE)
Database: PostgreSQL/MySQL (RDS/SQL Database/Cloud SQL/MySQL HeatWave)
Message Queue: Apache Kafka or managed streaming (MSK/Event Hubs/Confluent/OCI Streaming)
Cache: Redis (ElastiCache/Azure Cache/Memorystore/OCI Cache)
Object Storage: S3-compatible API
Monitoring: Prometheus/Grafana
Service Mesh: Istio/Linkerd
Abstraction Layers Application Layer
↓
Infrastructure Abstraction (Terraform)
↓
Cloud Provider APIs
↓
AWS / Azure / GCP / OCI
Cost Comparison
Compute Pricing Factors
AWS: On-demand, Reserved, Spot, Savings Plans
Azure: Pay-as-you-go, Reserved, Spot
GCP: On-demand, Committed use, Preemptible
OCI: Pay-as-you-go, annual commitments, burstable/flexible shapes, preemptible instances
Cost Optimization Strategies
Use reserved/committed capacity (30-70% savings)
Leverage spot/preemptible instances
Right-size resources
Use serverless for variable workloads
Optimize data transfer costs
Implement lifecycle policies
Use cost allocation tags
Monitor with cloud cost tools
Reference: See references/multi-cloud-patterns.md
Migration Strategy
Phase 1: Assessment
Inventory current infrastructure
Identify dependencies
Assess cloud compatibility
Estimate costs
Phase 2: Pilot
Select pilot workload
Implement in target cloud
Test thoroughly
Document learnings
Phase 3: Migration
Migrate workloads incrementally
Maintain dual-run period
Monitor performance
Validate functionality
Phase 4: Optimization
Right-size resources
Implement cloud-native services
Optimize costs
Enhance security
Best Practices
Use infrastructure as code (Terraform/OpenTofu)
Implement CI/CD pipelines for deployments
Design for failure across clouds
Use managed services when possible
Implement comprehensive monitoring
Automate cost optimization
Follow security best practices
Document cloud-specific configurations
Test disaster recovery procedures
Train teams on multiple clouds
Related Skills
terraform-module-library - For IaC implementation
cost-optimization - For cost management
hybrid-cloud-networking - For connectivity
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Create or update AgentSkills. Use when designing, structuring, or packaging skills with scripts, references, and assets.
Create or update AgentSkills. Use when designing, structuring, or packaging skills with scripts, references, and assets.
Set up and use 1Password CLI (op). Use when installing the CLI, enabling desktop app integration, signing in (single or multi-account), or reading/injecting/running secrets via op.
CLI to manage emails via IMAP/SMTP. Use `himalaya` to list, read, write, reply, forward, search, and organize emails from the terminal. Supports multiple accounts and message composition with MML (MIME Meta Language).