It’s that time of the year again! From December 2nd to December 6th, Las Vegas, Nevada will transform into the epicenter of innovation, learning, and networking for cloud professionals and businesses alike.

Experience five action-packed days where you can dive deep into the latest AWS technologies, explore groundbreaking solutions, and connect with industry leaders. With over 2,000 learning sessions at your fingertips, you’ll have the opportunity to sharpen your skills, discover new strategies, and stay ahead of the curve in the rapidly evolving cloud landscape.

Whether you’re looking to optimize your current network architecture, scale your operations, or simply speak the language of AWS networking with confidence, this blog post is your ticket to a more productive and rewarding re:Invent experience for networking sessions and information. Get ready to network, learn, and innovate!

To help you navigate the content easily, we’ve organized this blog into three key areas: Keynotes and Innovation talks, Sessions, and Expo.

Keynotes and Innovation talks

KEY001| Monday Night Live with Peter DeSantis

Join Peter DeSantis, Senior Vice President of AWS Utility Computing, as he continues the Monday Night Live tradition of diving deep into the engineering that powers AWS services. Get a closer look at how our unique approach and culture of innovation help create leading-edge solutions across the entire spectrum, from silicon to services—without compromising on performance or cost.

KEY002| CEO Keynote with Matt Garman

Join AWS CEO Matt Garman to hear how AWS is innovating across every aspect of the world’s leading cloud. He explores how we are reinventing foundational building blocks as well as developing brand new experiences, all to empower customers and partners with what they need to build a better future.

NET201-INT | The power of cloud network innovation

From the very beginning, the AWS network has been the foundation for how AWS delivers on the promise of cloud computing. In this talk, Colm MacCarthaigh, VP and Distinguished Engineer of AWS Compute and Networking Services, looks at the history of AWS networking and how its growth and innovation continues to this day—helping unleash your creativity and make leaps forward in what’s possible. With a combination of real-world examples and looks behind the scenes, Colm dives into the latest innovations in AWS core networking infrastructure, VPC networking, and data center networking for AI/ML, security, and global connectivity.

Sessions

Experience diverse learning formats at re:Invent, from breakout sessions and interactive chalk talks to hands-on workshops, all designed to enhance your AWS networking expertise across all skill levels.

Workshops

Roll up your sleeves in our dynamic 2-hour workshops, where you’ll tackle real-world challenges using AWS services. These interactive sessions kick off with a brief, informative lecture to set the stage, then quickly transition into hands-on problem-solving. Bring your laptop and prepare to build alongside AWS experts, who will guide you through practical applications of cloud computing concepts. Whether you’re new to AWS or looking to sharpen your skills, these workshops offer a unique opportunity to learn by doing, enabling you to leave with confidence and applicable knowledge in AWS technologies. You must bring your laptop to participate.

NET303 | Approaches to layered security on Amazon VPC

In this workshop, discover practical guidance that can help you build a secure Amazon VPC. Using a hands-on approach, review Amazon VPC features such as subnets, security groups, flow logs, and routing. Then, learn how you can add on additional layers of security and how to securely ingress and egress VPC traffic with other services, such as Amazon Route 53 Resolver DNS Firewall, AWS Network Firewall, Amazon VPC Traffic Mirroring, AWS WAF, and more.

NET306 | Dual-stack global networks with AWS Cloud WAN and AWS Direct Connect

Get hands-on experience building a modern global network with AWS Cloud WAN and AWS Direct Connect. In this workshop, transform your network by replacing traditional data center interconnect circuits with AWS Direct Connect SiteLink. Also, dual-stack your hybrid network to prepare IPv6 connectivity for applications, and scale beyond limitations of IPv4 space. Finally, enhance your hybrid cloud network by implementing Amazon Route 53 Resolver endpoints with Route 53 Profiles to integrate your AWS and on-premises DNS infrastructure. Leave this workshop well-equipped to architect and deploy efficient hybrid network architectures.

NET307 | Automate your network operations using NetDevOps practices

As your AWS network infrastructure grows in size and complexity, not only will you need to develop and modernize your applications, you will also need to modernize and manage the infrastructure in an agile, efficient, and secure manner. During this workshop, learn about and apply NetDevOps best practices through hands-on scenario role-play at a fictitious company. Act as a new network engineer who needs to troubleshoot and fix required automations for their company.

NET308 | Migrating your microservices to a Zero Trust architecture

In this workshop, get hands-on with AWS developer tools as you migrate your frontend and backend microservices to a Zero Trust architecture. Explore existing patterns for connectivity and the functionality and services in the console. Learn how to augment your connectivity strategy using newer AWS services that improve visibility and security between the users of your application and the microservices that power it—all while simplifying and standardizing your connectivity approach.

Chalk Talks

Chalk talks are a highly interactive content format that begin with a short lecture delivered by an AWS expert, followed by an open-format Q&A session using a whiteboard to encourage discussion from attendees.

NET203 | Secure connectivity patterns from your AWS network to external parties

Your cloud network is more connected than ever before. You may face requirements to privately and securely consume services from external parties, while also needing to expose access to your own services with similar requirements. In this chalk talk, explore the common patterns and services that allow you to meet your requirements at cloud scale. Learn how to explore considerations of traffic inspection when architecting connectivity to external parties, using services like AWS Transit Gateway, AWS Cloud WAN, and more.

NET204R | Building resilient connectivity for hybrid environments

Customers often operate mission-critical applications with resources split between AWS and on-premises facilities. The availability of these applications depends on the resilience of your hybrid connectivity. In this chalk talk, learn how to architect your hybrid connectivity for high availability and disaster recovery using services like AWS Direct Connect, AWS Site-to-Site VPN, and AWS Transit Gateway. Explore both single and multi-Region network architectures. Also discover how to enhance observability and availability, utilizing active monitoring with Amazon CloudWatch Network Monitor, to help you manage and recover gracefully.

NET205 | Centralized network traffic inspection: Key insights & lessons learned

Centralized network traffic inspection using AWS Transit Gateway or AWS Cloud WAN and AWS Network Firewall or Gateway Load Balancer is a common architecture adopted by many customers. This architecture has many benefits both in terms of operations and cost efficiencies. In this chalk talk, explore the advantages of centralized inspection and learn valuable lessons from AWS experiences working with customers to plan and execute this architecture successfully.

NET206 | Deep dive into generative AI and AWS networking

Generative AI is poised to revolutionize the business landscape, transforming the way companies operate, innovate, and engage with customers. Join this chalk talk to leverage this transformative technology to build and enhance your AWS network infrastructure. The session discusses how to build a highly performant, scalable, and cost-effective network infrastructure for your generative AI applications. Bring your questions and gain practical insights as we deep dive into the full potential of gen AI, leaving you equipped to harness this cutting-edge technology and apply it as you build your future-ready networks.

NET207 | Monitoring and troubleshooting your cloud network on AWS

In the cloud, make failure your friend. When network issues arise on and off the cloud, having the right diagnostic tools is crucial for quick resolution. In this interactive session, discover how to proactively monitor and swiftly troubleshoot cloud and hybrid networks on AWS. Learn to leverage services like Amazon CloudWatch Network Monitor, Amazon CloudWatch Internet Monitor, Infrastructure Performance, VPC Reachability Analyzer, and VPC Flow Logs to gain deep visibility, identify impairments, and resolve problems efficiently. Walk away empowered to maintain a bird’s eye view and optimize your cloud network’s reliability, performance, and cost-effectiveness.

NET208 | Best practices for building scalable IP addressing on AWS

Embark on a journey to explore best practices for IP addressing on AWS. In this chalk talk, learn how to build a VPC IP addressing plan—including deciding between global unicast addresses (GUAs) and unique local addresses (ULAs) for IPv6 based on their effects on security, connectivity, and network architecture—to ensure scalability. This talk also covers strategies for efficiently using public IPv4 addresses and reducing cost. You walk away with an understanding of how to use Amazon VPC IP Address Manager (IPAM) capabilities to build an IP addressing plan that is extensible as you grow your applications on AWS.

NET210 | It all starts with DNS: Getting the best results from Amazon Route 53

In this chalk talk, explore the key features of Amazon Route 53, the latest innovations, and the real-world use cases. Whether you’re focused on managing DNS records at scale, integrating with on-premises infrastructure, optimizing traffic flow through advanced routing policies, or enhancing the security of your DNS traffic, this talk provides you with the insights needed to get the most from Amazon Route 53.

NET302 | Ask me anything about networking

This chalk talk covers the breadth of AWS networking services. Are you facing challenges figuring out how you can optimize Elastic Load Balancing (ELB), where Amazon VPC Lattice fits in to your architecture, how you can migrate to AWS PrivateLink, how you should implement AWS Verified Access, whether you should migrate from AWS Transit Gateway to AWS Cloud WAN, or any other networking topic? Bring your questions to explore in detail through interactive conversations and whiteboarding.

NET309 | To VPN or not to VPN: Which option is right for you?

Explore the spectrum of connectivity options to securely access your AWS hosted applications. Compare traditional VPN approaches, including AWS Site-to-Site VPN and AWS Client VPN, with VPN-less, Zero Trust-based solutions like AWS Verified Access. Understand the trade-offs, capabilities, and ideal use cases for each approach. By the end of this chalk talk, leave equipped to choose the connectivity solution that best meets your organization’s security, performance, and operational requirements. Walk away with the insights to enable seamless, protected access to your AWS resources, whether leveraging VPN or embracing VPN-less architectures.

NET310|Simplify secure communication: A guide to mutual TLS on AWS

Mutual TLS (mTLS) is a widely used technique for authenticating and encrypting communication between clients and servers on AWS. This mechanism is valuable for securing both internet-bound and in-VPC traffic. In this chalk talk, learn how to use mTLS across various AWS services, such as Elastic Load Balancer, Amazon API Gateway, and Amazon VPC Lattice. Explore use cases, benefits, and implementation strategies to secure APIs with reliable authentication and protect sensitive data during transit with encryption. Learn how to utilize mTLS to enhance the security posture of your AWS applications.

NET313 | A guide to networking with AWS Cloud WAN

Embark on an adventure through the vast AWS Cloud WAN universe! From single-region greenfield explorations to multi-region global conquests, explore network segmentation, service insertion, AWS Direct Connect, and SD-WAN integration with Tuneless Connect. Discover the ultimate question: AWS Transit Gateway or AWS Cloud WAN? Packed with real-world case studies and insights from seasoned experts, this mind-bending yet engaging session delivers a healthy dose of humor and networking puns. Don’t panic, just network like a pro as we guide you through the dos and don’ts of these powerful AWS services. Get ready for an out-of-this-world networking experience!

NET314 | How to integrate Amazon VPC Lattice into your existing environment

Amazon VPC Lattice offers powerful features to enhance network security, simplify routing, and streamline load balancing for your backend applications. However, changing your network design can be a daunting and time-consuming task. In this engaging chalk talk, explore architectural best practices, strategies, and proven techniques to seamlessly integrate VPC Lattice into your existing environment, enhancing your security posture and simplifying connectivity.

NET315 | Networking strategies for Kubernetes on AWS

Kubernetes is a widely accepted standard for container orchestration, allowing organizations to deploy and manage containerized applications at scale. Deploying Kubernetes clusters requires close collaboration between cluster operators, network administrators, and security teams. This chalk talk, intended for developers, system administrators, and DevOps engineers, explores strategies, best practices, and considerations for networking on Kubernetes. Key topics include pod networking models, service discovery mechanisms, cluster network policies, load balancing techniques, and service meshes. Join this talk to learn how to enhance observability, traffic management, resilience, and security.

NET316 | Bringing your own networking to AWS

We bring the ASN, IPv4, and IPv6 prefixes, you bring your questions! This chalk talk demonstrates the full process of bringing your IP resources to AWS, advertising them to the world, and allocating them to AWS services using Amazon VPC IP Address Manager (IPAM). Walk away with a clearer understanding of the steps required to efficiently use your own address space for your workloads.

Builders’ sessions

Builders’ sessions are 60-minute interactive sessions in which one AWS expert builds a solution alongside a small group of session attendees. There is no formal presentation; once the demonstration is complete, attendees use their own laptops to experiment and build with guidance from the AWS expert.

NET209 | Designing your AWS network for growth and flexibility

Your AWS network started with one virtual private cloud (VPC), and now it’s your job to be ready for what’s next. In this builders’ session, build and scale an AWS network starting with VPC peering and building up to a multi-Region network using AWS Transit Gateway and AWS Cloud WAN. Leave this session with the skills to scale your VPC network and solve networking problems more efficiently. You must bring your laptop to participate.

NET305 | Outbound traffic inspection with AWS Cloud WAN & AWS Network Firewall

AWS offers several managed networking services that help you more easily build, manage, and secure global networks. This builders’ session explores two of those managed services, AWS Cloud WAN and AWS Network Firewall, through the build-out of a solution that allows you to architect and implement outbound traffic controls. You must bring your laptop to participate.

Breakout sessions

Breakout sessions are hour-long lectures led by AWS experts, customers, and partners, offering you unparalleled insights and knowledge in a concise format. Whether you’re exploring the latest in cloud technology, AWS Networking advancements, or industry-specific solutions, these sessions are designed to expand your horizon and inspire your next big idea.

NET202 | Design well-architected networks on AWS

Elevate your AWS networking expertise by learning how to design well-architected networks on AWS. This session starts with the tradeoffs of multi-AZ and multi-Region architectures and how to build an Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC). Next, it explores design challenges when connecting multiple VPCs and on-premises datacenters, followed by a discussion on building a scalable DNS infrastructure on AWS. Finally, we will consider several common network architecture patterns on AWS, such as application ingress and egress. Leave equipped with the insights needed to create resilient, secure, and scalable network infrastructure on AWS.

NET212 | Navigating the AWS network with the right tools for the job

Gain a comprehensive understanding of AWS network monitoring and troubleshooting tools. Join this session to explore a range of AWS observability tools and discuss their ideal fit based on the scale and requirements of your infrastructure deployment. In this session, you see examples, learn best practices for network visibility and efficiency, and get insights into using generative AI for troubleshooting. By the end, you are empowered to make informed decisions about selecting and implementing the right solutions for your network environment.

NET301 | Amazon VPC: Advanced design and what’s new

Amazon VPC is a foundational service on AWS, giving you control over your virtual networking environment. Every year, AWS makes updates to Amazon VPC to help improve functionality, security, and usability. In this session, learn about the latest updates to Amazon VPC and how you can use them to enhance your current architectures.

NET311 | Build scalable, secure, global connectivity with AWS

Discover how organizations are adopting AWS Cloud WAN to build secure, global networks while seamlessly integrating advanced services like AWS Network Firewall for cross-Region traffic inspection and Amazon VPC Lattice for Zero Trust service-to-service connectivity. Explore best practices for extending connectivity beyond AWS boundaries using AWS Verified Access, AWS Client VPN, and AWS Direct Connect, enabling secure access for remote users and external services. Gain in-depth insights and strategies for implementing these advanced networking solutions.

NET317 | AWS application networking: Build simple, secure, and reliable apps

AWS application networking services offer fully managed networking solutions for developers and network administrators to build highly scalable applications. In this session, learn how to best use services such as Elastic Load Balancing (ELB), Amazon API Gateway, AWS PrivateLink, and Amazon VPC Lattice, enabling secure application connectivity and monitoring. Stay informed about the newest features across this service portfolio, designed to enhance security, maximize availability, and improve connectivity while reducing the workload on your teams. Learn best practices to automatically streamline application development and deployment processes.

NET318 | Dive into the depths of routing on AWS

Explore the world of AWS routing, from static and dynamic routing to protocols like BGP. In this session, discover how routing features are used in Amazon VPC, AWS Transit Gateway, AWS Direct Connect, AWS Site-to-Site VPN, and AWS Cloud WAN to create efficiency in network communication. Compare AWS routing to traditional on-premises methods and explore failure handling, while examining how to implement active/active, active/passive, and traffic inspection setups. This deep-dive session equips you with the knowledge to architect resilient, high-performing network solutions on AWS.

NET401 | Optimizing ELB traffic distribution for high availability

In modern cloud-based architectures, load balancing is key to high availability and scalability. AWS offers Elastic Load Balancing (ELB) to intelligently distribute incoming traffic across multiple targets, such as Amazon EC2 instances or containers. In this session, dive into ELB advanced traffic distribution algorithms and examine how requests are routed to target resources. From instance health checks and routing policies to client-side caching, explore the factors that shape your application’s performance. Gain insights into configuration best practices and learn how optimizing traffic distribution can enhance service availability and mitigate bottlenecks.

NET402 | EC2 Nitro networking under the hood

Gain valuable insights into the life of a packet on an EC2 instance and learn about key strategies for optimizing instance network performance for your workload. In this session, discover the cutting-edge technologies that are shaping the networking experience on an EC2 instance and unlock new levels of performance. Learn how AWS scales a single VPC to grow at unprecedented scale and explore innovations in Nitro to achieve optimal performance for different types of applications.

NET403 | Planet-scale networking: How AWS powers the world’s largest networks

The secret sauce to how AWS creates some of the largest, most performant, and most reliable networks in the world can be described in one word: ownership. Hear from senior engineers about strategies around every piece of the global network, leaving no stone unturned. From the latest AI data centers and connecting Regions with the AWS backbone, to the software that manages a network made up of fiber cables and tiny plastic connectors, be inspired at the scale. Learn how AWS’s relentless focus on innovation and ownership of the entire stack enables unparalleled performance, reliability, and scalability for customer workloads.

Expo

Don’t miss the AWS Networking and Content Delivery kiosk at the Venetian expo floor – your go-to spot for one-on-one interactions with our seasoned networking experts. Bring your toughest questions and most complex challenges where our skilled architects are ready to collaborate with you, crafting optimal approaches for your unique workloads. While you’re there, indulge your inner tech enthusiast by examining an immersive state-of-the-art networking hardware up close. And don’t forget to collect some exclusive, eye-catching AWS networking stickers – perfect for showcasing your cloud prowess on your laptop or water bottle. The AWS Networking and Content Delivery kiosk is located in the AWS Village in the Migrate, Modernize, and Build section, right next to the basketball court. Shoot some hoops and then come talk to experts.

Register now!

We hope this post acts as your go-to resource for navigating the AWS Networking track at re:Invent 2024. Secure your spot for must-attend sessions through the attendee portal. Can’t join in person? No worries – grab a free pass to stream live sessions online.