05. AWS Service Catalog
AWS Service Catalog enables organizations to create, manage, and distribute approved AWS resources as products to end users through a self-service portal.
It ensures users launch only predefined and compliant configurations, maintaining governance and consistency across the organization.
| Concept | Description |
|---|---|
| Product | A CloudFormation template defining an AWS resource or application (e.g., EC2 instance, RDS database, S3 bucket). |
| Portfolio | A collection of products grouped by category, department, or use case. |
| End User | A user who accesses the Service Catalog portal to launch approved products. |
| Administrator | Defines and manages portfolios, products, and access permissions. |
How It Works
-
Admin creates products
- Each product is a CloudFormation template with specific parameters and configurations.
-
Products organized into portfolios
- Portfolios group related products and define which users or roles can access them.
-
Users access the self-service portal
- They see only the products assigned to them.
-
Product launch via CloudFormation
- Ensures automatic provisioning that is secure, tagged, and compliant with organizational standards.
Benefits
- ✅ Enforces organizational compliance and standardization
- 🚀 Enables self-service provisioning for users
- 🧩 Simplifies resource deployment through preapproved templates
- 🔒 Controls who can access and deploy specific resources
Example Use Case
| Scenario | Description |
|---|---|
| RDS Database Deployment | A user needs a database but isn’t sure how to configure it. The admin publishes an RDS CloudFormation template as a Service Catalog product. The user launches it safely, knowing it follows organizational standards. |
Summary
AWS Service Catalog provides a controlled, self-service environment for deploying approved AWS resources — ensuring governance, security, and consistency across teams.