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COST OPTIMIZATION
Cut Storage Costs by 90%: Migrate 300M Files to AWS S3

A tech team recently moved 300 million files to Amazon's cloud storage and saved a lot of money in the process. Let me tell you how they did it.

The starting problem was simple: They had many computer servers that needed to share files. These files were stored on expensive disk drives that weren't being used efficiently. Most files were rarely opened, yet they had to pay full price for storage. The solution? Move everything to Amazon's S3 storage service. Here's what made it work:

They kept their existing system working while moving the files

They used special Amazon tools to handle the big move

They created a backup plan in case anything went wrong

The move happened in two parts. First, they moved the bulk of files (99%) in just 4 days. Then, they moved the newer files in less than an hour during a planned maintenance break

The results were impressive:

• In the first month, they cut storage costs by 70%

• After that, they saved 90% on storage costs every month

What's neat about this story is how they solved a big problem without disrupting their service. They proved that sometimes the simplest solution - moving to cheaper storage - can have the biggest impact.

Read more

TOGETHER WITH TERNARY
Submit your Cloud Cost Confession

Busted budgets. Forgotten resources. Egress regrets. We’ve all been there.

Now’s your chance to submit an anonymous cost confession and be absolved for your overspending.

No contact info required. If you'd like to enter our raffle for a $500 Amazon gift card, you can optionally include your details. (Terms & conditions apply.)

🎤 Got a cloud cost horror story? We want to hear it.

Top confessions will be featured on the Ternary website and at the Ternary booth during FinOps X 2025.

AUTOMATION
The Rise of Algorithmic Governance

Many companies start by making simple charts and reports to track their spending. This works at first, but soon they hit a wall. Why? Because cloud systems are too complex for humans to track manually.

Here's what successful companies are doing differently: they use smart computer programs that watch and adjust spending automatically, look at all types of technology costs in one place and make quick decisions without needing human approval

The benefits are clear:

• Save more money than manual methods

• Less time spent on basic tasks

• Better predictions of future costs

• Easier management of all technology spending

Companies need to move away from manual financial tracking and start using smart computer systems to manage their technology spending.

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FINOPS EVENTS
FinOps ROI Playbook: Do More with Less to Maximize Cloud Efficiency

Organizations with mature FinOps practices can reduce cloud waste by up to 30%. But how do you actually get there? If you’re still tracking cloud budgets in spreadsheets, this webinar is for you. FinOps isn’t just about cost cutting, it’s about driving efficiency, visibility, and accountability from the start. 

Join this webinar on May 22 to learn how leading orgs are combining automation and policy enforcement to gain control of their FinOps.

AZURE
FinOps-Ready Azure Zone: Optimize Costs Effortlessly

Microsoft has shared a guide about setting up a cost-smart Azure cloud system. This guide focuses on making sure companies can track and control their cloud spending from the start. The main parts of this system include:

• A way to track how much money is spent

• Warning systems when spending gets too high

• Labels on resources to show who owns what

• Tools that automatically keep everything organized

Here's a simple breakdown of how to set it up using PowerShell:

Create alerts when spending reaches certain points

Keep track of all spending data in one place

Create groups to manage different teams

Make rules about labeling resources

Set up spending limits

The guide provides all the technical steps needed to build this system, making it easier for teams to manage their cloud spending effectively.

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FOCUS
Understanding FOCUS: Mastering Commitment Discounts

Michael explains how commitment discounts work, and how to use them in FOCUS. A commitment discount is when you get a lower price by promising to use a specific amount of cloud services.

The key points about these discounts:

• You pay whether you use the full amount or not

• You can track both used and unused portions

• The discounts apply to specific time periods

• The savings come from committing to long-term usage

The article shows how to find and measure these discounts in billing data using FOCUS.

Read More

📺️ PODCAST
How to Make Engineers Apply FinOps

Get ready for an amazing episode of the FinOps Weekly Podcast as another expert drops their incredible insights!

What role does engineering have in FinOps? We explore this with Jeremy Chaplin, focusing on team collaboration, cost-reduction strategies, and the necessity of a shared language.

🎖️ MENTION OF HONOUR
Optimizing Cloud Costs: Mindset Over Techstack

This article talks about how companies use cloud services and often spend more money than they need to.

The main problem is that many companies keep their cloud services running all the time, even when no one is using them. Leaving all the lights on in your house, even in rooms you're not using. The article points out three common wasteful practices:

• Running services 24/7 without real need

• Keeping containers active with no traffic

• Storing data that nobody looks at

A key point is that being "cloud-native" isn't about using specific tools or technology. It's about thinking differently about how to use cloud resources wisely. It’s like running a household budget - you wouldn't keep paying for things you don't use, so why do it with cloud services?

Companies should focus on using cloud services only when needed, rather than keeping everything running just in case.

Read More

FINOPS
FinOps Weekly Extra

Cristian forked ec2instances.info as a vendor-neutral alternative at cloud-instances.info

Kubernetes Cost Tracking Simplified with OpenCost, Prometheus, and Grafana

Cost estimation from Terraform with Infracost by Barbara Gaspar

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NEWS
Announcements

Providers

Google's BigQuery team has added column-granularity indexing. to make database searches faster and cheaper.

Microsoft has announced that Azure OpenAI Service can now be used for all U.S. Government data security levels.

Databricks is buying a company called Neon for $1 billion to make AI systems work faster and better.

Vendors

OpenOps launched an new way to include AI in your FinOps Automation

🏆 Quick Wins Resources

Evergreen FinOps Resources to apply Today!

Professional Spotlight
Geoff Jones

FinOps Dad for FinOps Community

Geoff has been super supportive with the work developed within FinOps Weekly. Glad that he joined the Attribute team, as I know it’s a great fit for the Without Tagging team.

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