Building ClickHouse BYOC (Bring Your Own Cloud) on AWS

Jianfei Hu & Yiyang Shao
15 min readintermediate
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Overview

This article discusses the implementation of ClickHouse's Bring Your Own Cloud (BYOC) model on AWS, detailing the benefits of customer-controlled cloud environments and the challenges faced during development. It highlights key aspects such as infrastructure automation, network security, and resource management to ensure a seamless deployment experience.

What You'll Learn

1

How to automate the provisioning of cloud resources for ClickHouse on AWS

2

Why separating management and data planes enhances security in cloud deployments

3

How to implement a controlled access mechanism for troubleshooting in a BYOC environment

4

When to utilize VPC Peering and AWS PrivateLink for secure connections

Prerequisites & Requirements

  • Understanding of cloud infrastructure concepts and AWS services
  • Familiarity with Kubernetes and EKS(optional)

Key Questions Answered

What are the key challenges in implementing a BYOC model for ClickHouse?
The key challenges include infrastructure automation, ensuring data residency and compliance, maintaining network security and isolation, managing resources effectively, and reducing operational complexity for users unfamiliar with cloud-native technologies.
How does ClickHouse ensure data isolation and compliance in the BYOC model?
ClickHouse ensures data isolation by storing all customer data within their own VPC, including logs and metrics. This setup allows customers to maintain control over their data while meeting compliance requirements.
What is the process for troubleshooting ClickHouse services in a BYOC environment?
Troubleshooting involves a controlled access mechanism where engineers request access through an internal approval system. This access is temporary and monitored, ensuring customer data remains secure while allowing necessary diagnostics.
When should customers use VPC Peering or AWS PrivateLink with ClickHouse BYOC?
Customers should use VPC Peering for low-latency, private communication between their application VPC and ClickHouse BYOC VPC. AWS PrivateLink is recommended for secure connections without exposing traffic to the public internet.

Technologies & Tools

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Infrastructure Automation
AWS Cloudformation
Used for automating the creation and management of cloud resources in the BYOC setup.
Infrastructure Automation
Crossplane
Utilized alongside AWS CloudFormation for resource management and provisioning.
Network Security
Tailscale
Provides secure access for ClickHouse engineers to customer EKS clusters.
Container Orchestration
Kubernetes
Used for managing ClickHouse services within the customer's cloud environment.

Key Actionable Insights

1
Implementing a BYOC model allows organizations to maintain control over their cloud infrastructure while leveraging ClickHouse's managed services.
This approach is particularly beneficial for companies with strict compliance requirements or those needing to customize their cloud environments.
2
Utilizing AWS CloudFormation and Crossplane for resource provisioning can significantly reduce setup time and minimize misconfigurations.
By automating the creation and management of cloud resources, teams can focus on application development rather than infrastructure management.
3
Establishing a clear separation between management and data planes enhances security and operational efficiency.
This separation allows ClickHouse to manage operational tasks without direct access to customer data, which is crucial for maintaining data privacy.

Common Pitfalls

1
Misconfigurations during the manual setup of cloud resources can lead to security vulnerabilities and operational issues.
To avoid this, leveraging automation tools like AWS CloudFormation can ensure consistent and secure configurations across deployments.
2
Failing to establish a clear access control mechanism for troubleshooting can expose sensitive customer data.
Implementing a controlled access process with approval and auditing is essential to maintain data privacy while allowing necessary support.

Related Concepts

Cloud Infrastructure Management
Kubernetes Best Practices
Data Compliance In Cloud Environments
AWS Services For Cloud Deployment