Amazon DynamoDB: Available now – Cross-region Replication, Triggers, and Streams

Posted on: Jul 16, 2015

Amazon DynamoDB now supports cross-region replication, a new feature that automatically replicates DynamoDB tables across AWS regions. You can use cross-region replication to build globally distributed applications with lower-latency data access, better traffic management, easier disaster recovery, and easier data migration. There is no additional charge for using the cross-region replication application. You only pay for Amazon DynamoDB resources for the replica tables, reading from Streams, the SQS queue, and the EC2 instance that runs the cross-region application. You can get started today by reading  How to Set Up Cross-Region Replication in the Amazon DynamoDB Developer Guide.

Amazon DynamoDB now provides Triggers. DynamoDB integrates with AWS Lambda which will enable you to automatically trigger a custom function when item level changes in a DynamoDB table are detected. Using the AWS Lambda console, you can register an AWS Lambda function and connect it to a Stream associated with a DynamoDB table. For example, as an IOT application developer, you can notify a home owner if the thermostat sample reading is greater than a threshold. To learn more, read our DynamoDB Triggers FAQ page.

Also today, DynamoDB Streams is now generally available. Delivered as a building block capability, DynamoDB Streams provides a time ordered sequence of item level changes in any DynamoDB table. The changes are de-duplicated and stored for 24 hours. You can use DynamoDB Streams to enable your applications to respond to high velocity data changes without having to track the changes yourself. Both Cross-region replication and Triggers are built using the Streams capability. There is no charge for turning on DynamoDB Streams. You are only charged for reads from the Stream, and the first 2.5 million reads per month are free. For more details, visit our pricing page.

Cross-region replication and DynamoDB Streams are available in all AWS regions where DynamoDB is available. DynamoDB Triggers is available in regions where AWS Lambda is available. To learn more about cross-region replication and DynamoDB Streams, read Jeff Barr’s blog and the DynamoDB documentation page.