AWS Config vs Stackdriver: What are the differences?

Introduction

In this article, we will compare AWS Config and Stackdriver, two popular cloud monitoring and management services. We will explore their key differences and provide specific details about each.

1. Flexibility in Monitoring Resources: AWS Config allows users to monitor and track changes to their AWS resources, such as EC2 instances, IAM roles, and S3 buckets, providing detailed configuration history. On the other hand, Stackdriver offers flexibility in monitoring not only AWS resources but also resources from other cloud providers, such as Google Cloud Platform and Azure, allowing for a more comprehensive view of the entire infrastructure.

2. Alerting and Incident Management: AWS Config lacks built-in alerting and incident management capabilities, requiring users to integrate with other services like CloudWatch or external solutions for such functionalities. In contrast, Stackdriver provides robust alerting and incident management features out of the box, enabling users to set up custom alerts, define policies, and manage incidents within a unified platform.

3. Logging and Analysis: While AWS Config primarily focuses on auditing and tracking resource configurations, Stackdriver offers powerful logging and analysis capabilities. Stackdriver enables users to collect and analyze logs from various sources, including infrastructure services, applications, and custom log data. It also provides advanced log analysis features like log-based metrics and log correlation, facilitating comprehensive insights into system behavior.

4. Automated Remediation: AWS Config lacks automated remediation capabilities, which means that users need to manually address any detected non-compliant configurations or issues. On the other hand, Stackdriver provides a wide range of automation capabilities, allowing users to set up automated remediation actions based on alert triggers, reducing the manual intervention required to resolve problems.

5. Visualization and Dashboards: While AWS Config provides some basic visualizations and summary information about resource configurations, Stackdriver offers advanced visualization capabilities and customizable dashboards. Stackdriver enables users to create interactive, customizable dashboards with various charts, graphs, and widgets to monitor and visualize the health and performance of their infrastructure in real-time.

6. Integration with Other Monitoring Tools: AWS Config has limited integration capabilities with third-party monitoring tools, making it challenging to incorporate existing monitoring workflows. On the contrary, Stackdriver provides seamless integration options with popular third-party monitoring tools and frameworks, such as Prometheus and Grafana, allowing users to leverage their existing monitoring solutions while benefiting from additional Stackdriver features.

In summary, AWS Config offers detailed resource configuration tracking for AWS resources but lacks built-in alerting, incident management, and log analysis capabilities. Stackdriver, on the other hand, provides more comprehensive monitoring and management capabilities with support for multi-cloud environments, advanced logging, automated remediation, visualization, and seamless integration with other monitoring tools.