Alibaba Cloud Interview Questions & Answers

Alibaba Cloud Basics:

1. What is Alibaba Cloud?

   • Alibaba Cloud, also known as Alibaba Cloud Computing, is a comprehensive cloud computing platform provided by Alibaba Group.

2. Name some core services offered by Alibaba Cloud.

   • ECS (Elastic Compute Service), RDS (Relational Database Service), OSS (Object Storage Service), VPC (Virtual Private Cloud), and many more.

3. Explain the difference between ECS and Serverless Computing.

   • ECS provides virtual machines that you manage, while Serverless Computing (Function Compute) allows you to run code without managing the underlying infrastructure.

Elastic Compute Service (ECS):

4. What is Elastic Compute Service (ECS) in Alibaba Cloud?

   • ECS is a computing service that provides scalable compute capacity in the cloud, allowing users to run applications on virtual servers.

5. How can you secure an Alibaba Cloud ECS instance?

   • Secure an ECS instance by using key pairs for authentication, configuring security groups, and enabling Anti-DDoS protection.

6. Explain Alibaba Cloud ECS instance types.

   • Alibaba Cloud ECS instances come in various types, including general-purpose, compute-optimized, memory-optimized, and GPU instances, catering to different workloads.

Object Storage Service (OSS):

7. What is Object Storage Service (OSS) in Alibaba Cloud?

   • OSS is a scalable and secure object storage service that allows you to store and retrieve data over the internet.

8. What is the significance of buckets in Alibaba Cloud OSS?

   • Buckets in OSS are containers for storing objects. Objects are files and their associated metadata.

9. Explain the storage classes available in Alibaba Cloud OSS.

   • OSS provides storage classes such as Standard, Infrequent Access, Archive, and Cold Archive, each optimized for different use cases.

Relational Database Service (RDS):

10. What is Alibaba Cloud RDS?

    • RDS is a fully managed relational database service that supports multiple database engines like MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server.

11. How can you scale an Alibaba Cloud RDS instance?

    • You can scale an RDS instance vertically by upgrading its specifications or horizontally by sharding the database.

12. What is read-only instance in Alibaba Cloud RDS?

    • A read-only instance in RDS allows you to offload read operations from the primary database, improving overall performance.

Virtual Private Cloud (VPC):

13. What is Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) in Alibaba Cloud?

    • VPC is a private network that enables you to create isolated environments for your Alibaba Cloud resources.

14. Explain the concept of CIDR notation in Alibaba Cloud VPC.

    • CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) notation is used to represent IP addresses and their associated routing prefix in VPCs.

15. How can you connect on-premises data centers to Alibaba Cloud VPC?

    • You can establish a VPN (Virtual Private Network) or use Direct Connect to connect on-premises data centers to Alibaba Cloud VPC.

Content Delivery Network (CDN):

16. What is Alibaba Cloud CDN?

    • CDN is a content delivery network service that accelerates the delivery of web content to users by caching it on globally distributed servers.

17. How does Alibaba Cloud CDN improve website performance?

    • Alibaba Cloud CDN reduces latency by delivering content from servers located close to end-users, resulting in faster page load times.

Security Services:

18. What security services are available in Alibaba Cloud?

    • Alibaba Cloud provides services like Anti-DDoS, Web Application Firewall (WAF), and Key Management Service (KMS) for enhancing security.

19. Explain the purpose of Alibaba Cloud Security Token Service (STS).

    • STS provides temporary security credentials for granting access to Alibaba Cloud resources without exposing long-term credentials.

Alibaba Cloud Networking:

20. How does Alibaba Cloud Direct Connect work?

    • Direct Connect establishes a dedicated network connection between on-premises data centers and Alibaba Cloud, offering higher bandwidth and lower latency.

21. What is Server Load Balancer (SLB) in Alibaba Cloud?

    • SLB distributes incoming network traffic across multiple ECS instances to ensure high availability and fault tolerance.

Alibaba Cloud Monitoring and Management:

22. What tools are available for monitoring Alibaba Cloud resources?

    • Alibaba Cloud offers CloudMonitor for monitoring, Cloud Shell for command-line access, and Resource Access Management (RAM) for access control.

23. Explain Alibaba Cloud Auto Scaling.

    • Auto Scaling automatically adjusts the number of ECS instances based on predefined scaling policies to meet changing application demands.

Alibaba Cloud Serverless Computing:

24. What is Alibaba Cloud Function Compute?

    • Function Compute is a serverless computing service that allows you to run functions in response to events without managing infrastructure.

25. How is Alibaba Cloud Function Compute billed?

    • Function Compute is billed based on the number of invocations and the compute resources used during function execution.

Data Analysis and Machine Learning:

26. What data analysis services are available in Alibaba Cloud?

    • Alibaba Cloud offers services like MaxCompute for big data processing and Table Store for NoSQL data storage.

27. Explain Alibaba Cloud Machine Learning Platform.

    • Alibaba Cloud Machine Learning Platform provides various machine learning services, including ModelArts for model training and deployment.

Alibaba Cloud Identity and Access Management (RAM):

28. What is Alibaba Cloud RAM?

    • RAM is an identity and access management service that allows you to manage user identities and control access to Alibaba Cloud resources.

29. How can you grant permissions in Alibaba Cloud RAM?

    • Permissions can be granted in RAM by attaching policies to users or user groups, defining what actions they are allowed to perform on specific resources.

Alibaba Cloud Internet of Things (IoT):

30. What is Alibaba Cloud IoT?

    • IoT is a comprehensive platform that provides services for device connection, data processing, and device management in the Internet of Things domain.

31. Explain the concept of Device Shadow in Alibaba Cloud IoT.

    • Device Shadow allows devices to interact with the cloud without being directly connected, providing a virtual representation of the device's status.

Alibaba Cloud Database Services:

32. What database services are available in Alibaba Cloud?

    • Alibaba Cloud offers a variety of database services, including ApsaraDB for RDS, ApsaraDB for PolarDB, and ApsaraDB for Redis.

33. Explain ApsaraDB for PolarDB.

    • PolarDB is a fully compatible, highly available, and scalable relational database service provided by Alibaba Cloud.

Alibaba Cloud Server Migration:

34. How can you migrate on-premises servers to Alibaba Cloud?
    • Alibaba Cloud provides Server Migration Center for migrating on-premises servers to ECS instances.

Alibaba Cloud Hybrid Cloud Solutions:

35. What is Alibaba Cloud Hybrid Cloud?
    • Hybrid Cloud allows businesses to seamlessly integrate on-premises data centers with Alibaba Cloud resources for a flexible and scalable infrastructure.

Alibaba Cloud Storage Solutions:

36. What storage solutions are available in Alibaba Cloud?
    • Alibaba Cloud provides various storage solutions, including OSS

for object storage, ApsaraDB for Redis for in-memory data storage, and ApsaraDB for PolarDB for relational database storage.

37. Explain Alibaba Cloud NAS (Network Attached Storage).
    • Alibaba Cloud NAS is a scalable and high-performance network-attached storage service suitable for use with ECS instances and other Alibaba Cloud services.

Alibaba Cloud Marketplace:

38. What is Alibaba Cloud Marketplace?
    • Marketplace is a platform where third-party software vendors can offer and sell their solutions and services to Alibaba Cloud users.

Alibaba Cloud Kubernetes Service (ACK):

39. What is Alibaba Cloud Kubernetes Service (ACK)?
    • ACK is a managed Kubernetes service that simplifies the deployment and management of containerized applications.

Alibaba Cloud Multi-Cloud Solutions:

40. How can you implement a multi-cloud strategy with Alibaba Cloud?
    • Alibaba Cloud supports multi-cloud deployments by providing tools and services for integrating with other cloud providers.

Alibaba Cloud Edge Computing:

41. What is Alibaba Cloud IoT Edge?
    • IoT Edge extends the capabilities of IoT devices by enabling them to perform computation and data processing locally.

Alibaba Cloud Artificial Intelligence (AI) Services:

42. What AI services are available in Alibaba Cloud?
    • Alibaba Cloud provides AI services such as Image Search, Natural Language Processing (NLP), and Face Recognition.

Alibaba Cloud Function Compute Triggers:

43. What triggers can be used with Alibaba Cloud Function Compute?
    • Function Compute can be triggered by events such as HTTP requests, scheduled tasks, Object Storage Service (OSS) events, and more.

Alibaba Cloud Web Hosting Solutions:

44. How can you host a website on Alibaba Cloud?
    • You can host a website on Alibaba Cloud by using ECS instances, Object Storage Service (OSS), or Alibaba Cloud CDN.

Alibaba Cloud Anti-DDoS:

45. Explain Alibaba Cloud Anti-DDoS.
    • Anti-DDoS is a security service that protects online businesses from distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.

Alibaba Cloud Data Encryption:

46. How can you ensure data encryption in Alibaba Cloud?
    • Alibaba Cloud provides services like Key Management Service (KMS) for managing encryption keys and ensuring data security.

Alibaba Cloud Disaster Recovery Solutions:

47. How can you implement disaster recovery in Alibaba Cloud?
    • Disaster recovery can be implemented using services like Cloud Disaster Recovery (CDR) to replicate data and ensure business continuity.

Alibaba Cloud ElasticSearch:

48. What is Alibaba Cloud ElasticSearch?
    • ElasticSearch is a fully managed search and analytics engine that allows users to index, search, and analyze large volumes of data in real-time.

Alibaba Cloud API Gateway:

49. What is Alibaba Cloud API Gateway?
    • API Gateway is a fully managed service that allows developers to create, deploy, and manage APIs at scale.

Alibaba Cloud Internet and Content Delivery:

50. Explain Alibaba Cloud Internet and Content Delivery services.
    • Alibaba Cloud provides a range of services, including CDN, Global Accelerator, and Anti-DDoS Pro, to optimize internet and content delivery performance.