| Role | Technology Stack | Details/Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Frontend/Hosting | AWS Amplify Hosting (Next.js) | Integrates Next.js deployment, CI/CD, and Edge CDN. |
| Backend (API) | Amplify Gen 2 (TypeScript/JavaScript) | Automatically generates/defines APIs and Lambda functions from a data model. |
| Backend (Data) | AWS RDS (PostgreSQL) | Managed within a VPC as a custom resource by Amplify Gen 2. |
| Infrastructure Management | Amplify Gen 2 (CDK-based) | Amplify's definition files are converted to CDK to build the infrastructure. Offers a higher level of abstraction than SAM. |
| Integration/Connection | Amplify Functions (Lambda) | Amplify abstracts the complex VPC configuration and Secrets Manager integration required for RDS connectivity. |
Advantages of This Architecture
- Integrated Developer Experience: Backend definitions (data models, Lambda functions) are done within the Next.js project root, making frontend integration extremely smooth.
- Reduced VPC Complexity: Amplify automatically or simply handles much of the configuration for connecting Lambda to RDS within a VPC (Security Groups, Subnets, etc.), reducing the manual effort required with SAM.
- Built-in Auth/Authorization: AWS Cognito for authentication can be easily incorporated.
AWS Amplify Architecture
Amplify is primarily composed of the following three elements: - AWS Amplify Services (AWS Services)
These are the components that run within your AWS account and incur costs. - Amplify Hosting: A cloud service that hosts frontend applications like Next.js and provides integrated CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery) and a CDN.
- Amplify Studio (Management Console): A Web UI for visually managing backend resources (data models, authentication, etc.).
- Amplify Framework (Local Development Tools)
This is the toolkit developers use in their local environment. - Amplify CLI: The command-line interface for defining and deploying the backend. (Used in the previous generation of Amplify)
- Amplify Gen 2 (Framework/Abstraction Layer):
- Gen 2 is a new development paradigm that abstracts AWS services.
- It allows you to define the backend (Lambda, API Gateway, RDS, etc.) using TypeScript or JavaScript directly within your local project.
- This local definition is then converted into the AWS infrastructure management tool, AWS CDK (Cloud Development Kit), and finally deployed to the AWS cloud.
- Amplify Libraries (In-App SDKs)
This is the SDK to be integrated into the frontend application. - Libraries for JavaScript/React/Next.js, etc.: API clients that allow frontend code to easily call backend APIs, authentication, and other features.