Your Guide to AWS Architecture Icons & Using AWS Shapes

If you’ve ever been part of an organization that uses AWS services, you’ve probably needed to understand how they are implemented, either for your own reference or to communicate to stakeholders. 

The easiest way to do that is visually, using AWS architecture icons to create a diagram communicating your design and deployment. 

What Are AWS Architecture Icons?

AWS architecture icons, formerly known as AWS simple icons, are a set of icons that represent every service provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS).

These icons are used to create AWS architecture diagrams that describe the way your AWS services are designed and deployed. These diagrams are a valuable resource for facilitating more efficient maintenance and development of your AWS infrastructure.

AWS has been a game-changer for DevOps teams, allowing them to obtain, adjust quantities, and pay for only the services they need at a fraction of the cost, in less time, and with smaller in-house teams. And rather than resting on their laurels, AWS offerings are constantly evolving and adjusted to make DevOps’ life even easier.

As Amazon’s cloud services offerings are always evolving, so are the shapes that represent those services. The most updated AWS icons can always be found and downloaded on the official AWS site.

How Many AWS Icons Are There?

There are over 500 AWS architecture icons, and this number will only continue to increase as AWS grows and provides new services. AWS icons are organized into multiple categories of services, such as analytics, computing, storage, and content delivery.

To learn more about specific types of AWS icons, check out our guides to a few of the key categories and services, including: 

• AWS Compute Shapes
• AWS Storage Shapes
• AWS Database Shapes
• AWS Networking and Content Delivery Shapes

An AWS architecture diagram template can help you create an AWS diagram without needing to go looking for each individual shape. You’ll find several AWS diagram templates in Gliffy to help you get started. 

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How to Use AWS Icons

If you’re downloading AWS icons from Amazon’s website to use in a PowerPoint or physical presentation deck, you can choose between icons meant for light or dark backgrounds.

If you’re using Gliffy, the icons will be automatically loaded into your diagram editor. If you don’t see them, just click “More Shapes” and select the “AWS Simple Icons” category. This will automatically select all AWS shape libraries.

Before dragging and dropping AWS icons onto your canvas, start by building the structure of your diagram — creating a group box with the proper icon and label. Then, you can drag and drop the AWS icons that communicate your infrastructure into the diagram and arrange them.

Want to learn more about how to use AWS shapes to build a diagram? Follow along with our AWS diagram tutorial >> 

3 Tips for Drawing with AWS Icons in Gliffy

Gliffy makes it easy to draw AWS diagrams. Here are a few tips that make it even easier.

Adjust Multiple Shapes At Once

Drag and drop the shapes you need onto the canvas, then select the entire group by using the arrow tool from the toolbar (or select the whole canvas by using command + A). Then, adjust them to the size you want all at once.

Group AWS Icons

Organize different parts of your AWS diagram by putting boxes around groupings of AWS icons. One easy method to group shapes in Gliffy is to select the rectangle tool from the toolbar, draw a box around your shapes, then select the “send to back” button from the toolbar to push the box behind the shapes. 

You can then change the border type, thickness, and color of your box. Check out all the different options available in the pop-up box when you select the container housing your shapes.

Add Your Own Architecture Icons

Want to add your company logo or logos of other services you use in conjunction with AWS? You can add your own shapes to Gliffy, even if they’re not included in one of the pre-loaded shape libraries. The fastest and easiest way to do that is by dragging any .png, .svg, or .jpg image from your desktop directly onto the Gliffy canvas.

Visualize Your Cloud Architecture With AWS Icons 

Gliffy makes it easy to visualize your cloud architecture, no matter how complex. Get started by adding Gliffy to your Confluence space — it’s free for 30 days!

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