Illustration of AWS data center networking with a flat network topology and fiber cables, showing resilient network graphs
Cloud

Inside AWS’s Flat Network Bet: Why the Cables Behind the Cloud Just Got a Redesign

Picture a city where every car trip, no matter how short, has to pass through one of three big highway interchanges downtown. It works fine most days, but the moment one interchange closes, half the city grinds to a halt. That is roughly how the network inside most large data centers has been built for the last two decades — and it’s the problem Amazon Web Services says it has just redesigned.