iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 16/06/2026

Is there anything worse than onboarding a new dev with an outdated diagram? You spend 20 minutes explaining "oh ignore that box, we deleted that last year". It is confusing and inefficient. We found a better way using Kiro. It scans your live AWS environment.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 16/05/2026

I refuse to spend another Friday afternoon in Drawio. Documentation is important. But manual documentation is painful. We have been experimenting with MCP servers and AI to solve this. The tool connects directly to your infrastructure. It reads your Terraform or CDK.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 13/05/2026

I've been running centralized logging for our AWS accounts. CloudWatch log centralization has two gotchas that caught me off guard. Gotcha #1: Settings Don't Transfer 🚨 Log Group settings get stripped during the copy. Retention policies? Gone. Data protection policies? Gone.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 16/04/2026

Your architecture diagram is lying to you. It was probably correct on day one. But then you added a Lambda function. Changed a DynamoDB index. And forgot to update the doc. We all do this. That is why we started using AI to fix it.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 26/03/2026

Supply chain attacks are rising. And your `node_modules` folder is the perfect target. OWASP dropped their Top 10 for NPM security. It's a wake-up call for many of us. I summarized the key points you need to know. 𝟏. 𝐃𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐭𝐬

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 18/03/2026

Stop dragging boxes around in Drawio. Seriously. It is 2026. We should have 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 this years ago. We recorded a video showing how to use AI to generate your AWS diagrams. It pulls data right from your 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 13/03/2026

Stop using 𝐒𝟑 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝 as your default storage class. Unless you know exactly how your data will be accessed, you are likely overpaying. I used to default to Standard for everything. Then I looked at our bill.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 09/03/2026

Everyone tells you to move old data to Glacier to save money. But they usually forget to mention the pain. • Retrieval fees hurt. • Waiting 5-12 hours for data sucks. That is why I prefer 𝐒𝟑 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭-𝐓𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠. It solves the biggest problem with archiving:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 05/03/2026

We pull in thousands of dependencies. We trust them blindly. That is a mistake. 💣 OWASP just released their top 10 security practices for NPM. I went through them so you don't have to. Here is what you need to change in your workflow:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 02/03/2026

Sometimes you need to give frontend developers the ability to choose their own data. And if you want to build that in a serverless way you need to use AppSync! We have all been there. The frontend asks for one more field. The backend team puts it on the backlog.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 24/02/2026

I see Opus is debugging in the same way I do: make the background red and figure out why there is so much fricking space at the top 😬

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 23/02/2026

My current claude-code workflow: 1. cc (alias for alias cc='claude --dangerously-skip-permissions') 2. /spec <idea of the feature> - give all context needed, interviews me with all important things, lots of depth. 3. Specfile is created in Markdown (not JSON/YML -> MD)

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 20/02/2026

One nugget I really took from the podcast of Steinberger & Friedman is this prompt: With everything you have seen right now, is there anything to improve. In the image is the exact prompt I'm using and I really like the results.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 19/02/2026

This is my OpenClaw Setup. I actually let it run on my RaspberryPi locally. Not a huge benefit compared to a VM on AWS but I had it already at home. Let's go through some of the components: 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞: Raspberry Pi 5 8 GB. 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 18/02/2026

Next Milestone reached 👑 Both our Shopify apps now have Built for Shopify. What that means for non-shopify folks: - You can target ads better for specific store plans - Better organic reach - You prove that you meet a high-bar of UX/functional standards

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 18/02/2026

With just seven lines of code (and a small script 👀), you can connect your Claude code to your privately deployed database in RDS! This gives your AI assistant access to: - database schema - example data - changes after actions (e.g., it clicks in the UI and sees what happened in the DB)

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 18/02/2026

I LOVE seeing content like that. If you're interested in: - bootstrapping - open source - tech check it out! I followed David Boyne since he was at AWS and I really love his implementations, graphics, and talks. Thanks for the share Jeremy! 😊

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 17/02/2026

AI writes amazing code. But it has a huge blind spot. Most models are trained on data that is 6-12 months old. That means they could suggest packages with known vulnerabilities, outdated versions and versions that don’t even exist I hate this feedback loop:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 17/02/2026

I love seeing open-source projects like that. Actionlint became the de-facto standard for GitHub actions linting. And it is open-source developed by Linda_pp (apparently a 🐶) You can simply lint your GitHub actions workflows like that.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 17/02/2026

Everyone says more context makes Claude worse. You are just giving it the WRONG context. The correct context for me? Database connection. Now there is an issue with connecting it to your database. Your database is typically not connected to the public internet, and it shouldn't be anyway.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 13/02/2026

Most people set up AWS Config and think they're covered. But until this week, 30+ resource types were flying completely under the radar. 🫣 AWS just added support for 𝟑𝟎 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞𝐬 to AWS Config.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 12/02/2026

I just found 35GB of forgotten data in one of our S3 buckets. We were paying standard storage prices for files nobody had touched in months. This is why I enable 𝐒𝟑 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭-𝐓𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 almost everywhere now. It can cut your storage bill by 40-70%.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 11/02/2026

The NPM ecosystem is huge. But it is also a security minefield. 💣 OWASP released their top 10 security best practices. Here is the checklist you need to follow:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 10/02/2026

Amazon API Gateway is much more than a simple integration into you Lambda function. It isn't just a door to your backend. It is a superpower for your serverless applications. We see this pattern all the time. Developers treat API Gateway as a "dumb pipe" that just forwards traffic.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 05/02/2026

Manual cloud diagrams might be a thing of the past. We have been testing Kiro with MCP servers. The concept is simple. 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐰. Let the AI 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 your stack. It looks at your IaC or connects to your AWS account. Then it generates the map for you.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 03/02/2026

I try to solve everything with Lambda. But sometimes it is simply the wrong tool. Especially when you need a 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩. Think about approvals, reviews, or manual checks. For this, 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 are the way to go.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 27/01/2026

> 1,000 subscribers in under 4 weeks I think there is great value in teaching AWS & FullStack AWS Content in Video Format. If you haven't seen it yet, we started a YouTube Channel with AWS Fundamentals: www.youtube.com/@aws-fundam... Hop over & check it out. Videos so far:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 26/01/2026

Gateway Endpoint: - Free - Only S3 & DynamoDB - Secure with VPC Policies - Can be accessed only from within the VPC - Doesn't use PrivateLink Interface Endpoint - Charged per hour and GB - Can be accessed outside of the VPC (ENI / IP. Still not public internet) - Uses PrivateLink

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 23/01/2026

I love using monorepos. Typically I have the following structure: - apps: Different applications with full infrastructure attached - packages: Shared constructs, libraries, frameworks

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 22/01/2026

I honestly hate updating architecture diagrams. You spend hours moving boxes in Drawio. Then you deploy one change. And the diagram is useless. We finally found a way to stop this loop. Using Kiro, we let AI scan our AWS environment directly.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 21/01/2026

We lie to ourselves about IAM access. "I will revoke this Admin permission later." No, you won't. We've all been there. You need access to a production database or an EC2 instance. You create a long-lived access key or add a user to the Admin group. And then it stays there. Forever.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 19/01/2026

I am generating more code than ever before. And honestly, most of it is throwaway. I use Claude Code daily now. Quick scripts, data transformations, prototypes. Charity Majors from Honeycomb calls this "disposable code" and she is absolutely right.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 18/01/2026

My Lambda bill went from $155 to $4 in two months. Yes. I reduced it by ~97% while scaling my Shopify app to millions of requests. Most developers set up Lambda once and forget it. They treat "serverless" as "costless" until the bill hits.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 16/01/2026

Most people don't know this resource exists. AWS has a massive library of workshops they use to train Fortune 500 engineering teams. You can do them for free. They are currently moving all content to the new Builder Center here builder.aws.com/build/works...

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 15/01/2026

Your Lambda bill might have just dropped. And you didn't even notice. AWS introduced tiered pricing for Lambda logs. This is huge for high-volume applications. Here is what changed: • Standard logs are cheaper • Infrequent access storage saves even more

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 12/01/2026

Lambda billing is simple math: Memory × Duration. But reducing that bill requires a bit of strategy. I could lower my main Lambda function from $145 to $4. Here is exactly what we looked at: 1️⃣ The "Hidden" Costs We didn't start by changing code. We started by tagging.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 09/01/2026

We are live on YouTube now! 🎥 We thought about that a lot in the past. After doing our video course for the CloudWatch Book, we first saw that teaching programming & cloud content is much easier via video. But we still didn't take the leap.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 08/01/2026

The journey of a CloudWatch Alarm in a multi-account setup. We wanted to visualize exactly how an alert travels from a production database all the way to our Discord channel. It is a game of "pass the parcel" between accounts. Here is the flow: 1. The Trigger

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 07/01/2026

Typically, one of the first issues you will encounter in bad architected systems: 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 Imagine building a blogging platform. Your `create-post` API started out with just publishing a post. But after a few more cool ideas this API is now responsible for:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 06/01/2026

We love CloudFront. But honestly, debugging Lambda@Edge is usually a pain. The feedback loop is broken. You push a change, wait 15 minutes for global propagation, and then realize you missed a semicolon. It drives us crazy. Tobi recorded a video showing how we fix this using LocalStack.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 05/01/2026

Giving developers permanent Admin access is a bad idea. But sometimes they really need it to fix things. I discovered TEAM (Temporary Elevated Access Management) some time back. It's a serverless React app from AWS that handles this perfectly: • Request temporary admin access

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 31/12/2025

Managing alerts in one AWS account is easy. Managing alerts across an entire organization? That is where the chaos starts. We recently moved to a centralized alerting architecture to make the setup of alarm actions simpler. Here is the 3-part architecture we built using CDK and EventBridge:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 30/12/2025

I love Logs Insights. But it fails at one specific thing: High-cardinality data. You need to find the top-N IPs accessing your API? Don't write a query. Typically, my first step is always going to Logs Insights. And in 90% of the times I'm at the right place.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 30/12/2025

We have 146 blog posts on AWS Fundamentals. But we had a massive problem. Readers finished an article and left. They simply could not find what to read next. I wanted a Related Posts section. And I knew AWS just launched the perfect service for that: S3 Vectors!

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 26/12/2025

One external SQS producer crashed our entire production API. Reserved concurrency could have safeguarded us at no cost. Here's how it works. ⚠️ Let's say you have one production AWS account. In your AWS account, there are two different kinds of resources:

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 25/12/2025

I often work with clients on different operating systems. I need to verify that tools I offer them also work on Windows (I am on Mac) To test this quickly, I typically do the following: - set up an EC2 with the correct OS (Windows Server xx) - Connect via RDP and test it out

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 24/12/2025

The most important command in the AWS CDK CLI isn't "deploy". It's "diff". I know this sounds obvious. But I see so many developers skipping this step. In a small side project, you might get away with it. You change a Lambda function, deploy it, and everything is fine.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 23/12/2025

AWS just invented a new pricing unit for Aurora DSQL. It’s called the DPU (Distributed Processing Unit). If you want to estimate your database costs, you need to understand this. Here is what we know so far: • It covers all request activities (reads, writes, queries)

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 22/12/2025

Your developers are wasting 2 hours per service setting up alerts. You have 10 services. That's 20 hours solving the same problem. And you still don't know where half your alerts actually go. Your developers shouldn't be thinking about alert routing.

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Sandro Volpicella @sandrovolpicella.com · 19/12/2025

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