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Demostar Cost Estimation

When managing cloud-based resources, one of the key challenges is understanding and controlling costs, particularly during high-demand events that require scaling resources quickly. Managing and forecasting costs can become complex.

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Demostar's Cost Estimation feature provides clear cost predictions for cloud resource expenses, empowering Demostar users to estimate, manage, and optimize their AWS expenses, especially during resource-heavy/long-runnig events, and self-service.

How does it work?

Integrating seamlessly with AWS and various IaC tools such as Terraform, it provides detailed cost breakdowns for cloud resources before they are provisioned. This is particularly useful when AWS resources are constantly being spun up and down to meet varying customer demand during events, or for self-service.

Example:

Let’s imagine you are preparing for a major training event, where hundreds or even thousands of "orders" or "pods" are spun up in parallel to provide isolated demo/training environments for customers. Each pod might include a mix of AWS resources, such as EC2 instances, EBS storage, load balancers, and data transfer costs. Without the right estimation tools, accurately predicting how much this event will cost becomes a daunting task. Here’s where AWS cost estimation comes in handy.

1. Real-Time Cost Insights

AWS cost estimation allows teams to see how much specific infrastructure changes will cost before they are applied. With Infracost.io, your infrastructure teams can simulate a cloud event scenario—whether it’s a large-scale demo or a multi-user training event—and get a detailed cost estimate of all the resources required.

  • The total cost of compute instances (e.g., the cost of each pod running on EC2 or Fargate)
  • The cost of storage and data transfer
  • Networking and scaling costs (load balancers, auto-scaling groups)
  • Database provisioning costs
  • And more

This real-time visibility into costs helps in preemptively managing the budget and scaling decisions.

2. Breakdown by Pod and/or Event

Demostar’s “orders” (aka "pods") are independent containers for demos, sales presentations, or customer trials. Each of these represents a distinct unit of resources. With AWS Cost Estimation you can break down the cost for each individual pod, or look at events as a whole. This means you can provide granular estimates on:

  • The cost per order/pod
  • The estimated total cost for running a batch of pods
  • Identifying the most expensive resources allocated to each pod (e.g., whether it’s the compute power or the data storage)

This level of detail helps your sales, training, and development teams understand which pods are more resource-intensive and could benefit from optimization—whether by rightsizing instances or changing storage types.

3. Scaling for Large Events

Large-scale events—such as product launches, webinars, or all-hands training—often result in a rapid scaling up of pods to accommodate demand. With AWS auto-scaling and elastic resources, it’s easy to deploy new instances to meet surges in traffic. However, without a clear cost strategy, scaling can easily spiral into unexpected expenses.

Demostar provides a way to simulate these large-scale events in advance. You can use historical data and anticipated user numbers to create a model of how many orders/pods will be deployed and estimate the total cost of scaling up. By providing visibility into cost at scale, it becomes easier to forecast overall event costs and budget accordingly.

4. Continuous Monitoring for Budget Control

Another benefit of using AWS Cost Estimation is the continuous monitoring capability ("accrued cost"). When managing ongoing events with fluctuating demand, your teams can leverage Demostar to track cost drift over time. If certain pods are running longer than expected or consuming more resources, alerts can be set up to notify stakeholders when the budget is nearing its limit. This enables proactive cost control, preventing budget overruns while maintaining a seamless experience for users.

Managing Cost Complexity in Multi-Event Scenarios

If you regularly run multiple events simultaneously—each with a different number of orders/pods—AWS Cost Estimation provides the ability to model complex scenarios:

  • Segment costs by event: For example, if Demostar is running three separate events—one for internal sales training, one for client demos, and one for a product launch—each event’s costs can be estimated and tracked individually.
  • Compare cost options: If there are different cloud resource configurations (e.g., using EC2 Spot Instances vs. on-demand instances), Demostar allows you to model both configurations to compare potential savings or cost increases.
  • Plan for future events: Using historical cost data from past events, Demostar helps predict future costs with better accuracy. You can adjust cloud resource provisioning based on past experiences and optimize for cost-efficiency.

Conclusion: Enhancing Cost Visibility for Smarter Operations

In the world of cloud-based sales demos and training events, where dozens or even hundreds of pods are deployed, having a clear understanding of cloud infrastructure costs is crucial. With AWS Cost Estimation, Demostar provides invaluable insights into how much events will cost, from small demos to large-scale product launches. The tool allows for better cost forecasting, granular breakdowns, and real-time visibility, empowering both technical and financial teams to make informed decisions and optimize cloud spending.

By integrating cost estimation tools into your cloud infrastructure planning, Demostar ensures that every event is not only a success in terms of user experience but also an efficient use of resources that aligns with budgetary goals.