Abstract: A service provider network includes functionality for allowing a customer to influence the placement of virtual machine instances on server computers by specifying a placement strategy. Placement strategies may be shared among customers of the service provider network, and the placement strategies and the publishers of the placement strategies might be rated. Vendor-agnostic placement strategies might also be utilized to identify a service provider network for executing a virtual machine instance. A placement strategy that includes dynamically evaluated parameters might also be utilized to modify virtual machine instances in a customer fleet on an ongoing basis.

Abstract: A service provider network includes functionality for allowing a customer to influence the placement of virtual machine instances on server computers by specifying a placement strategy. Placement strategies may be shared among customers of the service provider network, and the placement strategies and the publishers of the placement strategies might be rated. Vendor-agnostic placement strategies might also be utilized to identify a service provider network for executing a virtual machine instance. A placement strategy that includes dynamically evaluated parameters might also be utilized to modify virtual machine instances in a customer fleet on an ongoing basis.

Abstract: Automated return machines may receive items to be returned to an electronic marketplace by a customer, or repurchased by the electronic marketplace, within one or more designated chambers. The machines may gather one or more attributes of the item and utilize such attributes to confirm an identity of the item or to evaluate its condition, and to generate an offer for the repurchase of the item based on an anticipated demand for the item as well as a strategy or plan to distribute the item, either directly from the automated return machine or from a facility designated by an electronic marketplace. If the offer is declined, the item may be returned to the customer. If the offer is accepted, a credit for the item may be remitted to the customer, and the item may be added to the inventory at the electronic marketplace and made available for resale to other customers.

Abstract: Nodes of a database service may receive a read request to perform a read of a record stored by the database service and a transaction request to perform a transaction to the record. First and second indications of time may be associated with the read and transaction, respectively. A potential read anomaly (e.g., fuzzy read, read skew, etc.) may be detected based, at least in part, on a determination that the first indication of time is within a threshold value of the second indication of time. In response to detecting the potential read anomaly, the read may be performed after the transaction specified by the transaction request, regardless of whether the first indication of time is indicative of an earlier point in time than the second indication of time.

Abstract: A service provider network includes functionality for allowing a customer to influence the placement of virtual machine instances on server computers by specifying a placement strategy. Placement strategies may be shared among customers of the service provider network, and the placement strategies and the publishers of the placement strategies might be rated. Vendor-agnostic placement strategies might also be utilized to identify a service provider network for executing a virtual machine instance. A placement strategy that includes dynamically evaluated parameters might also be utilized to modify virtual machine instances in a customer fleet on an ongoing basis.

Abstract: A service provider network includes host computers that have various computing devices connected thereto. In order to test the operation of a program, a developer creates a program and one or more test cases for use in testing the program. The developer also identifies devices in the service provider network for use in testing the program. Once this selection has been made, a test request is submitted to the service provider network. When the service provider network receives the test request, the program is installed on the devices upon which testing is to be performed. The supplied test case is then utilized to test various aspects of the operation of the program on the devices. Once the testing of the program has completed, the results of the testing may be transmitted to the developer. A similar process might be utilized to test a program on a variety of device emulators.

Abstract: Portable multimedia devices, and techniques for their manufacture, are provided that feature functional parts embedded with a resin matrix that obviates the need for traditional structural components such as midframes and/or outer casings. The resin matrix may be provided through the use of a flowable liquid resin that is flowed around the functional components within a mold cavity. The liquid resin may then be cured into the resin matrix.

Abstract: A service provider network includes host computers that have various computing devices connected thereto. In order to test the operation of a program, a developer creates a program and one or more test cases for use in testing the program. The developer also identifies devices in the service provider network for use in testing the program. Once this selection has been made, a test request is submitted to the service provider network. When the service provider network receives the test request, the program is installed on the devices upon which testing is to be performed. The supplied test case is then utilized to test various aspects of the operation of the program on the devices. Once the testing of the program has completed, the results of the testing may be transmitted to the developer. A similar process might be utilized to test a program on a variety of device emulators.

Abstract: Data may be collected regarding the configuration of a network, such as a customer network operated by a customer of a service provider operating a service provider network. An appropriate interface, such as a user interface, may be provided to allow a user to add, delete, or otherwise modify the collected network configuration data. The collected, and possibly modified, network configuration data may then be utilized to create a private virtual network in the service provider network. The private virtual network may be implemented such that it has the same, or similar, network configuration as the customer network.

Abstract: A method for grouping and storing objects across different storage solutions in storage systems according to analysis of multiple dimensions of information may be implemented as or in a storage management module. The module collects information about objects (e.g., data objects) in a storage system (e.g., a data storage system). The objects may be objects already stored in the storage system or may be new objects to be stored in the storage system. The module analyzes the collected information across multiple dimensions to determine groupings of the objects, and determines a storage solution for each determined grouping. The module may then direct storage of the objects in the groupings according to the determined storage solutions. Upon obtaining new information about object(s) in the storage system, the module may direct movement of the object(s) from one storage solution to another storage solution according to an analysis including the new information.

Abstract: A database system may receive a write request that specifies a modification to be made to a particular data record stored by the database system. A log record representing the modification to be made to the particular data record may be sent to a storage service of the database system. An indication (e.g., log record or other indication) that indicates a cached version of the particular data record stored in a read replica's cache is stale may be sent to a read replica. For a subsequent read of the particular data record received by the read replica, the read replica may request the particular data record from the storage service.

Abstract: Concepts and technologies are described herein for consistent scaling of web content across devices having different screen metrics. According to some of the concepts and technologies disclosed herein, a computing device may receive web content and select a scaling factor for scaling the web content for presentation on a screen component associated with the computing device. The computing device may select a scaling factor for scaling the web content and utilize the scaling factor and a screen metric of the screen component to calculate a value, which the computing device may then apply to a font size property of a root document object model (“DOM”) node of the web content. The computing device may then scale the web content for presentation on the screen component based upon the value of the font size property and rem units defined in the web content.

Abstract: Application program data stored in system memory may be selectively persisted. An indication may be provided to an application program that an application data object or a range of application data stored in system memory may be treated as persistent. Data backup may be enabled for the application data object or range of application data in the event of a system failure, copying the application data object or range of application data from system memory to non-volatile data storage. Upon recovery from a system failure, further data backup for the application data object or the range of application data may be disabled. In some embodiments, at least some of the application data object or range of application data may be recovered for the application program to access. Data backup for the application data object or the range of application data may also be re-enabled.

Abstract: A distributed load balancer in which a router receives packets from at least one client and routes packet flows to multiple load balancer nodes. The router exposes a public IP address and the load balancer nodes all advertise the same public IP address to the router. The router may implement a per-flow hashed multipath routing technique, for example an equal-cost multipath (ECMP) routing technique, to distribute the flows across the load balancer nodes. Thus, the multiple load balancer nodes may service a single public endpoint. The load balancer nodes may advertise to the router according to the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP). Rather than advertising itself, however, a load balancer node may be advertised to the router by one or more neighbor load balancer nodes; the neighbor nodes may terminate the BGP sessions with the router in response to determining that the load balancer node has failed.

Abstract: A connection publishing method for a distributed load balancer in which a router receives packets from at least one client and routes packet flows to multiple load balancer (LB) nodes, which in turn distribute the packet flows among multiple server nodes. A load balancer (LB) module on each server node determines and publishes a list of active connections between client(s) and the server (a connection publishing packet) back to the LB nodes. The LB module may randomly select a LB node to receive the packet. Upon receiving the packet, the LB node processes the connection information in the packet, distributing the connection information among appropriate LB nodes. Receiving the connection publishing information from the server nodes refreshes leases for the connections on the LB nodes.

Abstract: Approaches are described for enabling a host computing device to store credentials and other security information useful for recovering the state of the host computing device in a secure store, such as a trusted platform module (TPM) on the host computing device. When recovering the host computing device in the event of a failure (e.g., power outage, network failure, etc.), the host computing device can obtain the necessary credentials from the secure store and use those credentials to boot various services, restore the state of the host and perform various other functions. In addition, the secure store (e.g., TPM) may provide boot firmware measurement and remote attestation of the host computing devices to other devices on a network, such as when the recovering host needs to communicate with the other devices on the network.

Abstract: A distributed load balancer in which a router receives packets from at least one client and routes packet flows to multiple ingress servers. For unknown packet flows, an ingress server cooperates with primary and secondary flow trackers to establish connections to server nodes. For known packet flows, the ingress server sends the packets to target server nodes. The server nodes randomly select egress servers for outgoing packets of the packet flows. The ingress servers, flow trackers, and egress servers are implemented by multiple load balancer nodes in a load balancer node layer. The ingress and egress servers for a given packet flow may be on different load balancer nodes. The load balancer nodes may use a consistent hash function to compute a consistent hash ring for the nodes according to packet flow client/public endpoint pairs so that nodes associated with given packet flows can be located.

Abstract: A distributed load balancer in which a router receives packets from at least one client and routes packet flows to multiple load balancer (LB) nodes according to a per-flow hashed multipath routing technique. For a given packet flow, the LB nodes randomly select a server node as a target for the packet flow from among multiple server nodes and send a connection request to the server node. A load balancer module on the server node makes the decision on whether to accept or reject the connection based on one or more metrics indicating a respective server's current load. If the module accepts the connection request, a connection is established between the server and the client. Otherwise, the load balancer nodes may select another server node and try again. The connections established between clients and servers pass through the load balancer nodes, but are not terminated at the load balancer nodes.

Abstract: Approaches are described for enabling a host computing device to store credentials and other security information useful for recovering the state of the host computing device in a secure store, such as a trusted platform module (TPM) on the host computing device. When recovering the host computing device in the event of a failure (e.g., power outage, network failure, etc.), the host computing device can obtain the necessary credentials from the secure store and use those credentials to boot various services, restore the state of the host and perform various other functions. In addition, the secure store (e.g., TPM) may provide boot firmware measurement and remote attestation of the host computing devices to other devices on a network, such as when the recovering host needs to communicate with the other devices on the network.

Abstract: Web services hosted at a data center may employ architectural patterns that tend to obfuscate the source of queries made against databases and other resources in the data center. The queries may be the source of performance, capacity or utilization problems, and may contribute to the cost of hosting the web service. Web service invocations may be associated with identifiers that can be included in modified queries sent to databases and other resources. Summarized cost information may be calculated based on recorded associations between the identifiers and query performance information.