CloudFront Fundamentals

AWS CloudFront is a global Content Delivery Network (CDN) service that delivers content with low latency and high transfer speeds.

Global network: 400+ edge locations worldwide

Low latency: Content cached closer to users

High performance: Optimized for speed and reliability

Edge locations are data centers where CloudFront caches content for faster delivery to users.

Cache content for read operations

Intermediate cache layer

Source of original content

For websites, APIs, and web applications

For streaming media files using Adobe Flash

User requests content from CloudFront domain

CloudFront checks if content is cached at nearest edge

If cached, serve immediately; if not, fetch from origin

Content delivered to user and cached for future requests

Reduced latency through edge caching

Improved page load times

Better user experience

Handles traffic spikes automatically

Global distribution capability

Reduces origin server load

DDoS protection with AWS Shield

SSL/TLS encryption support

WAF integration available