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Triage AWS ALB No Targets NO_TARGETS_ATTACHED

  1. Configure AWS ALB No Targets
  2. Use Case for AWS ALB No Targets
  3. Triage Guides by Violation Type
    1. Triage AWS ALB No Targets NO_TARGETS_ATTACHED

NO_TARGETS_ATTACHED

Understand​

Why should I care about fixing this issue?

Application Load Balancers with no attached targets still incur costs. Identifying and deleting these unused ALBs can save unnecessary expenses and keep your AWS environment cost-efficient.

Validate​

How am I sure that this alert is true and accurate?

The policy uses AWS SDK calls to determine if there are any targets attached to the ALB. To manually verify:

  1. Use the AWS CLI or Management Console to describe the ALB and its target groups.
  2. Check if the target groups have any registered targets.

Does this policy scan on a schedule or is it reactive? If so, when?

This policy is reactive, meaning it will only produce a result when actively queried or evaluated.

Triage​

What is the impact if it is unfixed?

If left unaddressed, the ALB will continue to incur costs despite not serving any traffic. This leads to unnecessary spending.

Does this problem get worse over time if it is unaddressed?

The cost incurred will continue as long as the ALB exists without targets.

Can remediation cause outages or downtime to any other running service?

Deleting an unused ALB should not impact other services provided it is truly unused. Verify that no future plans involve this ALB.

Act​

What do I do to fix this alarm?

  1. Verify the ALB does not need to be in use.
  2. Delete the unused ALB using the AWS CLI, SDK, or Management Console.

Reflect​

What should I do if this alarm wasn't a good use of time?

If false positives are common, consider revisiting the context in which ALBs are deployed and ensuring they are properly assigned targets. Adjust resource deployment practices to avoid unused ALBs.