Case Study: CDN Migration from Fastly to Amazon CloudFront

Customer Challenge

A company specializing in virtual and hybrid events engaged TrackIt to assess and optimize its media pipeline, which was experiencing performance and reliability concerns. During the assessment, TrackIt identified multiple issues related to Fastly that prompted the customer to reconsider its CDN strategy. This analysis revealed critical challenges affecting HLS streaming performance across AWS Elemental MediaLive, MediaPackage, Bitmovin, and Fastly, leading to disruptions in live video stability, latency, playback reliability, and security. Given these persistent issues, the customer sought a more stable solution for content delivery, leading to a full migration from Fastly to Amazon CloudFront.

In addition to migrating to a more stable CDN, the company required a rework of the origin configuration system, enabling CloudFront to dynamically adjust its origin at runtime without modifying its distribution settings.

Implementation

TrackIt designed and implemented a CloudFront-based architecture to replace the customer’s existing Fastly deployment. The migration ensured seamless content delivery while maintaining performance and security standards. To meet path-based routing requirements, TrackIt implemented Lambda@Edge and CloudFront Functions, enabling dynamic origin selection and request handling. 

TrackIt also optimized caching strategies and distribution settings to improve reliability and scalability. Following the transition, the infrastructure was handed over with comprehensive documentation and best practices.

Results and Metrics

The customer saw improved CDN performance, with reduced latency and more consistent content delivery. The migration led to increased reliability, addressing the initial concerns identified in the assessment. CloudFront’s cost-effectiveness and tighter AWS integration provided additional operational benefits. 

Latency Reduction:

• Decreased average HLS segment delivery time 
• Reduced live stream startup time

Reliability and Playback Improvements:

• Increased successful video playback rates 
• Reduced buffering events per session 
• 99.95%+ availability achieved for live and VOD content delivery

Security and Stability Enhancements:

• Eliminated CDN-related disruptions that previously led to downtime during live events
• Implemented AWS WAF and Shield protections, reducing malicious traffic impact 

Cost Savings and Efficiency Gains:

• Reduced CDN-related costs with caching strategies and AWS cost savings plans
• Improved cache hit ratio, reducing unnecessary origin fetch requests

Operational Flexibility:

• Dynamic origin switching enabled via Lambda@Edge, allowing seamless content failover and distribution adjustments without manual intervention
• Reduced engineering overhead through automated CDN management