How HTTP and HTTPS Traffic Flows Through an AWS ALB to EKS When an application runs in Amazon EKS , users normally don’t connect directly to Kubernetes Pods. An AWS Application Load Balancer (ALB) sits in front of the application and receives incoming traffic. But where exactly are HTTP and HTTPS used? And if the user connects over HTTPS, does that mean the traffic stays HTTPS all the way to the Pod? Let’s follow one request from the browser to an application running in EKS. Imagine an application running with multiple Pods: The Basic Traffic Flow The ALB provides the entry point for traffic coming from outside the Kubernetes cluster. Before looking deeper into this flow, let's understand HTTP and HTTPS. What Is HTTP? HTTP Hypertext Transfer Protocol  is a protocol used by clients and servers to communicate. For example : http://app.example.com HTTP traffic is not encrypted. That means we generally don't want sensitive information such as passwords, authentication tokens,...

HTTP vs HTTPS : What’s the Difference?   Every time you open a website, use a mobile app, or call an API, a client and a server need a way to communicate. One of the most common ways they communicate is through HTTP. But when we browse the web today, we usually see HTTPS instead. So what is the difference?     What is HTTP?  HTTP stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol. Simply put, HTTP defines how a client sends a request to a server and how the server sends a response back. For example, imagine opening a restaurant menu online. Your browser might ask:  GET /menu The server receives the request and responds:  200 OK  The communication looks like this:  HTTP is the conversation happening between the client and server. By default, HTTP commonly uses port 80 .   The problem with HTTP HTTP by itself does not encrypt the communication .Think of it like sending a postcard. The message gets to its destination, but the contents aren't protected ...