Apache Kafka (Hardened) on Amazon Linux 2023

Apache Kafka 4.3 (KRaft, no ZooKeeper) on Amazon Linux 2023 with Amazon Corretto, security-hardened for production: minimal package set, SSH key-only access, IMDSv2-only, listeners bound to loopback until you configure them, and continuously patched images. This product has charges associated with it for image hardening, maintenance, and support.

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Why this image

• Production-ready: Kafka 4.3 in KRaft mode (no ZooKeeper); storage auto-formats on first boot; systemd-managed.
• Security-hardened at build time: minimal packages, key-only SSH, IMDSv2-only, broker bound to loopback until you configure authenticated listeners.
• Continuously patched: rebuilt, vulnerability-scanned, and republished on a regular cadence; vulnerable bundled jars remediated at build.

About

Apache Kafka (Hardened) on Amazon Linux 2023 is a production-ready, security-hardened single-node image of the Apache Kafka event-streaming platform in KRaft mode (no ZooKeeper), maintained and supported by Derek Coleman & Associates Inc.

This is repackaged open-source software. Apache Kafka is developed by the Apache Software Foundation and is distributed under the Apache License 2.0. Apache and Apache Kafka are trademarks of the Apache Software Foundation; this listing is not endorsed by or affiliated with the ASF. This product bundles unmodified upstream Apache Kafka (with patched bundled libraries where upstream jars carry known vulnerabilities) on a hardened Amazon Linux 2023 base; the charges associated with this listing are for image hardening, continuous patching, vulnerability scanning, and business-day support - not for the underlying open-source software, which remains free.

Hardening baseline: minimal package footprint, SSH key-only access (password authentication disabled), IMDSv2 enforced, and no exposed default listeners - Kafka ships with no authentication, so the broker binds to 127.0.0.1 and the storage formats itself on first boot; exposing listeners with SASL/TLS to trusted CIDRs is a deliberate customer configuration step. Images are rebuilt, scanned for HIGH and CRITICAL vulnerabilities, and republished on a regular cadence so that new launches start current. The broker is validated at build time with an end-to-end smoke test.

Pricing (hourly usage, AWS Marketplace)

Recommended: c7i.2xlarge. AWS infrastructure charges are separate and billed by AWS. Charges stop when instances are terminated. No subscription, no minimum.

Getting started

1. Launch from AWS Marketplace (1-Click or EC2 console).
2. Connect via SSH with your EC2 key pair: ssh -i <key> ec2-user@<public-ip>. Root login is disabled; use sudo.
3. Kafka runs in KRaft mode and binds to 127.0.0.1:9092 (controller 127.0.0.1:9093). On first boot kafka-firstboot.service generates a fresh cluster id and formats /var/lib/kafka once (guarded by meta.properties), then kafka.service starts. Verify locally with: /opt/kafka/bin/kafka-topics.sh --bootstrap-server 127.0.0.1:9092 --list.
4. To serve clients, configure listeners plus SASL/TLS in /opt/kafka/config/server.properties, restart with: sudo systemctl restart kafka, and open port 9092 to trusted CIDRs only.
5. Health monitoring: sudo systemctl status kafka kafka-firstboot; broker logs in /var/log/kafka and: sudo journalctl -u kafka.
6. Sensitive data: there are no passwords or secrets anywhere in this product.
7. Backup: snapshot the EBS volume (it contains all configuration and data).
8. Resources: a single instance uses 1 EC2 instance and 1 gp3 EBS volume; no other AWS resources are created.
9. Support: support@dcassociatesgroup.com.

Support

Email support@dcassociatesgroup.com — business-day response. Covers image operation, the hardening baseline, and launch issues. See support.

Migrating from Bitnami?

This image is a marketplace-native alternative for teams leaving the retired free Bitnami Kafka image. It is not a drop-in copy of Bitnami's layout: Bitnami installs under /opt/bitnami and is controlled with ctlscript.sh, while this image uses the standard Amazon Linux 2023 paths and systemctl shown in the getting-started steps above.

• Bitnami Kafka alternative — migration notes for Apache Kafka
• Bitnami migration hub — deprecation timeline, Lightsail blueprint dates, and the same image on Azure and Google Cloud

Bitnami is a trademark of Broadcom, Inc. Used for identification only; no affiliation or endorsement implied.