Internet Gateway

An EC2 Internet Gateway (IGW) is an AWS component that provides a path between a virtual private cloud (VPC) and the public internet. It is an AWS-managed component that connects to the public internet through an Amazon-owned IP address. The IGW accepts requests from the VPC, allowing communication between instances within the VPC and external resources such as websites or other cloud services. The IGW also has a default route configured in its route table to send outbound traffic from instances in the VPC to the public internet. In order for communication between your VPC and other services, you must create a virtual private network (VPN) connection with your IGW.