diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudformation-codepipeline/lib/pipeline-actions.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudformation-codepipeline/lib/pipeline-actions.ts
index 7b5dee76168eb..69209fe58bae2 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudformation-codepipeline/lib/pipeline-actions.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudformation-codepipeline/lib/pipeline-actions.ts
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ export abstract class CloudFormationAction extends codepipeline.DeployAction {
         });
 
         if (props.outputFileName) {
-            this.artifact = this.addOutputArtifact(props.outputArtifactName || (parent.name + this.name + 'Artifact'));
+            this.artifact = this.addOutputArtifact(props.outputArtifactName || (parent.id + this.id + 'Artifact'));
         }
     }
 }
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudtrail/lib/index.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudtrail/lib/index.ts
index 5fbbe2605f1d7..0fc363819d073 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudtrail/lib/index.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-cloudtrail/lib/index.ts
@@ -174,7 +174,7 @@ export class CloudTrail extends cdk.Construct {
             includeGlobalServiceEvents: props.includeGlobalServiceEvents == null ? true : props.includeGlobalServiceEvents,
             trailName: props.trailName,
             kmsKeyId:  props.kmsKey && props.kmsKey.keyArn,
-            s3BucketName: s3bucket.name,
+            s3BucketName: s3bucket.bucketName,
             s3KeyPrefix: props.s3KeyPrefix,
             cloudWatchLogsLogGroupArn: this.cloudWatchLogsGroupArn,
             cloudWatchLogsRoleArn: this.cloudWatchLogsRoleArn,
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codebuild/lib/project.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codebuild/lib/project.ts
index 1fc3925b3c26b..48120f478fa55 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codebuild/lib/project.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codebuild/lib/project.ts
@@ -266,7 +266,7 @@ export abstract class ProjectRef extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventR
         }
 
         return {
-            id: this.name,
+            id: this.id,
             arn: this.projectArn,
             roleArn: this.eventsRole.roleArn,
         };
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/actions.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/actions.ts
index 5b89af927f753..805835c43fb8a 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/actions.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/actions.ts
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ export abstract class Action extends cdk.Construct {
      */
     public render(): cloudformation.PipelineResource.ActionDeclarationProperty {
         return {
-            name: this.name,
+            name: this.id,
             inputArtifacts: this.inputArtifacts.map(a => ({ name: a.name })),
             actionTypeId: {
                 category: this.category.toString(),
@@ -174,8 +174,8 @@ export abstract class Action extends cdk.Construct {
             source: [ 'aws.codepipeline' ],
             resources: [ this.stage.pipeline.pipelineArn ],
             detail: {
-                stage: [ this.stage.name ],
-                action: [ this.name ],
+                stage: [ this.stage.id ],
+                action: [ this.id ],
             },
         });
         return rule;
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/pipeline.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/pipeline.ts
index 7b72cbfe7ec01..5520436fac94d 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/pipeline.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/pipeline.ts
@@ -164,7 +164,7 @@ export class Pipeline extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventRuleTarget {
         }
 
         return {
-            id: this.name,
+            id: this.id,
             arn: this.pipelineArn,
             roleArn: this.eventsRole.roleArn,
         };
@@ -224,8 +224,8 @@ export class Pipeline extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventRuleTarget {
     }
 
     private appendStage(stage: Stage) {
-        if (this.stages.find(x => x.name === stage.name)) {
-            throw new Error(`A stage with name '${stage.name}' already exists`);
+        if (this.stages.find(x => x.id === stage.id)) {
+            throw new Error(`A stage with name '${stage.id}' already exists`);
         }
 
         this.stages.push(stage);
@@ -235,7 +235,7 @@ export class Pipeline extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventRuleTarget {
         return util.flatMap(this.stages, (stage, i) => {
             const onlySourceActionsPermitted = i === 0;
             return util.flatMap(stage.actions, (action, _) =>
-                validation.validateSourceAction(onlySourceActionsPermitted, action.category, action.name, stage.name)
+                validation.validateSourceAction(onlySourceActionsPermitted, action.category, action.id, stage.id)
             );
         });
     }
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/stage.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/stage.ts
index 3f74cf9db9985..65cbc7ddfc541 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/stage.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-codepipeline/lib/stage.ts
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ export class Stage extends cdk.Construct {
 
     public render(): cloudformation.PipelineResource.StageDeclarationProperty {
         return {
-            name: this.name,
+            name: this.id,
             actions: this._actions.map(action => action.render())
         };
     }
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ export class Stage extends cdk.Construct {
             source: [ 'aws.codepipeline' ],
             resources: [ this.pipeline.pipelineArn ],
             detail: {
-                stage: [ this.name ],
+                stage: [ this.id ],
             },
         });
         return rule;
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ export class Stage extends cdk.Construct {
 
     private validateHasActions(): string[] {
         if (this._actions.length === 0) {
-            return [`Stage '${this.name}' must have at least one action`];
+            return [`Stage '${this.id}' must have at least one action`];
         }
         return [];
     }
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-lambda/lib/lambda-ref.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-lambda/lib/lambda-ref.ts
index 862cacd238e6a..9bf961f808fbf 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-lambda/lib/lambda-ref.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-lambda/lib/lambda-ref.ts
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@ export abstract class FunctionRef extends cdk.Construct
         }
 
         return {
-            id: this.name,
+            id: this.id,
             arn: this.functionArn,
         };
     }
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-sns/lib/topic-ref.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-sns/lib/topic-ref.ts
index c5476d05c4cb9..563915b5cc65c 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-sns/lib/topic-ref.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-sns/lib/topic-ref.ts
@@ -80,9 +80,9 @@ export abstract class TopicRef extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventRul
      * @param queue The target queue
      */
     public subscribeQueue(queue: sqs.QueueRef) {
-        const subscriptionName = queue.name + 'Subscription';
+        const subscriptionName = queue.id + 'Subscription';
         if (this.tryFindChild(subscriptionName)) {
-            throw new Error(`A subscription between the topic ${this.name} and the queue ${queue.name} already exists`);
+            throw new Error(`A subscription between the topic ${this.id} and the queue ${queue.id} already exists`);
         }
 
         // we use the queue name as the subscription's. there's no meaning to subscribing
@@ -114,10 +114,10 @@ export abstract class TopicRef extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventRul
      * @param lambdaFunction The Lambda function to invoke
      */
     public subscribeLambda(lambdaFunction: lambda.FunctionRef) {
-        const subscriptionName = lambdaFunction.name + 'Subscription';
+        const subscriptionName = lambdaFunction.id + 'Subscription';
 
         if (this.tryFindChild(subscriptionName)) {
-            throw new Error(`A subscription between the topic ${this.name} and the lambda ${lambdaFunction.name} already exists`);
+            throw new Error(`A subscription between the topic ${this.id} and the lambda ${lambdaFunction.id} already exists`);
         }
 
         const sub = new Subscription(this, subscriptionName, {
@@ -126,7 +126,7 @@ export abstract class TopicRef extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventRul
             protocol: SubscriptionProtocol.Lambda
         });
 
-        lambdaFunction.addPermission(this.name, {
+        lambdaFunction.addPermission(this.id, {
             sourceArn: this.topicArn,
             principal: new cdk.ServicePrincipal('sns.amazonaws.com'),
         });
@@ -223,7 +223,7 @@ export abstract class TopicRef extends cdk.Construct implements events.IEventRul
         }
 
         return {
-            id: this.name,
+            id: this.id,
             arn: this.topicArn,
         };
     }
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/logical-id.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/logical-id.ts
index 5f89093795981..b1a30a40b84d7 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/logical-id.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/logical-id.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { makeUniqueId } from '../util/uniqueid';
-import { StackElement } from "./stack";
+import { StackElement } from './stack';
 
 const PATH_SEP = '/';
 
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/stack.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/stack.ts
index 9afe7265bdec4..9f1b4a799a8fb 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/stack.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/cloudformation/stack.ts
@@ -86,10 +86,16 @@ export class Stack extends Construct {
      */
     public readonly templateOptions: TemplateOptions = {};
 
+    /**
+     * The CloudFormation stack name.
+     */
+    public readonly name: string;
+
     /**
      * Creates a new stack.
      *
      * @param parent Parent of this stack, usually a Program instance.
+     * @param name The name of the CloudFormation stack. Defaults to "Stack".
      * @param props Stack properties.
      */
     public constructor(parent?: App, name?: string, props?: StackProps) {
@@ -98,6 +104,7 @@ export class Stack extends Construct {
         this.env = this.parseEnvironment(props);
 
         this.logicalIds = new LogicalIDs(props && props.namingScheme ? props.namingScheme : new HashedAddressingScheme());
+        this.name = name || 'Stack';
     }
 
     /**
@@ -195,7 +202,7 @@ export class Stack extends Construct {
      * CloudFormation stack names can include dashes in addition to the regular identifier
      * character classes, and we don't allow one of the magic markers.
      */
-    protected _validateName(name: string) {
+    protected _validateId(name: string) {
         if (!Stack.VALID_STACK_NAME_REGEX.test(name)) {
             throw new Error(`Stack name must match the regular expression: ${Stack.VALID_STACK_NAME_REGEX.toString()}, got '${name}'`);
         }
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/core/construct.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/core/construct.ts
index 3b52c7092b7d1..16fd813a89130 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/core/construct.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/core/construct.ts
@@ -13,13 +13,9 @@ export class Construct {
     public readonly parent?: Construct;
 
     /**
-     * @deprecated use `id`
-     */
-    public readonly name: string;
-
-    /**
-     * The subtree-local id of the construct.
-     * This id is unique within the subtree. To obtain a tree-unique id, use `uniqueId`.
+     * The local id of the construct.
+     * This id is unique amongst its siblings.
+     * To obtain a tree-global unique id for this construct, use `uniqueId`.
      */
     public readonly id: string;
 
@@ -30,7 +26,7 @@ export class Construct {
     public readonly path: string;
 
     /**
-     * A tree-unique alpha-numeric identifier for this construct.
+     * A tree-global unique alphanumeric identifier for this construct.
      * Includes all components of the tree.
      */
     public readonly uniqueId: string;
@@ -56,7 +52,6 @@ export class Construct {
      */
     constructor(parent: Construct, id: string) {
         this.id = id;
-        this.name = id; // legacy
         this.parent = parent;
 
         // We say that parent is required, but some root constructs bypass the type checks and
@@ -75,7 +70,7 @@ export class Construct {
 
         // Validate the name we ended up with
         if (this.id !== '') {
-            this._validateName(this.id);
+            this._validateId(this.id);
         }
 
         const components = this.rootPath().map(c => c.id);
@@ -294,12 +289,12 @@ export class Construct {
     }
 
     /**
-     * Validate that the name of the construct is a legal identifier.
-     * Construct names can be any characters besides the path separator.
+     * Validate that the id of the construct legal.
+     * Construct IDs can be any characters besides the path separator.
      */
-    protected _validateName(name: string) {
-        if (name.indexOf(PATH_SEP) !== -1) {
-            throw new Error(`Construct names cannot include '${PATH_SEP}': ${name}`);
+    protected _validateId(id: string) {
+        if (id.indexOf(PATH_SEP) !== -1) {
+            throw new Error(`Construct names cannot include '${PATH_SEP}': ${id}`);
         }
     }
 
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/.gitignore b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/.gitignore
deleted file mode 100644
index f3e1fe1de16f9..0000000000000
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/.gitignore
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,2 +0,0 @@
-!md5.js
-
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/md5.js b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/md5.js
deleted file mode 100644
index 762de3c52012a..0000000000000
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/md5.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,280 +0,0 @@
-/*
- * JavaScript MD5
- * https://github.com/blueimp/JavaScript-MD5
- *
- * Copyright 2011, Sebastian Tschan
- * https://blueimp.net
- *
- * Licensed under the MIT license:
- * https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT
- *
- * Based on
- * A JavaScript implementation of the RSA Data Security, Inc. MD5 Message
- * Digest Algorithm, as defined in RFC 1321.
- * Version 2.2 Copyright (C) Paul Johnston 1999 - 2009
- * Other contributors: Greg Holt, Andrew Kepert, Ydnar, Lostinet
- * Distributed under the BSD License
- * See http://pajhome.org.uk/crypt/md5 for more info.
- */
-
-/* global define */
-
-;(function ($) {
-  'use strict'
-
-  /*
-  * Add integers, wrapping at 2^32. This uses 16-bit operations internally
-  * to work around bugs in some JS interpreters.
-  */
-  function safeAdd (x, y) {
-    var lsw = (x & 0xffff) + (y & 0xffff)
-    var msw = (x >> 16) + (y >> 16) + (lsw >> 16)
-    return (msw << 16) | (lsw & 0xffff)
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Bitwise rotate a 32-bit number to the left.
-  */
-  function bitRotateLeft (num, cnt) {
-    return (num << cnt) | (num >>> (32 - cnt))
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * These functions implement the four basic operations the algorithm uses.
-  */
-  function md5cmn (q, a, b, x, s, t) {
-    return safeAdd(bitRotateLeft(safeAdd(safeAdd(a, q), safeAdd(x, t)), s), b)
-  }
-  function md5ff (a, b, c, d, x, s, t) {
-    return md5cmn((b & c) | (~b & d), a, b, x, s, t)
-  }
-  function md5gg (a, b, c, d, x, s, t) {
-    return md5cmn((b & d) | (c & ~d), a, b, x, s, t)
-  }
-  function md5hh (a, b, c, d, x, s, t) {
-    return md5cmn(b ^ c ^ d, a, b, x, s, t)
-  }
-  function md5ii (a, b, c, d, x, s, t) {
-    return md5cmn(c ^ (b | ~d), a, b, x, s, t)
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Calculate the MD5 of an array of little-endian words, and a bit length.
-  */
-  function binlMD5 (x, len) {
-    /* append padding */
-    x[len >> 5] |= 0x80 << (len % 32)
-    x[((len + 64) >>> 9 << 4) + 14] = len
-
-    var i
-    var olda
-    var oldb
-    var oldc
-    var oldd
-    var a = 1732584193
-    var b = -271733879
-    var c = -1732584194
-    var d = 271733878
-
-    for (i = 0; i < x.length; i += 16) {
-      olda = a
-      oldb = b
-      oldc = c
-      oldd = d
-
-      a = md5ff(a, b, c, d, x[i], 7, -680876936)
-      d = md5ff(d, a, b, c, x[i + 1], 12, -389564586)
-      c = md5ff(c, d, a, b, x[i + 2], 17, 606105819)
-      b = md5ff(b, c, d, a, x[i + 3], 22, -1044525330)
-      a = md5ff(a, b, c, d, x[i + 4], 7, -176418897)
-      d = md5ff(d, a, b, c, x[i + 5], 12, 1200080426)
-      c = md5ff(c, d, a, b, x[i + 6], 17, -1473231341)
-      b = md5ff(b, c, d, a, x[i + 7], 22, -45705983)
-      a = md5ff(a, b, c, d, x[i + 8], 7, 1770035416)
-      d = md5ff(d, a, b, c, x[i + 9], 12, -1958414417)
-      c = md5ff(c, d, a, b, x[i + 10], 17, -42063)
-      b = md5ff(b, c, d, a, x[i + 11], 22, -1990404162)
-      a = md5ff(a, b, c, d, x[i + 12], 7, 1804603682)
-      d = md5ff(d, a, b, c, x[i + 13], 12, -40341101)
-      c = md5ff(c, d, a, b, x[i + 14], 17, -1502002290)
-      b = md5ff(b, c, d, a, x[i + 15], 22, 1236535329)
-
-      a = md5gg(a, b, c, d, x[i + 1], 5, -165796510)
-      d = md5gg(d, a, b, c, x[i + 6], 9, -1069501632)
-      c = md5gg(c, d, a, b, x[i + 11], 14, 643717713)
-      b = md5gg(b, c, d, a, x[i], 20, -373897302)
-      a = md5gg(a, b, c, d, x[i + 5], 5, -701558691)
-      d = md5gg(d, a, b, c, x[i + 10], 9, 38016083)
-      c = md5gg(c, d, a, b, x[i + 15], 14, -660478335)
-      b = md5gg(b, c, d, a, x[i + 4], 20, -405537848)
-      a = md5gg(a, b, c, d, x[i + 9], 5, 568446438)
-      d = md5gg(d, a, b, c, x[i + 14], 9, -1019803690)
-      c = md5gg(c, d, a, b, x[i + 3], 14, -187363961)
-      b = md5gg(b, c, d, a, x[i + 8], 20, 1163531501)
-      a = md5gg(a, b, c, d, x[i + 13], 5, -1444681467)
-      d = md5gg(d, a, b, c, x[i + 2], 9, -51403784)
-      c = md5gg(c, d, a, b, x[i + 7], 14, 1735328473)
-      b = md5gg(b, c, d, a, x[i + 12], 20, -1926607734)
-
-      a = md5hh(a, b, c, d, x[i + 5], 4, -378558)
-      d = md5hh(d, a, b, c, x[i + 8], 11, -2022574463)
-      c = md5hh(c, d, a, b, x[i + 11], 16, 1839030562)
-      b = md5hh(b, c, d, a, x[i + 14], 23, -35309556)
-      a = md5hh(a, b, c, d, x[i + 1], 4, -1530992060)
-      d = md5hh(d, a, b, c, x[i + 4], 11, 1272893353)
-      c = md5hh(c, d, a, b, x[i + 7], 16, -155497632)
-      b = md5hh(b, c, d, a, x[i + 10], 23, -1094730640)
-      a = md5hh(a, b, c, d, x[i + 13], 4, 681279174)
-      d = md5hh(d, a, b, c, x[i], 11, -358537222)
-      c = md5hh(c, d, a, b, x[i + 3], 16, -722521979)
-      b = md5hh(b, c, d, a, x[i + 6], 23, 76029189)
-      a = md5hh(a, b, c, d, x[i + 9], 4, -640364487)
-      d = md5hh(d, a, b, c, x[i + 12], 11, -421815835)
-      c = md5hh(c, d, a, b, x[i + 15], 16, 530742520)
-      b = md5hh(b, c, d, a, x[i + 2], 23, -995338651)
-
-      a = md5ii(a, b, c, d, x[i], 6, -198630844)
-      d = md5ii(d, a, b, c, x[i + 7], 10, 1126891415)
-      c = md5ii(c, d, a, b, x[i + 14], 15, -1416354905)
-      b = md5ii(b, c, d, a, x[i + 5], 21, -57434055)
-      a = md5ii(a, b, c, d, x[i + 12], 6, 1700485571)
-      d = md5ii(d, a, b, c, x[i + 3], 10, -1894986606)
-      c = md5ii(c, d, a, b, x[i + 10], 15, -1051523)
-      b = md5ii(b, c, d, a, x[i + 1], 21, -2054922799)
-      a = md5ii(a, b, c, d, x[i + 8], 6, 1873313359)
-      d = md5ii(d, a, b, c, x[i + 15], 10, -30611744)
-      c = md5ii(c, d, a, b, x[i + 6], 15, -1560198380)
-      b = md5ii(b, c, d, a, x[i + 13], 21, 1309151649)
-      a = md5ii(a, b, c, d, x[i + 4], 6, -145523070)
-      d = md5ii(d, a, b, c, x[i + 11], 10, -1120210379)
-      c = md5ii(c, d, a, b, x[i + 2], 15, 718787259)
-      b = md5ii(b, c, d, a, x[i + 9], 21, -343485551)
-
-      a = safeAdd(a, olda)
-      b = safeAdd(b, oldb)
-      c = safeAdd(c, oldc)
-      d = safeAdd(d, oldd)
-    }
-    return [a, b, c, d]
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Convert an array of little-endian words to a string
-  */
-  function binl2rstr (input) {
-    var i
-    var output = ''
-    var length32 = input.length * 32
-    for (i = 0; i < length32; i += 8) {
-      output += String.fromCharCode((input[i >> 5] >>> (i % 32)) & 0xff)
-    }
-    return output
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Convert a raw string to an array of little-endian words
-  * Characters >255 have their high-byte silently ignored.
-  */
-  function rstr2binl (input) {
-    var i
-    var output = []
-    output[(input.length >> 2) - 1] = undefined
-    for (i = 0; i < output.length; i += 1) {
-      output[i] = 0
-    }
-    var length8 = input.length * 8
-    for (i = 0; i < length8; i += 8) {
-      output[i >> 5] |= (input.charCodeAt(i / 8) & 0xff) << (i % 32)
-    }
-    return output
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Calculate the MD5 of a raw string
-  */
-  function rstrMD5 (s) {
-    return binl2rstr(binlMD5(rstr2binl(s), s.length * 8))
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Calculate the HMAC-MD5, of a key and some data (raw strings)
-  */
-  function rstrHMACMD5 (key, data) {
-    var i
-    var bkey = rstr2binl(key)
-    var ipad = []
-    var opad = []
-    var hash
-    ipad[15] = opad[15] = undefined
-    if (bkey.length > 16) {
-      bkey = binlMD5(bkey, key.length * 8)
-    }
-    for (i = 0; i < 16; i += 1) {
-      ipad[i] = bkey[i] ^ 0x36363636
-      opad[i] = bkey[i] ^ 0x5c5c5c5c
-    }
-    hash = binlMD5(ipad.concat(rstr2binl(data)), 512 + data.length * 8)
-    return binl2rstr(binlMD5(opad.concat(hash), 512 + 128))
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Convert a raw string to a hex string
-  */
-  function rstr2hex (input) {
-    var hexTab = '0123456789abcdef'
-    var output = ''
-    var x
-    var i
-    for (i = 0; i < input.length; i += 1) {
-      x = input.charCodeAt(i)
-      output += hexTab.charAt((x >>> 4) & 0x0f) + hexTab.charAt(x & 0x0f)
-    }
-    return output
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Encode a string as utf-8
-  */
-  function str2rstrUTF8 (input) {
-    return unescape(encodeURIComponent(input))
-  }
-
-  /*
-  * Take string arguments and return either raw or hex encoded strings
-  */
-  function rawMD5 (s) {
-    return rstrMD5(str2rstrUTF8(s))
-  }
-  function hexMD5 (s) {
-    return rstr2hex(rawMD5(s))
-  }
-  function rawHMACMD5 (k, d) {
-    return rstrHMACMD5(str2rstrUTF8(k), str2rstrUTF8(d))
-  }
-  function hexHMACMD5 (k, d) {
-    return rstr2hex(rawHMACMD5(k, d))
-  }
-
-  function md5 (string, key, raw) {
-    if (!key) {
-      if (!raw) {
-        return hexMD5(string)
-      }
-      return rawMD5(string)
-    }
-    if (!raw) {
-      return hexHMACMD5(key, string)
-    }
-    return rawHMACMD5(key, string)
-  }
-
-  if (typeof define === 'function' && define.amd) {
-    define(function () {
-      return md5
-    })
-  } else if (typeof module === 'object' && module.exports) {
-    module.exports = md5
-  } else {
-    $.md5 = md5
-  }
-})(this)
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/uniqueid.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/uniqueid.ts
index 6c7e27a87ebf9..43edf7286c47f 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/uniqueid.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/lib/util/uniqueid.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 // tslint:disable-next-line:no-var-requires
-const md5 = require('./md5');
+import crypto = require('crypto');
 
 /**
  * Resources with this ID are hidden from humans
@@ -20,17 +20,19 @@ const HASH_LEN = 8;
 const MAX_HUMAN_LEN = 240; // max ID len is 255
 
 /**
- * Given a set of named path components, returns a unique alpha-numeric identifier
- * with a maximum length of 255. This is done by calculating a hash on the full path
- * and using it as a suffix of a length-limited "human" rendition of the path components.
+ * Calculates a unique ID for a set of textual components.
+ *
+ * This is done by calculating a hash on the full path and using it as a suffix
+ * of a length-limited "human" rendition of the path components.
  *
  * @param components The path components
+ * @returns a unique alpha-numeric identifier with a maximum length of 255
  */
 export function makeUniqueId(components: string[]) {
     components = components.filter(x => x !== HIDDEN_ID);
 
     if (components.length === 0) {
-        throw new Error('Unable to calculate a unique ID for an empty path');
+        throw new Error('Unable to calculate a unique id for an empty set of components');
     }
 
     // top-level resources will simply use the `name` as-is in order to support
@@ -42,8 +44,8 @@ export function makeUniqueId(components: string[]) {
 
     const hash = pathHash(components);
     const human = removeDupes(components)
-        .map(removeNonAlpha)
         .filter(x => x !== HIDDEN_FROM_HUMAN_ID)
+        .map(removeNonAlphanumeric)
         .join('')
         .slice(0, MAX_HUMAN_LEN);
 
@@ -56,21 +58,22 @@ export function makeUniqueId(components: string[]) {
  * The hash is limited in size.
  */
 function pathHash(path: string[]): string {
-    return md5(path.join(PATH_SEP)).slice(0, HASH_LEN).toUpperCase();
+    const md5 = crypto.createHash('md5').update(path.join(PATH_SEP)).digest("hex");
+    return md5.slice(0, HASH_LEN).toUpperCase();
 }
 
 /**
  * Removes all non-alphanumeric characters in a string.
  */
-function removeNonAlpha(s: string) {
+function removeNonAlphanumeric(s: string) {
     return s.replace(/[^A-Za-z0-9]/g, '');
 }
 
 /**
  * Remove duplicate "terms" from the path list
  *
- * If a component name is completely the same as the suffix of
- * the previous component name, we get rid of it.
+ * If the previous path component name ends with this component name, skip the
+ * current component.
  */
 function removeDupes(path: string[]): string[] {
     const ret = new Array<string>();
diff --git a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/test/core/test.construct.ts b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/test/core/test.construct.ts
index 70d4c80577d59..c7a563beb2d4b 100644
--- a/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/test/core/test.construct.ts
+++ b/packages/@aws-cdk/cdk/test/core/test.construct.ts
@@ -67,6 +67,12 @@ export = {
         test.done();
     },
 
+    'cannot calculate uniqueId if the construct path is ["Default"]'(test: Test) {
+        const root = new Root();
+        test.throws(() => new Construct(root, 'Default'), /Unable to calculate a unique id for an empty set of components/);
+        test.done();
+    },
+
     'construct.getChildren() returns an array of all children'(test: Test) {
         const root = new Root();
         const child = new Construct(root, 'Child1');
@@ -424,7 +430,7 @@ class ConstructWithRequired extends Construct {
  * Construct that *must* be named "Spartacus"
  */
 class IAmSpartacusConstruct extends Construct {
-    protected _validateName(name: string) {
+    protected _validateId(name: string) {
         if (name !== "Spartacus") {
             throw new Error("Construct name must be 'Spartacus'");
         }