--- title: "Launch and terminate cloud instances\n | Ubuntu" description: Ubuntu is an open source software operating system that runs from the desktop, to the cloud, to all your internet connected things. url: https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md keywords: index, follow --- # Launch and terminate cloud instances 1. [Overview](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#1-overview) 2. [Credentials](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#2-credentials) 3. [Launch instances](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#3-launch-instances) 4. [Associate floating IP](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#4-associate-floating-ip) 5. [Attach security group](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#5-attach-security-group) 6. [Access instances](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#6-access-instances) 7. [Delete instances](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#7-delete-instances) 8. [Next steps](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#8-next-steps) ## 1. Overview ### [Before you get started!](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#before-you-get-started) Welcome to OpenStack! In this series of tutorials, we will walk you through all the necessary steps to install, configure and get started with OpenStack. Using just a single machine, you will learn how to use OpenStack for cloud infrastructure implementation purposes, from a single-node installation to large-scale clusters. This tutorial is the ninth in the “Phase 1 - Learn OpenStack” series. [Explore other tutorials >](https://ubuntu.com/openstack/tutorials) ### [What is OpenStack?](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#what-is-openstack) [OpenStack](https://ubuntu.com/openstack/what-is-openstack) is a collection of open source projects designed to work together to form the basis of a cloud. OpenStack can be used for both private and public cloud implementation. ### [What is Sunbeam?](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#what-is-sunbeam) [Sunbeam](https://governance.openstack.org/tc/reference/projects/sunbeam.html) is an upstream project under the governance of the OpenInfra Foundation (OIF), which was created to lower the barrier to entry for OpenStack, simplify its adoption process, and set the foundation for an autonomous private cloud. Sunbeam uses cloud-native architecture and total bottom-up automation to make OpenStack more accessible to newcomers and to help users get to grips with the platform immediately. ### [What is MicroStack?](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#what-is-microstack) [MicroStack](https://microstack.run/) (based on Sunbeam) is an OpenStack distribution designed for small-scale cloud environments. While it is available with full commercial support from Canonical, it can also be self-deployed with no friction, effectively eliminating the need for a paid consulting engagement. MicroStack currently includes core OpenStack services only, but is expected to evolve quickly to ensure full feature parity with [Canonical’s Charmed OpenStack](https://ubuntu.com/openstack) soon. ### [In this tutorial, you will learn how to:](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#in-this-tutorial-you-will-learn-how-to) * Launch instances * Associate floating IPs * Attach security groups * Access instances * Delete instances ### [You will only need:](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#you-will-only-need) One fresh physical or virtual machine with: * Ubuntu 22.04 LTS installed, * Static IP address assigned to its primary network interface, * OpenSSH server installed and configured, * 4+ core amd64 CPU, * 16 GB of RAM, * 50 GB of SSD storage, * [OpenStack cloud bootstrapped, configured and sample instance launched](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/install-openstack-on-your-workstation-and-launch-your-first-instance), * [OpenStack client set up](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/explore-openstack-components-and-set-up-an-openstack-client), * [Samples templates created](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/manage-instance-templates-including-images-and-flavors), * [Sample identities created](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/use-the-concept-of-domains-roles-users-and-groups-to-manage-identities), * [Sample key pair created](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/enable-multi-tenancy-and-manage-global-and-tenant-resources), * [Sample network resources created](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/learn-how-openstack-manages-various-virtual-network-resources). --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 17 minutes to go *Previous step* [*Next step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#2-credentials) ## 2. Credentials Make sure you’re logged in as the *myuser* user we created in tutorial [6. Identities](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/use-the-concept-of-domains-roles-users-and-groups-to-manage-identities) To log in as the *myuser* user through the OpenStack client, open a new terminal window, execute the following command and type *mypassword* when asked for the password: ``` $ source ~/Downloads/myproject-openrc.sh ``` To log in as the *myuser* user through the OpenStack dashboard, visit `https://10.20.20.1` and use the following credentials: * **Domain** - Type `mydomain` * **User Name** - Type `myuser` * **Password** - Type `mypassword` --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 16 minutes to go [*Previous step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#1-overview) [*Next step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#3-launch-instances) ## 3. Launch instances In the following steps, we’ll launch two instances called *myinstance-1* and *myinstance-2* on the ephemeral storage using the *ubuntu* image, the *myflavor* flavor and the *mykeypair* key pair, attached to the *mysubnet* subnet with the *default* security group attached. ### [Launch instances through the OpenStack client](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#launch-instances-through-the-openstack-client) To launch instances, execute the following command: ``` $ openstack server create --flavor myflavor --image ubuntu --network mynetwork --key-name mykeypair --min 2 --max 2 myinstance ``` Launching instances takes a while. You are going to see that instances go through the *BUILD* status first. To list all instances, execute the following command: ``` $ openstack server list ``` Sample output: ``` +--------------------------------------+--------------+--------+-------------------------+--------+----------+ | ID | Name | Status | Networks | Image | Flavor | +--------------------------------------+--------------+--------+-------------------------+--------+----------+ | 42a9c5a4-c6dd-4bf4-baa9-d055b671662a | myinstance-2 | ACTIVE | mynetwork=192.168.0.141 | ubuntu | myflavor | | f686fc3c-e3ec-488d-85c1-89003bc7c83d | myinstance-1 | ACTIVE | mynetwork=192.168.0.124 | ubuntu | myflavor | +--------------------------------------+--------------+--------+-------------------------+--------+----------+ ``` ### [Launch instances through the OpenStack dashboard](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#launch-instances-through-the-openstack-dashboard) Navigate to **Project** → **Compute** → **Instances** and click the **Launch Instance** button on the right: To launch instances, fill in the form as follows: * **Instance Name** - Type `myinstance` * **Count** - Type `2` Then choose **Source** from the menu on the left: Fill in the form as follows: * **Create New Volume** - Choose *No* * Press UP beside *ubuntu* Then choose **Flavor** from the menu on the left: Fill in the form as follows: * Press UP beside **myflavor** Then click the **Launch Instance** button: Launching instances takes a while. You are going to see that instances go through the *Scheduling* and *Spawning* stages until they reach the *Active* status. Once those complete, you will see both instances in Nova’s database: Please note that instance details may be different in your environment. --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 11 minutes to go [*Previous step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#2-credentials) [*Next step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#4-associate-floating-ip) ## 4. Associate floating IP In the following steps, we’ll associate floating IP with the *myinstance-1* instance. ### [Associate floating IP through the OpenStack client](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#associate-floating-ip-through-the-openstack-client) To associate floating IP, execute the following commands: ``` $ IP=$(openstack floating ip list | tail -n 2 | head -n 1 | awk '{print $4}') $ openstack server add floating ip myinstance-1 $IP ``` ### [Associate floating IP through the OpenStack dashboard](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#associate-floating-ip-through-the-openstack-dashboard) Navigate to **Project** → **Compute** → **Instances**. Then, under the **Actions** column beside *myinstance-1*, select **Associate Floating IP** from the drop-down menu: To associate floating IP, fill in the form as follows: * **IP Address** - Select the available IP address from the drop-down menu (*10.20.20.226* in this case) Then click the **Associate** button: You are now able to see the floating IP being associated with the instance: --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 9 minutes to go [*Previous step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#3-launch-instances) [*Next step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#5-attach-security-group) ## 5. Attach security group In the following steps, we’ll attempt to SSH to the *myinstance-1* instance using the *mykeypair.pem* private key we’ve downloaded in tutorial [7. Multi-tenancy](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/enable-multi-tenancy-and-manage-global-and-tenant-resources). First, we need to narrow down the default permissions in the **mykeypair.pem** file. To set the right permissions, execute the following command: ``` $ chmod 0400 ~/Downloads/mykeypair.pem ``` To attempt to SSH to the instance, execute the following commands: ``` $ IP=$(openstack floating ip list | tail -n 2 | head -n 1 | awk '{print $4}') $ ssh -i ~/Downloads/mykeypair.pem -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no ubuntu@$IP ``` Sample output: ``` ssh: connect to host 10.20.20.19 port 22: Connection timed out ``` The connection was unsuccessful. The reason behind this is that the *default* security group does not allow ingress SSH connections. In order to SSH to the instance, we can attach the *mysecuritygroup* security group we created in tutorial [8. Network](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/learn-how-openstack-manages-various-virtual-network-resources). In the following steps, we’ll attach the *mysecuritygroup* security group to the *myinstance-1* instance. ### [Attach security group through the OpenStack client](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#attach-security-group-through-the-openstack-client) To attach a security group, execute the following command: ``` $ openstack server add security group myinstance-1 mysecuritygroup ``` ### [Attach security group through the OpenStack dashboard](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#attach-security-group-through-the-openstack-dashboard) Navigate to **Project** → **Compute** → **Instances**. Then, under the **Actions** column beside *myinstance-1*, select **Edit Security Groups** from the drop-down menu: To attach the *mysecuritygroup* security group, fill in the form as follows: * **All Security Groups** - Press the **+** button beside *mysecuritygroup* Then click the **Save** button: --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 5 minutes to go [*Previous step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#4-associate-floating-ip) [*Next step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#6-access-instances) ## 6. Access instances At this point, you are able to SSH to the *myinstance-1* instance: To attempt to SSH to the instance, execute the following commands: ``` $ IP=$(openstack floating ip list | tail -n 2 | head -n 1 | awk '{print $4}') $ ssh -i ~/Downloads/mykeypair.pem -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no ubuntu@$IP ``` Sample output: ``` Warning: Permanently added '10.20.20.19' (ECDSA) to the list of known hosts. Welcome to Ubuntu 22.04.1 LTS (GNU/Linux 5.15.0-53-generic x86_64) * Documentation: https://help.ubuntu.com * Management: https://landscape.canonical.com * Support: https://ubuntu.com/advantage System information as of Fri Dec 2 14:35:48 UTC 2022 System load: 0.0 Processes: 89 Usage of /: 14.9% of 9.51GB Users logged in: 0 Memory usage: 18% IPv4 address for ens3: 192.168.0.140 Swap usage: 0% 0 updates can be applied immediately. The list of available updates is more than a week old. To check for new updates run: sudo apt update Last login: Fri Dec 2 14:35:49 2022 from 10.20.20.1 To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo ". See "man sudo_root" for details. ubuntu@myinstance-1:~$ ``` To disconnect from the instance, type `exit` (or press CTRL+D). --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 4 minutes to go [*Previous step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#5-attach-security-group) [*Next step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#7-delete-instances) ## 7. Delete instances In the following steps, we’ll delete the *myinstance-2* instance. ### [Delete instances through the OpenStack client](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#delete-instances-through-the-openstack-client) To delete the instance, execute the following command: ``` $ openstack server delete myinstance-2 ``` ### [Delete instances through the OpenStack dashboard](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#delete-instances-through-the-openstack-dashboard) Navigate to **Project** → **Compute** → **Instances**. Then, under the **Actions** column beside *myinstance-1*, select **Delete Instance** from the drop-down menu: To delete the instance, click the **Delete Instance** button: The *myinstance-1* instance is no longer shown in Nova’s database: --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 2 minutes to go [*Previous step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#6-access-instances) [*Next step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#8-next-steps) ## 8. Next steps Congratulations! You have reached the end of this tutorial. You can now move to the next tutorial - [“10. Storage”](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/learn-how-openstack-manages-different-types-of-storage) - or [explore other tutorials](https://ubuntu.com/openstack/tutorials). ### [In this tutorial, you have learnt how to:](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#in-this-tutorial-you-have-learnt-how-to) * Launch instances * Associate floating IPs * Attach security groups * Access instances * Delete instances ### [Where to go from here?](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#where-to-go-from-here) * [Refer to Sunbeam documentation](https://microstack.run/docs) * [Join the community and ask questions](https://matrix.to/#/#openstack-sunbeam:ubuntu.com) * [Report a bug in Sunbeam](https://bugs.launchpad.net/snap-openstack/+filebug) * [Explore Charmed OpenStack](https://ubuntu.com/openstack/features) Was this tutorial useful? --- [Suggest changes ›](https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances/25075) about 0 minutes to go [*Previous step*](https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/launch-and-terminate-cloud-instances?format=md#7-delete-instances) *Next step*