How to use SPOT instances

SPOT instances can cost-effectively scale up your workload, but do you know how and when to use them? Discover the strengths of this solution.

Have you ever wanted to increase the workload capacity of your applications? Adding resources cost-effectively is a good thing for any business. But maintaining the availability, efficiency, and security of your applications while doing so is challenging.

What are SPOT instances?

SPOT instances are Amazon Web Services (AWS)'s way of selling unused Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) at a significant discount. To acquire SPOT instances, you participate in a kind of auction. As long as there is capacity, your SPOT instances will run. If AWS needs capacity, it takes back your instance, with just 2 minutes' notice.

When to use SPOT instances?

SPOT instances are not designed to handle 100% of your workload. They are recommended to supplement the capacity of your On-Demand Instances and can be used to run and scale image rendering applications, big data , massive computations… Any application where occasional downtime is acceptable.

Advantages of SPOT instances

• are up to 90% cheaper than on-demand solutions;
• While SPOT instance prices can fluctuate, gradual adjustment based on long-term supply and demand means you can rest a little easier while running on SPOT;
• Almost all types of instances are available in SPOT, just changing the billing mode associated with them.

Disadvantages of SPOT instances

• SPOT instances stop working if Amazon Web Services (AWS) decides to remove them. Until you cancel your bid, SPOT instances will be reactivated when AWS makes them available again.
• Amazon Web Services ( AWS) warns that your SPOT instances will shut down just two minutes before that happens. Without the right solution at your side, you put the functioning of your applications and your credibility in the market at risk.
• SPOT instances are not suitable for those who need availability in a production environment.

How to use SPOT instances in your company

Running your applications successfully on SPOT instances requires strategies to handle the scenario where they fail or stop for any reason. For time-sensitive applications, your strategy also needs to include managing contingencies, such as the possibility of not getting SPOT instances for a period of time. Another alternative is to configure your application for SPOT instance , using whatever type of architecture is convenient.

Is there an easy, efficient and cost-effective solution for SPOT instances?

While these are valid options, they are time and money consuming. Wouldn't it be amazing if there was a solution that offered EC2 availability for the price of SPOT instances ? This is Sky.Saver : high availability, scalability and efficiency.

We offer all the security of EC2 with the cost-effectiveness of SPOT instances, which allows you to save up to 80% of your Amazon Web Services (AWS) infrastructure spending. By combining its solution architecture and real-time analysis of the SPOT instance market, Sky.Saver fits scaling and availability strategies. The price of SPOT instances on-demand stability .

Through an dashboard , you have access to simplified management to monitor your costs and savings in real time. Paying just a percentage of the amount you save (in local currency), Sky.Saver is a smart solution for anyone in need of a stable infrastructure.

How about trying Sky.Saver for free for 15 days? Talk to one of our consultants to find out more.