Getting Started With AWS EC2

Amazon EC2 is a very widely used public cloud platform and one of the core platforms Salt Cloud has been built to support.

Previously, the suggested driver for AWS EC2 was the aws driver. This has been deprecated in favor of the ec2 driver. Configuration using the old aws driver will still function, but that driver is no longer in active development.

Dependencies

This driver requires the Python requests library to be installed.

Configuration

The following example illustrates some of the options that can be set. These parameters are discussed in more detail below.

# Note: This example is for /etc/salt/cloud.providers or any file in the
# /etc/salt/cloud.providers.d/ directory.

my-ec2-southeast-public-ips:
  # Set up the location of the salt master
  #
  minion:
    master: saltmaster.example.com

  # Set up grains information, which will be common for all nodes
  # using this provider
  grains:
    node_type: broker
    release: 1.0.1

  # Specify whether to use public or private IP for deploy script.
  #
  # Valid options are:
  #     private_ips - The salt-cloud command is run inside the EC2
  #     public_ips - The salt-cloud command is run outside of EC2
  #
  ssh_interface: public_ips

  # Optionally configure the Windows credential validation number of
  # retries and delay between retries.  This defaults to 10 retries
  # with a one second delay betwee retries
  win_deploy_auth_retries: 10
  win_deploy_auth_retry_delay: 1

  # Set the EC2 access credentials (see below)
  #
  id: 'use-instance-role-credentials'
  key: 'use-instance-role-credentials'

  # If 'role_arn' is specified the above credentials are used to
  # to assume to the role. By default, role_arn is set to None.
  role_arn: arn:aws:iam::012345678910:role/SomeRoleName

  # Make sure this key is owned by corresponding user (default 'salt') with permissions 0400.
  #
  private_key: /etc/salt/my_test_key.pem
  keyname: my_test_key
  securitygroup: default

  # Optionally configure default region
  # Use salt-cloud --list-locations <provider> to obtain valid regions
  #
  location: ap-southeast-1
  availability_zone: ap-southeast-1b

  # Configure which user to use to run the deploy script. This setting is
  # dependent upon the AMI that is used to deploy. It is usually safer to
  # configure this individually in a profile, than globally. Typical users
  # are:
  #
  # Amazon Linux -> ec2-user
  # RHEL         -> ec2-user
  # CentOS       -> ec2-user
  # Ubuntu       -> ubuntu
  # Debian       -> admin
  #
  ssh_username: ec2-user

  # Optionally add an IAM profile
  iam_profile: 'arn:aws:iam::123456789012:instance-profile/ExampleInstanceProfile'

  driver: ec2


my-ec2-southeast-private-ips:
  # Set up the location of the salt master
  #
  minion:
    master: saltmaster.example.com

  # Specify whether to use public or private IP for deploy script.
  #
  # Valid options are:
  #     private_ips - The salt-master is also hosted with EC2
  #     public_ips - The salt-master is hosted outside of EC2
  #
  ssh_interface: private_ips

  # Optionally configure the Windows credential validation number of
  # retries and delay between retries.  This defaults to 10 retries
  # with a one second delay betwee retries
  win_deploy_auth_retries: 10
  win_deploy_auth_retry_delay: 1

  # Set the EC2 access credentials (see below)
  #
  id: 'use-instance-role-credentials'
  key: 'use-instance-role-credentials'

  # Make sure this key is owned by root with permissions 0400.
  #
  private_key: /etc/salt/my_test_key.pem
  keyname: my_test_key

  # This one should NOT be specified if VPC was not configured in AWS to be
  # the default. It might cause an error message which says that network
  # interfaces and an instance-level security groups may not be specified
  # on the same request.
  #
  securitygroup: default

  # Optionally configure default region
  #
  location: ap-southeast-1
  availability_zone: ap-southeast-1b

  # Configure which user to use to run the deploy script. This setting is
  # dependent upon the AMI that is used to deploy. It is usually safer to
  # configure this individually in a profile, than globally. Typical users
  # are:
  #
  # Amazon Linux -> ec2-user
  # RHEL         -> ec2-user
  # CentOS       -> ec2-user
  # Ubuntu       -> ubuntu
  #
  ssh_username: ec2-user

  # Optionally add an IAM profile
  iam_profile: 'my other profile name'

  driver: ec2

Note

Changed in version 2015.8.0.

The provider parameter in cloud provider definitions was renamed to driver. This change was made to avoid confusion with the provider parameter that is used in cloud profile definitions. Cloud provider definitions now use driver to refer to the Salt cloud module that provides the underlying functionality to connect to a cloud host, while cloud profiles continue to use provider to refer to provider configurations that you define.

Access Credentials

The id and key settings may be found in the Security Credentials area of the AWS Account page:

https://portal.aws.amazon.com/gp/aws/securityCredentials

Both are located in the Access Credentials area of the page, under the Access Keys tab. The id setting is labeled Access Key ID, and the key setting is labeled Secret Access Key.

Note: if either id or key is set to 'use-instance-role-credentials' it is assumed that Salt is running on an AWS instance, and the instance role credentials will be retrieved and used. Since both the id and key are required parameters for the AWS ec2 provider, it is recommended to set both to 'use-instance-role-credentials' for this functionality.

A "static" and "permanent" Access Key ID and Secret Key can be specified, but this is not recommended. Instance role keys are rotated on a regular basis, and are the recommended method of specifying AWS credentials.

Windows Deploy Timeouts

For Windows instances, it may take longer than normal for the instance to be ready. In these circumstances, the provider configuration can be configured with a win_deploy_auth_retries and/or a win_deploy_auth_retry_delay setting, which default to 10 retries and a one second delay between retries. These retries and timeouts relate to validating the Administrator password once AWS provides the credentials via the AWS API.

Key Pairs

In order to create an instance with Salt installed and configured, a key pair will need to be created. This can be done in the EC2 Management Console, in the Key Pairs area. These key pairs are unique to a specific region. Keys in the us-east-1 region can be configured at:

https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/home?region=us-east-1#s=KeyPairs

Keys in the us-west-1 region can be configured at

https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/home?region=us-west-1#s=KeyPairs

...and so on. When creating a key pair, the browser will prompt to download a pem file. This file must be placed in a directory accessible by Salt Cloud, with permissions set to either 0400 or 0600.

Security Groups

An instance on EC2 needs to belong to a security group. Like key pairs, these are unique to a specific region. These are also configured in the EC2 Management Console. Security groups for the us-east-1 region can be configured at:

https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/home?region=us-east-1#s=SecurityGroups

...and so on.

A security group defines firewall rules which an instance will adhere to. If the salt-master is configured outside of EC2, the security group must open the SSH port (usually port 22) in order for Salt Cloud to install Salt.

IAM Profile

Amazon EC2 instances support the concept of an instance profile, which is a logical container for the IAM role. At the time that you launch an EC2 instance, you can associate the instance with an instance profile, which in turn corresponds to the IAM role. Any software that runs on the EC2 instance is able to access AWS using the permissions associated with the IAM role.

Scaffolding the profile is a 2-step configuration process:

  1. Configure an IAM Role from the IAM Management Console.

  2. Attach this role to a new profile. It can be done with the AWS CLI:

    > aws iam create-instance-profile --instance-profile-name PROFILE_NAME
    > aws iam add-role-to-instance-profile --instance-profile-name PROFILE_NAME --role-name ROLE_NAME
    

Once the profile is created, you can use the PROFILE_NAME to configure your cloud profiles.

Cloud Profiles

Set up an initial profile at /etc/salt/cloud.profiles:

base_ec2_private:
  provider: my-ec2-southeast-private-ips
  image: ami-e565ba8c
  size: t2.micro
  ssh_username: ec2-user

base_ec2_public:
  provider: my-ec2-southeast-public-ips
  image: ami-e565ba8c
  size: t2.micro
  ssh_username: ec2-user

base_ec2_db:
  provider: my-ec2-southeast-public-ips
  image: ami-e565ba8c
  size: m1.xlarge
  ssh_username: ec2-user
  volumes:
    - { size: 10, device: /dev/sdf }
    - { size: 10, device: /dev/sdg, type: io1, iops: 1000 }
    - { size: 10, device: /dev/sdh, type: io1, iops: 1000 }
    - { size: 10, device: /dev/sdi, tags: {"Environment": "production"} }
  # optionally add tags to profile:
  tag: {'Environment': 'production', 'Role': 'database'}
  # force grains to sync after install
  sync_after_install: grains

base_ec2_vpc:
  provider: my-ec2-southeast-public-ips
  image: ami-a73264ce
  size: m1.xlarge
  ssh_username: ec2-user
  script:  /etc/salt/cloud.deploy.d/my_bootstrap.sh
  network_interfaces:
    - DeviceIndex: 0
      PrivateIpAddresses:
        - Primary: True
      #auto assign public ip (not EIP)
      AssociatePublicIpAddress: True
      SubnetId: subnet-813d4bbf
      SecurityGroupId:
        - sg-750af413
  del_root_vol_on_destroy: True
  del_all_vols_on_destroy: True
  volumes:
    - { size: 10, device: /dev/sdf }
    - { size: 10, device: /dev/sdg, type: io1, iops: 1000 }
    - { size: 10, device: /dev/sdh, type: io1, iops: 1000 }
  tag: {'Environment': 'production', 'Role': 'database'}
  sync_after_install: grains

The profile can now be realized with a salt command:

# salt-cloud -p base_ec2 ami.example.com
# salt-cloud -p base_ec2_public ami.example.com
# salt-cloud -p base_ec2_private ami.example.com

This will create an instance named ami.example.com in EC2. The minion that is installed on this instance will have an id of ami.example.com. If the command was executed on the salt-master, its Salt key will automatically be signed on the master.

Once the instance has been created with salt-minion installed, connectivity to it can be verified with Salt:

# salt 'ami.example.com' test.version

Required Settings

The following settings are always required for EC2:

# Set the EC2 login data
my-ec2-config:
  id: HJGRYCILJLKJYG
  key: 'kdjgfsgm;woormgl/aserigjksjdhasdfgn'
  keyname: test
  securitygroup: quick-start
  private_key: /root/test.pem
  driver: ec2

Optional Settings

EC2 allows a userdata file to be passed to the instance to be created. This functionality was added to Salt in the 2015.5.0 release.

my-ec2-config:
  # Pass userdata to the instance to be created
  userdata_file: /etc/salt/my-userdata-file

Note

From versions 2016.11.0 and 2016.11.3, this file was passed through the master's renderer to template it. However, this caused issues with non-YAML data, so templating is no longer performed by default. To template the userdata_file, add a userdata_template option to the cloud profile:

my-ec2-config:
  # Pass userdata to the instance to be created
  userdata_file: /etc/salt/my-userdata-file
  userdata_template: jinja

If no userdata_template is set in the cloud profile, then the master configuration will be checked for a userdata_template value. If this is not set, then no templating will be performed on the userdata_file.

To disable templating in a cloud profile when a userdata_template has been set in the master configuration file, simply set userdata_template to False in the cloud profile:

my-ec2-config:
  # Pass userdata to the instance to be created
  userdata_file: /etc/salt/my-userdata-file
  userdata_template: False

EC2 allows a location to be set for servers to be deployed in. Availability zones exist inside regions, and may be added to increase specificity.

my-ec2-config:
  # Optionally configure default region
  location: ap-southeast-1
  availability_zone: ap-southeast-1b

EC2 instances can have a public or private IP, or both. When an instance is deployed, Salt Cloud needs to log into it via SSH to run the deploy script. By default, the public IP will be used for this. If the salt-cloud command is run from another EC2 instance, the private IP should be used.

my-ec2-config:
  # Specify whether to use public or private IP for deploy script
  # private_ips or public_ips
  ssh_interface: public_ips

Many EC2 instances do not allow remote access to the root user by default. Instead, another user must be used to run the deploy script using sudo. Some common usernames include ec2-user (for Amazon Linux), ubuntu (for Ubuntu instances), admin (official Debian) and bitnami (for images provided by Bitnami).

my-ec2-config:
  # Configure which user to use to run the deploy script
  ssh_username: ec2-user

Multiple usernames can be provided, in which case Salt Cloud will attempt to guess the correct username. This is mostly useful in the main configuration file:

my-ec2-config:
  ssh_username:
    - ec2-user
    - ubuntu
    - admin
    - bitnami

Multiple security groups can also be specified in the same fashion:

my-ec2-config:
  securitygroup:
    - default
    - extra

EC2 instances can be added to an AWS Placement Group by specifying the placementgroup option:

my-ec2-config:
  placementgroup: my-aws-placement-group

Your instances may optionally make use of EC2 Spot Instances. The following example will request that spot instances be used and your maximum bid will be $0.10. Keep in mind that different spot prices may be needed based on the current value of the various EC2 instance sizes. You can check current and past spot instance pricing via the EC2 API or AWS Console.

my-ec2-config:
  spot_config:
    spot_price: 0.10

You can optionally specify tags to apply to the EC2 spot instance request. A spot instance request itself is an object in AWS. The following example will set two tags on the spot instance request.

my-ec2-config:
  spot_config:
    spot_price: 0.10
    tag:
      tag0: value
      tag1: value

By default, the spot instance type is set to 'one-time', meaning it will be launched and, if it's ever terminated for whatever reason, it will not be recreated. If you would like your spot instances to be relaunched after a termination (by you or AWS), set the type to 'persistent'.

NOTE: Spot instances are a great way to save a bit of money, but you do run the risk of losing your spot instances if the current price for the instance size goes above your maximum bid.

The following parameters may be set in the cloud configuration file to control various aspects of the spot instance launching:

  • wait_for_spot_timeout: seconds to wait before giving up on spot instance launch (default=600)

  • wait_for_spot_interval: seconds to wait in between polling requests to determine if a spot instance is available (default=30)

  • wait_for_spot_interval_multiplier: a multiplier to add to the interval in between requests, which is useful if AWS is throttling your requests (default=1)

  • wait_for_spot_max_failures: maximum number of failures before giving up on launching your spot instance (default=10)

If you find that you're being throttled by AWS while polling for spot instances, you can set the following in your core cloud configuration file that will double the polling interval after each request to AWS.

wait_for_spot_interval: 1
wait_for_spot_interval_multiplier: 2

See the AWS Spot Instances documentation for more information.

Block device mappings enable you to specify additional EBS volumes or instance store volumes when the instance is launched. This setting is also available on each cloud profile. Note that the number of instance stores varies by instance type. If more mappings are provided than are supported by the instance type, mappings will be created in the order provided and additional mappings will be ignored. Consult the AWS documentation for a listing of the available instance stores, and device names.

my-ec2-config:
  block_device_mappings:
    - DeviceName: /dev/sdb
      VirtualName: ephemeral0
    - DeviceName: /dev/sdc
      VirtualName: ephemeral1

You can also use block device mappings to change the size of the root device at the provisioning time. For example, assuming the root device is '/dev/sda', you can set its size to 100G by using the following configuration.

my-ec2-config:
  block_device_mappings:
    - DeviceName: /dev/sda
      Ebs.VolumeSize: 100
      Ebs.VolumeType: gp2
      Ebs.SnapshotId: dummy0
    - DeviceName: /dev/sdb
      # required for devices > 2TB
      Ebs.VolumeType: gp2
      Ebs.VolumeSize: 3001

Tagging of block devices can be set on a per device basis. For example, you may have multiple devices defined in your block_device_mappings structure. You have the option to set tags on any of one device or all of them as shown in the following configuration.

my-ec2-config:
  block_device_mappings:
    - DeviceName: /dev/sda
      Ebs.VolumeSize: 100
      Ebs.VolumeType: gp2
      tag:
        tag0: myserver
        tag1: value
    - DeviceName: /dev/sdb
      Ebs.VolumeType: gp2
      Ebs.VolumeSize: 3001
      tag:
        tagX: value
        tagY: value

You can configure any AWS valid tag name as shown in the above example, including 'Name'. If you do not configure the tag 'Name', it will be automatically created with a value set to the virtual machine name. If you configure the tag 'Name', the value you configure will be used rather than defaulting to the virtual machine name as shown in the following configuration.

my-ec2-config:
  block_device_mappings:
    - DeviceName: /dev/sda
      Ebs.VolumeSize: 100
      Ebs.VolumeType: gp2
      tag:
        Name: myserver
        tag0: value
        tag1: value
    - DeviceName: /dev/sdb
      Ebs.VolumeType: gp2
      Ebs.VolumeSize: 3001
      tag:
        Name: customvalue
        tagX: value
        tagY: value

Existing EBS volumes may also be attached (not created) to your instances or you can create new EBS volumes based on EBS snapshots. To simply attach an existing volume use the volume_id parameter.

device: /dev/xvdj
volume_id: vol-12345abcd

Or, to create a volume from an EBS snapshot, use the snapshot parameter.

device: /dev/xvdj
snapshot: snap-abcd12345

Note that volume_id will take precedence over the snapshot parameter.

Tags can be set once an instance has been launched.

my-ec2-config:
    tag:
        tag0: value
        tag1: value

Setting up a Master inside EC2

Salt Cloud can configure Salt Masters as well as Minions. Use the make_master setting to use this functionality.

my-ec2-config:
  # Optionally install a Salt Master in addition to the Salt Minion
  make_master: True

When creating a Salt Master inside EC2 with make_master: True, or when the Salt Master is already located and configured inside EC2, by default, minions connect to the master's public IP address during Salt Cloud's provisioning process. Depending on how your security groups are defined, the minions may or may not be able to communicate with the master. In order to use the master's private IP in EC2 instead of the public IP, set the salt_interface to private_ips.

my-ec2-config:
  # Optionally set the IP configuration to private_ips
  salt_interface: private_ips

Modify EC2 Tags

One of the features of EC2 is the ability to tag resources. In fact, under the hood, the names given to EC2 instances by salt-cloud are actually just stored as a tag called Name. Salt Cloud has the ability to manage these tags:

salt-cloud -a get_tags mymachine
salt-cloud -a set_tags mymachine tag1=somestuff tag2='Other stuff'
salt-cloud -a del_tags mymachine tag1,tag2,tag3

It is possible to manage tags on any resource in EC2 with a Resource ID, not just instances:

salt-cloud -f get_tags my_ec2 resource_id=af5467ba
salt-cloud -f set_tags my_ec2 resource_id=af5467ba tag1=somestuff
salt-cloud -f del_tags my_ec2 resource_id=af5467ba tags=tag1,tag2,tag3

Rename EC2 Instances

As mentioned above, EC2 instances are named via a tag. However, renaming an instance by renaming its tag will cause the salt keys to mismatch. A rename function exists which renames both the instance, and the salt keys.

salt-cloud -a rename mymachine newname=yourmachine

Rename on Destroy

When instances on EC2 are destroyed, there will be a lag between the time that the action is sent, and the time that Amazon cleans up the instance. During this time, the instance still retains a Name tag, which will cause a collision if the creation of an instance with the same name is attempted before the cleanup occurs. In order to avoid such collisions, Salt Cloud can be configured to rename instances when they are destroyed. The new name will look something like:

myinstance-DEL20f5b8ad4eb64ed88f2c428df80a1a0c

In order to enable this, add rename_on_destroy line to the main configuration file:

my-ec2-config:
  rename_on_destroy: True

Listing Images

Normally, images can be queried on a cloud provider by passing the --list-images argument to Salt Cloud. This still holds true for EC2:

salt-cloud --list-images my-ec2-config

However, the full list of images on EC2 is extremely large, and querying all of the available images may cause Salt Cloud to behave as if frozen. Therefore, the default behavior of this option may be modified, by adding an owner argument to the provider configuration:

owner: aws-marketplace

The possible values for this setting are amazon, aws-marketplace, self, <AWS account ID> or all. The default setting is amazon. Take note that all and aws-marketplace may cause Salt Cloud to appear as if it is freezing, as it tries to handle the large amount of data.

It is also possible to perform this query using different settings without modifying the configuration files. To do this, call the avail_images function directly:

salt-cloud -f avail_images my-ec2-config owner=aws-marketplace

EC2 Images

The following are lists of available AMI images, generally sorted by OS. These lists are on 3rd-party websites, are not managed by Salt Stack in any way. They are provided here as a reference for those who are interested, and contain no warranty (express or implied) from anyone affiliated with Salt Stack. Most of them have never been used, much less tested, by the Salt Stack team.

NOTE: If image of a profile does not start with ami-, latest image with that name will be used. For example, to create a CentOS 7 profile, instead of using the AMI like image: ami-1caef165, we can use its name like image: 'CentOS Linux 7 x86_64 HVM EBS ENA 1803_01'. We can also use a pattern like below to get the latest CentOS 7:

profile-id:
  provider: provider-name
  subnetid: subnet-XXXXXXXX
  image: 'CentOS Linux 7 x86_64 HVM EBS *'
  size: m1.medium
  ssh_username: centos
  securitygroupid:
    - sg-XXXXXXXX
  securitygroupname:
    - AnotherSecurityGroup
    - AndThirdSecurityGroup

show_image

This is a function that describes an AMI on EC2. This will give insight as to the defaults that will be applied to an instance using a particular AMI.

$ salt-cloud -f show_image ec2 image=ami-fd20ad94

show_instance

This action is a thin wrapper around --full-query, which displays details on a single instance only. In an environment with several machines, this will save a user from having to sort through all instance data, just to examine a single instance.

$ salt-cloud -a show_instance myinstance

ebs_optimized

This argument enables switching of the EbsOptimized setting which default to 'false'. Indicates whether the instance is optimized for EBS I/O. This optimization provides dedicated throughput to Amazon EBS and an optimized configuration stack to provide optimal Amazon EBS I/O performance. This optimization isn't available with all instance types. Additional usage charges apply when using an EBS-optimized instance.

This setting can be added to the profile or map file for an instance.

If set to True, this setting will enable an instance to be EbsOptimized

ebs_optimized: True

This can also be set as a cloud provider setting in the EC2 cloud configuration:

my-ec2-config:
  ebs_optimized: True

del_root_vol_on_destroy

This argument overrides the default DeleteOnTermination setting in the AMI for the EBS root volumes for an instance. Many AMIs contain 'false' as a default, resulting in orphaned volumes in the EC2 account, which may unknowingly be charged to the account. This setting can be added to the profile or map file for an instance.

If set, this setting will apply to the root EBS volume

del_root_vol_on_destroy: True

This can also be set as a cloud provider setting in the EC2 cloud configuration:

my-ec2-config:
  del_root_vol_on_destroy: True

del_all_vols_on_destroy

This argument overrides the default DeleteOnTermination setting in the AMI for the not-root EBS volumes for an instance. Many AMIs contain 'false' as a default, resulting in orphaned volumes in the EC2 account, which may unknowingly be charged to the account. This setting can be added to the profile or map file for an instance.

If set, this setting will apply to any (non-root) volumes that were created by salt-cloud using the 'volumes' setting.

The volumes will not be deleted under the following conditions * If a volume is detached before terminating the instance * If a volume is created without this setting and attached to the instance

del_all_vols_on_destroy: True

This can also be set as a cloud provider setting in the EC2 cloud configuration:

my-ec2-config:
  del_all_vols_on_destroy: True

The setting for this may be changed on all volumes of an existing instance using one of the following commands:

salt-cloud -a delvol_on_destroy myinstance
salt-cloud -a keepvol_on_destroy myinstance
salt-cloud -a show_delvol_on_destroy myinstance

The setting for this may be changed on a volume on an existing instance using one of the following commands:

salt-cloud -a delvol_on_destroy myinstance device=/dev/sda1
salt-cloud -a delvol_on_destroy myinstance volume_id=vol-1a2b3c4d
salt-cloud -a keepvol_on_destroy myinstance device=/dev/sda1
salt-cloud -a keepvol_on_destroy myinstance volume_id=vol-1a2b3c4d
salt-cloud -a show_delvol_on_destroy myinstance device=/dev/sda1
salt-cloud -a show_delvol_on_destroy myinstance volume_id=vol-1a2b3c4d

EC2 Termination Protection

EC2 allows the user to enable and disable termination protection on a specific instance. An instance with this protection enabled cannot be destroyed. The EC2 driver adds a show_term_protect action to the regular EC2 functionality.

salt-cloud -a show_term_protect mymachine
salt-cloud -a enable_term_protect mymachine
salt-cloud -a disable_term_protect mymachine

Alternate Endpoint

Normally, EC2 endpoints are build using the region and the service_url. The resulting endpoint would follow this pattern:

ec2.<region>.<service_url>

This results in an endpoint that looks like:

ec2.us-east-1.amazonaws.com

There are other projects that support an EC2 compatibility layer, which this scheme does not account for. This can be overridden by specifying the endpoint directly in the main cloud configuration file:

my-ec2-config:
  endpoint: myendpoint.example.com:1138/services/Cloud

Volume Management

The EC2 driver has several functions and actions for management of EBS volumes.

Creating Volumes

A volume may be created, independent of an instance. A zone must be specified. A size or a snapshot may be specified (in GiB). If neither is given, a default size of 10 GiB will be used. If a snapshot is given, the size of the snapshot will be used.

The following parameters may also be set (when providing a snapshot OR size):

  • type: choose between standard (magnetic disk), gp2 (SSD), or io1 (provisioned IOPS). (default=standard)

  • iops: the number of IOPS (only applicable to io1 volumes) (default varies on volume size)

  • encrypted: enable encryption on the volume (default=false)

salt-cloud -f create_volume ec2 zone=us-east-1b
salt-cloud -f create_volume ec2 zone=us-east-1b size=10
salt-cloud -f create_volume ec2 zone=us-east-1b snapshot=snap12345678
salt-cloud -f create_volume ec2 size=10 type=standard
salt-cloud -f create_volume ec2 size=10 type=gp2
salt-cloud -f create_volume ec2 size=10 type=io1 iops=1000

Attaching Volumes

Unattached volumes may be attached to an instance. The following values are required; name or instance_id, volume_id, and device.

salt-cloud -a attach_volume myinstance volume_id=vol-12345 device=/dev/sdb1

Show a Volume

The details about an existing volume may be retrieved.

salt-cloud -a show_volume myinstance volume_id=vol-12345
salt-cloud -f show_volume ec2 volume_id=vol-12345

Detaching Volumes

An existing volume may be detached from an instance.

salt-cloud -a detach_volume myinstance volume_id=vol-12345

Deleting Volumes

A volume that is not attached to an instance may be deleted.

salt-cloud -f delete_volume ec2 volume_id=vol-12345

Managing Key Pairs

The EC2 driver has the ability to manage key pairs.

Creating a Key Pair

A key pair is required in order to create an instance. When creating a key pair with this function, the return data will contain a copy of the private key. This private key is not stored by Amazon, will not be obtainable past this point, and should be stored immediately.

salt-cloud -f create_keypair ec2 keyname=mykeypair

Importing a Key Pair

salt-cloud -f import_keypair ec2 keyname=mykeypair file=/path/to/id_rsa.pub

Show a Key Pair

This function will show the details related to a key pair, not including the private key itself (which is not stored by Amazon).

salt-cloud -f show_keypair ec2 keyname=mykeypair

Delete a Key Pair

This function removes the key pair from Amazon.

salt-cloud -f delete_keypair ec2 keyname=mykeypair

Launching instances into a VPC

Simple launching into a VPC

In the amazon web interface, identify the id or the name of the subnet into which your image should be created. Then, edit your cloud.profiles file like so:-

profile-id:
  provider: provider-name
  subnetid: subnet-XXXXXXXX
  image: ami-XXXXXXXX
  size: m1.medium
  ssh_username: ubuntu
  securitygroupid:
    - sg-XXXXXXXX
  securitygroupname:
    - AnotherSecurityGroup
    - AndThirdSecurityGroup

Note that 'subnetid' takes precedence over 'subnetname', but 'securitygroupid' and 'securitygroupname' are merged together to generate a single list for SecurityGroups of instances.

Specifying interface properties

New in version 2014.7.0.

Launching into a VPC allows you to specify more complex configurations for the network interfaces of your virtual machines, for example:-

profile-id:
  provider: provider-name
  image: ami-XXXXXXXX
  size: m1.medium
  ssh_username: ubuntu

  # Do not include either 'subnetid', 'subnetname', 'securitygroupid' or
  # 'securitygroupname' here if you are going to manually specify
  # interface configuration
  #
  network_interfaces:
    - DeviceIndex: 0
      SubnetId: subnet-XXXXXXXX
      SecurityGroupId:
        - sg-XXXXXXXX

      # Uncomment this line if you would like to set an explicit private
      # IP address for the ec2 instance
      #
      # PrivateIpAddress: 192.168.1.66

      # Uncomment this to associate an existing Elastic IP Address with
      # this network interface:
      #
      # associate_eip: eipalloc-XXXXXXXX

      # You can allocate more than one IP address to an interface. Use the
      # 'ip addr list' command to see them.
      #
      # SecondaryPrivateIpAddressCount: 2

      # Uncomment this to allocate a new Elastic IP Address to this
      # interface (will be associated with the primary private ip address
      # of the interface
      #
      # allocate_new_eip: True

      # Uncomment this instead to allocate a new Elastic IP Address to
      # both the primary private ip address and each of the secondary ones
      #
      allocate_new_eips: True

      # Uncomment this if you're creating NAT instances. Allows an instance
      # to accept IP packets with destinations other than itself.
      # SourceDestCheck: False

    - DeviceIndex: 1
      subnetname: XXXXXXXX-Subnet
      securitygroupname:
        - XXXXXXXX-SecurityGroup
        - YYYYYYYY-SecurityGroup

Note that it is an error to assign a 'subnetid', 'subnetname', 'securitygroupid' or 'securitygroupname' to a profile where the interfaces are manually configured like this. These are both really properties of each network interface, not of the machine itself.