Reserved Instances question regarding utilization levels

I am a bit confused by the reserved instances. What exactly do the utilization levels represent? If I am running a low-medium traffic web-server 24/7 and the instance will never be powered down, does this mean I need the heavy? Or is it actually based on CPU usage? If its based on CPU usage, what is the cut-off for light/medium/heavy as I can not seem to find the answer looking at Amazons documentation.

Obviously it seems like if you are going to run something 24/7 it makes sense to do a reserved instance, I just want to make sure I choose the correct one.

Thanks,

Dan

Replies (3)

I suggest using TKLBAM

Reply 1 2014-07-26

The upside of migrating your data using TKLBAM is that you get to test your backup at the same time! :)

This makes sense now. So it

Reply 2 2014-07-25

This makes sense now. So it is probably best to wait until we are in production and fully migrated to the hosted platform to make sure the server is sized appropriatly. If we need to move from a small to a medium server can this be handled directly from the HUB?

Go for a 'heavy'

Reply 3 2014-07-24

The utilisation level refers to how much the server is running. So if you are running 24/7 then 'heavy' is the way to go. The lower utilisation levels provide less savings per hour, but require lower initial cost.

The only other thing to keep in mind when you go for a reserved instance is ensuring the right server size (and location - that should be worked out automatically by the Hub). Make sure that you get the right one(s) as Amazon won't give you refunds (or credits) if you find that you need a larger server (or in a different location).