Server snapshots

Server snapshots allow you to create images of your servers to use them as templates for future instances. A snapshot is a full image of a server, therefore it contains all your data: for example the database tables and records, or the SmartFoxServer configuration and custom Extensions, etc. Also, a snapshot is an entity independent from the server it was created from: in case you terminate the server, its stored image is unaffected and it can be used later to launch a pre-configured server again.

To create a server snapshot, go to your server's list on the Application view and click the corresponding [Actions] icon.

Click the Take snapshot option and confirm the operation in the next popup window.

You can assign a name to the snapshot and decide whether or not the server should be rebooted before proceeding. The recommended option is to reboot, since taking the snapshot of a server while it's running may result in some files being corrupted in the final image (this can happen if files are being written while the snapshot process is running).

Creating a snapshot can take a few seconds or several minutes depending on the size of the server's disk. For a 20-40GB disk it will typically require less than a minute.

When the state of a snapshot is "available" (green light), you can click on the icons on the right side to execute the following actions:

• [Edit] - You can rename the snapshot, to better identify it when launching a new server from an existing image.
• [Copy] - You can duplicate a snapshot in the same region or a different region, as discussed below; when an image is copied, the copy is treated as a new, independent snapshot, and billed accordingly.
• [Delete] - You can delete a snapshot permanently; all servers based on that image won't be affected and will keep running.

Copying snapshots to another region

Server snapshots are local to the region where they were created. In other words these images can only be used to create new copies of the server in the same region. If you need to create new instances in a different region, make sure to copy the snapshot to that region first.

In order to do it, select the snapshot view from the top navigation, choose the snapshot to copy and click the [Copy] icon.

In the modal window that shows up, choose the target region, edit the snapshot name if necessary and confirm.

Creating new servers from a snapshot

Creating a new server from an existing snapshot is easy. From your Application view click the [Add server] icon which will start the guided procedure. During step two of the configuration, select the snapshot from the dropdown menu and proceed to the remaining steps.