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A cloud server image —or template—is a complete copy that stores all the files, settings, and functionality needed for a server to function properly. With images, you can recreate or clone servers from a specific state, whether to restore a backup, create new instances, or perform testing.
These images can be classified as public or private , depending on the cloud provider and its purposes:
- Public images: Offered by cloud providers such as AWS , Microsoft Azure , Google Cloud , Oracle Cloud , and Huawei Cloud , as well as third parties. These images typically include operating systems, development environments, and default configurations out of the box.
- Private images: User-created, customized to meet the specific needs of your infrastructure and accessible only within your account, ensuring greater control and flexibility.
Top Uses of Cloud Server Images #
- Fast and Secure Backup: Using images as backups is a practical, efficient solution that is integrated with the providers’ services. There is no need for additional software or services to protect your data, ensuring easy and reliable recovery in the event of an incident.
- Server Cloning: Perfect for replicating configurations on a large scale. For example, if you offer a system with different versions and configurations, simply use the corresponding image to quickly create new instances.
- Test and Debug Labs: Images allow you to store specific server states for future testing. If you encounter a bug in production that doesn’t occur in development, you can create an image of production and launch a clone server for risk-free debugging.
Best Practices in Image Creation #
It is recommended that you stop the server before creating the image . This ensures data integrity by avoiding inconsistencies caused by changes or writes at the time of capture.
Advantages of the Main Cloud Providers #
- Huawei Cloud: Supports public and private images with advanced security and high availability features, optimizing performance for various scenarios.
- Amazon AWS: Offers Amazon Machine Images (AMIs) , which allow you to easily create, manage, and share images, including integration with various AWS services.
- Microsoft Azure: Supports the creation and use of Managed Images and Custom Images , integrating them with Azure Resource Manager to simplify instance management and scaling.
- Google Cloud: Provides a library of public and custom images to meet different needs, including operating systems and development environments.
- Oracle Cloud: Offers robust tools for creating private images and managing clones within instances, with a focus on performance and security.
