This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Sudarshan Yadav
📌 Amazon Machine Image (AMI) - Complete Step-by-Step Guide
Today, I learned about Amazon Machine Images (AMI) — and it’s a major building block for AWS & DevOps Engineering! 🤩
I understood that an AMI is a pre-configured OS + software image used to launch EC2 instances quickly and consistently. It helps in standardizing environments and deploying servers at scale — especially in real-time DevOps and automation workflows.
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1️⃣ Prepare a Source EC2 Instance
- Launch an EC2 instance (pick AMI, instance type, key pair, security group, subnet).
- SSH (Linux) or RDP (Windows) into the instance.
- Install and configure everything you want baked into the AMI:
- Packages
- Application code
- Environment variables
- Users & permissions
- Firewall rules
- Clean up before imaging:
- Remove logs & temporary files
- Remove credentials, secrets
- For Windows → Run sysprep (generalize)
2️⃣ Stop or Prepare for Snapshot
- Recommended: Stop instance for consistent file system state.
- If you want zero downtime → use
--no-reboot(risk of inconsistency)
3️⃣ Create the AMI (AWS Console)
- Go to EC2 → Instances
- Select your instance
- Click Actions → Image and templates → Create image
- Enter:
- Name
- Description
- Reboot options
- Volume snapshot settings (encryption optional)
- Click Create image
AWS will create EBS snapshots and register the AMI.
4️⃣ Create the AMI (AWS CLI)
Replace i-0123456789abcdef0 with your EC2 instance ID:
aws ec2 create-image \
--instance-id i-0123456789abcdef0 \
--name "my-app-ami-2025-11-27" \
--description "AMI for my app" \
--no-reboot
## 📌 Check AMI Status
bash
aws ec2 describe-images --image-ids ami-0abc1234
aws ec2 describe-image-status --image-ids ami-0abc1234
5️⃣ Wait for AMI & Snapshot Creation
AMI becomes available after snapshots complete
Snapshots cost storage → monitor usage
6️⃣ Launch Instances from the AMI
▶️ Console
EC2 → AMIs → Select AMI → Launch → Configure → Launch
▶️ AWS CLI
bash
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aws ec2 run-instances \
--image-id ami-0abc1234 \
--count 1 \
--instance-type t3.micro \
--key-name mykey \
--security-group-ids sg-0123abcd \
--subnet-id subnet-0ab1c2d3
7️⃣ Share / Copy / Make Public
✔ Share with specific AWS Accounts
bash
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aws ec2 modify-image-attribute \
--image-id ami-0abc1234 \
--launch-permission "Add=[{UserId=123456789012}]"
✔ Copy AMI to another region
bash
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aws ec2 copy-image \
--source-image-id ami-0abc1234 \
--source-region us-east-1 \
--name "my-ami-copy"
⚠ Make AMI Public (Be Careful)
Exposes full AMI to everyone
Use modify-image-attribute with all
8️⃣ Update / Recreate AMIs (Immutable Approach)
Do not modify AMI directly!
Steps:
Launch instance from AMI
Apply updates / patches
Create a new versioned AMI
Update Launch Templates / Terraform
9️⃣ Automate AMI Builds (Recommended Tools)
Packer
AWS EC2 Image Builder
CI/CD (Jenkins, GitHub Actions)
Process:
Base Image → Provision → Create AMI → Tag → Publish
🔟 Clean Up Old AMIs & Snapshots
Deregister AMI
bash
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aws ec2 deregister-image --image-id ami-0abc1234
Delete snapshot(s)
bash
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aws ec2 delete-snapshot --snapshot-id snap-0123456789abcdef0
1️⃣1️⃣ Useful Commands Summary
| Purpose | Command Example |
|---|---|
| Create AMI | aws ec2 create-image |
| List AMIs | aws ec2 describe-images --owners self |
| Launch instance | aws ec2 run-instances |
| Share AMI | aws ec2 modify-image-attribute |
| Copy to region | aws ec2 copy-image |
| Deregister AMI | aws ec2 deregister-image |
| List snapshots | aws ec2 describe-snapshots |
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Sudarshan Yadav
Sudarshan Yadav | Sciencx (2025-11-27T15:51:23+00:00) # 📌 Amazon Machine Image (AMI) – Complete Step-by-Step Guide. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/11/27/%f0%9f%93%8c-amazon-machine-image-ami-complete-step-by-step-guide/
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