Resolve insufficient instance capacity errors in Lightsail - Amazon Lightsail
Insufficient capacity when launching a new instanceInsufficient capacity when starting a stopped instanceRelated information

Resolve insufficient instance capacity errors in Lightsail

You might get an insufficient error when you try to launch an instance or restart a stopped instance. This means that AWS doesn’t have the available instance capacity to fulfill your request at the current time. Following is an example of the insufficient instance capacity error:

InsufficientInstanceCapacity: There is not enough capacity to fulfill your instance request. Reduce the number of instances in your request, or wait for additional capacity to become available. You can also try launching an instance by selecting a smaller Lightsail plan (which you can resize at a later stage).”

In this guide, you will learn about the actions you can take if you get an insufficient instance capacity error.

Contents

Insufficient capacity when launching a new instance

Use the following options if you get an insufficient instance capacity error when launching a new instance. You can complete each option in order, or choose an option that works for you.

  1. Wait a few minutes and then submit your request again. Instance capacity can shift frequently. Continue to option 2 if you are unable to create your instance after waiting a few minutes.

  2. Select a different Availability Zone (AZ) when creating your instance. Each AWS Region contains three or more AZs, and each AZ maintains different instance capacities. By selecting a different AZ, you can take advantage of its current instance capacity. Continue to option 3 if you are unable to create an instance in a different AWS Region or AZ.

  3. Reduce the number of instances in your request. If you’re creating multiple instances at the same time, reduce the number of instances and submit your request again. Continue to option 4 if reducing the number of instances doesn’t resolve the issue.

  4. Choose a different instance plan when creating your instance. Choose a different instance plan if you are unable to create an instance in a different AZ or Region. You can resize the instance at a later stage. For more information about resizing your instance, see Create an instance from a snapshot.

Insufficient capacity when starting a stopped instance

Use the following options if you get an insufficient instance capacity error when starting an existing instance that was previously stopped.

  1. Wait a few minutes and then submit your request again. Instance capacity can shift frequently. Continue to option 2 if you are unable to create your instance after waiting a few minutes.

  2. Create a new instance from a snapshot. Take a snapshot of the stopped instance. Then, use the snapshot to create a new instance in an AZ that’s different from the original instance. For example, if your instance is currently in us-east-2a (Zone A), select us-east-2c (Zone C) when you create the new instance. For more information, see Create an instance from a snapshot.

  3. You can also choose a different instance plan when creating a new instance from a snapshot. This action is optional.

Important

After the new instance is running, verify you have access to the new instance and everything is working properly. For example, if your instance was running an application, make sure that the application is working as expected. If so, you can delete the earlier instance.

Frequently asked questions

Resilience in Lightsail