This tutorial walks you through the procedure to configure Apache for a Linux CentOS 8.0 instance of the ecs.g6.large instance type. You can use this tutorial to familiarize yourself with operations in the ECS console.

Preparations

  1. Create an account and complete the account information.
  2. Optional:Alibaba Cloud provides a default virtual private cloud (VPC) for each region. If you do not want to use the default VPC, you can also create a VPC and a VSwitch within the target region.
    For more information about how to create a VPC, see Create an IPv4 VPC.
  3. Optional:Alibaba Cloud provides a default security group for each region. If you do not want to use the default security group, you can also create a security group within the target region where the instance is created.
    For more information about how to create a security group, see Create a security group.

Step 1. Create an ECS instance

  1. Go to the Custom Launch tab in the ECS console.
  2. In the first four steps of the instance creation wizard on the Custom Launch tab, complete the configurations to create an instance.
    The following parameters are configured in this tutorial. For parameters that are not described in this tutorial, use the default values.
    Configuration step Parameter Example Description
    Basic Configurations Billing Method Pay-As-You-Go Pay-as-you-go allows more flexible operations. For more information, see Billing overview.
    Note If an ICP filing is required for your domain name, you must select Subscription.
    Region
    • Region: China (Hangzhou)
    • Zone: Random
    		 After the instance is created, the region and zone of the instance cannot be changed. Exercise caution when you configure this parameter.
    Instance Type
    • Family: General Purpose Type g6
    • Instance Type: ecs.g6.large
    		 Instance types that are available are determined by the region you select and the inventory in the region.

    You can go to the ECS Instance Types Available for Each Region page to view the instance types available in each region.

    Image
    • Type: Public Image
    • Version: CentOS 8.0 64-bit
    		 After the instance is created, the operating system and application data of the image is copied to the system disk.
    Networking VPC [Default]vpc-bp1opxu1zkhn00g****** Resources that are prefixed with [Default] are automatically created in the ECS console.
    Public IP Address Select Assign Public IP Address. If you select Assign Public IP Address, the system allocates a public IPv4 address.
    Bandwidth Billing Pay-By-Traffic In Pay-By-Traffic mode, bandwidth is billed based on the actual volume of traffic. For more information, see Billing methods of public bandwidth.
    Peak Bandwidth 2 Mbit/s None.
    Security Group [Default]sg-bp1bhjjsoiyx44hd**** Resources that are prefixed with [Default] are automatically created in the ECS console.
    System Configurations Logon Credentials Password In this tutorial, click Password and set a password for remote connection and logon to the ECS instance.
    Logon Password Ecs123456 You must set Logon Password and Confirm Password if you set Logon Credentials to Password. The root logon username and the logon password you set are required when you connect to the ECS instance.
    Instance Name 
    EcsQuickStart
    		 In this tutorial, EcsQuickStart is used as the instance name.
    Grouping Tags ECS:Documentation If multiple instances are created, we recommend that you add tags to facilitate management.
  3. Click Next: Preview. On the page that appears, confirm the configurations in Configurations Selected, or click the Edit icon icon to modify the configurations.
    Quick start - Linux
  4. Optional:Click Save as Launch Template. In the Save as Launch Template dialog box that appears, set Template Name and Version Description.
    Quick start - Launch template
    Note Save the configurations selected for the current instance as a launch template. You can create an instance by using the template without the need to specify the configurations again.
  5. Read and select ECS Terms of Service. Then, click Create Instance.
  6. In the Created message that appears, click Console to view the creation progress on the Instances page.
    If the instance is in the Running state, the instance is created. Copy the public IP address of the instance to use when you connect to the ECS instance.Quick start - Linux - Created

Step 2. Add security group rules

If you did not select any rules in the default security group when you created the ECS instance, or the ECS instance was added to a new security group, you can follow these steps:

  1. Click the instance ID to go to the instance details page.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, click Security Groups. Then, click the security group ID to go to the security group details page.
  3. On the Security Group Rules page, click the Inbound tab.
  4. Click Quick Rule Creation. Add a security group rule as described in the following table. For parameters that are not described in this tutorial, use the default values.
    Quick start - Linux - Add security group rules
    Action Port Range Authorization Object
    Allow
    • SSH 22
    • RDP 3389
    • HTTP 80
    • HTTPS 443
    		 0.0.0.0/0
    Note
    • For Port Range, select the ports that must be enabled for the applications that run on the ECS instance. For example, if you want to use SSH and Apache in Step 4. Configure Apache, you must select SSH (22) and HTTP (80) in this step. Otherwise, the instance will not respond in subsequent operations.
    • 0.0.0.0/0 indicates that devices in all CIDR blocks are allowed to access the specified port. If you know the IP address of the requester, we recommend that you set Authorization Object to a specific IP address range that contains the IP address of the requester.
  5. Click OK.

Step 3. Connect to the ECS instance

  1. Return to the Instances page and find the EcsQuickStart instance.
  2. In the Actions column, click Connect.
  3. In the Enter VNC Password dialog box that appears, click Modify VNC Password.
  4. Modify the password. In the Enter VNC Password dialog box that appears, enter your new password, and click OK.
  5. Configure the logon credentials.
    • Username: Enter root.
    • Password: Enter the Logon Password value that you set for Logon Credentials when you created the ECS instance. In this tutorial, the password is Ecs123456.
    When you are entering the password, the section next to Password: remains black and does not display any messages.Password for root

Step 4. Configure Apache

  1. Install Apache. 
    yum install -y httpd
  2. Start Apache. 
    systemctl start httpd
  3. Enable Apache to run at system startup. 
    systemctl enable httpd
  4. Check whether Apache is running. 
    systemctl status httpd
    If active (running) is displayed in the command output, Apache is running.
  5. Open a web page in the current browser. Enter the public IP address of the instance in the address bar. Press the Enter key. 
    http://<Public IP address of the instance>
    Quick start - Linux - Test page

Step 5 (optional). Resolve domain names

Using the public IP address of the instance to access Apache may compromise server security. If you already have a domain name or want to register one for the Apache website, follow these steps:

  1. Register a domain name.
    For more information, see Register a domain name.
  2. If the website to which the domain name points is hosted on an ECS instance in a mainland China region, you must apply for an ICP filing for the domain name.
    For more information, see ICP filing application overview.
  3. Resolve the domain name to point to the public IP address of the instance.
    Domain name resolution is a prerequisite for using domain names to access your website. For more information, see Add and manage records.
  4. Use the resolved domain name to access Apache. Example: https://ecs-quickstarts.info.

Step 6 (optional). Release the ECS instance

You can release the instance if you no longer need it. After the instance is released, billing stops and data cannot be recovered.

Note You can follow the instructions in this section to release only pay-as-you-go instances.
  1. Return to the Instances page and find the EcsQuickStart instance.
  2. In the Actions column, choose More > Instance Status > Release.
  3. In the Release dialog box that appears, click Release Now. Then, click Next.
  4. Verify the instance to be released and then click OK.

Step 7. View bills

  1. In the top navigation bar, choose Billing > User Center.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, choose Spending Summary > Instance Spending Detail.
  3. Set Search By to Instance ID. Enter the ID of the EcsQuickStart instance. Press the Enter key to start the search.

What to do next