The life cycle of an ECS instance begins when the instance is created and ends when the instance is released.

Instance status

During its life cycle, an ECS instance may undergo several status changes, as described in the following table.

Status Status attribute Description API status Visible in the console?
Preparing Intermediate After an instance is created, it is in this status before it enters the Running status. If the instance is in this status for a long time, it means that an exception has occurred. Pending No
Starting Intermediate After an instance is started or restarted in the console or through an API, the instance is in this status before it enters the Running status. If the instance is in this status for a long time, it means that an exception has occurred. Starting Yes
Running Stable The instance is operating normally, and you can run your services. Running Yes
Expiring Stable A Subscription instance is in this status for 15 days before it expires. We recommend that you Renew the instance. Running Yes
Stopping Intermediate After an instance is stopped in the console or through an API, the instance is in this status before it enters the Stopped status. If the instance is in this status for a long time, it means that an exception has occurred. Stopping Yes
Stopped Stable An instance is in this status after it has been created but has not been started yet, or when it has been stopped due to normal operations. An instance in this status cannot provide external services. Stopped Yes
Expired Stable A Subscription instance enters the Expired status when it expires. A Pay-As-You-Go instance enters this status if you have an overdue payment under your account. An instance in this status cannot provide external services. For information about resource status changes, see Subscription and Pay-As-You-Go. Stopped Yes
Expired and Being Recycled Stable Within 15 days after a VPC Subscription instance expires or is stopped due to an overdue payment, the instance stays in the Expired status for a period of time, and then enters the Expired and Being Recycled status.
  • You can renew the instance before it enters the Expired and Being Recycled status. If the renewal is successful, all resources will be retained without being affected.
  • After the instance enters the Expired and Being Recycled status, its computing resources (vCPU + Memory) will no longer be retained, but its cloud disks, local disks, and assigned Internet IP address will be retained. You can renew the instance. If the renewal is successful, the block storage (including the local disks) and the assigned Internet IP address will remain the same.
Overdue and Being Recycled Stable Within 15 days after a VPC Pay-As-You-Go instance expires or is stopped due to an overdue payment, the instance stays in the Expired status for a period of time, and then enters the Overdue and Being Recycled status.
  • You can add funds to your account and Restart the instance before the instance enters the Overdue and Being Recycled status. If the restart is successful, all resources will be retained without being affected.
  • After the instance enters the Expired and Being Recycled status, its computing resources (vCPU + Memory) will no longer be retained, but its cloud disks, local disks, and assigned Internet IP address will be retained. You can add funds to your account and restart the instance. If the instance fails to be restarted, try again later or open a ticket. When you restart the instance successfully, the block storage (including local disks) and the assigned Internet IP address of the instance are retained.
Stopped Yes
Locked Stable An instance is in this status if you have an overdue payment under your account or you account is insecure. You can open a ticket to unlock the instance. Stopped Yes
Release pending Stable

A Subscription instance is in this status after you apply for a refund before the instance expires.

Stopped Yes

API status

You can call Describeinstancestatus or Description instances to view the API status of an instance. The following figure shows the status conversions described in this topic.