This topic describes the billable items and payment options for CloudBox resources.
Billable items
The following table details the billing for each type.
Type | Resource | Description | Billing method | References |
Cloud services deployed with CloudBox hardware (Required) | computing resource (Required) | Billing for computing SKUs (vCPUs and memory) is based on unit price, quantity, and subscription duration. | subscription | |
block storage (Required) | Billing for ESSD cloud disks is based on capacity, unit price, and subscription duration. | subscription | ||
object storage (Optional) | Billing for object storage is based on storage capacity, unit price, and subscription duration. | subscription | ||
Network resources (Required) | A carrier-deployed physical connection connects CloudBox to the Alibaba Cloud network. You must separately purchase an Express Connect product, such as Alibaba Cloud Express Connect (only dedicated connections are supported). For more information, see What is Express Connect?. | Billed separately | ||
Cloud services deployed on CloudBox (Optional) | Cloud products, such as Container Service for Kubernetes, and other cloud products | Each product on CloudBox is billed according to its own rules. | pay-as-you-go | See the documentation for each product. |
Cloud services that manage local CloudBox resources from the public cloud (Optional) | Security Center, Application Real-Time Monitoring Service, and other cloud products | Each product is billed according to its existing public cloud billing rules. | subscription, pay-as-you-go, and others | See the documentation for each product. |
Notes:
Your CloudBox order includes only the fees for the cloud services deployed with the hardware, such as computing resources, block storage, and object storage. Fees for other cloud products are not included.
When you purchase a CloudBox, you must purchase at least one computing SKU and a minimum capacity of block storage (at least 12 TiB of PL0 ESSD cloud disks). Alibaba Cloud then deploys the corresponding hardware to your data center. You are purchasing the cloud services that run on the hardware, not the hardware itself. Alibaba Cloud retains ownership of the hardware.
You are not charged again for included resources that you have already paid for, such as computing and storage resources. However, other resources incur separate charges. For example, when you create an ECS instance in a CloudBox, you are not charged for the instance type (computing resource) or the cloud disk (block storage resource). However, if you use a cloud database service, you must pay for it separately.
Payment options
You must pay in advance when ordering CloudBox resources, such as computing, block, and object storage, from the CloudBox console. The following payment options are available:
Parameter | Description |
Payment option |
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Payment method |
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Billing period
The billing period for your CloudBox does not start immediately after you pay for the order. Alibaba Cloud initiates a delivery and deployment process that takes one to two months to set up the CloudBox hardware in your data center. After the deployment is complete, you can accept the delivery. The billing period starts upon acceptance.
For payment options other than All Upfront, an installment bill for the remaining balance is generated on the first day of each month during the billing period. The amount of each installment is calculated as: Remaining Balance / Number of Subscription Months.
For example:
On 2021-01-01, you purchase a CloudBox with a 3-year term and accepted it on 2021-02-15.
In this case:
Expiration date: The service expires 3 years after the acceptance date, which is 2024-02-15.
Billing period: From 2021-02-15 to 2024-02-15.
Billing cycle: The first installment bill is generated on 2021-03-01. The second installment bill is generated on 2021-04-01. Subsequent bills are generated on the first day of each month. The final installment bill is generated on 2024-02-01, for a total of 36 installments.
Return
When you purchase a CloudBox, you are purchasing cloud services, not the physical hardware. If you no longer need the CloudBox, you can terminate the service, and Alibaba Cloud will reclaim the hardware. The following return options are available:
Terminate the service upon expiration
Return the hardware before expiration (breach of contract)
For more information, see Return policy.
FAQ
Q: I accepted my CloudBox on March 21, 2021, and only used it for 10 days in March. Why did I receive a full one-month bill on April 1 instead of a 10-day bill?
A: After you accept the CloudBox, the billing period starts. The system automatically calculates a fixed monthly installment amount based on the remaining balance and the number of subscription months, so each installment is the same. Therefore, the bill you received on April 1 is the first installment bill, not a prorated bill for the remaining 10 days of March.