Before publishing a service on Compute Nest, complete the self-assessment and configuration steps in this guide. Work through them in order — some early decisions (such as delivery method and resource orchestration approach) are difficult or impossible to change after the service is created.
1. Self-assessment
Step 1: Choose a delivery method
Your delivery method determines who owns the infrastructure and who pays for cloud resources. Choose this first — it affects your service architecture, billing integration, and available O&M features.
| Delivery method | How it works | Service type |
|---|---|---|
| Private delivery | Software and cloud resources run under the user's account. The user pays for cloud resources. | Privately deployed services. Managed O&M is available. |
| SaaS delivery (fully managed delivery) | Software and cloud resources run under the service provider's account. The cloud resources are paid by service publisher. | Fully managed deployment service. |
How to choose: If users need to deploy into their own accounts, use private delivery. If you want to host and manage the infrastructure centrally, use SaaS delivery.
Step 2: Identify middleware dependencies
Check which middleware your software requires, then confirm whether Alibaba Cloud equivalents are available.
| Middleware type | Example | Alibaba Cloud equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Relational database | MySQL | ApsaraDB RDS |
| In-memory cache | Redis | ApsaraDB for Redis |
| Object storage | Generic S3-compatible | Object Storage Service (OSS) |
| Log collection | Generic log service | Simple Log Service (SLS) |
Use Alibaba Cloud services where available — this improves reliability and integration with Compute Nest.
If no Alibaba Cloud service covers your dependency, self-built middleware is acceptable.
If your software involves large model inference, confirm compatibility with Knative or KServe before proceeding.
Step 3: Choose a deployment method
Select based on your software's architecture and how resources are provisioned.
| Scenario | Deployment method |
|---|---|
| Pulling and deploying code from a repository (e.g., GitHub) | Create a service by using Git |
| Complex architecture requiring many underlying cloud resources | Custom resource orchestration template (Resource Orchestration Service (ROS) or Terraform) |
| Only Elastic Compute Service (ECS) or Container Service for Kubernetes (ACK) and basic cloud resources needed | Compute Nest standardized templates — see Create a service by using a featured template |
Step 4: Choose a sales method
Select based on whether you need online transactions and how you want to manage billing.
| Sales method | Best for | Key capabilities |
|---|---|---|
| Alibaba Cloud Marketplace (recommended) | Standardized software sales | Pay-per-use, subscription, and pay-as-you-go billing |
| Third-party payment (SaaS Boost) | Individual developers building an online storefront quickly | Annual or monthly subscriptions; auto-generates a web interface |
| Custom sales | Private deployments with no online transaction requirements | Validity period managed in the console — see Check the validity period of a service instance |
How to choose: If you plan to sell through Alibaba Cloud Marketplace, use the Alibaba Cloud Marketplace option. If you are an individual developer who needs a quick online storefront, use SaaS Boost. For private deployments with no billing integration, use custom sales.
For a full comparison, see Sell services.
Step 5: Choose a resource orchestration method
| Method | When to use |
|---|---|
| Native ROS template (recommended) | Broadest Alibaba Cloud resource type coverage and deep integration |
| ROS Terraform template | You already have Terraform scripts and want to reuse them |
2. Apply for a role (optional)
The default role on login is Standard user. Apply for an additional role only if you need the capabilities listed below.
| Role | When you need it | How to apply |
|---|---|---|
| Standard user | Default — no action required | N/A |
| Compute Nest service provider | Required for service trials or Alibaba Cloud Marketplace sales | Request to become a service provider |
| Distributor | You assist other service providers in selling their products | Request to become a distributor |
3. Configure your service before publishing
Create a deployment package
A deployment package is the artifact Compute Nest uses during deployment. Supported types include ECS images, Helm charts, container images, and file packages. For an overview of all supported types and when to use each, see Deployment package overview.
Create a deployment package when your software requires complex installation steps, large file distribution, or has an unstable source.
Prepare resource orchestration
If your service uses a complex architecture or a large volume of cloud resources, prepare the following before creating an ROS template:
| What to prepare | Details |
|---|---|
| Cloud resources | List the resource types needed (ECS, ApsaraDB RDS, Server Load Balancer (SLB), Redis, etc.), their configurations, and dependencies between them |
| User input parameters | Identify parameters users must provide, such as passwords, storage capacity, and instance specifications |
| Output parameters | Identify what your service exposes to users after deployment, such as access URLs and API keys |
| Images and packages | Provide the ECS image or container image required for deployment, plus the software package download link |
After completing this checklist, create an ROS template. For guidance, see Resource orchestration.
If you run into issues creating the ROS template, contact the Compute Nest team for assistance. To get cloud resources for testing, see Configure a free trial.
What's next
With preparations complete, create, test, and publish your service. See Publish services.