A snapshot is a backup file that captures the state of a disk at a point in time. Snapshots can be used to restore disk data to the points in time when the snapshots were created. This topic describes the billing methods and billing rules of snapshots and the impacts of overdue payments in Elastic Compute Service (ECS). This topic also provides examples on how to calculate snapshot fees.
Scenarios
Scenario in which snapshots are created
Billing rule | Description |
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Billing formula | Snapshots are not stored on disks and do not consume disk space. You are charged region-specific snapshot storage fees based on the size of the snapshots that are stored in each region. ![]() Billing example: If you have 100 GB of snapshots in the China (Hangzhou) region and the unit price for snapshot storage is USD 0.0173 per GB-month, you are charged USD 0.002403 per hour and USD 0.057667 per day for storage of the snapshots. Formula: (USD 0.0173 per GB-month × 100 GB × 1 month)/30 days/24 hours ≈ USD 0.002403 per hour. Note
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Billing method |
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Scenario in which snapshots are copied
Billing rule | Description |
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Billing formula | When you copy snapshots, you are charged snapshot storage fees and data transfer fees. ![]()
Important
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Billing or settlement cycle | You are charged and billed every hour. |
Billing method | Pay-as-you-go. This billing method allows you to use resources and pay for them afterwards. Fees are automatically deducted from the balance of your Alibaba Cloud account. |
Billing example | Assume that you copied a 100-GB snapshot from the China (Hangzhou) region to the China (Qingdao) region and retained the snapshot copy in the China (Qingdao) region for one month. During this period, you did not enable instant access for the snapshot. The data transfer unit price for snapshot replication from the China (Hangzhou) region to the China (Qingdao) region is USD 0.118 per GB. The unit price for snapshot storage in the China (Hangzhou) region is USD 0.0173 per GB-month.
Note The preceding prices are for reference only. The prices displayed on the Pricing tab of the ECS product page prevail. |
Scenario in which instant access is used
Billing rule | Description |
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Billing formula | After you enable the instant access feature, you are charged storage fees for normal snapshots and instant access snapshots and fees for the instant access feature. ![]()
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Billing or settlement cycle | You are charged in one-second increments and billed every hour. |
Billing method | Pay-as-you-go. This billing method allows you to use resources and pay for them afterwards. Fees are automatically deducted from the balance of your Alibaba Cloud account. |
Billing example | Assume that during the period of 14:00:00 to 15:00:00, you created and retained a full snapshot for a 100-GB ESSD, enabled the instant access feature, and then used the feature for the whole hour in the China (Hangzhou) region.
Snapshot fees for the period of 14:00:00 to 15:00:00:
Note The preceding prices are for reference only. The prices displayed on the Pricing tab of the ECS product page prevail. |
Impacts of overdue payments
If your Alibaba Cloud account has overdue payments, your snapshot service is affected, as shown in the following figure.
- Within 15 days after a payment becomes overdue in your Alibaba Cloud account: If a payment becomes overdue in your Alibaba Cloud account, Alibaba Cloud suspends your snapshot service within 15 days immediately after the payment is overdue. For example, if a payment becomes overdue in your account at 12:00:00 on January 1, 2022, your snapshot service is suspended from 12:00:00 on January 1, 2022 to 12:00:00 on January 16, 2022.
- Suspended snapshot service: After your snapshot service is suspended, you can no longer create snapshots or use snapshots to roll back disks. However, your snapshot data is retained and you continue to be charged for existing snapshots.
Snapshot cost optimization
- You can use various methods to reduce snapshot costs. For example, you can maintain an appropriate number of snapshots, delete snapshots that are no longer needed, or disable unnecessary automatic snapshot policies. For more information, see Reduce snapshot fees.
- We recommend that you purchase storage capacity units (SCUs) to offset snapshot storage fees. For more information about SCUs, see Storage capacity units.
Stop snapshot billing
If you no longer need snapshots, you can delete them to prevent further charges.
- Delete all snapshots, including automatic snapshots, manual snapshots, and snapshot copies. For more information, see Delete a snapshot.
- After existing snapshots are deleted, check if any automatic snapshot policies are being applied. If yes, delete the policies to ensure that no snapshots are created automatically. For more information, see Delete an automatic snapshot policy.
FAQ about snapshot billing
- How do I stop the billing of snapshots?
- How do I view snapshot sizes?
- How can I view snapshot bills?
- Where can I view the prices of snapshots for different Alibaba Cloud regions?
For more information, see Snapshot FAQ.
References
- Create a snapshot of a disk
- Copy a snapshot
- Roll back a disk by using a snapshot
- View the snapshot size
- Reduce snapshot fees
- Create an automatic snapshot policy
- Delete a snapshot