Create a disk

You can create a subscription or pay-as-you-go data disk to increase the storage space of your Elastic Compute Service (ECS) instance.

1. Log on to the ECS console.
2. In the left-side navigation pane, choose Storage & Snapshots > Disks.
3. On the Disks page, click Create Disk.
4. On the Disk page, configure the parameters described in the following table.
   

   Parameter	Description
   Attach	Specify whether to attach the disks to ECS instances. Not Attach: creates disks without attaching them to ECS instances. If you select Not Attach, only pay-as-you-go disks can be created. The disks and the ECS instances to which you want to attach the disks must reside within the same zone. Proceed with caution when you specify Region. Note If you want to partition a disk in the ECS console after the disk is created, select Not Attach. After the disk is created, you can partition the disk when you attach the disk to a Linux instance. For more information, see Attach a data disk. Attach to ECS Instance: creates disks and attaches the disks to a specified ECS instance. If you select Attach to ECS Instance, you must specify ECS Instance by selecting a destination region and an ECS instance.
   Billing Method	Specify the billing method of the disks. Pay-as-you-go: Pay-as-you-go disks can be attached to subscription or pay-as-you-go instances. Subscription: Subscription disks must be attached to subscription instances.
   Storage	Select a disk category and specify the disk capacity. Description of parameters in this section: Performance Level: You can set performance levels for only enhanced SSDs (ESSDs). You can select a performance level based on the capacity of an ESSD. The performance of an ESSD varies with the capacity of the ESSD and the performance level. For more information, see ESSDs. Create from Snapshot: You can select a snapshot to create disks. Then, the created disks contain data from the snapshot. For more information, see Create a disk from a snapshot. Disk Encryption: Disk encryption is applicable to scenarios that require data security and regulatory compliance. If you select this option, data stored on the created disks is automatically encrypted.
   Quantity	Specify the number of disks that you want to create. Note When you create disks, take note of the number of data disks on the instance to which you want to attach the disks. The number of data disks that can be attached to an ECS instance is limited. For more information, see the "Elastic Block Storage (EBS) limits" section in Limits. Pay-as-you-go disks have capacity quotas. The total capacity that you purchase cannot exceed your remaining capacity quota. You can use the following formula to calculate the total disk capacity: Total capacity = Capacity of a single disk × Number of disks. After you configure the disk category, the purchased capacity and the remaining capacity quota are displayed on the disk buy page.
   Release	Specify whether to release the automatic snapshots of the disks along with the disks or release the disks along with the instance to which they are attached. This parameter is available only when you set Attach to Attach to ECS Instance and set Billing Method to Pay-as-you-go.
   Terms of Service	Read and select ECS Terms of Service.
   Others (Optional)	Specify the Disk Name, Description, Tags, and Resource Group parameters for easy management.

5. Confirm the configurations and fees and click Preview.
6. In the Preview message, confirm the purchase information and click Create.
   After the disks are created, you can view the created disks on the Disks page. However, these disks cannot be directly used on ECS instances. You must perform the following operations before you can use the disks on ECS instances.