All Products
Search
Document Center

Platform For AI:MaxCompute resource quotas

Last Updated:Jul 15, 2026

After you complete model development in PAI, you can purchase a MaxCompute resource quota to submit jobs for large-scale distributed training. This topic describes the key configurations for MaxCompute resources for PAI model training.

MaxCompute resources

MaxCompute is an enterprise-grade SaaS cloud data warehouse. It uses a serverless architecture to provide a fully managed online data warehouse service that supports analytics on massive datasets. For a detailed introduction to MaxCompute resources, see MaxCompute resources overview.

MaxCompute resource types

PAI supports MaxCompute CPU resources with the following billing methods:

  • Pay-as-you-go standard edition (Recommended)

  • Subscription standard compute resources

The following table describes the key differences.

Note

MaxCompute billable items include compute resources, storage resources, and data transfer. PAI training tasks typically do not incur data transfer fees.

For pay-as-you-go billing of compute resources, bills for algorithm tasks are generated in PAI, while bills for other tasks, such as SQL jobs, are generated in MaxCompute.

Comparison item

Pay-as-you-go standard edition (recommended)

Subscription standard compute resources

Compute resources

(For model training)

Jobs run on a shared resource pool and acquire resources on demand. You cannot reserve a specific amount of resources, and there are no usage limits.

Includes reserved (dedicated) resources and optional non-reserved resources.

Storage resources

(For storing training result tables)

Uses a shared resource pool for on-demand storage with no usage limits.

Uses a shared resource pool for on-demand storage with no usage limits.

Compute resource billing

Compute fees (pay-as-you-go)

Compute fees (subscription)

Storage resource billing

Storage fees (pay-as-you-go)

Not applicable

Use cases

Projects with fluctuating workloads that require flexible storage.

Live projects with stable and predictable workloads.

Account and permission requirements

  • Alibaba Cloud account (Recommended): You can use this account to perform all required operations without additional authorization.

  • RAM user:

    • To activate and purchase MaxCompute resources, grant the AliyunBSSOrderAccess and AliyunDataWorksFullAccess permissions to the RAM user. For more information, see Prepare a RAM user.

    • To associate MaxCompute resources with a workspace, assign the administrator role to the RAM user in the workspace. For more information, see Manage members.

    • To use MaxCompute resources for model training in Designer, assign the MaxCompute developer role to the RAM user in the workspace. For more information, see Manage members.

Activate and purchase MaxCompute resources

Go to the MaxCompute purchase page to activate and purchase MaxCompute resources.

Use and manage MaxCompute resources

You can associate activated MaxCompute resources with a workspace for use in jobs. You can also plan and manage your resources on the MaxCompute resource management page.

  • Associate with a workspace

    When you create a new workspace, you can associate MaxCompute resources and edit the MaxCompute project name. For more information, see Create and manage workspaces. Once associated, training jobs in the workspace use the associated MaxCompute resources.

    On the Compute Resource Configuration tab of the workspace, select the MaxCompute Resources sub-tab, select the MaxCompute resource cards to bind in the Resources to Associate section, and click Confirm Association.

    You can also modify the associated MaxCompute resources after the workspace is created. For more information, see Manage compute resources for a workspace.

  • Manage MaxCompute resources

    Log on to the PAI console. In the left-side navigation pane, choose AI Computing Resources > Resource Quota to view an overview of the available MaxCompute resources in the current region.

    • View the compute unit (CU) quota for your MaxCompute resources and the billing method, which can be either subscription or pay-as-you-go.

    • You can choose a pay-as-you-go quota or a subscription quota. A subscription quota allows you to control your budget by managing the number of CUs, whereas a pay-as-you-go quota does not offer budget control. Click Resource Management to go to the MaxCompute console and configure quota plans for your subscription resources. For more information, see Quota management for compute resources.