Overview

Exoscale Compute Instances are high-performance, KVM-based virtual machines designed to support a wide range of workloads—from small-scale applications to complex, distributed systems. They offer rapid provisioning, flexible scaling, and seamless integration with DevOps tools like Terraform, Ansible, and Kubernetes.

Terminology

Understanding the basic terms used in Exoscale Compute will help you get up and running quickly.

  • Instance
    A Compute Instance is a virtual machine (VM) running in the Exoscale cloud. It behaves like a traditional server but is virtualized and runs on shared physical infrastructure. Instances are fully self-contained environments and can run various operating systems (Linux, Windows, custom ISOs).
  • Instance Type
    The Instance Type defines the resource configuration of your VM — such as number of vCPUs, amount of RAM, and local SSD storage. Exoscale offers different instance families optimized for CPU, memory, storage, or GPU workloads.
    Instance FamilyUse CaseRAM RangeCPU CoresLocal StorageAvailability
    StandardGeneral-purpose workloads512MB-225GB1-2410GB-1.6TBAll zones
    CPU OptimizedCompute-intensive applications16GB–128GB8–4010GB–1.6TBAll zones
    Memory OptimizedRAM-intensive applications16GB–128GB2–1210GB-1.6TBAll zones
    Storage OptimizedData-heavy workloads16GB–128GB4–161TB–10TBAll zones
  • Template
    A Template is a pre-configured disk image used to launch instances. Templates define the base OS and system configuration. You can use public templates provided by Exoscale or upload your own.

Features

  • Rapid Deployment
    Launch virtual machines within seconds through the Exoscale Portal, CLI, or API.
  • Flexible Instance Types
    Choose from various instance families tailored to specific workloads.
  • Local SSD Storage
    All instances come with enterprise-grade local SSD RAID10 storage, ensuring high I/O performance and low latency.
  • Custom Templates & Snapshots
    Create and deploy instances using custom templates and take snapshots for backups or cloning purposes.
  • Anti-Affinity Groups
    Distribute instances across different physical hypervisors to enhance availability.
  • vTPM and Secureboot
    Enhance instance security with vTPM for TPM 2.0 support, enabling Windows Bitlocker encryption, and Secure Boot to ensure only signed OS images are loaded.
  • Built-In IAM
    Granular Identity and Access Management allows precise control over API key permissions.
  • Instance Pools
    Automatically manage groups of identical instances for high availability and scalability.

Availability

ZoneCountryCityAvailability
at-vie-1AustriaVienna
at-vie-2AustriaVienna
ch-gva-2SwitzerlandGeneva
ch-dk-2SwitzerlandZurich
de-fra-1GermanyFrankfurt
de-muc-1GermanyMunich
bg-sof-1BulgariaSofia

Limitations

The following table shows which limits are enforced on Compute usage. It also highlights some of the characteristics of the product:

FeatureLimit
Instance QuotasOrganizations can create up to 20 instances. Quota increases can be requested via the Exoscale Portal.
Special Instance TypesAccess to certain instance types (e.g., GPU, Mega, Titan, Jumbo) requires activation by the support team. Requests can be made during instance creation.
vTPM and SecurebootThis setting conflicts with netboot profiles as those are not signed and will not boot on an instance with Secureboot enabled.
Zone ConstraintsInstances and Instance Pools are confined to a single zone and cannot be migrated across zones post-creation.
Elastic IPsOrganizations are initially limited to 5 Elastic IPs. Instances sharing an Elastic IP cannot communicate with each other using that IP.
Block Storage AttachmentsA maximum of 5 block storage volumes can be attached to a single instance by default. Up to 15 volumes can be attached upon demand.