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AWS Now Lets Lightsail Spin Up Windows Virtual Servers
Amazon Web Services this week announced new support for Microsoft Windows Server in its Amazon Lightsail virtual private server (VPS) solution.
First launched in late 2016, Lightsail enables users to launch VPSes cheaply and within minutes on the AWS cloud. Users can choose from one of five configurations with pre-set levels of memory, virtual CPU capacity and data transfer rates.
The addition of Windows Server support means that organizations can now use Lightsail to quickly spin up Windows-based instances on AWS. Supported Windows Server flavors include Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows Server 2016 and Windows Server 2016 with SQL Server Express.
"You can use your VPS to build, test, and deploy .NET or Windows applications without having to set up or run any infrastructure," said AWS evangelist Jeff Barr in a blog post detailing the Windows Server support. "Backups, DNS management, and operational metrics are all accessible with a click or two."
Lightsail initially only supported Linux/Unix servers, with configurations ranging from $5 and $80 per month. For Windows Server, monthly pricing is slightly higher, ranging from $10 to $100.
The cheapest Windows Server configuration -- which also comes with a free one-month trial -- supports 512MB of RAM, a single virtual CPU, 30GB of SSD memory and 1TB of data transfer. The largest configuration, meanwhile, supports 8GB of RAM, two virtual CPUs, 80GB of SSD memory and 5TB of data transfer.
Windows Server instance pricing for Amazon Lightsail. (Source Jeff Barr/AWS)
The Windows Server support for Lightsail is available immediately out of AWS' Oregon, Ohio, London, Frankfurt, Ireland, Mumbai, Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney regions.