---
description: |
    The amazon-ebsvolume Packer builder is like the EBS builder, but is intended to
    create EBS volumes rather than a machine image.
layout: docs
page_title: 'Amazon EBS Volume - Builders'
sidebar_current: 'docs-builders-amazon-ebsvolume'
---

# EBS Volume Builder

Type: `amazon-ebsvolume`

The `amazon-ebsvolume` Packer builder is able to create Amazon Elastic Block
Store volumes which are prepopulated with filesystems or data.

This builder builds EBS volumes by launching an EC2 instance from a source AMI,
provisioning that running machine, and then destroying the source machine,
keeping the volumes intact.

This is all done in your own AWS account. The builder will create temporary key
pairs, security group rules, etc. that provide it temporary access to the
instance while the image is being created.

The builder does *not* manage EBS Volumes. Once it creates volumes and stores
it in your account, it is up to you to use, delete, etc. the volumes.

-&gt; **Note:** Temporary resources are, by default, all created with the
prefix `packer`. This can be useful if you want to restrict the security groups
and key pairs Packer is able to operate on.

## Configuration Reference

There are many configuration options available for the builder. They are
segmented below into two categories: required and optional parameters. Within
each category, the available configuration keys are alphabetized.

In addition to the options listed here, a
[communicator](/docs/templates/communicator.html) can be configured for this
builder.

### Required:

-   `access_key` (string) - The access key used to communicate with AWS. [Learn
    how to set this.](/docs/builders/amazon.html#specifying-amazon-credentials)

-   `instance_type` (string) - The EC2 instance type to use while building the
    AMI, such as `m1.small`.

-   `region` (string) - The name of the region, such as `us-east-1`, in which
    to launch the EC2 instance to create the AMI.

-   `secret_key` (string) - The secret key used to communicate with AWS. [Learn
    how to set this.](/docs/builders/amazon.html#specifying-amazon-credentials)

-   `source_ami` (string) - The initial AMI used as a base for the newly
    created machine. `source_ami_filter` may be used instead to populate this
    automatically.

### Optional:

-   `ebs_volumes` (array of block device mappings) - Add the block device
    mappings to the AMI. The block device mappings allow for keys:

    -   `device_name` (string) - The device name exposed to the instance (for
        example, `/dev/sdh` or `xvdh`). Required for every device in the block
        device mapping.

    -   `delete_on_termination` (boolean) - Indicates whether the EBS volume is
        deleted on instance termination.

    -   `encrypted` (boolean) - Indicates whether or not to encrypt the volume.
        By default, Packer will keep the encryption setting to what it was in
        the source image. Setting `false` will result in an unencrypted device,
        and `true` will result in an encrypted one.

    -   `kms_key_id` (string) - The ARN for the KMS encryption key. When
        specifying `kms_key_id`, `encrypted` needs to be set to `true`. For
        valid formats see *KmsKeyId* in the [AWS API docs -
        CopyImage](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_CopyImage.html).

    -   `iops` (number) - The number of I/O operations per second (IOPS) that
        the volume supports. See the documentation on
        [IOPs](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_EbsBlockDevice.html)
        for more information

    -   `no_device` (boolean) - Suppresses the specified device included in the
        block device mapping of the AMI

    -   `snapshot_id` (string) - The ID of the snapshot

    -   `virtual_name` (string) - The virtual device name. See the
        documentation on [Block Device
        Mapping](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_BlockDeviceMapping.html)
        for more information

    -   `volume_size` (number) - The size of the volume, in GiB. Required if
        not specifying a `snapshot_id`

    -   `volume_type` (string) - The volume type. `gp2` for General Purpose
        (SSD) volumes, `io1` for Provisioned IOPS (SSD) volumes, and `standard`
        for Magnetic volumes

    -   `tags` (map) - Tags to apply to the volume. These are retained after
        the builder completes. This is a [template
        engine](/docs/templates/engine.html), see [Build template
        data](#build-template-data) for more information.

-   `associate_public_ip_address` (boolean) - If using a non-default VPC,
    public IP addresses are not provided by default. If this is `true`, your
    new instance will get a Public IP. default: `false`

-   `availability_zone` (string) - Destination availability zone to launch
    instance in. Leave this empty to allow Amazon to auto-assign.

-   `block_duration_minutes` (int64) - Requires `spot_price` to be set. The
    required duration for the Spot Instances (also known as Spot blocks). This
    value must be a multiple of 60 (60, 120, 180, 240, 300, or 360). You can't
    specify an Availability Zone group or a launch group if you specify a
    duration.

-   `custom_endpoint_ec2` (string) - This option is useful if you use a cloud
    provider whose API is compatible with aws EC2. Specify another endpoint
    like this `https://ec2.custom.endpoint.com`.

-   `disable_stop_instance` (boolean) - Packer normally stops the build
    instance after all provisioners have run. For Windows instances, it is
    sometimes desirable to [run
    Sysprep](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/WindowsGuide/ami-create-standard.html)
    which will stop the instance for you. If this is set to true, Packer *will
    not* stop the instance but will assume that you will send the stop signal
    yourself through your final provisioner. You can do this with a
    [windows-shell
    provisioner](https://www.packer.io/docs/provisioners/windows-shell.html).

    Note that Packer will still wait for the instance to be stopped, and
    failing to send the stop signal yourself, when you have set this flag to
    `true`, will cause a timeout.

    Example of a valid shutdown command:

    ``` json
    {
      "type": "windows-shell",
      "inline": ["\"c:\\Program Files\\Amazon\\Ec2ConfigService\\ec2config.exe\" -sysprep"]
    }
    ```

-   `decode_authorization_messages` (boolean) - Enable automatic decoding of
    any encoded authorization (error) messages using the
    `sts:DecodeAuthorizationMessage` API. Note: requires that the effective
    user/role have permissions to `sts:DecodeAuthorizationMessage` on resource
    `*`. Default `false`.

-   `ebs_optimized` (boolean) - Mark instance as [EBS
    Optimized](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/EBSOptimized.html).
    Default `false`.

-   `ena_support` (boolean) - Enable enhanced networking (ENA but not
    SriovNetSupport) on HVM-compatible AMIs. If set, add
    `ec2:ModifyInstanceAttribute` to your AWS IAM policy. If false, this will
    disable enhanced networking in the final AMI as opposed to passing the
    setting through unchanged from the source. Note: you must make sure
    enhanced networking is enabled on your instance. See [Amazon's
    documentation on enabling enhanced
    networking](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/enhanced-networking.html#enabling_enhanced_networking).

-   `enable_t2_unlimited` (boolean) - Enabling T2 Unlimited allows the source
    instance to burst additional CPU beyond its available [CPU
    Credits](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/t2-credits-baseline-concepts.html)
    for as long as the demand exists. This is in contrast to the standard
    configuration that only allows an instance to consume up to its available
    CPU Credits. See the AWS documentation for [T2
    Unlimited](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/t2-unlimited.html)
    and the **T2 Unlimited Pricing** section of the [Amazon EC2 On-Demand
    Pricing](https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/pricing/on-demand/) document for more
    information. By default this option is disabled and Packer will set up a
    [T2
    Standard](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/t2-std.html)
    instance instead.

    To use T2 Unlimited you must use a T2 instance type, e.g. `t2.micro`.
    Additionally, T2 Unlimited cannot be used in conjunction with Spot
    Instances, e.g. when the `spot_price` option has been configured.
    Attempting to do so will cause an error.

    !&gt; **Warning!** Additional costs may be incurred by enabling T2
    Unlimited - even for instances that would usually qualify for the [AWS Free
    Tier](https://aws.amazon.com/free/).

-   `iam_instance_profile` (string) - The name of an [IAM instance
    profile](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/IAM/latest/UserGuide/instance-profiles.html)
    to launch the EC2 instance with.

-   `insecure_skip_tls_verify` (boolean) - This allows skipping TLS
    verification of the AWS EC2 endpoint. The default is `false`.

-   `mfa_code` (string) - The MFA
    [TOTP](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time-based_One-time_Password_Algorithm)
    code. This should probably be a user variable since it changes all the
    time.

-   `profile` (string) - The profile to use in the shared credentials file for
    AWS. See Amazon's documentation on [specifying
    profiles](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/sdk-for-go/v1/developer-guide/configuring-sdk.html#specifying-profiles)
    for more details.

-   `run_tags` (object of key/value strings) - Tags to apply to the instance
    that is *launched* to create the AMI. These tags are *not* applied to the
    resulting AMI unless they're duplicated in `tags`. This is a [template
    engine](/docs/templates/engine.html), see [Build template
    data](#build-template-data) for more information.

-   `security_group_id` (string) - The ID (*not* the name) of the security
    group to assign to the instance. By default this is not set and Packer will
    automatically create a new temporary security group to allow SSH access.
    Note that if this is specified, you must be sure the security group allows
    access to the `ssh_port` given below.

-   `security_group_ids` (array of strings) - A list of security groups as
    described above. Note that if this is specified, you must omit the
    `security_group_id`.

-   `security_group_filter` (object) - Filters used to populate the
    `security_group_ids` field. Example:

    ``` json
    {
      "security_group_filter": {
        "filters": {
          "tag:Class": "packer"
        }
      }
    }
    ```

    This selects the SG's with tag `Class` with the value `packer`.

    -   `filters` (map of strings) - filters used to select a
        `security_group_ids`. Any filter described in the docs for
        [DescribeSecurityGroups](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_DescribeSecurityGroups.html)
        is valid.

    `security_group_ids` take precedence over this.

-   `shutdown_behavior` (string) - Automatically terminate instances on
    shutdown in case Packer exits ungracefully. Possible values are `stop` and
    `terminate`. Defaults to `stop`.

-   `skip_region_validation` (boolean) - Set to `true` if you want to skip
    validation of the region configuration option. Defaults to `false`.

-   `snapshot_groups` (array of strings) - A list of groups that have access to
    create volumes from the snapshot(s). By default no groups have permission
    to create volumes from the snapshot(s). `all` will make the snapshot
    publicly accessible.

-   `snapshot_users` (array of strings) - A list of account IDs that have
    access to create volumes from the snapshot(s). By default no additional
    users other than the user creating the AMI has permissions to create
    volumes from the backing snapshot(s).

-   `source_ami_filter` (object) - Filters used to populate the `source_ami`
    field. Example:

    ``` json
    {
      "source_ami_filter": {
        "filters": {
          "virtualization-type": "hvm",
          "name": "ubuntu/images/*ubuntu-xenial-16.04-amd64-server-*",
          "root-device-type": "ebs"
        },
        "owners": ["099720109477"],
        "most_recent": true
      }
    }
    ```

    This selects the most recent Ubuntu 16.04 HVM EBS AMI from Canonical. NOTE:
    This will fail unless *exactly* one AMI is returned. In the above example,
    `most_recent` will cause this to succeed by selecting the newest image.

    -   `filters` (map of strings) - filters used to select a `source_ami`.
        NOTE: This will fail unless *exactly* one AMI is returned. Any filter
        described in the docs for
        [DescribeImages](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_DescribeImages.html)
        is valid.

    -   `owners` (array of strings) - Filters the images by their owner. You
        may specify one or more AWS account IDs, "self" (which will use the
        account whose credentials you are using to run Packer), or an AWS owner
        alias: for example, "amazon", "aws-marketplace", or "microsoft". This
        option is required for security reasons.

    -   `most_recent` (boolean) - Selects the newest created image when true.
        This is most useful for selecting a daily distro build.

    You may set this in place of `source_ami` or in conjunction with it. If you
    set this in conjunction with `source_ami`, the `source_ami` will be added
    to the filter. The provided `source_ami` must meet all of the filtering
    criteria provided in `source_ami_filter`; this pins the AMI returned by the
    filter, but will cause Packer to fail if the `source_ami` does not exist.

<%= partial "partials/builders/aws-spot-docs" %>

-   `sriov_support` (boolean) - Enable enhanced networking (SriovNetSupport but
    not ENA) on HVM-compatible AMIs. If true, add `ec2:ModifyInstanceAttribute`
    to your AWS IAM policy. Note: you must make sure enhanced networking is
    enabled on your instance. See [Amazon's documentation on enabling enhanced
    networking](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/enhanced-networking.html#enabling_enhanced_networking).
    Default `false`.

-   `ssh_keypair_name` (string) - If specified, this is the key that will be
    used for SSH with the machine. By default, this is blank, and Packer will
    generate a temporary key pair unless
    [`ssh_password`](/docs/templates/communicator.html#ssh_password) is used.
    [`ssh_private_key_file`](/docs/templates/communicator.html#ssh_private_key_file)
    must be specified with this.

-   `ssh_private_ip` (boolean) - No longer supported. See
    [`ssh_interface`](#ssh_interface). A fixer exists to migrate.

-   `ssh_interface` (string) - One of `public_ip`, `private_ip`, `public_dns`
    or `private_dns`. If set, either the public IP address, private IP address,
    public DNS name or private DNS name will used as the host for SSH. The
    default behaviour if inside a VPC is to use the public IP address if
    available, otherwise the private IP address will be used. If not in a VPC
    the public DNS name will be used. Also works for WinRM.

    Where Packer is configured for an outbound proxy but WinRM traffic should
    be direct, `ssh_interface` must be set to `private_dns` and
    `<region>.compute.internal` included in the `NO_PROXY` environment
    variable.

-   `subnet_id` (string) - If using VPC, the ID of the subnet, such as
    `subnet-12345def`, where Packer will launch the EC2 instance. This field is
    required if you are using an non-default VPC.

-   `subnet_filter` (object) - Filters used to populate the `subnet_id` field.
    Example:

    ``` json
    {
      "subnet_filter": {
        "filters": {
          "tag:Class": "build"
        },
        "most_free": true,
        "random": false
      }
    }
    ```

    This selects the Subnet with tag `Class` with the value `build`, which has
    the most free IP addresses. NOTE: This will fail unless *exactly* one
    Subnet is returned. By using `most_free` or `random` one will be selected
    from those matching the filter.

    -   `filters` (map of strings) - filters used to select a `subnet_id`.
        NOTE: This will fail unless *exactly* one Subnet is returned. Any
        filter described in the docs for
        [DescribeSubnets](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_DescribeSubnets.html)
        is valid.

    -   `most_free` (boolean) - The Subnet with the most free IPv4 addresses
        will be used if multiple Subnets matches the filter.

    -   `random` (boolean) - A random Subnet will be used if multiple Subnets
        matches the filter. `most_free` have precendence over this.

    `subnet_id` take precedence over this.

-   `temporary_key_pair_name` (string) - The name of the temporary key pair to
    generate. By default, Packer generates a name that looks like
    `packer_<UUID>`, where &lt;UUID&gt; is a 36 character unique identifier.

-   `temporary_security_group_source_cidrs` (list of string) - A list of IPv4
    CIDR blocks to be authorized access to the instance, when packer is creating a temporary security group.

    The default is [`0.0.0.0/0`] (i.e., allow any IPv4 source). This is only used when `security_group_id` or `security_group_ids` is not specified.

-   `token` (string) - The access token to use. This is different from the
    access key and secret key. If you're not sure what this is, then you
    probably don't need it. This will also be read from the `AWS_SESSION_TOKEN`
    environmental variable.

-   `user_data` (string) - User data to apply when launching the instance. Note
    that you need to be careful about escaping characters due to the templates
    being JSON. It is often more convenient to use `user_data_file`, instead.
    Packer will not automatically wait for a user script to finish before
    shutting down the instance this must be handled in a provisioner.

-   `user_data_file` (string) - Path to a file that will be used for the user
    data when launching the instance.

-   `vault_aws_engine` (object) - Get credentials from Hashicorp Vault's aws
    secrets engine. You must already have created a role to use. For more
    information about generating credentials via the Vault engine, see the
    [Vault docs.]
    (https://www.vaultproject.io/api/secret/aws/index.html#generate-credentials)
    If you set this
    flag, you must also set the below options:
  -   `name` (string) - Required. Specifies the name of the role to generate
      credentials against. This is part of the request URL.
  -   `engine_name` (string) - The name of the aws secrets engine. In the Vault
      docs, this is normally referred to as "aws", and Packer will default to
      "aws" if `engine_name` is not set.
  -   `role_arn` (string)- The ARN of the role to assume if credential_type on
      the Vault role is assumed_role. Must match one of the allowed role ARNs
      in the Vault role. Optional if the Vault role only allows a single AWS
      role ARN; required otherwise.
  -   `ttl` (string) -  Specifies the TTL for the use of the STS token. This is
      specified as a string with a duration suffix. Valid only when
      credential_type is assumed_role or federation_token. When not specified,
      the default_sts_ttl set for the role will be used. If that is also not
      set, then the default value of 3600s will be used. AWS places limits on
      the maximum TTL allowed. See the AWS documentation on the DurationSeconds
      parameter for AssumeRole (for assumed_role credential types) and
      GetFederationToken (for federation_token credential types) for more
      details.

      Example:
    ``` json
    {
        "vault_aws_engine": {
            "name": "myrole",
            "role_arn": "myarn",
            "ttl": "3600s"
        }
    }
    ```

-   `vpc_id` (string) - If launching into a VPC subnet, Packer needs the VPC ID
    in order to create a temporary security group within the VPC. Requires
    `subnet_id` to be set. If this field is left blank, Packer will try to get
    the VPC ID from the `subnet_id`.

-   `vpc_filter` (object) - Filters used to populate the `vpc_id` field.
    Example:

    ``` json
    {
      "vpc_filter": {
        "filters": {
          "tag:Class": "build",
          "isDefault": "false",
          "cidr": "/24"
        }
      }
    }
    ```

    This selects the VPC with tag `Class` with the value `build`, which is not
    the default VPC, and have a IPv4 CIDR block of `/24`. NOTE: This will fail
    unless *exactly* one VPC is returned.

    -   `filters` (map of strings) - filters used to select a `vpc_id`. NOTE:
        This will fail unless *exactly* one VPC is returned. Any filter
        described in the docs for
        [DescribeVpcs](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_DescribeVpcs.html)
        is valid.

    `vpc_id` take precedence over this.

-   `windows_password_timeout` (string) - The timeout for waiting for a Windows
    password for Windows instances. Defaults to 20 minutes. Example value:
    `10m`

## Basic Example

``` json
{
  "type" : "amazon-ebsvolume",
  "secret_key" : "YOUR SECRET KEY HERE",
  "access_key" : "YOUR KEY HERE",
  "region" : "us-east-1",
  "ssh_username" : "ubuntu",
  "instance_type" : "t2.medium",
  "source_ami" : "ami-40d28157",
  "ebs_volumes" : [
    {
      "volume_type" : "gp2",
      "device_name" : "/dev/xvdf",
      "delete_on_termination" : false,
      "tags" : {
        "zpool" : "data",
        "Name" : "Data1"
      },
      "volume_size" : 10
    },
    {
      "volume_type" : "gp2",
      "device_name" : "/dev/xvdg",
      "tags" : {
        "zpool" : "data",
        "Name" : "Data2"
      },
      "delete_on_termination" : false,
      "volume_size" : 10
    },
    {
      "volume_size" : 10,
      "tags" : {
        "Name" : "Data3",
        "zpool" : "data"
      },
      "delete_on_termination" : false,
      "device_name" : "/dev/xvdh",
      "volume_type" : "gp2"
    }
  ]
}
```

-&gt; **Note:** Packer can also read the access key and secret access key from
environmental variables. See the configuration reference in the section above
for more information on what environmental variables Packer will look for.

Further information on locating AMI IDs and their relationship to instance
types and regions can be found in the AWS EC2 Documentation [for
Linux](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/finding-an-ami.html)
or [for
Windows](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/WindowsGuide/finding-an-ami.html).

## Accessing the Instance to Debug

If you need to access the instance to debug for some reason, run the builder
with the `-debug` flag. In debug mode, the Amazon builder will save the private
key in the current directory and will output the DNS or IP information as well.
You can use this information to access the instance as it is running.

## Build template data

In configuration directives marked as a template engine above, the following
variables are available:

-   `BuildRegion` - The region (for example `eu-central-1`) where Packer is
    building the AMI.
-   `SourceAMI` - The source AMI ID (for example `ami-a2412fcd`) used to build
    the AMI.
-   `SourceAMIName` - The source AMI Name (for example
    `ubuntu/images/ebs-ssd/ubuntu-xenial-16.04-amd64-server-20180306`) used to
    build the AMI.
-   `SourceAMITags` - The source AMI Tags, as a `map[string]string` object.

-&gt; **Note:** Packer uses pre-built AMIs as the source for building images.
These source AMIs may include volumes that are not flagged to be destroyed on
termination of the instance building the new image. In addition to those
volumes created by this builder, any volumes inn the source AMI which are not
marked for deletion on termination will remain in your account.


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