AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate (legacy) — Question 274

A user has launched an EBS backed EC2 instance. What will be the difference while performing the restart or stop/start options on that instance?

Answer options

• A. For restart it does not charge for an extra hour, while every stop/start it will be charged as a separate hour
• B. Every restart is charged by AWS as a separate hour, while multiple start/stop actions during a single hour will be counted as a single hour
• C. For every restart or start/stop it will be charged as a separate hour
• D. For restart it charges extra only once, while for every stop/start it will be charged as a separate hour

Correct answer: A

Explanation

Rebooting an EC2 instance (restart) keeps the instance running on the same physical host and does not trigger a new billing cycle. Stopping and starting the instance, however, terminates the current instance state and initiates a new billing cycle when started again, resulting in a charge for a new minimum billing period (historically billed as a full hour). Consequently, restarting is free from additional initiation charges, while stop/start cycles incur new billing charges.