When launching a t1.micro-based server, I receive an "UnsupportedOperation" error.

Background Information

When launching a t1.micro instance type server, I receive the following error message:

"UnsupportedOperation: AMIs with an instance-store root device are not supported for the instance type 't1.micro'."

Answer

Amazon's "micro" instance types can only be launched using EBS-based machine images because, unlike other EC2 instance types, these instances do not include any ephemeral local storage.

In order to launch "micro" instance types using RightScale ServerTemplates, we recommend using one of the EBS-based RightImages that support these. Refer to the OS and Software Package Support matrix to determine which RightImages support micro instance types.

Note: The current published RightScale ServerTemplates have not been thoroughly tested with "micro" instance types. Even if you override the machine image setting at the server level and select an EBS-based RightImage, it does not guarantee that the instance will boot successfully on a micro instance type. Some ServerTemplates are designed to use ephemeral storage during boot time for configuration purposes; if you attempt to launch these servers using "micro" instance types, they will be stranded in the configuring/booting process.