Creating a VM with Gen 2 hardware

If you do not have the Yandex Cloud CLI installed yet, install and initialize it.

By default, the CLI uses the folder specified when creating the profile. To change the default folder, use the yc config set folder-id <folder_ID> command. You can also set a different folder for any specific command using the --folder-name or --folder-id parameter.

1. See the description of the Yandex Cloud CLI command for creating an image:

   yc compute image create --help
   

2. To create a new image with the Gen 2 hardware generation assigned using a link, run this command:

   yc compute image create \
     --name <image_name> \
     --source-uri "<image_URL>" \
     --hardware-generation-id generation2 \
     --pooled
   

   Where:

   • --name: Name to assign to the image. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • --source-uri: Image link you got in Object Storage.

   • --pooled: Enables image optimization for deployment. This is an optional setting. By default, the optimization is disabled.

   Result:

   done (12s)
   id: fd86a13e6ro9********
   folder_id: b1gt6g8ht345********
   created_at: "2025-12-05T16:26:46Z"
   name: my-own-gen2-image
   storage_size: "1891631104"
   min_disk_size: "1891631104"
   status: READY
   os:
     type: LINUX
   hardware_generation:
     generation2_features: {}
   

For more information about the yc compute image create command, see the CLI reference.

With Terraform, you can quickly create a cloud infrastructure in Yandex Cloud and manage it using configuration files. These files store the infrastructure description written in HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL). If you change the configuration files, Terraform automatically detects which part of your configuration is already deployed, and what should be added or removed.

Terraform is distributed under the Business Source License. The Yandex Cloud provider for Terraform is distributed under the MPL-2.0 license.

For more information about the provider resources, see the relevant documentation on the Terraform website or its mirror.

If you do not have Terraform yet, install it and configure the Yandex Cloud provider.

To create an image:

1. Specify the parameters of the yandex_compute_image resource in the configuration file.

   Here is an example of the configuration file structure:

   resource "yandex_compute_image" "image-1" {
     name                 = "<image_name>"
     source_url           = "<image_link>"
     pooled               = "true|false"
   
     hardware_generation {
       generation2_features {}
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • name: Name to assign to the image. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • source_url: Image link in Object Storage.

   • pooled: Enables image optimization for deployment. The possible values are:

     • true: Optimization enabled.
     • false: Optimization disabled.

     This is an optional setting. By default, the optimization is disabled.

   For detailed information about the yandex_compute_image resource parameters, see this Terraform provider guide.

2. Create the resources:

   1. In the terminal, go to the directory where you edited the configuration file.

   2. Make sure the configuration file is correct using this command:

      terraform validate
      

      If the configuration is correct, you will get this message:

      Success! The configuration is valid.
      

   3. Run this command:

      terraform plan
      

      You will see a detailed list of resources. No changes will be made at this step. If the configuration contains any errors, Terraform will show them.

   4. Apply the changes:

      terraform apply
      

   5. Type yes and press Enter to confirm the changes.

   Terraform will create all the required resources. You can check new resources in the management console or using this CLI command:

   yc compute image list
   

Use the create REST API method for the Image resource or the ImageService/Create gRPC API call.

For example, to create an image with the Gen 2 hardware generation assigned using REST API:

1. Install cURL.

2. Get an IAM token used for API authentication:

   • Guide for a Yandex account user
   • Guide for a service account
   • Guide for a federated account
   • Guide for a local account

3. For your request to run smoothly, save the IAM token you got to the IAM_TOKEN environment variable:

   export IAM_TOKEN="<IAM_token_contents>"
   

4. Create a file containing the body of your image create request (e.g., body.json) and add the following code to it:

   body.json

   {
     "folderId": "<folder_ID>",
     "name": "<image_name>",
     "uri": "<link_to_uploaded_image>",
     "pooled": "true|false",
     "hardwareGeneration": {
       "generation2Features": {}
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • folderId: ID of the image folder.

   • name: Image name. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • uri: Image link in Object Storage.

   • pooled: Enables image optimization for deployment. The possible values are:

     • true: Optimization enabled.
     • false: Optimization disabled.

     This is an optional setting. By default, the optimization is disabled.

5. Run this http request:

   curl \
     --request POST \
     --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
     --header "Authorization: Bearer ${IAM_TOKEN}" \
     --data '@body.json' \
     https://compute.api.cloud.yandex.net/compute/v1/images
   

   Result:

   {
   "done": false,
   "metadata": {
     "@type": "type.googleapis.com/yandex.cloud.compute.v1.CreateImageMetadata",
     "imageId": "fd8g5p4hllq8********"
   },
   "id": "fd8m1tfm92kr********",
   "description": "Create image",
   "createdAt": "2025-12-05T16:41:54.452564354Z",
   "createdBy": "ajeol2afu1js********",
   "modifiedAt": "2025-12-05T16:41:54.452564354Z"
   }
   

If you do not have the Yandex Cloud CLI installed yet, install and initialize it.

By default, the CLI uses the folder specified when creating the profile. To change the default folder, use the yc config set folder-id <folder_ID> command. You can also set a different folder for any specific command using the --folder-name or --folder-id parameter.

1. See the description of the Yandex Cloud CLI command for creating an image:

   yc compute image create --help
   

2. To create a new image with the Gen 2 hardware generation assigned from an existing image, snapshot, or disk, run this command:

   yc compute image create \
     --name <image_name> \
     --source-image-id <source_image_ID> \
     --source-snapshot-id <source_snapshot_ID> \
     --source-disk-id <source_disk_ID> \
     --hardware-generation-id generation2 \
     --pooled
   

   Where:

   • --name: Name to assign to the image. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • Selecting a source for your image:

     • --source-image-id: Source image ID. Instead of the ID, you can provide its name in --source-image-name.
     • --source-snapshot-id: Source snapshot ID. Instead of the ID, you can provide its name in --source-snapshot-name.
     • --source-disk-id: Source disk ID. Instead of the ID, you can provide its name in --source-disk-name.

     Note

     --source-image-id, --source-image-name, --source-snapshot-id, --source-snapshot-name, --source-disk-id, and --source-disk-name are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them in the command.

   • --pooled: Enables image optimization for deployment. This is an optional setting. By default, the optimization is disabled.

   Result:

   done (9s)
   id: fd86kup8c7pa********
   folder_id: b1gt6g8ht345********
   created_at: "2025-12-05T06:57:09Z"
   name: my-sample-gen2-image
   storage_size: "9877585920"
   min_disk_size: "21474836480"
   product_ids:
     - f2ercusam4no********
   status: READY
   os:
     type: LINUX
   hardware_generation:
     generation2_features: {}
   

For more information about the yc compute image create command, see the CLI reference.

With Terraform, you can quickly create a cloud infrastructure in Yandex Cloud and manage it using configuration files. These files store the infrastructure description written in HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL). If you change the configuration files, Terraform automatically detects which part of your configuration is already deployed, and what should be added or removed.

Terraform is distributed under the Business Source License. The Yandex Cloud provider for Terraform is distributed under the MPL-2.0 license.

For more information about the provider resources, see the relevant documentation on the Terraform website or its mirror.

If you do not have Terraform yet, install it and configure the Yandex Cloud provider.

1. Define the parameters of the yandex_compute_image resource in the configuration file.

   Here is an example of the configuration file structure:

   resource "yandex_compute_image" "image-1" {
     name                 = "<image_name>"
     source_image         = "<source_image_ID>"
     source_snapshot      = "<source_snapshot_ID>"
     source_disk          = "<source_disk_ID>"
     pooled               = "true|false"
   
     hardware_generation {
       generation2_features {}
     }
   }
   

   Alert

   Make sure the source operating system boot loader supports UEFI boot mode and the GPT partition table. Otherwise, virtual machines created from the new image will not be able to boot the operating system.

   Where:

   • name: Name to assign to the image. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • Selecting a source for your image:

     • source_image: Source image ID.
     • source_snapshot: Source snapshot ID.
     • source_disk: Source disk ID.

     Note

     source_image, source_snapshot, and source_disk are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them in the configuration file.

   • pooled: Enables image optimization for deployment. The possible values are:

     • true: Optimization enabled.
     • false: Optimization disabled.

     This is an optional setting. By default, the optimization is disabled.

     For detailed information about the yandex_compute_image resource parameters, see this Terraform provider guide.

2. Create the resources:

   1. In the terminal, go to the directory where you edited the configuration file.

   2. Make sure the configuration file is correct using this command:

      terraform validate
      

      If the configuration is correct, you will get this message:

      Success! The configuration is valid.
      

   3. Run this command:

      terraform plan
      

      You will see a detailed list of resources. No changes will be made at this step. If the configuration contains any errors, Terraform will show them.

   4. Apply the changes:

      terraform apply
      

   5. Type yes and press Enter to confirm the changes.

   Terraform will create all the required resources. You can check new resources in the management console or using this CLI command:

   yc compute image list
   

Use the create REST API method for the Image resource or the ImageService/Create gRPC API call.

For example, to create an image with the Gen 2 hardware generation assigned using REST API:

1. Install cURL.

2. Get an IAM token used for API authentication:

   • Guide for a Yandex account user
   • Guide for a service account
   • Guide for a federated account
   • Guide for a local account

3. For your request to run smoothly, save the IAM token you got to the IAM_TOKEN environment variable:

   export IAM_TOKEN="<IAM_token_contents>"
   

4. Create a file containing the body of your image create request (e.g., body.json) and add the following code to it:

   body.json

   {
     "folderId": "<folder_ID>",
     "name": "<image_name>",
     "imageId": "<source_image_ID>",
     "snapshotId": "<source_snapshot_ID>",
     "diskId": "<source_disk_ID>",
     "pooled": "true|false",
     "hardwareGeneration": {
       "generation2Features": {}
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • folderId: ID of the image folder.

   • name: Image name. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   Alert

   Make sure the source operating system boot loader supports UEFI boot mode and the GPT partition table. Otherwise, virtual machines created from the new image will not be able to boot the operating system.

   • Selecting a source for your image:

     • imageId: Source image ID.
     • snapshotId: Source snapshot ID.
     • diskId: Source disk ID.

     Note

     The imageId, snapshotId, and diskId fields are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them in the request.

   • pooled: Enables image optimization for deployment. The possible values are:

     • true: Optimization enabled.
     • false: Optimization disabled.

     This is an optional setting. By default, the optimization is disabled.

5. Run this http request:

   curl \
     --request POST \
     --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
     --header "Authorization: Bearer ${IAM_TOKEN}" \
     --data '@body.json' \
     https://compute.api.cloud.yandex.net/compute/v1/images
   

   Result:

   {
   "done": false,
   "metadata": {
     "@type": "type.googleapis.com/yandex.cloud.compute.v1.CreateImageMetadata",
     "imageId": "fd8j3jind4ij********"
   },
   "id": "fd8a7eged70b********",
   "description": "Create image",
   "createdAt": "2025-12-05T08:51:44.937021154Z",
   "createdBy": "ajeol2afu1js********",
   "modifiedAt": "2025-12-05T08:51:44.937021154Z"
   }
   

1. Stop the VM (see Stopping).
2. Wait until the VM status changes to STOPPED.

With Terraform, you can quickly create a cloud infrastructure in Yandex Cloud and manage it using configuration files. These files store the infrastructure description written in HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL). If you change the configuration files, Terraform automatically detects which part of your configuration is already deployed, and what should be added or removed.

Terraform is distributed under the Business Source License. The Yandex Cloud provider for Terraform is distributed under the MPL-2.0 license.

For more information about the provider resources, see the relevant documentation on the Terraform website or its mirror.

If you do not have Terraform yet, install it and configure the Yandex Cloud provider.

1. Define the parameters of the yandex_compute_snapshot resource in the configuration file.

   Here is an example of the configuration file structure:

   resource "yandex_compute_snapshot" "snapshot-1" {
     name                 = "<snapshot_name>"
     source_disk_id       = "<disk_ID>"
     hardware_generation {
       generation2_features {}
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • name: Name to assign to the snapshot. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • source_disk_id: ID of the disk to create the snapshot for.

   For detailed information about the yandex_compute_snapshot resource parameters, see this Terraform provider guide.

2. Create the resources:

   1. In the terminal, go to the directory where you edited the configuration file.

   2. Make sure the configuration file is correct using this command:

      terraform validate
      

      If the configuration is correct, you will get this message:

      Success! The configuration is valid.
      

   3. Run this command:

      terraform plan
      

      You will see a detailed list of resources. No changes will be made at this step. If the configuration contains any errors, Terraform will show them.

   4. Apply the changes:

      terraform apply
      

   5. Type yes and press Enter to confirm the changes.

   Terraform will create all the required resources. You can check new resources in the management console or using this CLI command:

   yc compute snapshot list
   

Use the create REST API method for the Snapshot resource or the SnapshotService/Create gRPC API call.

For example, to create a snapshot with the Gen 2 hardware generation assigned using REST API:

1. Install cURL.

2. Get an IAM token used for API authentication:

   • Guide for a Yandex account user
   • Guide for a service account
   • Guide for a federated account
   • Guide for a local account

3. For your request to run smoothly, save the IAM token you got to the IAM_TOKEN environment variable:

   export IAM_TOKEN="<IAM_token_contents>"
   

4. Create a file containing the body of your snapshot create request (e.g., body.json), and add the following code to it:

   body.json

   {
     "folderId": "<folder_ID>",
     "name": "<snapshot_name>",
     "diskId": "<disk_ID>",
     "hardwareGeneration": {
       "generation2Features": {}
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • folderId: ID of the snapshot folder.

   • name: Snapshot name. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • diskId: ID of the disk you are making a snapshot of.

5. Run this http request:

   curl \
     --request POST \
     --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
     --header "Authorization: Bearer ${IAM_TOKEN}" \
     --data '@body.json' \
     https://compute.api.cloud.yandex.net/compute/v1/snapshots
   

   Result:

   {
   "done": false,
   "metadata": {
     "@type": "type.googleapis.com/yandex.cloud.compute.v1.CreateSnapshotMetadata",
     "snapshotId": "fd8apannhdo9********",
     "diskId": "epd89t47vnhd********"
   },
   "id": "epd473ndlm58********",
   "description": "Create snapshot",
   "createdAt": "2025-12-05T14:43:02.803028670Z",
   "createdBy": "ajeol2afu1js********",
   "modifiedAt": "2025-12-05T14:43:02.803028670Z"
   }
   

If you do not have the Yandex Cloud CLI installed yet, install and initialize it.

By default, the CLI uses the folder specified when creating the profile. To change the default folder, use the yc config set folder-id <folder_ID> command. You can also set a different folder for any specific command using the --folder-name or --folder-id parameter.

1. View the description of the Yandex Cloud CLI command to create a disk:

   yc compute disk create --help
   

2. Create a disk with the Gen 2 hardware generation assigned in the default folder:

   yc compute disk create \
     --name <disk_name> \
     --zone <availability_zone> \
     --type <disk_type> \
     --size <disk_size> \
     --source-image-id <source_image_ID> \
     --source-snapshot-id <source_snapshot_ID> \
     --hardware-generation-id generation2
   

   Where:

   • --name: Disk name. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • --zone: Availability zone of the new disk.

   • --type: Disk type. Possible values:

     • network-ssd: Fast network drive; SSD network block storage.
     • network-hdd: Standard network drive; HDD network block storage.
     • network-ssd-nonreplicated: Enhanced performance network drive without redundancy.
     • network-ssd-io-m3: Enhanced performance network drive with redundancy.

   • --size: Disk size in GB. For example, specify --size 32 to create a 32 GB disk.

   • Selecting a source for your disk:

     • --source-image-id: ID of the image you are creating the disk based on. Instead of the ID, you can provide its name in --source-image-name.
     • --source-snapshot-id: ID of the snapshot you are creating the disk based on. Instead of the ID, you can provide its name in --source-snapshot-name.

     Note

     --source-image-id, --source-image-name, --source-snapshot-id, and --source-snapshot-name are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them in the command.

   Result:

   done (9s)
   id: fv45fajiusvq********
   folder_id: b1gt6g8ht345********
   created_at: "2025-12-04T08:15:45Z"
   name: ubuntu2404-gen2-disk
   type_id: network-hdd
   zone_id: ru-central1-a
   size: "34359738368"
   block_size: "4096"
   product_ids:
     - f2ebiogvi127********
   status: READY
   source_image_id: fd8bnguet48k********
   disk_placement_policy: {}
   hardware_generation:
     generation2_features: {}
   

For more information about the yc compute disk create command, see the CLI reference.

With Terraform, you can quickly create a cloud infrastructure in Yandex Cloud and manage it using configuration files. These files store the infrastructure description written in HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL). If you change the configuration files, Terraform automatically detects which part of your configuration is already deployed, and what should be added or removed.

Terraform is distributed under the Business Source License. The Yandex Cloud provider for Terraform is distributed under the MPL-2.0 license.

For more information about the provider resources, see the relevant documentation on the Terraform website or its mirror.

If you do not have Terraform yet, install it and configure the Yandex Cloud provider.

1. Define the parameters of the yandex_compute_disk resource in the configuration file.

   Here is a configuration file example:

   resource "yandex_compute_disk" "my-disk" {
     name            = "<disk_name>"
     type            = "<disk_type>"
     zone            = "<availability_zone>"
     size            = <disk_size>
     image_id        = "<source_image_ID>"
     snapshot_id     = "<source_snapshot_ID>"
   
     hardware_generation {
       generation2_features {}
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • name: Name to assign to the disk. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • type: Disk type. Possible values:

     • network-ssd: Fast network drive; SSD network block storage.
     • network-hdd: Standard network drive; HDD network block storage.
     • network-ssd-nonreplicated: Enhanced performance network drive without redundancy.
     • network-ssd-io-m3: Enhanced performance network drive with redundancy.

   • zone: Availability zone of the new disk.

   • size: Disk size in GB.

   • Selecting a source for your disk:

     • image_id: ID of the image you are creating the disk based on.
     • snapshot_id: ID of the snapshot you are creating the disk based on.

     Note

     image_id and snapshot_id are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them in the configuration file.

     For detailed information about the yandex_compute_disk resource parameters, see this Terraform provider guide.

2. Create the resources:

   1. In the terminal, go to the directory where you edited the configuration file.

   2. Make sure the configuration file is correct using this command:

      terraform validate
      

      If the configuration is correct, you will get this message:

      Success! The configuration is valid.
      

   3. Run this command:

      terraform plan
      

      You will see a detailed list of resources. No changes will be made at this step. If the configuration contains any errors, Terraform will show them.

   4. Apply the changes:

      terraform apply
      

   5. Type yes and press Enter to confirm the changes.

   Terraform will create all the required resources. You can check new resources in the management console or using this CLI command:

   yc compute disk list
   

Use the create REST API method for the Disk resource or the DiskService/Create gRPC API call.

For example, to create a disk with the Gen 2 hardware generation assigned using REST API:

1. Install cURL.

2. Get an IAM token used for API authentication:

   • Guide for a Yandex account user
   • Guide for a service account
   • Guide for a federated account
   • Guide for a local account

3. For your request to run smoothly, save the IAM token you got to the IAM_TOKEN environment variable:

   export IAM_TOKEN="<IAM_token_contents>"
   

4. Create a file containing the body of your disk create request (e.g., body.json), and add the following code to it:

   body.json

   {
     "folderId": "<folder_ID>",
     "name": "<disk_name>",
     "typeId": "<disk_type>",
     "zoneId": "<availability_zone>",
     "size": "<disk_size_in_bytes>",
     "imageId": "<source_image_ID>",
     "snapshotId": "<source_snapshot_ID>",
     "hardwareGeneration": {
       "generation2Features": {}
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • folderId: ID of the disk folder.

   • name: Disk name. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • typeId: Disk type. Possible values:

     • network-ssd: Fast network drive; SSD network block storage.
     • network-hdd: Standard network drive; HDD network block storage.
     • network-ssd-nonreplicated: Enhanced performance network drive without redundancy.
     • network-ssd-io-m3: Enhanced performance network drive with redundancy.

   • zoneId: Availability zone of the new disk.

   • size: Disk size, in bytes.

   • Selecting a source for your disk:

     • imageId: ID of the image you are creating the disk based on.
     • snapshotId: ID of the snapshot you are creating the disk based on.

     Note

     The imageId and snapshotId fields are mutually exclusive, you can use only one of them in the request.

5. Run this http request:

   curl \
     --request POST \
     --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
     --header "Authorization: Bearer ${IAM_TOKEN}" \
     --data '@body.json' \
     https://compute.api.cloud.yandex.net/compute/v1/disks
   

   Result:

   {
   "done": false,
   "metadata": {
     "@type": "type.googleapis.com/yandex.cloud.compute.v1.CreateDiskMetadata",
     "diskId": "fv4lmsdol4fi********"
   },
   "id": "fv4pt28gishg********",
   "description": "Create disk",
   "createdAt": "2025-12-04T09:19:00.743099068Z",
   "createdBy": "ajeol2afu1js********",
   "modifiedAt": "2025-12-04T09:19:00.743099068Z"
   }
   

1. View the description of the CLI command to create a VM:

   yc compute instance create --help
   

2. Create a VM in the default folder:

   yc compute instance create \
     --name <VM_name> \
     --zone <VM_availability_zone> \
     --network-interface subnet-id=<subnet_ID>,nat-ip-version=ipv4 \
     --create-boot-disk name=<disk_name>,type=<disk_type>,size=<disk_size>,image-id=<image_ID>,snapshot-id=<snapshot_ID>,auto-delete=true \
     --use-boot-disk disk-id=<ID_of_existing_disk>,auto-delete=true \
     --ssh-key "<path_to_public_SSH_key>"
   

   Where:

   • --name: VM name. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

     Note

     The VM name is used to generate an internal FQDN, which is set only once, when you create the VM. If the internal FQDN is important to you, make sure to choose an appropriate name for your VM.

   • --zone: Availability zone of the new VM.

     The VM availability zone must be the same as that of the subnet.

     When creating a VM using a pre-prepared boot disk, the VM availability zone must be the same as that of the boot disk.

   • --network-interface: VM network interface settings:

     • subnet-id: Subnet ID.
     • nat-ip-version=ipv4: Public IP address. To create a VM without a public IP address, omit this parameter.

     If you want to add multiple network interfaces to your VM, specify the --network-interface parameter as many times as you need. You can add up to eight network interfaces to a single VM.

   • VM boot disk settings:

     Note

     --create-boot-disk and --use-boot-disk are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them.

     • --create-boot-disk: Enables creating a new boot disk for the VM based on an image or snapshot:

       • name: Disk name. Follow these naming requirements:

         • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
         • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
         • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

       • type: Disk type. Possible values:

         • network-ssd: Fast network drive; SSD network block storage.
         • network-hdd: Standard network drive; HDD network block storage.
         • network-ssd-nonreplicated: Enhanced performance network drive without redundancy.
         • network-ssd-io-m3: Enhanced performance network drive with redundancy.

       • size: Disk size in GB.

       • Selecting a source for the boot disk:

         • image-id: ID of the pre-prepared image the VM boot disk will be created from.

         • snapshot-id: ID of the pre-prepared snapshot the VM boot disk will be created from.

           Note

           The image-id and snapshot-id keys are mutually exclusive, you can use only one of them.

       • auto-delete: Auto-delete the boot disk together with the VM. See Disk auto-deletion.

     • --use-boot-disk: Allows using an existing pre-prepared boot disk for the VM:

       • disk-id: Existing boot disk ID.
       • auto-delete: Auto-delete the boot disk together with the VM. See Disk auto-deletion.

   • --ssh-key: Path to the file with the public SSH key. The VM will automatically create a user named yc-user for this key.

   Result:

   done (19s)
   id: fv4l7qqpi4e0********
   folder_id: b1gt6g8ht345********
   created_at: "2025-12-05T18:23:55Z"
   name: my-first-gen2-vm
   zone_id: ru-central1-a
   platform_id: standard-v2
   resources:
     memory: "2147483648"
     cores: "2"
     core_fraction: "100"
   status: RUNNING
   metadata_options:
     gce_http_endpoint: ENABLED
     aws_v1_http_endpoint: ENABLED
     gce_http_token: ENABLED
     aws_v1_http_token: DISABLED
   boot_disk:
     mode: READ_WRITE
     device_name: fv4h89mv71cb********
     auto_delete: true
     disk_id: fv4h89mv71cb********
   network_interfaces:
     - index: "0"
       mac_address: d0:0d:15:3e:b5:99
       subnet_id: fl8dmq91iruu********
       primary_v4_address:
         address: 192.168.3.3
         one_to_one_nat:
           address: 158.160.***.***
           ip_version: IPV4
   serial_port_settings:
     ssh_authorization: OS_LOGIN
   gpu_settings: {}
   fqdn: fv4l7qqpi4e0********.auto.internal
   scheduling_policy: {}
   network_settings:
     type: STANDARD
   placement_policy: {}
   hardware_generation:
     generation2_features: {}
   application: {}
   

1. In the configuration file, describe the resources you want to create:

   resource "yandex_compute_disk" "boot-disk" {
     name            = "<disk_name>"
     type            = "<disk_type>"
     zone            = "<availability_zone>"
     size            = "<disk_size>"
     image_id        = "<source_image_ID>"
     snapshot_id     = "<source_snapshot_ID>"
   }
   
   resource "yandex_compute_instance" "vm-1" {
     name                      = "<VM_name>"
     platform_id               = "standard-v3"
     zone                      = "<availability_zone>"
   
     resources {
       cores  = "<number_of_vCPUs>"
       memory = "<RAM_in_GB>"
     }
   
     boot_disk {
       auto_delete = true|false
       disk_id = yandex_compute_disk.boot-disk.id
     }
   
     network_interface {
       subnet_id = "<subnet_ID>"
       nat       = true
     }
   
     metadata = {
       ssh-keys = "<username>:<SSH_key_contents>"
     }
   }
   

   Where:

   • yandex_compute_disk: Boot disk description:

     Note

     Use the yandex_compute_disk resource if creating a new boot disk for the VM from a pre-prepared image or snapshot.

     If your new VM will use an existing pre-prepared boot disk, specify the disk's ID in the boot_disk.disk_id parameter of the yandex_compute_instance resource without creating a new yandex_compute_disk resource.

     • name: Disk name. Follow these naming requirements:

       • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
       • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
       • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

     • type: Disk type. Possible values:

       • network-ssd: Fast network drive; SSD network block storage.
       • network-hdd: Standard network drive; HDD network block storage.
       • network-ssd-nonreplicated: Enhanced performance network drive without redundancy.
       • network-ssd-io-m3: Enhanced performance network drive with redundancy.

     • zone: Availability zone the disk will reside in.

     • size: Disk size in GB.

     • Selecting a source for the boot disk:

       Note

       image_id and snapshot_id are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them.

       • image_id: ID of the pre-prepared image the VM boot disk will be created from.
       • snapshot_id: ID of the pre-prepared snapshot the VM boot disk will be created from.

     For detailed information about the yandex_compute_disk resource parameters, see this Terraform provider guide.

   • yandex_compute_instance: VM description:

     • name: VM name. Follow these naming requirements:

       • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
       • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
       • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

     • platform_id: Platform.

     • zone: Availability zone the VM will reside in.

       The VM must reside in the same availability zone as the subnet, plus in the same availability zone as the boot disk if created from a pre-prepared disk.

     • resources: Number of vCPUs and amount of RAM available to the VM. The values must match the selected platform.

     • boot_disk: Boot disk settings.

       • disk_id: Disk ID. If your new VM will use an existing pre-prepared boot disk, specify its ID in this parameter.
       • auto_delete: Auto-delete the boot disk together with the VM. See Disk auto-deletion.

     • network_interface: VM network interface settings:

       • subnet_id: ID of the subnet in the same availability zone as the new VM.
       • To automatically assign a public IP address to the VM, set nat = true.

       If you want to add multiple network interfaces to your VM, specify the network_interface section as many times as you need.

     • metadata: In the metadata, provide the user name and public SSH key for VM access. For more information, see VM metadata.

   For detailed information about the yandex_compute_instance resource parameters, see this Terraform provider guide.

2. Create the resources:

   1. In the terminal, go to the directory where you edited the configuration file.

   2. Make sure the configuration file is correct using this command:

      terraform validate
      

      If the configuration is correct, you will get this message:

      Success! The configuration is valid.
      

   3. Run this command:

      terraform plan
      

      You will see a detailed list of resources. No changes will be made at this step. If the configuration contains any errors, Terraform will show them.

   4. Apply the changes:

      terraform apply
      

   5. Type yes and press Enter to confirm the changes.

   Terraform will create all the required resources. You can check new resources in the management console or using this CLI command:

   yc compute instance list
   

Use the create REST API method for the Instance resource or the InstanceService/Create gRPC API call.

For example, to create a VM using REST API:

1. Install cURL.

2. Get an IAM token used for API authentication:

   • Guide for a Yandex account user
   • Guide for a service account
   • Guide for a federated account
   • Guide for a local account

3. For your request to run smoothly, save the IAM token you got to the IAM_TOKEN environment variable:

   export IAM_TOKEN="<IAM_token_contents>"
   

4. Create a file containing the body of your VM create request (e.g., body.json), and add the following code to it:

   body.json

   {
     "folderId": "<folder_ID>",
     "name": "<VM_name>",
     "zoneId": "<availability_zone>",
     "platformId": "standard-v3",
     "resourcesSpec": {
       "memory": "<RAM_in_bytes>",
       "cores": "<number_of_vCPUs>"
     },
     "metadata": {
       "user-data": "#cloud-config\nusers:\n  - name: user\n    groups: sudo\n    shell: /bin/bash\n    sudo: 'ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD:ALL'\n    ssh_authorized_keys:\n      - ssh-ed25519 AAAAB3N... user@example.com"
     },
     "bootDiskSpec": {
       "autoDelete": true,
       "diskSpec": {
         "size": "<disk_size_in_bytes>",
         "imageId": "<source_image_ID>",
         "snapshotId": "<source_snapshot_ID>"
       },
       "diskId": "<disk_ID>"
     },
     "networkInterfaceSpecs": [
       {
         "subnetId": "<subnet_ID>",
         "primaryV4AddressSpec": {
           "oneToOneNatSpec": {
             "ipVersion": "IPV4"
           }
         }
       }
     ]
   }
   

   Where:

   • folderId: ID of the VM folder.

   • name: VM name. Follow these naming requirements:

     • It must be from 2 to 63 characters long.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • zoneId: Availability zone the VM will reside in.

     The VM must reside in the same availability zone as the subnet, plus in the same availability zone as the boot disk if created from a pre-prepared disk.

   • platformId: VM platform.

   • resourceSpec: Number of vCPUs and amount of RAM available to the VM. The values must match the selected platform.

   • metadata: In metadata, provide the public key for accessing the VM via SSH. For more information, see VM metadata.

   • bootDiskSpec: VM boot disk settings:

     • autoDelete: Auto-delete the boot disk together with the VM. See Disk auto-deletion.

     Note

     diskSpec and diskId are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them.

     • diskSpec: Setting of the new boot disk if created from a pre-prepared image or snapshot:

       • size: New disk size, in bytes.

       • Selecting a source for the boot disk:

         Note

         imageId and snapshotId are mutually exclusive: you can use only one of them.

         • imageId: ID of the pre-prepared image the VM boot disk will be created from.
         • snapshotId: ID of the pre-prepared snapshot the VM boot disk will be created from.

     • diskId: ID of the existing pre-prepared boot disk if one is used to create the VM.

   • networkInterfaceSpecs: VM network interface settings:

     • subnetId: ID of the selected subnet. The subnet must be in the same availability zone as your new VM.

     • primaryV4AddressSpec: IP address to assign to the VM. To add a public IP address to your VM, specify the following:

       "primaryV4AddressSpec": {
         "oneToOneNatSpec": {
           "ipVersion": "IPV4"
         }
       }
       

     To add multiple network interfaces to your VM, provide an array with the required number of objects containing network interface settings in the networkInterfaceSpecs parameter.

5. Run this http request:

   curl \
     --request POST \
     --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
     --header "Authorization: Bearer ${IAM_TOKEN}" \
     --data '@body.json' \
     https://compute.api.cloud.yandex.net/compute/v1/instances
   

   Result:

   {
   "done": false,
   "metadata": {
     "@type": "type.googleapis.com/yandex.cloud.compute.v1.CreateInstanceMetadata",
     "instanceId": "fv41kcr9qbd8********"
   },
   "id": "fv4tll89q78c********",
   "description": "Create instance",
   "createdAt": "2025-12-05T20:37:44.940310692Z",
   "createdBy": "ajeol2afu1jsk********",
   "modifiedAt": "2025-12-05T20:37:44.940310692Z"
   }