platformDifferences

Describes the configuration differences between the current instance and the recommended instance type. You should consider the configuration differences before migrating your workloads from the current instance to the recommended instance type. The Change the instance type guide for Linux and Change the instance type guide for Windows provide general guidance for getting started with an instance migration.

Platform differences include:

• Hypervisor — The hypervisor of the recommended instance type is different than that of the current instance. For example, the recommended instance type uses a Nitro hypervisor and the current instance uses a Xen hypervisor. The differences that you should consider between these hypervisors are covered in the Nitro Hypervisor section of the Amazon EC2 frequently asked questions. For more information, see Instances built on the Nitro System in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux, or Instances built on the Nitro System in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Windows.

• NetworkInterface — The network interface of the recommended instance type is different than that of the current instance. For example, the recommended instance type supports enhanced networking and the current instance might not. To enable enhanced networking for the recommended instance type, you must install the Elastic Network Adapter (ENA) driver or the Intel 82599 Virtual Function driver. For more information, see Networking and storage features and Enhanced networking on Linux in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux, or Networking and storage features and Enhanced networking on Windows in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Windows.

• StorageInterface — The storage interface of the recommended instance type is different than that of the current instance. For example, the recommended instance type uses an NVMe storage interface and the current instance does not. To access NVMe volumes for the recommended instance type, you will need to install or upgrade the NVMe driver. For more information, see Networking and storage features and Amazon EBS and NVMe on Linux instances in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux, or Networking and storage features and Amazon EBS and NVMe on Windows instances in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Windows.

• InstanceStoreAvailability — The recommended instance type does not support instance store volumes and the current instance does. Before migrating, you might need to back up the data on your instance store volumes if you want to preserve them. For more information, see How do I back up an instance store volume on my Amazon EC2 instance to Amazon EBS? in the Amazon Web Services Premium Support Knowledge Base. For more information, see Networking and storage features and Amazon EC2 instance store in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux, or see Networking and storage features and Amazon EC2 instance store in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Windows.

• VirtualizationType — The recommended instance type uses the hardware virtual machine (HVM) virtualization type and the current instance uses the paravirtual (PV) virtualization type. For more information about the differences between these virtualization types, see Linux AMI virtualization types in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Linux, or Windows AMI virtualization types in the Amazon EC2 User Guide for Windows.

• Architecture — The CPU architecture between the recommended instance type and the current instance is different. For example, the recommended instance type might use an Arm CPU architecture and the current instance type might use a different one, such as x86. Before migrating, you should consider recompiling the software on your instance for the new architecture. Alternatively, you might switch to an Amazon Machine Image (AMI) that supports the new architecture. For more information about the CPU architecture for each instance type, see Amazon EC2 Instance Types.