---
title: "AWS EC2 Instance STOP Vs Terminate"
description: "AWS instance Stop and Terminate options are not the same. Here're the reasons with an explanation."
url: https://srinimf.com/2021/05/21/aws-difference-between-stop-terminate-instance/
date: 2021-05-21
modified: 2026-10-10
author: "Srini"
image: https://i0.wp.com/srinimf.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/pexels-photo-6578439.jpeg?fit=1880%2C1253&ssl=1
categories: ["AWS"]
tags: ["AWS Instance Stop", "AWS Instance Terminate"]
type: post
lang: en
---

# AWS EC2 Instance STOP Vs Terminate

In AWS, the EC2 ( Elastic cloud computing) instance is called a VM (Virtual Machine). Here’re the four stages of a Virtual Machine-status. Those are START, STOP, REBOOT, Terminate. Here’re the differences between **ec2 start, stop , and terminate**.

*Below are the interview [questions asked in](https://srinimf.com/2021/06/28/10-aws-certification-questions-that-might-ask-in-interviews/) major IT companies on EC2 instance.*

![ec2 stop vs terminate](https://i0.wp.com/srinimf.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/pexels-photo-2933243.jpeg?resize=1880%2C1253&ssl=1)*Photo by Jannis Knorr on Pexels.com*

***ec2 stop vs terminate instance***

## AWS Instance (Virtual Machine) Status

### Start

This is just like starting of stopped machine. When you creating new machine, you need to select ‘Launch instance’.

### Stop

Stopping the machine is like power off. The data will be available, till when you was issued STOP command.

### Reboot

After a multiple attempts of STOP and START, to refresh your machine from scratch, you can issue REBOOT. During this time it shuts all the main and sub-processes and boot the machine.

### Terminate

Terminate options *deletes your instance permanently*. You can’t start the instance. So, you need to create the new instance if you want.

Basically, STOP and Terminate both not the same. Also, while selecting these options you had better just double check.

![When you issue Terminate, the instance gets deleted. You can't start that machine.](https://i0.wp.com/srinimf.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/aws-instance.png?resize=614%2C314&ssl=1)

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