Can you please help with terms and conditions to be taken care when customer moves from PAYG to RI

Question

for example :

1. Is upgrading and downgrading of instance is possible at any point ?
2. If it is possible what factors have to be considered ?
3. Is stopping and starting of instances possible?
4. what is the process for upgarding, starting, pausing or terminating the RI instances?
5. can RI instances can be moved back to PAYG instance?
6. what is the process to do the same ?
7. what changes occur in the billing when RI instances are downgraded or upgraded ?
8. Is there any additional configurations to be implemented when downgrading and downgrading RI instances ?

Answer 1

Hi

Reserved instance is not bound to specific resources, for example if i have 2 virtual machines, lets call them VM1 and VM2 both these are Size D1. I make a reserved instance for 2 VM Size D1. If i delete both these VM:s i will still pay for 2VM Size D1 for the duration i made the reservation, but if I install 2 new VM:s Size D1, these new ones will "take over" the reservation from the once i deleted.

So the function is more like i subscribe to a "license" and servers that match the criteria will "take" the licens instead of a Pay-as-you-go cost.

1. Is upgrading and downgrading of instance is possible at any point ?
   If we talk about the resource you can resize them as you like, but if the no longer match any reserved instance in your tenant, they will be PAYG again.
2. If it is possible what factors have to be considered ?
   Same as above, you could end up with reserved instances (VM:s, storage accounts, and so on) that cost you money but are not present in your environment.
3. Is stopping and starting of instances possible? You can stop and start resources, but the reservation is a commitment for 1-3 years (although there is atm a possibility of early cancellation of reservations). So even if my to VM1 and VM2 are turned of for 3 months (and i have no other servers in the same size) i will still pay for 2x D1 VM (RI price)
4. what is the process for upgrading, starting, pausing or terminating the RI instances? For the resources (VM:s, storage, etc) they all function the exact same, the only thing is if you have RI thats not matching any real resources you are paying anyway for "nothing"
5. can RI instances can be moved back to PAYG instance? There is a possibility of cancellation early atm (would not put it into a system) but mistakes can always be made and there is a max cost you can cancel per year.
6. what is the process to do the same ?
   You can read more about the process here :)
   https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/cost-management-billing/reservations/exchange-and-refund-azure-reservations
7. what changes occur in the billing when RI instances are downgraded or upgraded ?
   Reserved instance are shown on its own if i remember correctly, this can look diffrent depending if you have CSP or EA i think.
8. Is there any additional configurations to be implemented when downgrading and downgrading RI instances ? Not really there is not much technical things behind it, just make sure you make an informed decission about what VM sizes and tiers of storage and so on you need for how long :)

Hope this is helpful and remember shared knowledge is the best knowledge 😊

Best Regards,

Timmy Malmgren

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