# Create an Amazon EC2 launch template You can create an Amazon EC2 launch template by specifying your own values for the instance configuration parameters, or by getting the values from an existing launch template or Amazon EC2 instance. You don't need to specify a value for every parameter in the launch template; you need only specify one instance configuration parameter to create a launch template. To indicate parameters that you choose not to specify, select **Don't include in launch template** when using the console. When using a command line tool, don't include the parameters to indicate that you're choosing not to specify them in the launch template. If you want to specify an AMI in the launch template, you can either select an AMI, or specify a Systems Manager parameter that will point to an AMI on instance launch. When an instance is launched with a launch template, the values that are specified in the launch template are used to configure the corresponding instance parameters. If a value isn't specified in the launch template, then the default value for the corresponding instance parameter is used. **Topics** + [ ## Create a launch template by specifying parameters ](#create-launch-template-define-parameters) + [ ## Create a launch template from an existing launch template ](#create-launch-template-from-existing-launch-template) + [ ## Create a launch template from an instance ](#create-launch-template-from-instance) + [ ## Use a Systems Manager parameter instead of an AMI ID ](#use-an-ssm-parameter-instead-of-an-ami-id) ## Create a launch template by specifying parameters To create a launch template, you must specify the launch template name and at least one instance configuration parameter. For a description of each parameter, see [Reference for Amazon EC2 instance configuration parameters](ec2-instance-launch-parameters.md). ------ #### [ Console ] **To create a launch template** 1. Open the Amazon EC2 console at [https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/](https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/). 1. In the navigation pane, choose **Launch Templates**, and then choose **Create launch template**. 1. Under **Launch template name and description**, do the following: 1. For **Launch template name**, enter a descriptive name for the launch template. 1. For **Template version description**, provide a brief description of this version of the launch template. 1. To [tag](Using_Tags.md) the launch template on creation, expand **Template tags**, choose **Add new tag**, and then enter a tag key and value pair. Choose **Add new tag** again for each additional tag to add. **Note** To tag the resources that are created when an instance is launched, you must specify the tags under **Resource tags**. For more information, see Step 9 in this procedure. 1. Under **Application and OS Images (Amazon Machine Image)**, you can either keep **Don't include in launch template** selected, or choose the operating system (OS) for the instance, and then choose an AMI. Alternatively, you can specify a Systems Manager parameter instead of specifying an AMI. For more information, see [Use a Systems Manager parameter instead of an AMI ID](#use-an-ssm-parameter-instead-of-an-ami-id). An AMI is a template that contains the operating system and software required to launch an instance. 1. Under **Instance type**, you can either keep **Don't include in launch template** selected, or select an instance type, or specify instance attributes and let Amazon EC2 identify the instance types with those attributes. **Note** Specifying instance attributes is supported only when the launch template is used by Auto Scaling groups, EC2 Fleet, and Spot Fleet to launch instances. For more information, see [Create mixed instances group using attribute-based instance type selection](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/create-mixed-instances-group-attribute-based-instance-type-selection.html) and [Specify attributes for instance type selection for EC2 Fleet or Spot Fleet](ec2-fleet-attribute-based-instance-type-selection.md). If you plan to use the launch template in the [launch instance wizard](ec2-launch-instance-wizard.md) or with the [RunInstances API](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/APIReference/API_RunInstances.html), you can't specify instance type attributes. The instance type determines the hardware configuration (CPU, memory, storage, and networking capacity) and size of the host computer used for an instance. If you're not sure which instance type to choose, you can do the following: + Choose **Compare instance types** to compare different instance types by the following attributes: number of vCPUs, architecture, amount of memory (GiB), amount of storage (GB), storage type, and network performance. + Choose **Get advice** to get guidance and suggestions for instance types from the EC2 instance type finder. For more information, see [Get recommendations from EC2 instance type finder](get-ec2-instance-type-recommendations.md). **Note** Depending on when you created your account, you might be eligible to use Amazon EC2 under the Free Tier. If your created your AWS account before July 15, 2025 and it's less than 12 months old, you can use Amazon EC2 under the Free Tier by selecting the **t2.micro** instance type, or the **t3.micro** instance type in Regions where **t2.micro** is unavailable. Be aware that when you launch a **t3.micro** instance, it defaults to [**Unlimited** mode](burstable-performance-instances-unlimited-mode.md), which might incur additional charges based on CPU usage. If an instance type can be used under the Free Tier, it is labeled **Free tier eligible**. If you created your AWS account on or after July 15, 2025, you can use **t3.micro**, **t3.small**, **t4g.micro**, **t4g.small**, **c7i-flex.large**, and **m7i-flex.large** instance types for 6 months or until your credits are used up. For more information, see [Free Tier benefits before and after July 15, 2025](ec2-free-tier-usage.md#ec2-free-tier-comparison). 1. Under **Key pair (login)**, for **Key pair name**, either keep **Don't include in launch template** selected, or choose an existing key pair, or create a new one. 1. Under **Network settings**, you can either keep **Dont include in launch template** selected, or you can specify values for the various network settings. 1. Under **Configure storage**, if you specified an AMI in the launch template, the AMI includes one or more volumes of storage, including the root volume (**Volume 1 (AMI Root)**. You can optionally specify additional volumes to attach to the instance. To add a new volume, choose **Add new volume**. 1. Under **Resource tags**, to [tag](Using_Tags.md) the resources that are created when an instance is launched, choose **Add tag**, and then enter a tag key and value pair. For **Resource types**, specify the resources to tag on creation. You can specify the same tag for all the resources, or specify different tags for different resources. Choose **Add tag** again for each additional tag to add. You can specify tags for the following resources that are created when a launch template is used: + Instances + Volumes + Elastic graphics + Spot Instance requests + Network interfaces **Note** To tag the launch template itself, you must specify the tags under **Template tags**. For more information, see Step 3 in this procedure. 1. For **Advanced details**, expand the section to view the fields and optionally specify any additional parameters for your instance. 1. Use the **Summary** panel to review your launch template configuration. You can navigate to any section by choosing its link and then make any necessary changes. 1. When you're ready to create your launch template, choose **Create launch template**. ------ #### [ AWS CLI ] **To create a launch template** Use the [create-launch-template](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cli/latest/reference/ec2/create-launch-template.html) command. ``` aws ec2 create-launch-template \ --launch-template-name TemplateForWebServer \ --version-description WebVersion1 \ --tag-specifications 'ResourceType=launch-template,Tags=[{Key=purpose,Value=production}]' \ --launch-template-data file://template-data.json ``` The following is example JSON that specifies the launch template data for the instance configuration. Save the JSON to a file and include it in the `--launch-template-data` parameter as shown in the example command. ``` { "NetworkInterfaces": [{ "AssociatePublicIpAddress": true, "DeviceIndex": 0, "Ipv6AddressCount": 1, "SubnetId": "subnet-0abcdef1234567890" }], "ImageId": "ami-0abcdef1234567890", "InstanceType": "r5.4xlarge", "TagSpecifications": [{ "ResourceType": "instance", "Tags": [{ "Key":"Name", "Value":"webserver" }] }], "CpuOptions": { "CoreCount":4, "ThreadsPerCore":2 } } ``` The following is example output. ``` { "LaunchTemplate": { "LatestVersionNumber": 1, "LaunchTemplateId": "lt-01238c059e3466abc", "LaunchTemplateName": "TemplateForWebServer", "DefaultVersionNumber": 1, "CreatedBy": "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:root", "CreateTime": "2017-11-27T09:13:24.000Z" } } ``` ------ #### [ PowerShell ] **To create a launch template** Use the [New-EC2LaunchTemplate](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/powershell/latest/reference/items/New-EC2LaunchTemplate.html) cmdlet. ``` $launchTemplateData = [Amazon.EC2.Model.RequestLaunchTemplateData]@{ ImageId = 'ami-0abcdef1234567890' InstanceType = 'r5.4xlarge' NetworkInterfaces = @( [Amazon.EC2.Model.LaunchTemplateInstanceNetworkInterfaceSpecificationRequest]@{ AssociatePublicIpAddress = $true DeviceIndex = 0 Ipv6AddressCount = 1 SubnetId = 'subnet-0abcdef1234567890' } ) TagSpecifications = @( [Amazon.EC2.Model.LaunchTemplateTagSpecificationRequest]@{ ResourceType = 'instance' Tags = [Amazon.EC2.Model.Tag]@{ Key = 'Name' Value = 'webserver' } } ) CpuOptions = [Amazon.EC2.Model.LaunchTemplateCpuOptionsRequest]@{ CoreCount = 4 ThreadsPerCore = 2 } } $tagSpecificationData = [Amazon.EC2.Model.TagSpecification]@{ ResourceType = 'launch-template' Tags = [Amazon.EC2.Model.Tag]@{ Key = 'purpose' Value = 'production' } } New-EC2LaunchTemplate -LaunchTemplateName 'TemplateForWebServer' ` -VersionDescription 'WebVersion1' ` -LaunchTemplateData $launchTemplateData ` -TagSpecification $tagSpecificationData ``` The following is example output. ``` CreatedBy : arn:aws:iam::123456789012:root CreateTime : 9/19/2023 16:57:55 DefaultVersionNumber : 1 LatestVersionNumber : 1 LaunchTemplateId : lt-01238c059eEXAMPLE LaunchTemplateName : TemplateForWebServer Tags : {purpose} ``` ------ ## Create a launch template from an existing launch template You can clone an existing launch template and then adjust the parameters to create a new launch template. However, you can only do this when using the Amazon EC2 console. The AWS CLI does not support cloning a template. For a description of each parameter, see [Reference for Amazon EC2 instance configuration parameters](ec2-instance-launch-parameters.md). ------ #### [ Console ] **To create a launch template from an existing launch template** 1. Open the Amazon EC2 console at [https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/](https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/). 1. In the navigation pane, choose **Launch Templates**, and then choose **Create launch template**. 1. For **Launch template name**, enter a descriptive name for the launch template. 1. For **Template version description**, provide a brief description of this version of the launch template. 1. To tag the launch template on creation, expand **Template tags**, choose **Add new tag**, and then enter a tag key and value pair. 1. Expand **Source template**, and for **Launch template name** choose a launch template on which to base the new launch template. 1. For **Source template version**, choose the launch template version on which to base the new launch template. 1. Adjust any launch parameters as required, and then choose **Create launch template**. ------ ## Create a launch template from an instance You can clone the parameters of an existing Amazon EC2 instance and then adjust the parameters to create a launch template. For a description of each parameter, see [Reference for Amazon EC2 instance configuration parameters](ec2-instance-launch-parameters.md). ------ #### [ Console ] **To create a launch template from an instance** 1. Open the Amazon EC2 console at [https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/](https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/). 1. In the navigation pane, choose **Instances**. 1. Select the instance, and choose **Actions**, **Image and templates**, **Create template from instance**. 1. Provide a name, description, and tags, and adjust the launch parameters as required. **Note** When you create a launch template from an instance, the instance's network interface IDs and IP addresses are not included in the template. 1. Choose **Create launch template**. ------ #### [ AWS CLI ] You can use the AWS CLI to create a launch template from an existing instance by first getting the launch template data from an instance, and then creating a launch template using the launch template data. **To get launch template data from an instance** + Use the [get-launch-template-data](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cli/latest/reference/ec2/get-launch-template-data.html) command and specify the instance ID. You can use the output as a base to create a new launch template or launch template version. By default, the output includes a top-level `LaunchTemplateData` object, which cannot be specified in your launch template data. Use the `--query` option to exclude this object. ``` aws ec2 get-launch-template-data \ --instance-id i-0123d646e8048babc \ --query "LaunchTemplateData" ``` The following is example output. ``` { "Monitoring": {}, "ImageId": "ami-8c1be5f6", "BlockDeviceMappings": [ { "DeviceName": "/dev/xvda", "Ebs": { "DeleteOnTermination": true } } ], "EbsOptimized": false, "Placement": { "Tenancy": "default", "GroupName": "", "AvailabilityZone": "us-east-1a" }, "InstanceType": "t2.micro", "NetworkInterfaces": [ { "Description": "", "NetworkInterfaceId": "eni-35306abc", "PrivateIpAddresses": [ { "Primary": true, "PrivateIpAddress": "10.0.0.72" } ], "SubnetId": "subnet-7b16de0c", "Groups": [ "sg-7c227019" ], "Ipv6Addresses": [ { "Ipv6Address": "2001:db8:1234:1a00::123" } ], "PrivateIpAddress": "10.0.0.72" } ] } ``` You can write the output directly to a file, for example: ``` aws ec2 get-launch-template-data \ --instance-id i-0123d646e8048babc \ --query "LaunchTemplateData" >> instance-data.json ``` **To create a launch template using launch template data** + Use the [create-launch-template](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cli/latest/reference/ec2/create-launch-template.html) command to create a launch template using the output from the previous procedure. For more information about creating a launch template using the AWS CLI, see [Create a launch template by specifying parameters](#create-launch-template-define-parameters). ------ ## Use a Systems Manager parameter instead of an AMI ID Instead of specifying an AMI ID in your launch templates, you can specify an AWS Systems Manager parameter. If the AMI ID changes, you can update the AMI ID in one place by updating the Systems Manager parameter in the Systems Manager Parameter Store. Parameters can also be [shared](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/parameter-store-shared-parameters.html) with other AWS accounts. You can centrally store and manage AMI parameters in one account and share them with every other account that needs to reference them. By using a Systems Manager parameter, all your launch templates can be updated in a single action. A Systems Manager parameter is a user-defined key-value pair that you create in the [AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/systems-manager-parameter-store.html). The Parameter Store provides a central place to store your application configuration values. In the following diagram, the `golden-ami` parameter is first mapped to the original AMI `ami-aabbccddeeffgghhi` in the Parameter Store. In the launch template, the value for the AMI ID is `golden-ami`. When an instance is launched using this launch template, the AMI ID resolves to `ami-aabbccddeeffgghhi`. Later, the AMI is updated resulting in a new AMI ID. In the Parameter Store, the `golden-ami` parameter is mapped to the new `ami-00112233445566778`. *The launch template remains unchanged.* When an instance is launched using this launch template, the AMI ID resolves to the new `ami-00112233445566778`. ![\[Using Systems Manager parameters in the Parameter Store to update a launch template.\]](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/images/launch-template-ami-alias.png) ### Systems Manager parameter format for AMI IDs Launch templates require that user-defined Systems Manager parameters adhere to the following format when used in place of an AMI ID: + Parameter type: `String` + Parameter data type: `aws:ec2:image` – This ensures that Parameter Store validates that the value you enter is in the proper format for an AMI ID. For more information about creating a valid parameter for an AMI ID, see [Creating Systems Manager parameters](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/sysman-paramstore-su-create.html) in the *AWS Systems Manager User Guide*. ### Systems Manager parameter format in launch templates To use a Systems Manager parameter in place of an AMI ID in a launch template, you must use one of the following formats when specifying the parameter in the launch template: To reference a public parameter: + `resolve:ssm:public-parameter` To reference a parameter stored in the same account: + `resolve:ssm:parameter-name` + `resolve:ssm:parameter-name:version-number` – The version number itself is a default label + `resolve:ssm:parameter-name:label` To reference a parameter shared from another AWS account: + `resolve:ssm:parameter-ARN` + `resolve:ssm:parameter-ARN:version-number` + `resolve:ssm:parameter-ARN:label` **Parameter versions** Systems Manager parameters are versioned resources. When you update a parameter, you create new, successive versions of the parameter. Systems Manager supports [parameter labels](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/sysman-paramstore-labels.html) that you can map to specific versions of a parameter. For example, the `golden-ami` parameter can have three versions: `1`, `2`, and `3`. You can create a parameter label `beta` that maps to version `2`, and a parameter label `prod` that maps to version `3`. In a launch template, you can specify version 3 of the `golden-ami` parameter by using either of the following formats: + `resolve:ssm:golden-ami:3` + `resolve:ssm:golden-ami:prod` Specifying the version or label is optional. If a version or label is not specified, the latest version of the parameter is used. ### Specify a Systems Manager parameter in a launch template You can specify a Systems Manager parameter in a launch template instead of an AMI ID when you create a launch template or a new version of a launch template. ------ #### [ Console ] **To specify a Systems Manager parameter in a launch template** 1. Open the Amazon EC2 console at [https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/](https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/). 1. In the navigation pane, choose **Launch Templates**, and then choose **Create launch template**. 1. For **Launch template name**, enter a descriptive name for the launch template. 1. Under **Application and OS Images (Amazon Machine Image)**, choose **Browse more AMIs**. 1. Choose the arrow button to the right of the search bar, and then choose **Specify custom value/Systems Manager parameter**. 1. In the **Specify custom value or Systems Manager parameter** dialog box, do the following: 1. For **AMI ID or Systems Manager parameter string**, enter the Systems Manager parameter name using one of the following formats: To reference a public parameter: + **resolve:ssm:*public-parameter*** To reference a parameter stored in the same account: + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-name*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-name*:*version-number*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-name*:*label*** To reference a parameter shared from another AWS account: + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-ARN*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-ARN*:*version-number*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-ARN*:*label*** 1. Choose **Save**. 1. Specify any other launch template parameters as needed, and then choose **Create launch template**. For more information, see [Create a launch template by specifying parameters](#create-launch-template-define-parameters). ------ #### [ AWS CLI ] **To specify a Systems Manager parameter in a launch template** + Use the [create-launch-template](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cli/latest/reference/ec2/create-launch-template.html) command to create the launch template. To specify the AMI to use, enter the Systems Manager parameter name using one of the following formats: To reference a public parameter: + **resolve:ssm:*public-parameter*** To reference a parameter stored in the same account: + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-name*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-name*:*version-number*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-name*:*label*** To reference a parameter shared from another AWS account: + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-ARN*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-ARN*:*version-number*** + **resolve:ssm:*parameter-ARN*:*label*** The following example creates a launch template that specifies the following: + A name for the launch template (`TemplateForWebServer`) + A tag for the launch template (`purpose`=`production`) + The data for the instance configuration, specified in a JSON file: + The AMI to use (`resolve:ssm:golden-ami`) + The instance type to launch (`m5.4xlarge`) + A tag for the instance (`Name`=`webserver`) ``` aws ec2 create-launch-template \ --launch-template-name TemplateForWebServer \ --tag-specifications 'ResourceType=launch-template,Tags=[{Key=purpose,Value=production}]' \ --launch-template-data file://template-data.json ``` The following is an example JSON file that contains the launch template data for the instance configuration. The value for `ImageId` is the Systems Manager parameter name, entered in the required format `resolve:ssm:golden-ami`. ``` {"LaunchTemplateData": { "ImageId": "resolve:ssm:golden-ami", "InstanceType": "m5.4xlarge", "TagSpecifications": [{ "ResourceType": "instance", "Tags": [{ "Key":"Name", "Value":"webserver" }] }] } } ``` ------ ### Verify that a launch template gets the correct AMI ID **To resolve the Systems Manager parameter to the actual AMI ID** Use the [describe-launch-template-versions](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cli/latest/reference/ec2/describe-launch-template-versions.html) command and include the `--resolve-alias` parameter. ``` aws ec2 describe-launch-template-versions \ --launch-template-name my-launch-template \ --versions $Default \ --resolve-alias ``` The response includes the AMI ID for `ImageId`. In this example, when an instance is launched using this launch template, the AMI ID resolves to `ami-0ac394d6a3example`. ``` { "LaunchTemplateVersions": [ { "LaunchTemplateId": "lt-089c023a30example", "LaunchTemplateName": "my-launch-template", "VersionNumber": 1, "CreateTime": "2022-12-28T19:52:27.000Z", "CreatedBy": "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:user/Bob", "DefaultVersion": true, "LaunchTemplateData": { "ImageId": "ami-0ac394d6a3example", "InstanceType": "t3.micro", } } ] } ``` ### Related resources For more information about working with Systems Manager parameters, see the following reference materials in the Systems Manager documentation. + For information about how to look up the AMI public parameters supported by Amazon EC2, see [Calling AMI public parameters](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/parameter-store-public-parameters-ami.html). + For information about sharing parameters with other AWS accounts or through AWS Organizations, see [Working with shared parameters](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/parameter-store-shared-parameters.html). + For information about monitoring whether your parameters are created successfully, see [Native parameter support for Amazon Machine Image IDs](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/systems-manager/latest/userguide/parameter-store-ec2-aliases.html). ### Limitations + Only EC2 Fleets of type `instant` support using a launch template that has a Systems Manager parameter specified in place of an AMI ID. + EC2 Fleets of type `maintain` and `request`, and Spot Fleets do not support using a launch template that has a Systems Manager parameter specified in place of an AMI ID. For EC2 Fleets of type `maintain` and `request`, and for Spot Fleets, if you specify an AMI in the launch template, you must specify the AMI ID. + If you use [attribute-based instance selection](ec2-fleet-attribute-based-instance-type-selection.md) in your EC2 Fleet, you can't specify a Systems Manager parameter in place of an AMI ID. When using attribute-based instance selection, you must specify the AMI ID. + Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling provides other restrictions. For more information, see [Use AWS Systems Manager parameters instead of AMI IDs in launch templates](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/autoscaling/ec2/userguide/using-systems-manager-parameters.html) in the *Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling User Guide*.