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Triage AWS EC2 Idle Instance Detection CPU_UTILIZATION_LOW

  1. Configure AWS EC2 Idle Instance Detection
  2. Use Case for AWS EC2 Idle Instance Detection
  3. Triage Guides by Violation Type
    1. Triage AWS EC2 Idle Instance Detection CPU_UTILIZATION_LOW
    2. Triage AWS EC2 Idle Instance Detection MEMORY_UTILIZATION_LOW

Understanding

Idle EC2 instances with low CPU utilization can lead to unnecessary costs. This alarm indicates your instance has near-zero CPU utilization, suggesting it may be a candidate for downsizing or termination.

Validation​

To validate this alert, check the CPU utilization metric in AWS CloudWatch for the instance. If you have access to the instance itself, log in and monitor the CPU usage directly. This policy works by querying CloudWatch, and it is reactive.

Triage​

Continued operation of an idle instance consumes resources and incurs costs without providing value. This does not typically worsen, but operational costs accrue over time. Remediation is unlikely to cause outages, as the instance is already underused, but always confirm the instance's role before acting.

Act​

Evaluate if the EC2 instance is necessary, and if not, consider stopping, downsizing, or terminating it.

Reflect​

If this alarm does not apply to your use case, adjust the threshold to better fit your needs or disable the policy for this instance.