Various Amazon EBS volume types
1. EBS Volume Types Overview
EBS volumes are categorized based on performance and cost. Below are the details for each type:
| Volume Type | Use Case | Key Features |
| gp2 | General-purpose SSD | Balanced performance, baseline IOPS grows with volume size |
| gp3 | General-purpose SSD (next-gen) | Predictable performance, configurable IOPS/throughput |
| io1 | Provisioned IOPS SSD | High performance, low latency, customizable IOPS |
| io2 | Provisioned IOPS SSD (next-gen) | Higher durability, ideal for critical workloads |
| sc1 | Cold HDD | Low-cost, high-throughput, infrequent access |
| st1 | Throughput-optimized HDD | Low-cost, high throughput for big data workloads |
| Magnetic (Standard) | Legacy, boot volumes | Low-cost, basic performance |
2. Detailed Descriptions
gp2 (General Purpose SSD)
Use Case: General-purpose workloads like boot volumes, small/medium databases.
Performance:
Baseline IOPS: 3 IOPS/GB (up to 16,000 IOPS).
Bursts up to 3,000 IOPS for small volumes.
Throughput: Max of 250 MB/s.
Scaling: Performance scales with size (up to 16 TiB).
gp3 (General Purpose SSD)
Use Case: Applications requiring predictable performance, databases, or large deployments.
Performance:
Fixed 3,000 IOPS baseline, configurable up to 16,000 IOPS.
Throughput configurable up to 1,000 MB/s.
Advantages over gp2:
Cost-effective (lower $/GB).
Independent scaling of IOPS and throughput from size.
io1 (Provisioned IOPS SSD)
Use Case: Mission-critical applications like large databases, SAP HANA, etc.
Performance:
Provisioned IOPS: 100–64,000 (max depends on volume size and instance type).
Latency: Low (sub-millisecond).
Durability: Designed for 99.9% availability.
io2 (Provisioned IOPS SSD)
Use Case: Enterprise-grade databases, financial systems.
Performance:
Higher durability (99.999% durability).
IOPS similar to io1 but with better consistency.
Cost: Higher than io1 but justified for critical data.
sc1 (Cold HDD)
Use Case: Infrequently accessed data like archival storage.
Performance:
Baseline throughput: 12 MB/s/TiB (max of 250 MB/s).
Designed for sequential workloads.
Cost: Lowest cost among all types.
Limitations: Not suitable for random access or latency-sensitive workloads.
st1 (Throughput-Optimized HDD)
Use Case: Streaming workloads, big data, data warehouses.
Performance:
Baseline throughput: 40 MB/s/TiB (max of 500 MB/s).
Designed for high-throughput, sequential workloads.
Cost: Lower than SSD types but higher than sc1.
Magnetic (Standard)
Use Case: Legacy workloads, low-cost infrequent access.
Performance:
Throughput: Up to 90 MB/s.
Latency: Higher than SSDs.
Status: Being phased out in favor of modern types.
3. Comparing Volume Types
| Feature | gp2 | gp3 | io1 | io2 | sc1 | st1 | Magnetic |
| Type | SSD | SSD | SSD | SSD | HDD | HDD | HDD |
| Max Size | 16 TiB | 16 TiB | 16 TiB | 16 TiB | 16 TiB | 16 TiB | 1 TiB |
| Max IOPS | 16,000 | 16,000 | 64,000 | 64,000 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Max Throughput | 250 MB/s | 1,000 MB/s | 1,000 MB/s | 1,000 MB/s | 250 MB/s | 500 MB/s | 90 MB/s |
| Cost Efficiency | Moderate | High | Low | Moderate | Very High | High | Low |
| Durability | Standard | Standard | High | Very High | Standard | Standard | Standard |
4. Key Considerations
Choose gp3 over gp2 for cost savings and better configurability.
Use io1 or io2 for critical, IOPS-intensive workloads.
Opt for st1 for streaming, sequential data workloads.
Select sc1 for cold, archival storage needs.
Avoid using Magnetic unless necessary for legacy systems.