How to launch a GPU instance

This guide will walk you through creating and accessing a GPU instance on gpudeploy.com. After you're done, check out part 2 on developing and deploying applications.

To get started, sign up for an account. This guide assumes you already have an SSH client installed on your computer and know how to connect to an SSH server.

Selecting an instance configuration

To view the list of available GPU configurations, click the "Launch GPU instance" button you can find on the landing page or on your dashboard.

Select a configuration from the list that meets your requirements. If none of the options meets your needs, you can reserve an instance with a custom configuration or reach out to us. At the top of the list, you have a few filter options: whether the instance operator must have passed our verification process and whether it must be located in a certain region. Each configuration option lists the average hardware configuration you will get as well as the maximum price you will have to pay. You will have to confirm the exact price in a later screen, before the instance is launched. Once you have made your selection, click "Next".

Setting up your instance

Next, give your instance a name so you can identify it later, and press "Next" to get to continue. If you have not set up billing yet, you will be prompted to do so now. Enter your payment details and continue.

To connect to your instance securely over SSH, we upload an SSH key for you. If you have previously set up an SSH key, you can select it from the shown list and skip to the next section. To set up a new SSH key, first create a new SSH key pair on your computer. Then, return to the website and click on "Create new SSH key". You should give your new key a name so you can recognize it later and paste the public key of the key pair you just created into the text field. Once you have created and selected your SSH key, click "Next".

In the final screen, you will be presented with the instance we have selected for you. You can see the exact hardware specification as well as the price per hour (billed per second the instance is running). To view alternative instance options, click on the instance. Once you have made your final selection, click on "Launch instance" and confirm the terms of service. The instance will boot and, once it is up and running, you will be shown the connection command in the column "Connect". If the screen does not update, click the "Reload" button to refresh the instance status.

Connecting to your instance

To connect to your instance, you simply copy the "Connect" command and paste it into your terminal. If you are not using an ssh agent, you have to point the SSH client to your private key file using the "-i" option, as shown below. If you are using a graphical SSH client such as PuTTY, enter the username (in the example: "ubuntu"), server address (in the example: "87.187.54.15"), and port (in the example: "5367") from the "Command" column in the respective fields of the program.

$ ssh ubuntu@87.187.54.15 -p 5367 -i <path-to-keyfile>

Stopping the instance

Once you have completed your work, you need to shut down the instance.

To do so, simply navigate back to the active instances screen and press the stop button for the instance you would like to terminate. Once an instance has been terminated, it cannot be restarted, so make sure to export all your data. You can use the secure copy utility to copy files from the instance to your local filesystem.