If you are running a Windows Server 2003 AMI it is most likely S3-backed. If you'd like to migrate it to an EBS-backed AMI so that you can take advantage of new features such as the ability to stop it and then restart it later, I've got some good news for you.
We've just put together a set of step-by-step instructions for converting an S3-backed Windows AMI to an EBS-backed AMI.
You will need to launch the existing AMI, create an EBS volume, and copy some data back and forth. It is pretty straightforward and you need only be able to count to 11 (in decimal) to succeed.
The document also includes information on the best way to resize an EBS-backed Windows instance and outlines some conversion approaches that may appear promising but are actually dead-ends.
-- Jeff;
This looks really simple! I was trying to figure out a way to do this, but instead of using dd, I was planning to use VSS to create a consistent point-in-time snapshot of the boot disk. I guess this approach should work too, provided nothing else is going on on the server at the time.
On a side not, the PDF has a clickable link to the Windows version of dd - the link actually goes to some internal Amazon address. It should be just http://www.chrysocome.net/dd.
Nikhil Dabas
Posted by: Nikhil Dabas | November 12, 2010 at 04:33 AM
My situation was much the same as Nikhil's. I do like the approach presented in this article and will look out for more information regarding S3 to EBS in the future!
Anthony Daly CEO
UniversalConverter.net
Posted by: Anthony | February 21, 2011 at 03:29 PM