Clone Instance
The Clone Instance action lets you spin up a new instance using the same image, version, and compute configuration as an existing instance — without manually re-selecting each option in the create flow.
1. Overview
Clicking Clone Instance takes you to a pre-filled Configure page for the same image as the source instance, with the compute resource type and configuration already selected to match. You can review, adjust, and launch it like a normal instance creation.
| Detail | Description |
|---|---|
| Where to find it | Actions menu (⋮) on the instance row in Manage Instances, or on the instance details page. |
| Result | A new, independent instance — it does not modify or affect the source instance. |
2. When to Use
| Scenario | Description |
|---|---|
| Scale out identical workers | Launch additional instances with the same framework and hardware plan for parallel jobs, without repeating the create-instance steps. |
| Recreate a working setup | Quickly reproduce an instance's image, version, and compute configuration for a new task or teammate. |
| Test before scaling | Spin up a duplicate configuration to test changes without touching the original instance. |
How Clone Instance Works
Clone Instance reuses the standard create-instance flow, pre-filling it with the source instance's:
- Image, version, and app
- Compute resource type (GPU, CPU, Private Cluster, or Spot Instances) and plan / SKU
- Workspace (disk) size and storage encryption setting
- SSH access toggle and attached SSH key(s)
- Start scripts and add-ons
- Attached Datasets (EOS-backed), Shared File System (SFS), and Parallel File System (PFS) mounts, including their mount paths
- Placement / affinity group, for Private Cluster instances
The instance name is not reused — a new, randomly generated name (for example, clone-instance-<id>) is pre-filled, which you can edit before launching.
Clone Instance only copies configuration, not the running environment or workspace data. See What Carries Over below.
Step-by-Step Process
- Navigate to Instances, open the instance you want to clone, and go to its Instance Details page.
- Click the ⋮ (Actions) menu and select Clone Instance.
- On the Configure page that opens, review the pre-filled Instance Name, image version, computing resource type, and configuration.
- Adjust any field as needed — instance name, compute plan, storage, network and security, or advanced settings — the same way you would when creating a new instance.
- Click Launch (or Create) to provision the new instance.
What Carries Over
| Carried Over | Not Carried Over |
|---|---|
| Image, version, and app | Instance name (a new name is auto-generated) |
| Compute resource type and plan / SKU (GPU / CPU / Private Cluster / Spot) | Security Group (left blank — not even the usual default SSH security group is auto-applied) |
| Workspace size and storage encryption setting | Reserved IP (always off on the clone, regardless of the source) |
| SSH access toggle and attached SSH key(s) | Installed packages and files created during the session |
| Start scripts and add-ons | Actual workspace file contents (/home/jovyan) |
| Attached Datasets (EOS), SFS, and PFS mounts | Dataset along with its Disk (PVC) |
The cloned instance starts with a fresh workspace disk of the same size — it does not copy the actual files inside /home/jovyan or any packages installed after the image was built. If you need that data available, save an image of the source instance first and select it while configuring the clone.