Skip to content

TIR Block Storage FAQ

View as Markdown

For step-by-step fixes, see Troubleshooting TIR Block Storage.

What is the difference between Object Storage and Block Storage?

Section titled “What is the difference between Object Storage and Block Storage?”

A Block Storage disk is read-write on one instance at a time, so use it for work that writes into its folder. TIR Object Storage mounts read-only, and many workloads can mount the same bucket at once, so use it for data that they read. See Mount a disk on an instance.

Should I keep training data on a disk or in Object Storage?

Section titled “Should I keep training data on a disk or in Object Storage?”

Keep large reference data in Object Storage and mount it from there. Keep the disk small, for scratch space, a cache in front of the larger dataset, unpacking, transforming data, and checkpoints written during training. See Put data on a disk.

Can I convert a disk to an Object Storage bucket?

Section titled “Can I convert a disk to an Object Storage bucket?”

No. A disk stays a disk. To move the data to Object Storage, create an Object Storage bucket and copy the data across. See Put data on a disk.

Yes. A mounted disk appears at /datasets/<name> and is read-write. See Mount a disk on an instance.

Can I attach the same disk to two instances at once?

Section titled “Can I attach the same disk to two instances at once?”

No. A disk mounts on one instance or Virtual Machine at a time. That instance keeps holding it, even while it is stopped, until you unmount it. See Unmount a disk from an instance. For data that several instances read at once, use TIR Object Storage, the Shared File System, or the Parallel File System.

No. A disk mounts on an instance or a Virtual Machine only. The dataset lists for Training Cluster, training job, Slurm Cluster, and model endpoint offer Object Storage datasets, so put the data in TIR Object Storage to use it there. See Mount a disk on an instance.

At /datasets/<name>, where <name> is the disk’s Dataset Name, so choose a name you want to read in a path. See Create a disk.

Copy files in from a terminal on the instance that mounts it, or write to its folder from your code. The instance is the only way in to a disk. See Put data on a disk.

How do I copy data from an Object Storage dataset to a disk?

Section titled “How do I copy data from an Object Storage dataset to a disk?”

Mount both on the same instance and copy from one folder to the other. See Put data on a disk.

What happens to a disk when I delete the instance it is mounted on?

Section titled “What happens to a disk when I delete the instance it is mounted on?”

The disk is unmounted and stays in your disk list, with its files. See Mount a disk on an instance.

No. The disk and its files stay as they were until you delete the disk, and you can mount the disk on another instance. See Unmount a disk from an instance.

No. A disk belongs to one project and one region, and another project creates its own. See Create a disk.

The Owner, an Admin, a Project Manager, and a Project Lead can manage disks; a Member needs a policy that allows datasets. For a Member, permission to read datasets opens the page, permission to create them shows Create Dataset, permission to update them shows Resize Disk, and permission to delete them shows Delete Dataset. To mount a disk, you need a role that allows updating Instances. The portal shows only the actions your role allows. The same permission covers Object Storage, Shared File System, and Parallel File System. See Find and view your disks.

What is the smallest and the largest disk I can create?

Section titled “What is the smallest and the largest disk I can create?”

The smallest is 10 GB, and the form starts at 100 GB. The largest is your disk size limit, which is 15,000 GB unless E2E has set a different limit for you. See Create a disk.

Open the disk’s Resize Disk tab, set a larger size, and select Update. See Increase the size of a disk.

No. A disk can only get bigger. To get a smaller disk, create one, copy the data across, and delete the old one. See Increase the size of a disk.

What if I need a disk bigger than my limit?

Section titled “What if I need a disk bigger than my limit?”

Resize Disk offers Request once the disk is at the limit. The limit applies to each disk on its own. See Request a higher disk size limit.

Does the portal show how much of a disk is used?

Section titled “Does the portal show how much of a disk is used?”

No. TIR gives a disk’s size, not how much of it is used. When a disk fills up, make it bigger from Resize Disk. See Increase the size of a disk and Put data on a disk.

A disk supports E2E Managed encryption only, switched on with Enable Encryption in Delhi and Chennai. Keys you manage yourself are an Object Storage option. See Create a disk.

Can I turn encryption on after I create a disk?

Section titled “Can I turn encryption on after I create a disk?”

No. Turn on Enable Encryption when you create the disk; the setting is fixed after that. See Create a disk.

No. An encrypted disk costs the same as any other disk. See Create a disk.

Am I billed for a disk when no instance is using it?

Section titled “Am I billed for a disk when no instance is using it?”

Yes. A disk is billed for the GB you allocate, whether you use it, have it mounted, or leave it idle. Billing runs from the moment you create it until you delete it. The create form shows the price per GB per month. For rates, see E2E’s pricing page. For an estimate across services, use the E2E pricing calculator. To stop the charge, delete the disk.

No. Billing follows the allocated size. A disk can only get bigger, so an oversized disk keeps its cost until you delete it. Size a disk close to what you need now and grow it later. See Increase the size of a disk.

Is there a charge for moving data in or out of a disk?

Section titled “Is there a charge for moving data in or out of a disk?”

No. Moving data in or out is free: a disk’s bill is for the allocated size. See Put data on a disk.

After you resize, the bill follows the new size. See Increase the size of a disk.

What happens to my data if I delete the disk?

Section titled “What happens to my data if I delete the disk?”

The disk and everything on it are gone for good. Copy anything you need into Object Storage first. See Delete a disk.