When we create a new VM from the dashboard, we have to select a lot of options. If we create many VMs, then this can get tedious and repetitive. Solution is to use instance templates
Instance templates allow us to create a template that already specifies characteristics of our VMs like the instance type, disk, firewall rules etc. This way we can easily create a new VM from a template without having to worry about setting the specs
In GCP there are two differen types of IP addresses
- Ephemeral
- Static
Ephemeral means short lived
By default each VM we create have an ephemeral address. This IP address will not change while the VM is running. But it could change if we stop the VM and later start it back
Why ephemeral? Because it is cheaper
We can get a static IP from a pool of IP addresses GCP owns and then we can assign it to any instance. This IP will not change unless we release it from the pool
If we are going to use a VM for anything semi permanent and if we would like the IP to not change, then we should create a static IP address and use it. For example, if we have a website hosted in the VM, then we may need to use static address.
Ephemeral addresses are fine for instances that are behind a load balancer (more on this later)