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Cassandra recommends using instance local storage for EC2 deployments instead of EBS

I am deploying MongoDB in EC2... should I also be using instance local storage instead of EBS PIOPS?

steve landiss
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  • That depends. The data on an instance-store drive is irrevocably destroyed when the instance is terminated. If you've got a replica set setup and good backups, the performance might be worth the risk. – ceejayoz Mar 18 '15 at 19:05

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The mongo documentation on EC2 recommends using EBS over instance store:

EC2 instances can be configured either with ephemeral storage or persistent storage using the Elastic Block Store (EBS). Ephemeral storage is lost when instances are terminated so it is generally not recommended for use unless you’re comfortable with the data-loss implications.

For almost all deployments EBS will be the better choice. For production systems we recommend using

  • EBS-optimized EC2 instances
  • Provisioned IOPS (PIOPS) EBS volumes
Andy Tolbert
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  • I wonder why though, because Mongo handles data loss at the app layer via replication. – steve landiss Mar 18 '15 at 20:09
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    @stevelandiss Because in the unlikely but possible situation that your instances all go down at the same time (region failure, perhaps) you'd lose everything despite replication. – ceejayoz Mar 23 '15 at 14:58