Automatic startup of stopped databases

Question

Hi all,  
  
I created a free (for one year) AWS account and used it in order to work with relational databases (MariaDB and PostgreSQL).  
  
In April, I had to pay because my two databases were running and exceeded quota associated with free account; so I decided to stop these two databases.  
  
But for May, I also have to pay because these two databases were running all the month.  
  
Does it mean databases are restarted and running without noticing me?  
  
Thank's  
  
Dan

Answer

Hi Dan82,  
  
To answer your question, yes, your databases were restarted and running. You can stop a DB instance for up to seven days. If you don't manually start your DB instance after seven days, your DB instance is **automatically** started so that it doesn't fall behind any required maintenance updates. Also it is important to note that even if the database is stopped, you are charged for provisioned storage, manual snapshots and automated backup storage within your specified retention window, but not for database instance hours. You can find out more information here: https://aws.amazon.com/about-aws/whats-new/2017/06/amazon-rds-supports-stopping-and-starting-of-database-instances/   
  
If you want your databases gone, instead of stopping it, I would advise deleting it - and any snapshots or back-ups (unless you intend to keep them for future use, but be aware it costs money). https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_DeleteInstance.html#USER_DeleteInstance.Deleting   
  
You can find pricing information for MariaDB here: https://aws.amazon.com/rds/mariadb/pricing/?pg=pr&loc=4   
You can find pricing information for PostgreSQL here: https://aws.amazon.com/rds/postgresql/pricing/?pg=pr&loc=3   
  
I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Answer

Hi,

You can also use instance scheduler to just start the database one hour per week.

Automatic startup of stopped databases

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