Change disk type during VM shut down?

Question

Hello,

If we are using Premium SSD for 12*5 workload. Just asking Q1 if we can switch the disk to Standard SSD or Standard HDD after shutting down the VMs and revert the change before starting up the VM?

I don't think we could do so as data would be there in the disk and there is no way data could be copied into another cheaper disk automatically.

Q2 Can we dump the disk content into an storage account and delete the disk after VM shut down and copy the data from storage account to disk before staring the VM?

Q3 I believe there would be no egress charges if both storage accounts and disks are in same Azure region.

Applicate your Response. Thank you!!

Answer 1

@anil kumar

Thanks for your questions. I understand you are trying to save some money by converting your premium disks to a lower cost disk option when they are not in use.

Q1 Can we switch the disk to Standard SSD or Standard HDD after shutting down the VMs and revert the change before starting up the VM?

Yes. You can easily switch between Premium SSD, Standard SSD, and Standard HDD based on your performance needs. You aren't yet able to switch from or to an Ultra Disk or a Premium SSD v2, you must deploy a new one. However, you also can only change disk types once per day.

Q2 Can we dump the disk content into an storage account and delete the disk after VM shut down and copy the data from storage account to disk before staring the VM?

You could. However, I would recommend using the snapshots feature instead.

Q3 I believe there would be no egress charges if both storage accounts and disks are in same Azure region.

This would depend on if the storage account and disks are in the same AZ. This is not an issue if using the snapshot feature. More information on data transfer costs can be found here.

Hope this helps! Let me know if you have anymore questions.

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