On your Instances page, the three-dot menu (⋮) next to each instance offers two choices: Stop or Terminate. Seeing them side-by-side can be confusing—especially when one of those buttons can wipe an instance for good.
They might seem similar, but the results couldn’t be more different. One pauses your instance and keeps it around. The other deletes it entirely—no undo.
This short guide breaks down what each option does, when to use it, and how to run the action step-by-step.
Where to find these actions
Go to Compute → Instances
Find the instance you want to manage
Click the three-dot menu (
⋮) on the rightChoose Stop or Terminate
Confirm your choice in the pop-up dialog
You’ll need to tick some boxes before confirming Terminate—just to be sure you know what you're doing.
Stop vs. Terminate
Action | What it does | Can you restart it later? | Keeps config? | Charges stop? | Auto-expires? |
Stop | Pauses the instance | Yes, within 5 days | Yes | Yes | Yes, after 5 days |
Terminate | Deletes the instance permanently | No | No | Yes (all charges stop if you delete disks) | Yes, immediately |
⚠️ Stopped instances are not forever
Stopping an instance pauses it, but only temporarily. If you don’t restart it within 5 days, it will be automatically terminated—and that means:
The instance is deleted
All data is lost
There’s no recovery option
This includes anything stored on the system disk. If it’s stopped and you forget about it, it will be gone.
When to use Stop
Use Stop when you:
Need to temporarily pause an instance
Want to save on Compute charges for a bit
Plan to restart it soon
Once stopped, the instance will show as Stopped in your list. To avoid losing it, just make sure you start it again within 5 days.
When to use Terminate
Terminate is for when you're done with the instance—no return. Choose it when:
You’ve completed a job and want to clean up
You no longer need the instance or its data
You want to completely stop all charges
Before the instance is deleted, you’ll be asked to confirm that:
All tasks will stop
All data will be wiped
This cannot be undone
Once terminated, the instance disappears from your dashboard and cannot be recovered.
Need help figuring out what’s safest?
Chat with us anytime from the sidebar or email [email protected]. We’ll talk you through it.