What is renewal?

The Alibaba Cloud resources that you purchase comply with strict lifecycle management rules. For example, if a subscription instance expires, the instance is stopped or released based on the lifecycle management rules. You can renew an instance to extend the validity period of the instance. The following figure shows the impact of renewing the lifecycle of an instance.

Note:

A subscription instance can be involved in the following renewal scenarios based on whether the instance is renewed before the instance is stopped.
- Renewal before the instance is stopped: After the instance is renewed, the instance can be used without service interruption.
- Renewal after the instance is stopped: The instance is stopped as expected after it expires. The instance can automatically restart after renewal.
Grace period: Due to the lifecycle management rules for cloud services, specific subscription instances are not immediately stopped but given a grace period after the instances expire. The specific rule is based on the lifecycle management rules of each cloud service.
Immediate release: Specific instances of cloud services, such as the Object Storage Service (OSS) resource plan with a fixed capacity, are immediately released after they are stopped. These instances can be renewed only before they are stopped. The specific rule is based on the lifecycle management rules of each cloud service.
For a pay-as-you-go instance, you need to only make sure that your Alibaba Cloud account has a sufficient balance. You do not need to renew the instance.

Auto-renewal and manual renewal

1. Overview

Renewal method

Scenario

When to renew

Manual renewal

You can manually renew an instance to extend the validity period of the instance.

Before the instance is stopped

Auto-renewal

You can enable auto-renewal for an instance to ensure that the instance is renewed if you forget to manually renew the instance. The system can automatically renew the instance before the instance is stopped. Note:

After you enable auto-renewal for an instance, an auto-renewal cycle is specified for the instance. The instance is not immediately renewed. The system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee on the 3rd and 1st days before the instance expires, the expiration day, and the 6th and 14th days after the instance expires. If a deduction fails, the system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee at the next point in time.
After you enable auto-renewal for an instance, you can disable auto-renewal for the instance at any time. To disable auto-renewal for an instance, you can configure non-renewal upon expiration or enable manual renewal for the instance.

Before the 14th day after the instance expires

2. Procedure

Method 1: Manual renewal

Step 1: Log on to the Alibaba Cloud international site (alibabacloud.com). Move the pointer over the profile picture in the upper-right corner and select Billing. On the page that appears, click Renewal in the left-side navigation pane.

Step 2: Click the Manual tab and renew instances by using one of the following methods. You can also click the Nonrenewal tab and renew an instance for which non-renewal upon expiration is configured.

Renew an instance: Find the instance that you want to manage and click Renew in the Actions column. The following figure shows the procedure.

Renew multiple instances at a time: Select the instances that you want to manage and click Batch Renew in the lower part of the page. The following figure shows the procedure.
Note: Elastic Compute Service (ECS) instances cannot be renewed together with the instances of other cloud services.

Step 3: On the page that appears, specify a renewal duration. The expiration time after renewal is displayed on the page after you specify the renewal duration. Complete the payment as prompted.

Note: On the Batch Renew page, you can click Batch Setting next to Duration to specify a renewal duration for all instances that are displayed on this page at a time.

Step 4: After the payment is complete, view the renewal result in the Start/End At (UTC+8) column on the Renewal page.

Method 2: Auto-renewal

Step 2: Click the Manual tab and renew instances by using one of the following methods.

You can also click the Nonrenewal tab and enable auto-renewal for an instance for which non-renewal upon expiration is configured.

Enable auto-renewal for an instance: Find the instance that you want to manage and click Enable Auto Renewal in the Actions column. The following figure shows the procedure.

Enable auto-renewal for multiple instances at a time: Select the instances that you want to manage and click Enable Auto Renewal in the lower part of the page. The following figure shows the procedure.

Note: You can enable auto-renewal for multiple instances only of the same cloud service at a time.

Step 3: In the Enable Auto Renewal dialog box, specify an auto-renewal cycle and click Auto Renew.

Step 4: Click the Auto tab to view the auto-renewal result.

Note: After you enable auto-renewal for an instance, an auto-renewal cycle is specified for the instance. The instance is not immediately renewed. The system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee on the 3rd and 1st days before the instance expires, the expiration day, and the 6th and 14th days after the instance expires. If a deduction fails, the system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee at the next point in time.

Usage notes on auto-renewal:

1. Deduction time of the auto-renewal fee

If you enable auto-renewal for an instance in the console of an Alibaba Cloud service on the Alibaba Cloud international site, the system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee for the first time at 08:00:00 on the 3rd day before the instance expires. If the first deduction fails due to reasons such as insufficient balance in your Alibaba Cloud account, the system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee on the 1st day before the instance expires, the expiration day, and the 6th and 14th days after the instance expires. If the system fails to deduct the auto-renewal fee 14 days after the instance expires, the system stops deducting the fee. After the instance is stopped, you must manually renew the instance within the specified time.

The following example describes the auto-renewal policy for an ECS instance.

An ECS instance expires at 00:00:00 on March 30, 2019. The auto-renewal cycle is set to one month. The system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee on the 3rd day before the ECS instance expires.

The first time when the system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee comes at 08:00:00 on March 27, 2019. If the first auto-renewal deduction is successful, the instance is automatically renewed. After the auto-renewal is complete, the expiration time of the ECS instance is updated to 00:00:00 on April 30, 2019.

If your account balance is insufficient, the auto-renewal deduction fails at 08:00:00 on March 27, 2019. The system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee again at 08:00:00 on March 29, 2019. If the auto-renewal deduction still fails, the system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee again until 08:00:00 on April 14, 2019. If your account balance is still insufficient, auto-renewal fails.

2. Enable auto-renewal at purchase

The following figure shows how to enable auto-renewal when you purchase an instance. This feature is available only for some cloud services.

3. Operations related to auto-renewal

After you enable auto-renewal for an instance, you can also perform the following operations on the instance. The following figure shows the operations.

Renew: Manually renew the instance for which auto-renewal is enabled but renewal is not performed.
Edit Auto Renewal: Change the auto-renewal cycle.
Nonrenewal: Configure non-renewal upon expiration for the instance for which auto-renewal is enabled.
Enable Manual Renewal: Enable manual renewal for the instance for which auto-renewal is enabled.

Renewal-related features

1. Unified expiration date

Feature	Scenario	When to renew	References
Unified expiration date	If you have multiple ECS instances that expire on different dates, the instances must be separately managed and are more likely to be released due to late renewal. This causes additional management costs. To simplify the management of these instances, you can use this feature to synchronize the expiration dates of the instances to the same day of each month for centralized management.	Before the instances expire	Synchronize the expiration dates of subscription instances

2. Configuration change during renewal

If you want to extend the validity period of an instance and change the configurations of the instance at the same time, you can change the configurations of the instance during renewal. The operations are performed in the console of each cloud service. Specific cloud services may not allow you to change the instance configurations during renewal. The rules of the configuration change during renewal also vary based on the cloud service.

For more information, see Renew an instance and downgrade its configurations.

FAQ about renewal

1. Why am I unable to view my instance on the Renewal page?

You can view only instances that can be renewed on the Renewal page. If an instance cannot be renewed, the instance is not displayed in the instance list of the Renewal page. The following instances cannot be renewed:

Instances that are released.
Instances that do not support renewal, such as Apsara Conference tickets.
Instances of specific cloud services. To renew such an instance, you must click the name of the cloud service next to Renewal of Other Products in the upper-right corner of the Renewal page to go to the console of the cloud service. The following figure shows the procedure.

2. Why does auto-renewal fail after I enable auto-renewal? What do I do?

Cause: After you enable auto-renewal for an instance, an auto-renewal cycle is specified for the instance. The instance is not immediately renewed. The system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee on the 3rd and 1st days before the instance expires, the expiration day, and the 6th and 14th days after the instance expires. If a deduction fails, the system attempts to deduct the auto-renewal fee at the next point in time. Your account balance may be insufficient. As a result, the renewal fails until 14 days after the instance expires.

Solution: Manually renew your instance.

3. After I renew an instance for another month, the renewal duration may be 31 days, 30 days, or less than 30 days. Why are the renewal durations different?

If you renew an instance for another month, the instance is renewed to 00:00:00 of the same day as the current expiration date in the next month. The renewal duration varies based on the calendar month. Examples:

If your instance expires at 00:00:00 on June 1 (24:00:00 on May 31) and you renew the instance for another month, the expiration date after the renewal becomes 00:00:00 on July 1 (24:00:00 on June 30). After the renewal, you can use the instance for another 30 days.
If your instance expires at 00:00:00 on May 21 and you renew the instance for another month, the expiration date after the renewal becomes 00:00:00 on June 21. After the renewal, you can use the instance for another 31 days.
If your instance expires at 00:00:00 on February 1 and you renew the instance for another month, the expiration date after the renewal becomes 00:00:00 on March 1 (24:00:00 on February 29 or February 28). After the renewal, you can use the instance for another 29 or 28 days.

4. The current expiration date of an instance is the 31st day of a month. Why does the expiration date become the 30th, 29th, or 28th day of a month after I renew the instance?

The number of days varies in different months of the year. In most cases, this issue occurs when you manually renew or enable auto-renewal for an instance whose expiration date is the 29th, 30th, or 31st day of a month. For example, you want to renew an instance for another month.

Scenario 1: If your instance expires on January 31 and you renew the instance for another month, the expiration date after the renewal becomes February 29 or February 28. If you continue to renew the instance for one or more months, the expiration date after the renewal is always the 29th or 28th day of a month.
Scenario 2: If your instance expires on May 31 and you renew the instance for another month, the expiration date after the renewal becomes June 30. If you continue to renew the instance for one or more months, the expiration date after the renewal is always the 30th day of a month. After the expiration date becomes January 30, the expiration date is updated based on the logic of Scenario 1 if you continue to renew the instance.

5. If I no longer use an instance after it expires, I can choose not to renew the instance. What is the Nonrenewal feature on the Renewal page?

The Nonrenewal feature is used in the following scenarios:

Scenario 1: In most cases, the system sends three notifications to your Alibaba Cloud account before an instance of an Alibaba Cloud service is stopped. The number of notifications that are sent varies based on the cloud service. If you do not want to receive multiple notifications for an instance that you do not want to renew after it expires, you can configure non-renewal upon expiration for the instance. Then, the system sends only one notification to you.
Scenario 2: After you reach an important cooperation agreement with Alibaba Cloud, you can request Alibaba Cloud not to stop the instances within your Alibaba Cloud account after the instances expire. If you want to stop some instances after the instances expire, you can configure non-renewal upon expiration for the instances.