> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.nebius.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Preemptible virtual machines

*Preemptible VMs*, also known as spot VMs or spot instances, are virtual machines that Compute may stop at any time. This can happen when the system needs resources to launch a regular VM in the same region.

Compute sends a `SIGTERM` signal 60 seconds before stopping the VM. If your system does not respond in time, Compute sends a `SIGKILL` signal to force shutdown.

Compute preserves all data on the volumes attached to a stopped preemptible VM. It does not preserve dynamic resources, such as dynamic public IP addresses.

Preemptible VMs [cost less than regular ones](/compute/resources/pricing#prices), but they do not provide guaranteed availability.

You can create a preemptible VM, but you cannot change the type of an existing VM—either from regular to preemptible or from preemptible to regular.

## Supported platforms

You can run preemptible VMs on all [VM platforms with GPUs](/compute/virtual-machines/types).

To get an up-to-date list of platforms, run the `nebius compute platform list` [command](/cli/reference/compute/platform/list). The platforms available for preemptible VMs are marked as `allowed_for_preemptibles: true`.

## How to create a preemptible VM

<Tabs group="interfaces">
  <Tab title="Web console">
    1. In the sidebar, go to <Icon icon="https://mintcdn.com/nebius-ai-cloud/rOlLZ_MFvrheaI-h/_assets/sidebar/compute.svg?fit=max&auto=format&n=rOlLZ_MFvrheaI-h&q=85&s=8d3eda9b92f5a626a81d01268852f482" width="16" height="16" data-path="_assets/sidebar/compute.svg" /> **Compute** → **Virtual machines**.
    2. Click **Create resource** → **Virtual machine**.
    3. If you have [capacity block groups](/overview/limits/capacity-block-groups), on the **General** step, select **Pay-as-you-go VM**. If you do not have capacity block groups, the wizard skips the **General** step and opens **Compute** instead.
    4. On the **Compute** step, select **With GPUs** or **Without GPUs**, set the VM type to **Preemptible** and select a [platform and preset](/compute/virtual-machines/types).

       For more information about the full wizard, see [How to create a virtual machine](/compute/virtual-machines/manage#create-a-vm).
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="CLI">
    When [creating a VM](/compute/virtual-machines/manage):

    * Select a [platform that supports preemptible VMs](#supported-platforms).
    * Add the following parameters to the `nebius compute instance create` command:

      ```bash theme={null}
      nebius compute instance create \
        ... \
        --recovery-policy fail \
        --preemptible-on-preemption stop
      ```

      In this configuration, the following values are specified:

      * `recovery_policy` defines what Compute does with a VM after it's preempted or fails. Preemptible VMs support only the `FAIL` value, which stops the VM. They do not support the `RECOVER` value, which tries to restart the VM. Setting `RECOVER` for a preemptible VM results in an error.
      * `on_preemption` specifies what happens when the VM is preempted. The only supported value is `STOP`: Compute stops the VM without deleting or restarting it.

    For details about the <code>nebius compute instance create</code> command, see the [Nebius AI Cloud CLI reference](/cli/reference/compute/instance/create).
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Terraform">
    When creating a VM, select a [platform that supports preemptible VMs](#supported-platforms) and set the following parameters in the VM configuration:

    ```hcl theme={null}
    resource "nebius_compute_v1_instance" "instance" {
      ...
      recovery_policy = "FAIL"
      preemptible     = {
        on_preemption = "STOP"
      }
      ...
    }
    ```

    In this configuration, the following values are specified:

    * `recovery_policy` defines what Compute does with a VM after it's preempted or fails. Preemptible VMs support only the `FAIL` value, which stops the VM. They do not support the `RECOVER` value, which tries to restart the VM. Setting `RECOVER` for a preemptible VM results in an error.
    * `on_preemption` specifies what happens when the VM is preempted. The only supported value is `STOP`: Compute stops the VM without deleting or restarting it.

    For details about the <code>nebius\_compute\_v1\_instance</code> Terraform resource, see the [provider reference](/terraform-provider/reference/resources/compute_v1_instance).
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

<Tip>
  A dynamic IP address is released when a preemptible VM stops. To keep your workload stable, consider using a static IP address instead.
</Tip>

## How to continue working with a stopped preemptible VM

When Compute stops a preemptible VM, it preserves all data on the attached volumes. To resume work, [start the VM](/compute/virtual-machines/stop-start) again. If you used a dynamic IP address, update all systems that depended on the old IP address.

If the VM uses local SSD disks, use them with caution. Local SSD disks are ephemeral, meaning any data stored on them will be lost when the preemptible VM stops.

You can also [create a regular VM](/compute/virtual-machines/manage) with the same attached volumes.