Create a compute instance on PCA 3.x with the Compute Web UI or OCI CLI

This tutorial applies to the Compute Enclave of Private Cloud Appliance 3.x. The steps follow Oracle’s “Creating an Instance” page; field names can differ slightly between software versions, so compare with the guide for your release.

Before you start

You need, at minimum:

• A compartment where the instance will live.
• An image (platform or custom) or an existing boot volume.
• A shape. For general workloads this is a flexible shape where you choose OCPUs and memory.
• A VCN and subnet (see the networking entry).
• A public SSH key if the image uses key-based login. The docs stress that it cannot be added after the instance is created.

Option A: Compute Web UI

1. On the Compute Web UI Dashboard, select Create Instance. You can also go to Compute > Instances > Create Instance.
2. Enter a Name (letters, digits and hyphens, up to 63 characters) and choose Create in Compartment.
3. Leave Fault Domain empty unless you need a specific one. If the chosen fault domain cannot fit the instance, the launch fails.
4. Under Source Image, choose the source type (Platform Image, Custom Image or Boot Volume) and select the image. This cannot be changed later.
5. Choose the Shape and, for a flexible shape, the OCPU count and memory.
6. Optionally expand the Boot Volume options to set a larger size or the performance level (10 VPUs balanced, 20 VPUs high performance).
7. Under Subnet, pick the VCN and then the subnet. Check Assign Public IP if you need access from outside the VCN; it is checked by default on public subnets.
8. Paste or upload your public key under SSH Keys.
9. Select Create Instance. The instance details page opens; follow progress under Resources > Work Request(s).

Option B: OCI CLI

This assumes the OCI CLI is already configured for your appliance. First collect the IDs you need:

oci iam availability-domain list
oci iam compartment list --compartment-id-in-subtree true
oci network subnet list --compartment-id ocid1.compartment.unique_ID
oci compute image list --compartment-id ocid1.compartment.unique_ID
oci compute shape list --compartment-id ocid1.compartment.unique_ID

The docs warn not to use images with -OKE- in the name for ordinary instances; those are for the Kubernetes Engine.

The required options of oci compute instance launch are the availability domain, compartment, shape, subnet and source details. This example mirrors the one in Oracle’s guide. Replace the shape with one returned by oci compute shape list on your appliance, because available shapes depend on the hardware.

oci compute instance launch \
  --availability-domain AD-1 \
  --compartment-id ocid1.compartment.unique_ID \
  --display-name web01 \
  --shape VM.PCAStandard.E5.Flex \
  --shape-config '{"ocpus": 2, "memoryInGBs": 32}' \
  --subnet-id ocid1.subnet.unique_ID \
  --source-details '{"sourceType":"image","imageId":"ocid1.image.unique_ID","bootVolumeSizeInGBs":100}' \
  --assign-public-ip true \
  --ssh-authorized-keys-file ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

• --shape-config requires ocpus; per the docs, memoryInGBs defaults to 16 GB per OCPU when omitted.
• To get a template for --source-details, run oci compute instance launch --generate-param-json-input source-details.
• If you leave out --display-name, the instance gets a default name based on the creation date and time.
• Launch options such as firmware (BIOS or UEFI_64) can only be set with the CLI, via --launch-options, and cannot be changed afterwards.

The command returns a work request. Track it until it finishes:

oci work-requests work-request get --work-request-id ocid1.workrequest.unique_ID
oci compute instance list --compartment-id ocid1.compartment.unique_ID --output table

Connect

Once the instance is running and has a reachable IP, connect with your private key. The login user name depends on the image; check the image’s documentation.

ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 [email protected]

If the launch fails

For failures caused by resource limits, Oracle suggests choosing a different fault domain or none, choosing a smaller shape, or stopping or terminating unused instances. If a work request fails without a reason, wait a little and retry. Also confirm that the subnet’s security list allows SSH (TCP 22) from your network.

Official documentation

• Oracle PCA: Creating an Instance
• Oracle PCA User Guide (3.0): Using the OCI CLI