# Cost

**Spinbox is experimental: APIs change and data may be lost.** What is built and what proves it is on [Status](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/reference/status.md); what Spinbox does not do is on [Limitations](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/overview/limitations.md).

> What an installation costs on AWS: the small part that runs all the time, the runners that run only while workspaces do, and the settings that change it.

An installation has two kinds of cost: a small one that runs all the time, and runners, which
run only while workspaces do. Prices depend on your region and change; use the
[AWS Pricing Calculator](https://calculator.aws/) with the sizes below.

## All the time

| Resource | Default size |
|---|---|
| Control plane | One machine, [`instance_type`](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/reference/terraform/controlplane.md#instance_type), which also runs the database |
| Proxy | One machine, [`proxy_instance_type`](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/reference/terraform/controlplane.md#proxy_instance_type), and an elastic IP |
| Route 53 | Two hosted zones, $0.50 a month each |
| S3 | What the volumes, the database's archive, logs and metric backups hold |
| CloudWatch | The flow log and the machines' boot logs, 30 days |

There is no NAT gateway, no load balancer and no interface endpoint.

## While workspaces run

Runners are large spot machines with local NVMe ([`instance_types`](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/reference/terraform/runners.md#instance_types)). They are the largest cost, and they
cost only while they are up:

- The control plane starts the first runner when a workspace needs one.
- It adds another only when a workspace has waited longer than a runner takes to start.
- It removes them all when nothing has run for [`runner_idle_minutes`](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/reference/terraform/root.md#runner_idle_minutes), and at
  once during `quiet_hours` when nothing is running.

A runner holds many workspaces, so one runner is often enough for a team. `max_runners` caps
how many can be up.

A workspace nobody uses is suspended, and so is one that runs past the installation's limit, so
a forgotten workspace does not keep a runner up all night. See
[Workspaces](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/concepts/workspaces.md).

## Settings that change the cost

| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| `runner_idle_minutes` | How long runners stay up after the last workspace stops |
| `quiet_hours`, `time_zone` | A window, such as nights, when runners go as soon as nothing runs |
| `max_runners` | The most runners at once |
| `runner_spot = false` | On-demand runners: more expensive, never reclaimed |
| `runner_instance_types` | Smaller or larger runners |
| `instance_type`, `proxy_instance_type` | The size of the control plane and the proxy |
| `flow_logs`, `log_retention_days` | What is kept in CloudWatch |

## Storage

The volumes bucket keeps every object under Object Lock for [`object_lock_days`](https://spin-stack.github.io/website/reference/terraform/controlplane.md#object_lock_days),
so a deleted workspace's bytes are paid for until the retention runs out. Clones share their
image's layers, so a hundred workspaces from one image store the image once.