How do I customize an AMI image and share with others?

[jsun]

Ubuntu desktop AMI is meant to be customized and then shared with others. Please follow the following steps.

• Launch an instance and starts customize the image
• (optional) If you like your friends to use their own instance id as the initial VNC password.
  
  
  
  • for Ubuntu 14.04, 16.04, run "sudo rm /opt/netspectrum/aws/ubuntu-desktop/passwd"
    
  • for Ubuntu 18.04, run "sudo touch /opt/netspectrum/aws/ubuntu-desktop/FIRST_RUN"
    
• Select the customized instance, go to "Actions"/"Image"/"Create Image" to create an AMI image
• Select the newly create AMI image, go to "AMIs"/"Permissions"/"Edit"; enter your friend's account id and click "Add Permission"
• Your friend should now be able to find it under "AMI's"/"Private Images" category and be able to launch an instance.

Several notes:

• You won't be able to make derived AMI public. You would have to explicitly assign permissions to each of your friend.
• When your friend launches the derived AMI, he/she may need to explicitly select "ubuntu desktop" security group instead of the default one. Otherwise network connection will not work.
• Your friends will be charged at the normal rates as if he/she were running the original ubuntu desktop AMI products.
• The above process only works if you and your friends work in the same amazon region. To enable different regions, you would have to copy the derived AMI to different regions and share with your friends from those regions.

Please let us know how this process works for you. Cheers.