Which AWS Instance Type Meets VM-300 Requirements? Documentation Seems Inconsistent

[TSakamoto5]

I’m confused because there seems to be a contradiction in the documentation regarding the choice of AWS instance type for deploying a VM-300 using NGFW Software Credits.
Could you clarify which AWS instance type meets the requirements for running VM-300?

■VM-Series Performance & Capacity on Public Clouds – VM-Series on Amazon Web Services Performance and Capacity
https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/vm-series/11-1/vm-series-performance-capacity/vm-series-performanc...

This page lists tested instances, and for VM-300 it includes c6in.xlarge.

■VM-Series Deployment Guide
https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/vm-series/11-1/vm-series-deployment/license-the-vm-series-firewall...

This page states that VM-300 requires 9 GB of memory, and to avoid resource issues, it recommends increasing memory to 11 GB. However, c6in.xlarge only has 8 GB, which seems insufficient.

■VM-Series Performance & Capacity on Public Clouds – VM-Series Models on AWS EC2 Instances
AWS EC2 Instances
https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/vm-series/11-1/vm-series-performance-capacity/vm-series-performanc...

This page suggests that c6in.xlarge can be used for VM-300.

[JayGolf · Accepted solution]

Hi @TSakamoto5 ,

I’d recommend anchoring on the VM-Series System Requirements when selecting an AWS instance. Any chosen instance type must meet the VM-300’s documented minimum and recommended memory requirements (9 GB minimum, 11 GB recommended) to avoid resource pressure as features are enabled.

If this is production and you are running a full-feature set, I would recommend deploying the m5.xlarge for VM-300 on AWS. An  m5.xlarge provides:

• 4 vCPUs

• 16 GB of memory

• 4 ENIs

With 16 GB of RAM, it comfortably exceeds the VM-300 memory guidance and provides better stability and headroom for growth.

**You can deploy a VM-Series firewall on an AWS instance with more resources than the minimum requirements to take advantage of improved AWS networking performance, but it’s important NOT to go below the documented minimum system requirements.**

Hope that helps clarify things!

[TSakamoto5]

Hi, @JayGolf 
Thank you very much for your clear and helpful answer. I really appreciate your support!