This repository contains the full source code that is used in the blog post Use Amazon EC2 for cost-efficient cloud gaming with pay-as-you-go pricing.
- An AWS account
- Installed and authenticated AWS CLI (authenticate with an IAM user or an AWS STS Security Token)
- Installed and setup AWS Cloud Development Kit (AWS CDK)
- Installed Node.js, TypeScript and git
- AWS EC2 KeyPair (.pem)
git clone https://github.com/aws-samples/cloud-gaming-on-ec2-instances.git
2. Open the repository in your preferred IDE and familiarize yourself with the structure of the project.
.
├── cdk CDK code that defines the environment
└── img Images used in this README
node.js dependencies are declared in a package.json. This project contains a package.json file in the cdk folder.
Navigate into cdk folder it and run npm install
$ cd cdk
$ npm install
Before you can deploy the stack, you need to review the config. Navigate to cdk/bin/cloud-gaming-on-ec2.ts and review / update the following parameters:
ACCOUNT: (required) The account id you want to deploy the stack inREGION: (required) The region you want to deploy the stack inNICE_DCV_DISPLAY_DRIVER_URL: The download URL of the Amazon DCV Virtual Display Driver (formerly NICE DCV) for EC2. You can leave this unless the link is broken or you want to use a different version.NICE_DCV_SERVER_URL: The download URL of the Amazon DCV Server (formerly NICE DCV). You can leave this unless the link is broken or you want to use a different version.InstanceSize: Sets the size of the EC2 Instance. Defaults tog6.xlarge,g6e.xlarge,gr6.xlarge,g5.xlarge,g4dn.xlarge, andg4ad.xlargerespectively.associateElasticIp: Controls if an Elastic IP address will be created and added to the EC2 instance.EC2_KEYPAIR_NAME: (required) The name of the EC2 key pair you will use to connect to the instance. Make sure to have access to the respective .pem file.VOLUME_SIZE_GIB: The size of the root EBS volume. Around 20 GB will be used for the Windows installation, the rest will be available for your software. Note: Some EC2 Instance Types include instance store which can be initalized.OPEN_PORTS: Access from these ports will be allowed. Per default this will only allow access for Amazon DCV (formerly NICE DCV) on port 8443ALLOW_INBOUND_CIDR: Access from this CIDR range will be allowed. Per default this will allow access from /0, but I recommend to restrict this to your IP address only.GRID_SW_CERT_URL: (Only for g4dn/g5 instances) The NVIDIA driver requires a certificate file which can be downloaded from Amazon S3. You can leave this unless the link is broken or you want to use a different certificate.tags: A list of resource tags that will be added to every taggable resource in the stack.SEVEN_ZIP_URL: Update to the latest 7zip .msi version as it is required for the automated NVIDIA driver install.CHROME_URL: Installs Google Chrome Enterprise x64.
The CDK code is written in TypeScript, an extension to JavaScript that adds static types and other useful features.
To run the CDK code, navigate to the cdk folder and run the following commands
$ cdk bootstrap
$ cdk deploy <StackName>
After bootstrapping the required resources for the CDK with cdk bootstrap you can then deploy the template with cdk deploy <StackName>. Bootstrapping is only require once.
<StackName> can be either CloudGamingOnG6, CloudGamingOnG6E, CloudGamingOnGR6, CloudGamingOnG4DN, CloudGamingOnG4AD or CloudGamingOnG5, depending on the instance type you want to use.
The following table gives an overview over the expected graphics performance at 1080p, expressed as 3DMark Time Spy (v x.xx) scores.
| Instance Type | 3DMark Score | On-demand Price (us-east-1, USD, 04/09) | Price-performance (3DMark points / $) |
|---|---|---|---|
| g4dn.xlarge | 4300 | $0.71 | 6056 |
| g4dn.2xlarge | 4800 | $1.12 | 4286 |
| g4dn.4xlarge | 6000 | $1.94 | 3093 |
| g4ad.xlarge | 5100 | $0.56 | 9107 |
| g4ad.2xlarge | 6600 | $0.91 | 7253 |
| g4ad.4xlarge | 7600 | $1.60 | 4750 |
| g5.xlarge | 6800 | $1.19 | 5714 |
| g5.2xlarge | 10200 | $1.58 | 6456 |
| g5.4xlarge | 13000 | $2.36 | 5508 |
| g6.xlarge | N/A | $0.99 | N/A |
| g6.2xlarge | N/A | $1.35 | N/A |
| g6.4xlarge | N/A | $2.10 | N/A |
| g6e.xlarge | N/A | $2.00 | N/A |
| g6e.2xlarge | N/A | $2.60 | N/A |
| g6e.4xlarge | N/A | $3.70 | N/A |
| gr6.4xlarge | N/A | $2.28 | N/A |
Stack completion usually takes 8-15 minutes.
Follow the instructions in the associated blog post Use Amazon EC2 for cost-efficient cloud gaming with pay-as-you-go pricing.
List EC2 key pairs
$ aws ec2 describe-key-pairs --query 'KeyPairs[*].KeyName' --output table
Create a new key pair and the PEM file to store your private key
KEY_NAME=GamingOnEc2
$ aws ec2 create-key-pair --key-name $KEY_NAME --query 'KeyMaterial' --output text > $KEY_NAME.pem
Get Password Data from your launched instance.
$ aws ec2 get-password-data --instance-id <INSTANCE_ID> --priv-launch-key /path/to/GamingOnEc2.pem
Start / Stop an EC2 instance
$ aws ec2 start-instances --instance-ids INSTANCE_ID
$ aws ec2 stop-instances --instance-ids INSTANCE_ID
Creates an Amazon Machine Image from an EC2 instance
$ aws ec2 create-image --instance-id <YOUR_INSTANCE_ID> --name <THE_NAME_OF_YOUR_AMI>
Starts a new EC2 instance from a launch template
$ aws ec2 run-instances --image-id <YOUR_AMI_ID> --launch-template LaunchTemplateName=<LAUNCH_TEMPLATE_NAME> --query "Instances[*].[InstanceId, PublicIpAddress]" --output table
List your instances
$ aws ec2 describe-instances --query "Reservations[*].Instances[*].[ImageId, InstanceType, VpcId, State.Name, PublicIpAddress, LaunchTime]" --output table
Deploy some stacks at once, without rollback and dont require approval for IAM resources
$ cdk deploy CloudGamingOnG6 CloudGamingOnG6E CloudGamingOnGR6 --no-rollback --concurrency=3 --require-approval=never
Deploy all stacks at once, without rollback and dont require approval for IAM resources
$ cdk deploy --all --no-rollback --concurrency=6 --require-approval=never
List all stacks
$ cdk list
See CONTRIBUTING for more information.
This library is licensed under the MIT-0 License. See the LICENSE file.