EBS Idle Volumes

EBS volumes that remain attached to instances but show no read/write activity represent pure waste. This is distinct from unattached (orphan) volumes -- idle volumes are still connected to an instance but doing nothing.

Implementation Effort: Low - Estimated time: less than 30 minutes. Snapshot the volume for safety, then delete it.

What We Detect

• Zero I/O volumes -- Attached volumes with no read or write operations over an extended period
• Volumes on stopped instances -- Volumes attached to EC2 instances that have been stopped, continuing to incur storage charges

Why It Matters

EBS volumes are billed by provisioned size regardless of usage. A 500 GB gp3 volume costs ~$40/month whether it processes millions of IOPS or zero. Volumes attached to stopped instances are especially easy to overlook.

Recommendations

1. Create a snapshot before deleting for safety
2. Verify no application depends on the data
3. Delete the volume to stop charges immediately

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Keep on chasing 🧡