- Public IPv4 address that remains allocated to your account until released.
- Useful when you need a static public IP that persists across instance stop/start.
- Can attach to only one instance at a time, but can be remapped quickly to mask instance or software failures.
- Default quota: 5 Elastic IPs per account (can request increase).
Best practices:
- Avoid using Elastic IPs when possible — often indicates suboptimal design.
- Prefer:
- Dynamic public IP + DNS mapping.
- Load Balancer for public access instead of direct IP.