New virtual machine / instance

The easiest way to boot a VM is through Horizon (https://stratus.msi.umn.edu)

Go to Project > Compute > Instances and click Launch Instance

Horizon provides a Wizard to help you launch VMs. 

Look for stars (*); those are required fields and can only be set before instance creation!

To begin, we name the VM

Note that we have the option of booting more than one VM at once by specifying Count

Next we specify the image to boot from. Choose an image, or a volume/snapshot.

Enable Create New Volume; this backs the VM with a volume. If you accidentally delete the VM, the volume will persist (unless you agree to Delete Volume on Instance Delete). 

Specify your Volume Size (GB) based on the capacity needed for the operating system and software on your VM.

Next, choose a Flavor that fits your needs for RAM and vCPUs.

Total Disk does not matter as the VM storage comes from the backing Volume. 

Horizon nicely shows you current capacities and the impact on your quota

Next, specify optional settings like additional Security Groups. 

Don’t worry: you can modify optional settings on running VMs, but setting them now will save you time.

Finally, click Launch Instance 

Stratus will start the boot process and show you details of its current state

Inspect the VM by clicking on the Instance Name. 

Your instance is ready to go once Status is Active, and Power State is Running