Underutilized Compute Instance

PointFive (ChatGPT-generated for seed coverage)

Service Category

Compute

Cloud Provider

OCI

Service Name

OCI Compute Instances

Inefficiency Type

Underutilized Compute Resource

Explanation

OCI Compute instances incur cost based on provisioned CPU and memory, even when the instance is lightly loaded. Instances that show consistently low usage across time, such as those used only for occasional tasks, test environments, or forgotten workloads, may be overprovisioned relative to their actual needs.

Relevant Billing Model

Charged per vCPU and memory provisioned per hour, regardless of utilization.

Detection

Review instance-level CPU and memory utilization over a representative period
Identify instances with consistently low activity relative to their allocated resources
Evaluate whether the instance supports critical workloads or is part of a dev/test environment
Assess whether rightsizing (smaller shape) or scheduled shutdown is feasible
Check for seasonal or workload-specific spikes that might justify current size

Remediation

Rightsize the instance to a smaller shape that matches workload requirements
Replace with burstable or flexible instance types where applicable
Implement scheduled start/stop automation for predictable idle periods
Decommission if no longer in use

Relevant Documentation

OCI Compute Pricing
Monitoring Compute Metrics

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