VPC Instance Metadata API change log

Read the API change log to learn about updates and improvements to the IBM Cloud® Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) Instance Metadata API. The change log lists changes that are ordered by the date they were released. Changes to existing API versions are designed to be compatible with existing client applications.

By design, new features with backward-incompatible changes apply only to version dates on and after the feature's release. Changes that apply to older versions of the API are designed to maintain compatibility with existing applications and code. If backward-incompatible changes require non-trivial client code changes to use an API version, the API change log might provide links to instructions, tips, or best practices for updating client code.

Some changes, such as new response properties or new optional request parameters, are considered backward compatible. Other changes, such as new required request parameters, are not considered backward compatible. To avoid disruption from changes to the API, use the following best practices when you call the API:

Catch and log any 4xx or 5xx HTTP status code, along with the included trace property
Follow HTTP redirect rules for any 3xx HTTP status code
Consume only the resources and properties your application needs to function
Avoid depending on behavior that is not explicitly documented

26 March 2024

For all version dates

Reservations for Virtual Servers for VPC. You can now purchase a capacity reservation for a specified instance profile in a specified zone. When retrieving an instance, the new reservation and reservation_affinity properties indicate the reservation and reservation affinity policy in effect for the virtual server instance. The new health_state property indicates the instance's overall health state, while an accompanying health_reasons property indicates the reason for any unhealthy health states, such as a failed reservation.

For more information, see the API change log and Provisioning reserved capacity for VPC.

30 January 2024

For all version dates

Reservations for Virtual Servers for VPC. Accounts that have been granted special approval to preview this feature can now purchase a capacity reservation for a specified instance profile in a specified zone. When retrieving an instance, the new reservation and reservation_affinity properties indicate the reservation and reservation affinity policy in effect for the virtual server instance. The new health_state property indicates the instance's overall health state, while an accompanying health_reasons property indicates the reason for any unhealthy health states, such as a failed reservation.

For more information, see the API change log and Provisioning reserved capacity for VPC.

This feature is now generally available. See the 26 March 2024 announcement.

19 December 2023

For all version dates

Virtual network interface support. Accounts that have been granted special approval can preview a new feature that expands the support for virtual network interfaces. You can now list and view an instance's network attachments, and you can list and view virtual network interfaces targeting the instance. For compatibility with existing clients, an instance with virtual network interfaces now includes a read-only representation of its network attachments and virtual network interfaces as legacy network interface child resources. For more information, see the API change log, and learn about support for old API clients.

17 October 2023

For all version dates

Non-uniform memory access (NUMA) awareness on instances. When retrieving an instance, the new numa_count property indicates the number of NUMA nodes on which a virtual server instance is provisioned. For more information, see Next generation instance profiles. See also Non-uniform memory access (NUMA) awareness on dedicated hosts and instances in the VPC API change log.

15 August 2023

For all version dates

Instance identity certificates. You can now use the instance identity access token and a certificate signing request (CSR) to create an instance identity certificate. For more information, see Generating an instance identity certificate by using an instance identity access token. Instance identity certificates are used when the traffic between an authorized client and the mounted file share is encrypted in transit.

27 June 2023

For all version dates

Extended SSH key encryption. The type property now includes ed25519 when listing and retrieving public SSH keys. For more information, see Getting started with SSH keys. See also Extended SSH key encryption in the VPC API change log.

14 February 2023

For all version dates

VPC instance metadata new endpoint URL. You can now use the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) api.metadata.cloud.ibm.com for the metadata service endpoint. The FQDN resolves to the link-local IP address 169.254.169.254 without requiring the application of special configurations. For more information, see Endpoint URLs in the VPC Instance Metadata API.

VPC instance metadata communication protocol and hop limit. You can now view the communication protocol and hop limit for IP response packets used by the VPC Instance Metadata service. When you retrieve the instance, the new protocol and response_hop_limit properties will be shown. For more information, see Configure the instance metadata service.

27 September 2022

For all version dates

Sharing images across an enterprise account. If a virtual server instance was provisioned from a catalog offering, retrieving the instance metadata will now include a catalog_offering property in the response. For more information, see the Virtual Private Cloud Instance Metadata API.

See also the tutorial Onboarding a virtual server image for VPC and the Import offering method in the Catalog Management API.