Provisioning a Virtual Machine (VM) on the European Weather Cloud (EWC) can be done through several interfaces, depending on your workflow, level of automation, and tenancy requirements. This page provides a high‑level overview of the available methods and points you to the detailed documentation for each option.
The goal is to help you choose the most suitable approach for your environment - whether you prefer a graphical interface, an API‑driven workflow, or an automated deployment pipeline.
Provision a VM using the EWC Cloud Management UI
The EWC Cloud Management UI is the primary graphical interface for managing resources in the European Weather Cloud.
Through the UI you can:
Launch and manage virtual machines
Select images and flavors
Attach networks and security groups
Manage volumes and snapshots
View quotas and resource usage
This is the recommended starting point for users who prefer an interactive, visual workflow.
👉 See the full guide: EWC Cloud Management UI
Provision a VM using the EWC Cloud Management API
For users who need automation, integration with external systems, or reproducible infrastructure workflows, the EWC Cloud Management API provides programmatic access to the same capabilities exposed in the UI.
Using the API, you can:
Automate VM creation and deletion
Integrate provisioning into CI/CD pipelines
Build custom tools or scripts
Manage resources at scale
Combine API calls with Terraform
This method is ideal for advanced users, DevOps teams, and automated workflows.
👉 See the full guide: EWC OpenStack API access
Provision a Prepared Machine using the EWC Community Hub
The EWC Community Hub offers a catalog of ready‑to‑use items that can deploy preconfigured machines, workflows, and automation bundles. This is the easiest way to start from a curated, reproducible setup without manually configuring all components.
Through the Hub dashboard you can:
Search for prepared machine templates
Select items tailored to specific workflows or applications
Review inputs and configuration options
Deploy the machine directly or using the EWCCLI
This approach is ideal when you want a consistent, validated environment or when you prefer to reuse community‑maintained automation.
👉 Explore the catalog: Community Hub | The European Weather Cloud
👉 See the full guide: EWC Community Hub
Legacy System: Morpheus (will be decommissioned by the end of 2026)
The Morpheus platform was previously used in the EWC to orchestrate VM deployments and workflows. It provided a catalog of items, automation tasks, and a self‑service interface.
Morpheus is now considered a legacy system and is being phased out in favor of:
The EWC Cloud Management UI for interactive provisioning
The EWC Cloud Management API for automation
The EWC Community Hub for reusable workflows and prepared machines through and EWCCLI
Existing Morpheus items will continue to function during the transition period, but new development should target the Cloud Management UI, API, or Community Hub.
👉 See the legacy guide: Morpheus Legacy: Provision a VM