doctl Verified current stable Not installed? Cloud Infrastructure

Doctl / Create Droplet

Create Droplet

Creates a new droplet with specified configurations including region, image, and size.

Terminal

doctl compute d c --region <region> --image <os_image> --size <vps_type> <droplet_name>

doctl compute d c --region <region> --image <os_image> --size <vps_type> <droplet_name>

#!/bin/bash

# Create Droplet
doctl compute {{[d|droplet]}} {{[c|create]}} --region {{region}} --image {{os_image}} --size {{vps_type}} {{droplet_name}}

import subprocess

# Create Droplet
# Make sure to replace <placeholders> with actual values
def run_command():
    cmd = [
        "doctl",
        "compute",
        "d",
        "c",
        "--region",
        "<region>",
        "--image",
        "<os_image>",
        "--size",
        "<vps_type>",
        "<droplet_name>"
    ]
    
    try:
        print(f"Executing: {' '.join(cmd)}")
        subprocess.run(cmd, check=True)
    except subprocess.CalledProcessError as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}")
    except FileNotFoundError:
        print("Error: doctl not found. Please install it first.")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    run_command()

When To Use

During new environment setups or application rollouts requiring dedicated resources.

Pro Tip

Utilize snapshot images for quicker deployments from previously configured droplets.

Command Builder

Tune the command before you copy it

Back to syntax

Generated Command

doctl compute d c --region <region> --image <os_image> --size <vps_type> <droplet_name>

Terminal Output

Expected runtime feedback

Simulated preview

Output

Creating droplet...\n\nID          Name          Status      Size          Image         Region\n12345678    my-droplet    active      s-1vcpu-1gb  ubuntu-20-04  nyc1\n\nDroplet created successfully!

Anatomy of Output

Understanding the result

Droplet ID: 98765432 Droplet Identifier

Unique ID assigned to the newly created droplet.

Name: my-droplet Droplet Name

User-assigned name for easy reference.

Status: Active Current Status

Indicates the droplet is successfully operational.

Power User Variants

Optimized versions

doctl compute droplet create --size s-2vcpu-4gb --image ubuntu-20-04-x64 --region nyc1 --tag-name 'webserver'

Create a droplet with tagging for organization.

doctl compute droplet create --size s-1vcpu-1gb --image snapshot-23456789 --region nyc1 --name backup-droplet

Deploy using a snapshot for quicker recovery.

Troubleshooting

Common pitfalls

Error: Invalid region

Solution: Ensure the specified region is supported by DigitalOcean.

Error: Missing required fields

Solution: Check all parameters are provided as required.

Error: Limit exceeded

Solution: Increase your account's droplet limit or remove unused droplets.

Command Breakdown

What each part is doing

doctl: Base Command; The executable that performs this operation. Here it runs Doctl before the shell applies any redirect operators.
d: d|droplet; The value supplied for d|droplet.
c: c|create; The value supplied for c|create.
<region>: region; The value supplied for region.
<os_image>: os image; The value supplied for os image.
<vps_type>: vps type; The value supplied for vps type.
<droplet_name>: droplet name; The value supplied for droplet name.
--region: Command Option; Tool-specific option used by this command invocation.
--image: Command Option; Tool-specific option used by this command invocation.
--size: Command Option; Tool-specific option used by this command invocation.

How To Run

Execution path

Step 1
Run the command with appropriate parameters for region, image, size, and name.
Step 2
Verify the droplet status using `doctl compute droplet list`.
Step 3
Access the droplet via SSH using the assigned IP address.

Alternative Approaches

Comparable commands in other tools

Alternative cloud infrastructure tools for the same job.

Gcloud / Ssh Virtual Machine Instance gcloud compute ssh <user>@<instance> Flyctl / View Status Of Specific Application flyctl status --app <app_name> Aws / Delete Eks Cluster 1608 aws eks delete-cluster --name <cluster_name> Gh / Create Codespace Github Interactively gh cs create Cradle / Submit Elasticsearch Schema cradle elastic map