page:migrate:aws ec2 app:laravel

Migrate AWS EC2 app: Laravel

Move Laravel compute from AWS EC2 app to Ample, one component at a time. Destination verified on Ample: the app built, started and answered on its public HTTPS URL with encrypted configuration delivered.

Source procedure:

Collect the process environment from the instance (systemd unit or process manager config) into an env file kept out of the repository. Not migrated automatically: Cron jobs, local files on the instance disk, security-group networking and IAM instance roles are not migrated; use managed databases, buckets and encrypted env instead.

Cutover:

Add the custom domain with ample domain add, update DNS from the instance or load balancer, keep the instance until verified, then stop it.

Rollback:

Keep the source untouched until you confirm; nothing at the source is changed or deleted by this guide.

Prerequisites:

Authorized access to the AWS EC2 app source and its export tooling
An inventory of every component in scope and out of scope
A validated backup or copy before any cutover
An Ample account token with servers:write, databases:read

Resource Requirements:

Compute: Apps run in isolated x86_64 Firecracker microVMs that auto-pause when idle and wake on request; sizes are the priced VM sizes.
Postgres: Managed PostgreSQL 16 runs in its own microVM and is auto-provisioned when an app needs a database and no DATABASE_URL is supplied.

Workflow Steps:

Inventory the source: List what AWS EC2 app provides beyond the component you are moving. Out of scope here: Cron jobs, local files on the instance disk, security-group networking and IAM instance roles are not migrated; use managed databases, buckets and encrypted env instead.
Source step 1: Collect the process environment from the instance (systemd unit or process manager config) into an env file kept out of the repository.
Source step 2: Replace the instance's process manager with the repository's start command; Ample supervises the process and restarts it.
Source step 3: Inventory what else runs on the instance: databases, cron, reverse proxy rules, local files.
Deploy on Ample in parallel: composer install --no-dev from composer.lock, then FrankenPHP serving public/ (php-server with the index.php fallback) reading PORT on the php-8.5 template. Pass the exported variables with --env; keep the source running. ample deploy . --name --public --env-file .env.production
Validate before cutover: Run the app's own checks and, for data, compare counts and checksums; the example checks are the pattern self-tests (/p/configuration-secrets, /p/relational-records).
Cut over: Add the custom domain with ample domain add, update DNS from the instance or load balancer, keep the instance until verified, then stop it.
Rollback: Point DNS or configuration back to the source. The source was never modified; deletion is a separate, user-executed step after validation.

Success Checks:

Destination app responds on its public URL
Configuration-secrets check from the destination example
Relational-records check from the destination example
Data or object counts and checksums match the source

Limitations:

Documentation only: nothing is executed automatically and no execution binding is offered.
The source-side procedure is documented from AWS EC2 app's standard tooling and was not executed in this catalog's evidence; the destination side was verified with the pattern fixture.
No full source-product parity is claimed: cron jobs, local files on the instance disk, security-group networking and IAM instance roles are not migrated; use managed databases, buckets and encrypted env instead.
Verified on the php-8.5 template at s-1vcpu-1gb; region, compliance and request-duration limits are unknown.
Managed PostgreSQL 16 only; extensions, connection limits and backup or restore procedures on the managed side are not verified beyond the pattern checks.

Cost Estimate:

Currency: USD
Monthly Amount: 10.0
App Server: 5.0
Managed PostgreSQL Database: 5.0

Last Verified At:

2026-09-20T20:36:21Z