With AWS Directory Service, you pay only for the type and size of the managed directory that you use. There is no up-front commitment and no minimum fee. You can delete your managed directory at any time.
Editions
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory is offered in two editions to help you create a managed Active Directory that meets your organization’s needs. Both Standard Edition and Enterprise Edition can be used as your organization’s primary directory to manage users, devices, and computers. You also can use both editions to create resource forests and extend your on-premises AD to the AWS Cloud. Resource forests use a trust relationship with your on-premises AD to enable you to access AWS applications and resources with your on-premises AD credentials. In a resource forest model, users are managed in your on-premises AD and the resource forest is used to manage your AWS resources. Both editions also support the creation of additional domain controllers to improve the redundancy and performance of your managed directory.
Standard Edition
AWS Managed Microsoft AD (Standard Edition) is optimized to be a primary directory for small and midsize businesses with up to 5,000 employees. It provides you enough storage capacity to support up to 30,000* directory objects, such as users, groups, and computers.
Enterprise Edition
AWS Managed Microsoft AD (Enterprise Edition) is designed to support enterprise organizations with up to 500,000* directory objects.
Comparison Table
| Standard Edition | Enterprise Edition | |
|---|---|---|
| Storage capacity available for directory objects | 1 GB | 17 GB |
| Total directory objects | 30,000* | 500,000* |
*Upper limits are approximations. Your directory may support more or less directory objects depending on the size of your directory objects and the behavior and performance needs of your applications.
Directory Sharing - Pricing
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory allows you to use a directory in one account and share it with multiple accounts and VPCs. There is an hourly sharing charge for each additional account to which you share a directory. There is no sharing charge for additional VPCs to which you share a directory, or for the account in which you install the directory. Enterprise Edition sharing and Standard Edition sharing charges for different regions are listed in pricing table below. Directory sharing does not qualify for free-trial.
Multi-region replication – Data transfer pricing
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory (Enterprise Edition) allows you to deploy and use a single directory across multiple AWS Regions. There is a charge per GB for the data transferred “out” of your domain controllers to other AWS Regions where you deployed your directory. The Data transfer charges for different regions are listed in the pricing table below. Data transfer for multi-region replication does not qualify for free-trial.
30-day limited free trial
You can try AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory at no additional charge through the Directory Service 30-day limited free trial. The Directory Service 30-day limited free trial provides you with 1,500 domain controller hours of use across all your Directory Service managed directories during your first 30 days as a Directory Service customer. AWS meters the Directory Service 30-day limited free-trial hours based on the type of managed directory and the number of domain controllers that you create. For more details, see Directory Service 30-day limited free trial.
Pricing Table
The prices shown in the following table are based on the region in which your managed directory is running. For each AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory managed directory, AWS creates the minimum two domain controllers automatically to provide high availability. You can scale out your managed directory by creating additional domain controllers to improve your managed directory performance and availability.
Pricing (varies by region)
Price per GB of data transferred “out” of your domain controllers for multi-region replication:
For pricing details about Simple AD and AD Connector, see Other Directory Types Pricing.
Pricing Examples
Example 1: A single managed directory with the default two domain controllers (without shared directory)
If you are a new AWS Directory Service customer and create a Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory (Enterprise Edition) managed directory in the US East (Ohio) region with the default of two domain controllers, and run that managed directory 24 hours a day for 60 days, AWS calculates your charges as follows:
The AWS Directory Service 30-day limited free trial includes 1,500 hours of use across all your eligible Directory Service managed directories. Each domain controller in your managed Microsoft Active Directory uses one limited free trial hour for every hour that the domain controller is running. Unused hours do not rollover. By default, AWS creates the minimum two domain controllers on your behalf.
Summary of charges for first 30 days
You do not incur any charges for the first 30 days.
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory charge $0
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain controller
2 domain controllers per managed directory (the minimum)
720 hours x 2 total domain controllers = 1,440 total domain controller hours
1,440 total hours – 1,500 limited free-trial hours = 0 billable domain controller hours
After 30 days or 1,500 free-trial hours (whichever comes first), AWS bills you at the hourly rate per managed directory.
Summary of charges after first 30 days
Your bill for the first 30 days of use after the expiration of the free trial is $288.00.
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory charge $288.00
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain controller
2 domain controllers per managed directory (the minimum)
720 hours x 2 total domain controllers = 1,440 total domain controller hours
1,440 total hours x $0.20 per domain controller hour = $288.00
Note that although the pricing table shown on this page lists the hourly cost per managed directory ($0.40 per hour), your AWS bill lists each domain controller as an individual line item. Your bill shows two domain controllers, each for $0.20 per hour, totaling $144.00 each.
In the future, you will be billed at the hourly rate per managed directory plus any additional domain controllers.
Example 2: A single managed directory with the default two domain controllers and shared with 3 additional accounts
You are a new AWS Directory Service customer and create a Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory (Enterprise Edition) managed directory in an account in the US East (Ohio) region with the default of two domain controllers. If you share this directory with 3 of your other accounts and run the directory 24 hours a day for 60 days, AWS calculates your charges as follows:
The AWS Directory Service 30-day limited free trial includes 1,500 hours of use across all your eligible Directory Service managed directories. Each domain controller in your managed Microsoft Active Directory uses one limited free trial hour for every hour that the domain controller is running. Unused hours do not rollover. By default, AWS creates the minimum two domain controllers on your behalf. Directory sharing feature does not qualify for free trial.
Summary of charges for first 30 days
You do not incur any charges for the domain controller for first 30 days.
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory charge $129.60
(includes domain controller charge + shared managed directory charge)
1. Domain controller charge: $0
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain controller
2 domain controllers per managed directory (the minimum)
720 hours x 2 total domain controllers = 1,440 total domain controller hours
1,440 total hours – 1,500 limited free-trial hours = 0 billable domain controller hours
2. Shared managed directory charge: $129.60
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain shared directory
3 accounts share 1 directory
720 hours x 3 accounts x 1 shared directory = 2,160 total shared directory hours
2,160 total hours x $0.06 per shared directory hour = $129.60
After 30 days or 1,500 free-trial hours (whichever comes first), AWS bills you at the hourly rate per managed directory.
Summary of charges after first 30 days
Your bill for the first 30 days of use after the expiration of the free trial is $288.00.
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory charge $417.60
(includes domain controller charge + shared managed directory charge)
1. Domain controller charges: $288.00
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain controller
2 domain controllers per managed directory (the minimum)
720 hours x 2 total domain controllers = 1,440 total domain controller hours
1,440 total hours x $0.20 per domain controller hour = $288.00
2. Shared managed directory charge: $129.60
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain shared directory
3 accounts share 1 directory
720 hours x 3 accounts x 1 shared directory = 2,160 total shared directory hours
2,160 total hours x $0.06 per shared directory hour = $129.60
Note that although the pricing table shown on this page lists the hourly cost per managed directory ($0.40 per hour), your AWS bill lists each domain controller as an individual line item. Your bill shows two domain controllers, each for $0.20 per hour, totaling $144.00 each.
In the future, you will be billed at the hourly rate per managed directory plus any additional domain controllers.
Example 3: A single managed directory with one additional domain controller (without shared directory)
If you are a new AWS Directory Service customer and create a Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory (Enterprise Edition) managed directory in the US East (Ohio) region with one additional domain controller (for a total of three domain controllers), and run that managed directory 24 hours a day for 60 days, AWS calculates your charges as follows:
The AWS Directory Service 30-day limited free trial includes 1,500 hours of use across all your eligible Directory Service managed directories. Each domain controller in your managed Microsoft Active Directory uses one limited free trial hour for every hour that the domain controller is running.
Summary of charges for first 30 days
Your bill for the first 30 days of use is $132.00.
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory charge $132.00
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain controller
2 domain controllers per managed directory (the minimum) + 1 additional domain controller = 3 total domain controllers
720 hours x 3 total domain controllers = 2,160 total domain controller hours
2,160 total hours – 1,500 limited free-trial hours = 660 billable domain-controller hours
660 billable hours x $0.20 per domain controller hour = $132.00
Note that though the pricing table on this page lists the hourly cost per managed directory ($0.40 per hour), your AWS bill lists each domain controller as an individual line item. Your bill shows three domain controllers, each for $0.20 per hour, totaling $44.00 each.
After 30 days or 1,500 free-trial hours (whichever comes first), AWS bills you at the hourly rate per managed directory plus any additional domain controllers.
Summary of charges after first 30 days
Your bill for the first 30 days of use after the expiration of the free trial is $432.00.
AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory charge $432.00
24 hours x 30 days = 720 hours per domain controller
2 domain controllers per managed directory (the minimum) + 1 additional domain controller = 3 total domain controllers
720 hours x 3 total domain controllers = 2,160 total domain controller hours
2,160 total hours * $0.20 per domain controller hour = $432.00
Again, note that although the pricing table on this page lists the hourly cost per managed directory ($0.40 per hour), your AWS bill lists each domain controller as an individual line item. Your bill shows three domain controllers, each for $0.20 per hour, totaling $144.00 each.
In the future, you will be billed at the hourly rate per managed directory plus any additional domain controllers.
Learn how to get started with AWS Directory Service