# Instances

Instances are virtual machines that run your environment. All resources allocated to an instance are exclusive to you. You get full root access on your instance.

Every instance gets a dedicated public IPv4 address without any port restrictions.

{% hint style="warning" %}
Take care to implement authentication for any applications you host on the public interface
{% endhint %}

### Deploying an instance

Instances are deployed by running an environment. Learn more about [environments](/backprop-docs/usage/environments.md).

You can navigate to the [instances page](https://backprop.co/dashboard/instances) in the dashboard and hit **Deploy**.

This prompts you for your desired instance type and your public SSH key. If you just care about Jupyter and do not want direct SSH access to the host then you can leave it empty.

<figure><img src="/files/gBsZYGOE17Q2GbC1bB81" alt="" width="425"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

Deploying an instance usually takes around 1 minute but can take longer if your environment needs to be transferred to a different underlying host machine.

### Destroying an instance

To destroy an instance, either stop your environment or press the destroy icon on the [instances](https://backprop.co/dashboard/instances) page.

<figure><img src="/files/PRfKcg3oW9pvilMGlEgk" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

{% hint style="warning" %}
Destroying an instance permanently deletes all unsaved data. If you also destroy the environment then all data is permanently deleted.
{% endhint %}


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.backprop.co/backprop-docs/usage/instances.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.