Ubuntu 16.04 LTS cloud-init stalls first boot

📖 ~1 min read

Table of contents

1. Symptom & Impact
2. Environment & Reproduction
3. Root Cause Analysis
4. Quick Triage
5. Step-by-Step Diagnosis
6. Solution – Primary Fix
7. Solution – Alternative Approaches
8. Verification & Acceptance Criteria
9. Rollback Plan
10. Prevention & Hardening
11. Related Errors & Cross-Refs
12. References & Further Reading

Symptom & Impact

New instance remains unready and provisioning scripts do not finish.

Environment & Reproduction

Ubuntu 16.04 cloud image with mismatched metadata datasource.

Root Cause Analysis

Cloud-init waits on unavailable metadata endpoint during boot.

Quick Triage

Check cloud-init status and recent datasource lookup attempts.

Step-by-Step Diagnosis

Inspect cloud-init logs and datasource configuration files.

Solution – Primary Fix

Set correct datasource list and clean cloud-init cache.

Solution – Alternative Approaches

Disable unused modules for non-cloud or static VM templates.

Verification & Acceptance Criteria

Cloud-init reports done and instance services start normally.

Rollback Plan

Revert datasource settings and restore previous image baseline.

Prevention & Hardening

Validate cloud images against target hypervisor metadata service.

Related Errors & Cross-Refs

Compare with netplan waits and DHCP lease delays.

Related tutorial: View the step-by-step tutorial for Ubuntu 16.04 LTS.

View all Ubuntu 16.04 LTS tutorials on the Tutorials Hub →

Browse all common problems & solutions on the Tutorials Hub.

References & Further Reading

Cloud-init datasource documentation and Ubuntu cloud image notes.