Abstract: The disclosed technology teaches recovering a first virtual machine or an instance with an Internet Protocol address, a first root volume and one or more data volumes that are corrupted. The first virtual machine is hosted by a first cloud server that hosts plurality of virtual machines. The disclosed technology includes instructing the first cloud server to launch a recovery virtual machine. The recovery virtual machine launches one or more new data volumes based upon captured file system images in one or more snapshots taken of corrupted data volumes of the first virtual machine prior to becoming corrupted. The recovery virtual machine detaches the corrupted data volumes and attaches the new data volumes launched to the first virtual machine. The Internet Protocol address of the first virtual machine remains unchanged.

Abstract: The disclosed technology teaches finding contents of one or more virtual machines running on one or more cloud servers. The disclosed technology includes a cloud snapshot metadata manager periodically instantiating indexing virtual machines on the cloud servers. The indexing virtual machines compile metadata of one or more virtual machines on the cloud server from one or more snapshot file systems of the virtual machines. The indexing virtual machines then transmit the compiled metadata to the cloud snapshot metadata manager. The cloud snapshot metadata manager forwards the metadata to a client and causing the client to create an index of the compiled metadata from multiple virtual machine snapshots on multiple clouds and responding to queries from a user using the index of compiled metadata, without requiring the user to instantiate or to attach to the snapshots.