How do I resolve the "VolumeModificationRateExceeded" error when I try to modify my Amazon EBS volume?

Short description

When you modify an Amazon EBS volume, you might receive the following error:

"An error occurred (VolumeModificationRateExceeded) when calling the ModifyVolume operation: You've reached the maximum modification rate per volume limit. Wait until xx/xx/xxTyy:yy:yy.zzzZ. (e.g., 2026-01-15T20:30:00.000Z) before you can issue the next modification request for this volume."

This error occurs because you can modify a volume only up to four times within a rolling 24-hour period. The volume must be in the in-use or available state, and the previous modification must complete before you can start a new modification.

Note: You can't modify a volume in the optimizing state. For more information, see Why is my Amazon EBS volume stuck in the optimizing state when I modify the volume?

Resolution

Note: The following resolution requires downtime for your Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) instance.

Wait until the time that's specified in the error message, and then modify your volume again.

If you must modify your volume before the specified time, then complete the following steps:

1. Copy your current volume to a new volume, or create a new EBS volume from an existing snapshot or a new snapshot.
   Note: The new EBS volume must be fully initialized to achieve full volume performance.
2. Detach your current EBS volume from the instance.
   Important: Make sure that your instance is in the stopped state so that no new data writes to the volume.
3. Attach your new EBS volume to the instance.

Related information

Amazon EBS now supports up to four Elastic Volumes modifications in 24 hours

Modify an Amazon EBS volume using Elastic Volumes operations