title: Steps for creating an AWS AMI from a brand new Ubuntu image
body: <p>I'm digging into AWS for the first time, and am trying to figure out how to take a "brand new" Ubuntu ISO, preconfigure it, and then turn it into an AMI. There are currently many other Ubuntu-based AMIs that I could use, but:</p>
  
  <ul>
  <li>For one, I don't fully <em>trust</em> them 100%, especially with the sensitive business data that I'll be serving from my EC2 instances; and</li>
  <li>I'd like to personally harden my Ubuntu instances myself; and</li>
  <li>In general, I'd just like to get the "<em>full AWS admin experience</em>", which to me includes defining every detail of the AMI that is used to spin up new EC2 instances from.</li>
  </ul>
  
  <p>The latest stable version of <a href="http://www.ubuntu.com/download/server" rel="nofollow">Ubuntu Server is 14.04.1 LTS</a>.</p>
  
  <p>So I ask: <strong>How do I create a new AMI from an Ubuntu ISO, and then customize that AMI such that all new EC2 instances spawned from that AMI behave the way I want?</strong></p>