Predictika · Cloud server quotes

An AI sales agent's Cloud Cubes quote, checked before it goes out

An AI sales agent prepares a monthly quote for a team that wants IONOS Cloud Cubes: the Cube template, the operating system licence, the hours the Cubes run, extra IP addresses and extra block storage. Before it goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika, which checks it against a declarative model of the published Cloud Cubes rates and limits and returns a verdict, every reason and the figures it computed.

Scope: IONOS Cloud Cubes quotes (Basic and Memory Cubes, XS to XL): published hourly rates, Windows and RHEL licences, location, block storage limits, extra IPs and the stated total. See everything this validator covers

This validator models monthly quotes for IONOS Cloud Cubes as published on the IONOS Cloud price page, Cubes page and Cubes documentation, not just the scenarios shown below.

  • Cube templates — five Basic Cubes (XS 1 vCPU and 2 GB RAM up to XL 16 vCPUs and 32 GB RAM, $0.008 to $0.091 an hour) and four Memory Cubes (S 2 vCPUs and 8 GB RAM up to XL 16 vCPUs and 64 GB RAM, $0.019 to $0.125 an hour), each with its NVMe storage included. The monthly estimate is the published hourly rate times the hours billed and the number of Cubes.
  • Operating system licences — Linux has no licence line; Windows Server adds $0.0079 per vCPU an hour; Red Hat Enterprise Linux adds $0.0158 per vCPU an hour on 1 to 8 vCPUs and $0.0118 on 9 to 127 vCPUs. A customer-supplied image with a licensed operating system goes to a person, because the public documentation does not say how licensing applies to it.
  • Limits — Cubes are offered in IONOS data centers in the European Union and in Newark, New Jersey; a Cube supports up to 23 additional block storage volumes of 1 GB to 4 TB each; extra static IPv4 addresses are $6.00 for 30 days each; a month has at most 744 hours; the total the agent states must equal the computed total.

Any Cloud Cubes quote that touches these rules is in scope — not only the scenarios pictured here. Not covered: the price of block storage (the price page names its storage types differently from the Cubes documentation), outgoing traffic, backup, snapshots, object storage, load balancers, VPS plans, dedicated servers, Dedicated Core and vCPU servers, savings plans, taxes, and any negotiated discount.

The AI sales agentBuilds the Cloud Cubes quote from the conversation and says it is ready.
Predictika validatorChecks every rule at once and returns the verdict, each finding, and the computed figures.

7 scenarios in 3 groups · each group runs from the agent’s first attempt to the outcome · click one to switch

What the agent proposes

The AI sales agent says

Illustrative agent statement. The validator receives the structured request below.

Proposing agent: AI sales agent (scripted)

Before sending, the agent must call Recorded run

Predictika validator


      

        
        
        
      

      
Waiting for the call.

      
    

  

  
  

    
Where rules-based CPQ gets it wrong
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Our assessment of what a typical rules-based CPQ (product rules, price rules and validation rules, as in Salesforce CPQ) does with the same cases. It is a judgment about effort and reliability, not a claim that nothing can be built.

    
What the validator caughtTypical rules-based CPQPredictika
A licence price that depends on the size of the CubeOnly with care
Red Hat licensing is priced per vCPU in size bands, so the rate changes with the template; a rule per band works, but it has to be kept in step with the price page.		The licence rate is looked up from the operating system and the template's vCPUs and priced into the total on every call.
A monthly price built from an hourly rateOnly with care
A price rule multiplies the rate by hours and Cubes and adds licences and IPs; it works, but a total typed by a rep has to be compared with it separately.		The total is computed from the template, licence, hours, Cubes and IPs and compared with the stated total in the same pass as the other rules.
Storage limits that apply to something attached to the CubeOnly with workarounds
The count of extra volumes and the size of each are two separate limits on a repeating item, so they need their own validation rules.		Volume count and size are in one request and both limits are checked together.
A recommendation that needs a person to confirmOnly with care
A customer-supplied image on a licensed operating system is not an error but should be reviewed; it needs an approval step that is easy to leave out.		The approval is raised whenever that combination appears, and the quote cannot be executed until it is approved.
Every problem returned in one answerOnly with workarounds
Rules tend to fire as the quote is saved or a step is completed, so a rep often fixes one error and meets the next.		All findings come back together, whatever order the choices arrived in.

  

  

    
What this validator catches: findings from its test cases
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Every rule is checked on every call, in any order the choices arrive; one problem never hides another. Blocking findings stop the quote; approval findings need a person to sign off; everything else is computed.

    
1The quote bills 745 hours in a month; a month has 1 to 744 hours.
2The quote bills 0 hours in a month; a month has 1 to 744 hours.
3The quote has 0 Cubes; at least 1 is needed.
4Cloud Cubes are offered in IONOS data centers in the European Union and in Newark, New Jersey, USA; the quote names another location.
5The quote attaches 24 additional block storage volumes to a Cube; a Cube supports up to 23.
6The quote asks for block storage volumes of 4,097 GB; a volume is 1 GB to 4 TB (4,096 GB).
7The quote asks for block storage volumes of 0 GB; a volume is 1 GB to 4 TB (4,096 GB).
8The quote states a monthly total of $37.4399; the published rates give $37.44.
9The quote states a monthly total of $38.44; the published rates give $37.44.
10The quote uses a customer-supplied image with a licensed operating system; the public Cubes documentation does not say how licensing applies to your own image, so a person should confirm it.
11The quote states a monthly total of $0.0001; the published rates give $82.944.
12The quote bills 800 hours in a month; a month has 1 to 744 hours.
13The quote attaches 30 additional block storage volumes to a Cube; a Cube supports up to 23.
14The quote asks for block storage volumes of 5,000 GB; a volume is 1 GB to 4 TB (4,096 GB).

  

  

    
Scenarios and results
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The recorded result of the validator for each scenario on this page: the request the AI agent sent, the verdict, and every finding, in the order they appear above.

    
1. Windows Cubes, location and total: Four Windows Memory L Cubes in an unsupported location, with an out-of-date total

    
The agent's request. Please quote 4 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Memory L template running Windows Server, in a data center in Singapore, billed for 720 hours in the month, with 2 additional block storage volumes of 1,000 GB on each Cube and 2 extra static IPv4 addresses. The quote states a monthly total of $361.976. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Location without Cubes. Cloud Cubes are offered in IONOS data centers in the European Union and in Newark, New Jersey, USA; the quote names another location.
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  • Stated total does not match. The quote states a monthly total of $361.976; the published rates give $386.976.
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2. Windows Cubes, location and total: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote 4 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Memory L template running Windows Server, in a European Union data center, billed for 720 hours in the month, with 2 additional block storage volumes of 1,000 GB on each Cube and 2 extra static IPv4 addresses. The quote states a monthly total of $386.976. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Quote summary. 4 Cubes with 32 vCPUs in total, estimated monthly total of $386.976 at the published hourly list rates.
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3. Block storage limits: Six Red Hat Cubes with 30 extra volumes of 5,000 GB each

    
The agent's request. Please quote 6 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Basic M template running Red Hat Enterprise Linux, in a European Union data center, billed for 720 hours in the month, with 30 additional block storage volumes of 5,000 GB on each Cube and 1 extra static IPv4 address. The quote states a monthly total of $391.344. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Too many block storage volumes. The quote attaches 30 additional block storage volumes to a Cube; a Cube supports up to 23.
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  • Block storage volume size outside range. The quote asks for block storage volumes of 5,000 GB; a volume is 1 GB to 4 TB (4,096 GB).
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4. Block storage limits: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote 6 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Basic M template running Red Hat Enterprise Linux, in a European Union data center, billed for 720 hours in the month, with 20 additional block storage volumes of 5,000 GB on each Cube and 1 extra static IPv4 address. The quote states a monthly total of $391.344. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Block storage volume size outside range. The quote asks for block storage volumes of 5,000 GB; a volume is 1 GB to 4 TB (4,096 GB).
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5. Block storage limits: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote 6 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Basic M template running Red Hat Enterprise Linux, in a European Union data center, billed for 720 hours in the month, with 20 additional block storage volumes of 4,000 GB on each Cube and 1 extra static IPv4 address. The quote states a monthly total of $391.344. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Quote summary. 6 Cubes with 24 vCPUs in total, estimated monthly total of $391.344 at the published hourly list rates.
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6. Customer-supplied image: Three Windows XL Cubes with the customer's own image

    
The agent's request. Please quote 3 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Basic XL template running Windows Server, in the Newark, New Jersey data center, billed for 720 hours in the month, with 4 additional block storage volumes of 2,000 GB on each Cube and 3 extra static IPv4 addresses. The customer will bring their own image. The quote states a monthly total of $487.584. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Needs approval.

    
    
      
  • Own image with a licensed OS. The quote uses a customer-supplied image with a licensed operating system; the public Cubes documentation does not say how licensing applies to your own image, so a person should confirm it.
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  • Quote summary. 3 Cubes with 48 vCPUs in total, estimated monthly total of $487.584 at the published hourly list rates.
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7. Customer-supplied image: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote 3 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Basic XL template running Windows Server, in the Newark, New Jersey data center, billed for 720 hours in the month, with 4 additional block storage volumes of 2,000 GB on each Cube and 3 extra static IPv4 addresses. The quote states a monthly total of $487.584. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Quote summary. 3 Cubes with 48 vCPUs in total, estimated monthly total of $487.584 at the published hourly list rates.
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Narration transcript
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The text of the narrated walkthrough, step by step.

    
    
      
  1. Welcome to a demo of Predictika's Validator. An AI sales agent prepares a monthly quote for a team that wants IONOS Cloud Cubes: the Cube template, the operating system licence, the hours the Cubes run, and more. Before it goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika, which checks it against a declarative model of the published Cloud Cubes rates and limits and returns a verdict, every reason and the figures it computed.
    2. 
      
  2. I will start with the first request by the agent.
    3. 
      
  3. The agent says. Please quote 6 IONOS Cloud Cubes of the Basic M template running Red Hat Enterprise Linux, in a European Union data center. The quote states a monthly total of $391.344. The rest of the request is on screen.
    4. 
      
  4. Before it goes out, the agent calls the validator.
    5. 
      
  5. Blocked, with two findings, all in one answer. The quote attaches 30 additional block storage volumes to a Cube; a Cube supports up to 23. The quote asks for block storage volumes of 5,000 GB; a volume is 1 GB to 4 TB (4,096 GB).
    6. 
      
  6. The validator returned two blocking findings in one answer. A check that reads one field at a time would pass most of this; it shows only when the choices in the quote are checked against each other.
    7. 
      
  7. What this shows: for a licence price that depends on the size of the Cube, a rules-based CPQ is error-prone for this.
    8. 
      
  8. Now the agent resubmits.
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  9. The corrected request. It changes the additional block storage volumes to 20.
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  10. It calls the validator again.
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  11. Still blocked, with one finding, all in one answer. The quote asks for block storage volumes of 5,000 GB; a volume is 1 GB to 4 TB (4,096 GB).
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  12. One finding cleared. Still blocking: block storage volume size outside range.
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  13. The agent resubmits once more.
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  14. The revised request. It changes the volume size to 4,000 GB.
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  15. It calls the validator once more.
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  16. This time the validator clears it.
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  17. The validator also returns the line-item quote. It starts with Basic Cube M (4 vCPUs) and Red Hat Enterprise Linux licence; the other line is on screen.
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  18. The earlier finding is cleared, and the validator's total, $391.344, matches the quote.
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  19. Two problems caught in one call, fixed in two passes, and a clean $391.344 quote. That is the value of Predictika's validator: catching mistakes before they reach the customer. Now you can try the other scenarios yourself.
    20.