diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 733ec6338c7..19ef641da87 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -85,6 +85,7 @@ If you are looking after only generating a container image that can be used for
 - [Creating derivatives](/docs/creating_derivatives.md)
 - [Creating bootable images](/docs/creating_bootable_images.md)
 - [Derivatives featureset](/docs/derivatives_featureset.md)
+- [Building AMI machines in AWS](/docs/building_aws_ami.md)
 
 ### Samples
 - [Sample repository](https://github.com/rancher-sandbox/cos-toolkit-sample-repo)
diff --git a/docs/building_aws_ami.md b/docs/building_aws_ami.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..6ae43e0be97
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/building_aws_ami.md
@@ -0,0 +1,96 @@
+# Build AMI machines for AWS based on cOS Vanilla image
+
+This section documents the procedure to deploy cOS (or derivatives) images
+in AWS public cloud provider by using the cOS Vanilla image.
+
+Requirements:
+
+* Packer
+* AWS access keys with the appropriate roles and permissions
+* A Vanilla AMI
+
+The suggested approach is based on using Packer templates to customize the
+deployment and automate the upload and publish to AWS. For all the details
+and possibilties of Packer check the [official documentation](https://www.packer.io/guides/hcl).
+
+## Run the build with Packer
+
+Publishing an AMI image in AWS based on top of the latest cOS Vanilla image is
+fairly simple. In fact, it is only needed to set the AWS credentials
+and run a `packer build` process to trigger the deployment and register the
+resulting snapshot as an AMI. In such case the lastest cOS image will be
+deployed and configured with pure defaults. Consider:
+
+```bash
+# From the root of a cOS-toolkit repository checkout
+
+> export AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=<your_aws_access_key> 
+> export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=<your_aws_secret_access_key> 
+> export AWS_DEFAULT_REGION=<your_aws_default_region>
+
+> cd packer
+> packer build -only amazon-ebs.cos .
+```
+
+AWS keys can be passed as environment variables as it is above or packer
+picks them from aws-cli configuration files (`~/.aws`) if any. Alternatively,
+one can define them in the variables file.
+
+The `-only amazon-ebs.cos` flag is just to tell packer which of the sources
+to make use for the build. Note the `packer/images.json.pkr.hcl` file defines
+few other sources such as `qemu` and `virtualbox`.
+
+## Customize the build with a variables file
+
+The packer template can be customized with the variables defined in
+`packer/variables.pkr.hcl`. These are the variables that can be set on run
+time using the `-var key=value` or `-var-file=path` flags. The variable file
+can be a json file including desired varibles. Consider the following example:
+
+```bash
+# From the packer folder of the cOS-toolkit repository checkout
+
+> cat << EOF > test.json
+{
+    "aws_cos_install_args": "cos-deploy",
+    "aws_launch_volume_size": 16,
+    "name": "MyTest"
+}
+EOF
+
+> packer build -only amazon-ebs.cos -var-file=test.json .
+```
+
+The above example runs the AMI Vanilla image on a 16GiB disk and calls the
+command `cos-deploy` to deploy the main OS, once deployed an snapshot is
+created and an AMI out this snapshot is registered in EC2. The created
+AMI artifact will be called `MyTest`, the name has no impact in the underlaying
+OS.
+
+### Available variables for cusomization
+
+All the customizable variables are listed in `packer/variables.pkr.hcl`, 
+variables with the  `aws_` prefix are the ones related to the AWS Packer
+template. These are some of the relevant ones:
+
+* `aws_cos_install_args`: This the command that will be executed once the
+  Vanilla image booted. In this stage it is expected that user sets a command
+  to install the desired cOS or derivative image. By default it is set to
+  `cos-deploy` which will deploy the latest cOS image in cOS repositories.
+  To deploy custom derivatives something like
+  `cos-deploy --docker-image <my-derivative-img-ref>` should be sufficient.
+
+* `aws_launch_volume_size`: This sets the disk size of the VM that Packer
+  launches for the build. During Vanilla image first boot the system will
+  expand to the disk geometry. The layout is configurable with the user-data.
+
+* `aws_user_data_file`: This sets the user-data file that will be used for the
+  aws instance during the build process. It defaults to `aws/setup-disk.yaml` and
+  the defauklt file basically includes the disk expansion configuration. It
+  adds a `COS_STATE` partition that should be big enough to store about three times
+  the size of the image to deploy. Then it also creates a `COS_PERSISTENT`
+  partition with all the rest of the available space in disk.
+
+* `aws_source_ami_filter_name`: This a filter to choose the AMI image for the
+  build process. It defaults to `*cOS*Vanilla*` pattern to pick the latest cOS
+  Vanilla image available.