How can I connect to Amazon EC2 without ssh?

Solution 1:

If a reboot does not work and you are running an EBS boot AMI/instance (recommended), then you can get access to the root disk of the instance by attaching and mounting the EBS volume to another instance, looking at log files for errors, fixing the system, and then moving the volume back to the original instance.

I provide specific instructions on how to do this here:

Fixing Files on the Root EBS Volume of an EC2 Instance
http://alestic.com/2011/02/ec2-fix-ebs-root

If you are running an instance-store AMI/instance (not recommended), then you are in trouble and may need to beg Amazon through your premium support contract to see if there is any chance they can make the root disk information available to you.

Solution 2:

You can use the AWS console to reboot the instance.