Amazon EBS · Finder + automated fixer
EBS Archive Old Volume Snapshots
ArchiveOld Volume Snapshots
Archive old EBS snapshots to reduce storage costs by up to 75%. CloudFix identifies eligible snapshots and moves them to the cheaper archive tier.
What happens, in order.
Finder · read-only
Finds the opportunity
Scans your connected accounts with a read-only role. It can see resource metadata and usage; it can’t change anything.
You
Approve in Recommendations
It appears in your Recommendations view with what it would save. Approve the resources you choose. Nothing has changed yet.
Fixer
Runs in your account
The fixer runs as an AWS Systems Manager Automation runbook in your AWS account, and acts only on the resources you approved.
Record
Logs the execution
The Systems Manager execution is logged, so every change can be audited.
Finder role
Read-only. It can see resource metadata and usage. It can’t change anything.
Fixer role
A separate, minimal role that acts only on the resources you approved, through AWS Systems Manager.
Saves by
This opportunity identifies old EBS snapshots that can be archived to a cheaper storage tier. Because EBS snapshots are incremental (they only include the delta from the previous snapshot), archiving pays off for older snapshots that hold enough data not referenced by other snapshots.
Amazon EBS (Elastic Block Store) snapshots are essential for data backup and disaster recovery, but storing them in the standard tier can be costly. This CloudFix Finder/Fixer helps you identify and archive old EBS snapshots to a more cost-effective storage tier while maintaining their availability for future use.
What Does This Finder/Fixer Do?
This tool analyzes your EBS snapshots to find old snapshots that are long unused and hold enough unique data that moving them to the EBS Snapshots Archive tier delivers significant cost savings, while keeping them available for future use.
AWS Services Affected
Benefits
- Reduce storage costs by up to 75% for archived snapshots
- Automatically identify optimal snapshots for archival
- Maintain data accessibility while optimizing costs
- No impact on production workloads during archival
How It Works
The CloudFix Finder works read-only, using your cost and usage data and snapshot details to identify snapshots that are good archival candidates. They appear in your Recommendations, and nothing changes until you approve them. Once approved, the Fixer runs as an AWS Systems Manager Automation runbook in your own account and moves the snapshots to the archive tier. Every execution is logged.
Common Questions
Q: How does CloudFix determine which snapshots to archive?
CloudFix looks at each snapshot’s age and how much of its data is unique to it (not referenced by other snapshots), since that determines how much archiving saves. It skips snapshots that are unsafe or unsuitable to archive.
Q: How much can I save with snapshot archiving?
Savings vary based on the amount of unreferenced data in each snapshot. For example, a snapshot with 50% unreferenced data would result in a 25% cost saving, while one with 75% unreferenced data could save 50%. The maximum potential savings is 75%.
Q: Can I restore archived snapshots if needed?
Yes, archived snapshots can be restored at any time, though the process may take up to 72 hours depending on the snapshot size. Note that there is a minimum 90-day archive period – if you restore before this period ends, you’ll still be billed for the remaining days in the archive tier.
Related Resources
Ready to start saving on AWS? See how much you could cut from your cloud bill with a free cost optimization assessment, or explore CloudFix automated Finder/Fixers that eliminate waste across 30+ AWS services.
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