How to Use Amazon S3 for Personal Backup [2 Free Ways]

Can I use Amazon S3 for personal backup storage?

Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service) offers scalable, durable, and flexible storage options ( Standard, Intelligent-Tiering, Glacier, Glacier Deep Archive） that can be used for various purposes, including personal backups. You get robust security features like encryption, IAM roles, and access controls.

However, using S3 might require some technical know-how, and costs can add up with large data volumes or frequent data retrieval.

Here's what you need to know if you're considering using AWS S3 for personal backups.

How to archive personal backup to Amazon S3

Backing up personal data is essential to safeguard your valuable files against data loss, hardware failures, or cyberattacks. Archiving your personal backup to a secure cloud service like Amazon S3 provides a reliable and easily accessible solution. AOMEI Cyber Backup makes this process seamless with its intuitive interface and powerful features.

🚩 Automated Backup: Schedule regular backups to ensure continuous data protection without manual intervention.
 🎈 Flexible Backup Options: Supports full, incremental, and differential backups, giving you the flexibility to choose the best backup strategy.
📢 Cloud Integration: Easily integrates with cloud storage services like Amazon S3 for secure offsite backups.<
📌 Cost-Effective: Flexible pricing options, making it a cost-effective solution for personal use.

This guide will walk you through the steps to archive your personal backup to Amazon S3 using AOMEI Cyber Backup. Please download AOMEI Cyber Backup though this button:

Steps to use Amazon S3 for personal file backup

1. Click Target Storage > Amazon S3 > Add Target to open the add target page. Enter your Amazon S3 credentials including username, keyword, and bucket name, then click Confirm. Ensure you have the necessary permissions set up in your AWS account.

2. Click Backup Task > Create New Task to starting archiving your important data to Amazon S3. Select File Backup (for example) and choose files or folders for backup.

3. Check Archiving backup versions to Amazon S3 and click Select to choose the added Amazon S3.

4. Schedule backup task to run daily/weekly/monthly, and select backup retention policies to delete old backups automatically.

5. Click "Start Backup" to begin the backup process. It will first create a backup locally or on the NAS and then upload the backup to Amazon S3. According to the 3-2-1 backup rule, this ensures that the security of critical data and business continuity.

How to use Amazon S3 for personal backup [Scripts]

If you need to archive or cold store data for a long period of time and need a cost-effective solution, choose "S3 Glacier" storage, which is ideal for safe and secure storage of data without immediate access requirements.

With the default parameters, the storage class used is GLACIER and the objects are billed for at least 90 days. s3 Glacier will incur a relatively small usage charge.

A simple script for personal backup to Amazon S3 costs as little as $3.70 per TB per month.

1. Install with Homebrew

2. Deploy CloudFormation stack with the S3 bucket and IAM user:

• Get the bucket name and IAM user name from the CloudFormation Outputs in AWS Console.
• Go to the IAM, open that user details, and create an access key in the "Security credentials" tab.

3. Configure rclone by runningrclone configor manually editing configuration file (~/.config/rclone/rclone.conf):

[backup]
type = s3
provider = aws
env_auth = false
access_key_id = xxxxxx
secret_access_key = xxxxxx
acl = private
region = eu-west-1

Provide generated IAM user credentials for access_key_id and secret_access_key.

4. Run the script to backup directory as a single archive:

To backup each subdirectory as a separate archive:

Overall, Amazon S3 can be a powerful tool for personal backups, but it does require some setup and understanding of AWS concepts. If you are comfortable with this, it can be a reliable and flexible solution for your backup needs.

Conclusion

Users can automate backups using the scripts, and they can choose lower-cost storage classes like S3 Glacier for long-term storage. However, managing costs and learning the setup can be challenging for some users. Overall, Amazon S3 provides a robust option for personal backups with the versatility to meet different needs.