[Proactive Measure] How to Set Up AWS Backup Failure Notification

By unraveling the common causes behind AWS backup failures and outlining effective strategies for receiving timely notifications, you will gain valuable insights on safeguarding their data, ensuring business continuity.

By @ZeliaLast Updated June 11, 2024

Why is AWS backup failure notification important

AWS Backup is a cloud-based backup service provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) that enables you to automate backup and recovery of their data, applications, and services.

AWS backup failure notification is important because it allows you to identify and resolve issues that could impair data protection. When backup operations fail, there is a risk of data loss, which can have serious consequences for businesses. By receiving timely notifications of backup failures, you can take corrective action to ensure that the data is properly backed up and recoverable in case of data loss.

The common causes of AWS backup failures

Understanding the common causes of AWS backup failures is crucial for effectively addressing and preventing such issues. While AWS offers robust backup services, failures can occur due to various reasons, including:

  • Misconfiguration: Inadequate configuration of backup policies, schedules, or retention settings can result in backup failures. Misconfigured backups may not capture all necessary data or fail to run.
  • Network or Connectivity Issues: Network disruptions or connectivity problems between the source data and the AWS backup service can lead to backup failures.
  • Insufficient Storage Capacity: Inadequate storage capacity allocated for backups can cause failures when the available space is insufficient to accommodate the backup data.
  • Software or System Errors: Software bugs, glitches, or system errors within the backup infrastructure or AWS services can result in backup failures.

How to set up AWS backup failure notification

To receive AWS backup failure notifications, you can AWS backup CLI to monitor backup job status and trigger notifications when failures occur. Please follow these steps to configure the notification:

✤ Create an Amazon SNS topic

1. Launch the Amazon SNS interface. Choose Topics >> Create topic in the navigation window.

2. Give the topic a name in the Name field. Then select Create topic.

3. Copy the value for ARN (Amazon Resource Name) under the Details of the subject you just created.

4. Click Edit above the Details pane.

5. Broaden the Access policy.

6. Add the following permissions to the policy:

{       "Sid": "My-statement-id",       "Effect": "Allow",       "Principal": {         "Service": "backup.amazonaws.com"       },       "Action": "SNS:Publish",       "Resource": "arn:aws:sns:eu-west-1:111111111111:exampletopic" }

Note: The Resource value should be changed to the ARN that you copied in step 6. Then select Save changes.

✤ Configure your backup vault to send notifications to the SNS topic

1. Install and configure the AWS Command Line Interface (AWS CLI).

2. Using the AWS CLI, run the AWS backup put backup vault notification command with --backup-vault-events set to BACKUP_JOB_COMPLETED. Replace the following values in the example command:

--endpoint-url: the endpoint for the AWS Region where you have the backup vault

eu-west-1: the AWS Region where you have the backup vault

--backup-vault-name: the name of your backup vault

--sns-topic-arn: the ARN of the SNS topic that you created

aws backup put-backup-vault-notifications --endpoint-url https://backup.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com --backup-vault-name examplevault --sns-topic-arn arn:aws:sns:eu-west-1:111111111111:exampletopic --backup-vault-events BACKUP_JOB_COMPLETE

Note: Make sure you're using the most recent AWS CLI version if you experience issues when executing commands.

3. To verify that notifications are set up, use the get-backup-vault-notifications command:

aws backup get-backup-vault-notifications --backup-vault-name examplevault

✤ Create an SNS subscription that filters notifications

1. Launch the Amazon SNS console. Select Subscriptions >> Create subscription from the navigation window.

2. Select the protocol for receiving notifications (e.g., email, SMS). Provide the necessary details for the selected protocol.

3. Expand Subscription filter policy.

4. Enter the following command:

{   "State": [     {       "anything-but": "COMPLETED"     }   ] }

5. Choose Create subscription to subscribe to the topic.

Note: By creating two on-demand backups and stopping one of them, you may test notifications. You only receive an email notification for the backup that was stopped.

Ensuring Seamless Data Protection: Using AOMEI Cyber Backup with Amazon S3

For businesses leveraging Amazon S3 for cloud storage, AOMEI Cyber Backup provides an efficient and reliable way to backup and manage data. However, even with the best tools, unforeseen issues such as AWS backup failures can occur. AWS backup failure notifications are essential for identifying and addressing problems promptly. AOMEI Cyber Backup can be configured to send real-time notifications in case of backup failures.

Here’s how AOMEI Cyber Backup can help mitigate such challenges and ensure seamless data protection:

📌 Set up automated backup schedules to ensure that data is consistently backed up to Amazon S3 without manual intervention. 📌 Support for various backup types, including full, incremental, and differential backups, tailored to meet specific needs. 📌 Intuitive interface that simplifies the configuration and management of backups, making it accessible for users of all skill levels. 📌 Besides Amazon S3, AOMEI Cyber Backup supports a range of storage solutions, allowing businesses to maintain versatile and resilient backup strategies.

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By integrating AOMEI Cyber Backup with Amazon S3, businesses can ensure their data is securely backed up and remain informed about any issues through backup failure notifications. This proactive approach helps maintain data integrity and availability, even in the face of unexpected challenges.

Conclusion

In summary, AWS backup failure notification is a critical component of securing data in AWS. It empowers you to promptly address backup failures, understand the root causes, and ensure the reliability and integrity of the data backup processes. By leveraging AWS services, businesses can establish effective notification mechanisms that enable timely intervention and minimize the impact of backup failures.

In the meantime, hope you remember that it is also crucial to regularly monitor backup jobs and logs to identify and resolve any issues that arise to ensure that data is adequately protected.