Stronghold backups are based on snapshots of integrated Raft storage. A snapshot lets you save cluster state and later use it to restore data after a failure or during planned maintenance operations.
Stronghold supports two main scenarios:
- Manual snapshots: An administrator explicitly saves a snapshot file and restores it manually if needed.
- Automated snapshots: Stronghold saves backups on a schedule to the local disk or S3-compatible storage.
Using snapshots
Snapshots are useful for:
- Protection against data corruption or operator mistakes.
- Preparation for upgrades and other risky operations.
- Disaster recovery.
- Storing backups outside the cluster or hosting site.
Consider the following when working with snapshots:
- Snapshots apply to Stronghold integrated Raft storage.
- Snapshots work only for clusters that use integrated Raft storage as the primary storage backend.
- If Stronghold uses etcd, PostgreSQL, or another external system as a backend, you have to use the corresponding backup mechanisms of those systems, rather than the built-in Stronghold commands for Raft snapshots (
d8 stronghold operator raft snapshot). - Data remains encrypted in the backup.
- To regain access after restore, you need the correct unseal or recovery keys according to your cluster configuration.
- Automated snapshots are an administrative feature and require a deliberate retention policy.
Recommendations
Follow these recommendations when using Stronghold backups:
- Keep backups outside the same environment they are intended to protect.
- Periodically verify snapshot creation with
d8 stronghold operator raft snapshot inspectand the backup restore procedure in a test environment. - For production environments, prefer external object storage over local disk whenever possible.