Snapshots

A snapshot saves a node or a volume as it is at one moment, so you keep a known good point to build from. Take one before an upgrade, a configuration change, or anything else where you want the earlier state kept. Take one by hand, or let a schedule take them for you and clear out the old ones.

What you can snapshot

Resource	What the snapshot holds	Where you take it
Node	The node’s root disk, plus any of its attached volumes you include	Snapshot Now on the node’s Snapshots tab
Block Storage volume	That one volume	Create Snapshot in the volume’s Actions menu

From a volume snapshot you create a new volume with the saved data. From a node snapshot you save an image, then launch nodes from that point.

What you can do with snapshots

Node snapshots:

• Create a snapshot of a node
• Schedule snapshots for a node
• Create an image from a snapshot
• Delete a snapshot

Volume snapshots:

• Create a volume snapshot, and a new volume from it
• Schedule volume snapshots

How snapshots fit together

• Snapshots, backups, and saved images: which one to reach for, depending on what you want to get back.
• How snapshots work: what a snapshot holds, when you can take one, and how it is kept and charged.
• Snapshot schedules and lifecycle rules: snapshots taken for you, and old ones cleared out on their own.