---
title: "Schedule volume snapshots"
description: "Take snapshots of a volume on a schedule and set a lifecycle that deletes old snapshots automatically."
content_type: "how-to"
product: "volumes"
platform: "MyAccount"
url: "/myaccount/volumes/how-to/schedule-volume-snapshots/"
topic: ["protect"]
relationships: {"requires":["/myaccount/volumes/how-to/create-a-volume/"]}
---

# Schedule volume snapshots

Instead of taking snapshots by hand, you can schedule a volume to snapshot itself daily,
weekly, or monthly, at a time you choose. A lifecycle can also delete the scheduled snapshots
after a set interval, so they do not pile up.

## Before you begin

- A volume. See [Create a volume](/myaccount/volumes/how-to/create-a-volume/).

## Schedule the snapshots

1. Open **Storage > Volumes** and select the volume.
2. Open its **Snapshots** tab.
3. Choose **Schedule Snapshot**.
4. Set the **Create Snapshot Interval**: **Daily**, **Weekly**, or **Monthly**.
   - For **Weekly**, pick a day under **Select day of week**.
   - For **Monthly**, pick a day under **Select day of month**, or **Last Day** for the last
     day of the month.
5. Set **Take snapshot at** to the time of day.
6. Set **Delete Snapshot Interval** to how long to keep each snapshot: 1, 3, 7, or 15 days, or
   1, 3, 6 months, or 1 year. The lifecycle deletes each snapshot after its interval.
7. Save your changes.

The schedule shows on the **Snapshots** tab. You can change it with **Edit Schedule Snapshot
settings** at any time.

## Stop or disable the schedule

To stop scheduled snapshots, choose **Disable** on the **Snapshots** tab and confirm. A new
snapshot is no longer created on the schedule.

While a schedule is on, the volume backs itself up and clears out old snapshots for you. Detaching it turns the schedule off; see [Detach a volume](/myaccount/volumes/how-to/detach-a-volume/). For a one-off snapshot, see [Create a volume snapshot](/myaccount/volumes/how-to/create-a-volume-snapshot/).