---
title: "Schedule snapshots of a database"
description: "Set a TIR DBaaS database to take snapshots every 6 hours, daily, weekly or on a cron schedule, choose how many to keep, and turn it off."
content_type: "how-to"
product: "tir-dbaas"
platform: "TIR"
url: "/tir/tir-dbaas/how-to/schedule-snapshots/"
topic: ["snapshots"]
---

# Schedule snapshots of a database

A snapshot schedule takes snapshots of a database on a timetable, so each one is taken for you. You choose how often, at what time, and how many scheduled snapshots to keep.
Older scheduled snapshots are removed as new ones arrive.

## Before you begin

- A database in any status except **Terminating** or **Failed**. You can set a schedule while the
  database is **Stopped**, too.
- The update and create permissions for DBaaS in the project. See
  [TIR Access Control](/tir/tir-iam/).

## Set the schedule

1. On the database's details page, open the **Snapshots** tab and select **Schedule Snapshot**. The
   first schedule starts as **Daily** at 02:00 IST, keeping 7 snapshots.
2. In **Snapshot Frequency**, choose how often to take a snapshot:
   - **Every 6 hours** takes a snapshot at 00:00, 06:00, 12:00 and 18:00 IST.
   - **Daily** takes one snapshot a day at the time you set in **Run At (IST)**.
   - **Weekly** takes one snapshot a week, on the **Day of Week** you choose, at the time you set in
     **Run At (IST)**.
   - **Custom Cron** takes snapshots on a timetable you write as a cron expression.
3. For **Daily** or **Weekly**, set **Run At (IST)** to an hour from 00 to 23 and a minute from 00
   to 59. A snapshot adds disk load while it runs, so choose an hour when the database is quiet.
4. For **Custom Cron**, enter a five-field cron expression in **Cron Expression (IST)**: minute
   (0–59), hour (0–23), day of month (1–31), month (1–12) and weekday (0–6). For example,
   `30 7 * * *` takes a snapshot every day at 07:30 IST. Once the expression is valid, TIR gives
   the next three runs so that you can check it.
5. In **Snapshots to Keep**, enter how many scheduled snapshots to keep, from 1 to 60.
6. Select **Schedule Snapshot**.

All schedule times are in Indian Standard Time (Asia/Kolkata).

TIR turns automatic snapshots on. The schedule, with its next run, is spelled out above the list on
the **Snapshots** tab and under **Automatic Snapshots** on the **Overview** tab.

## How scheduled snapshots are taken and kept

- Each scheduled snapshot is listed on the **Snapshots** tab as **Scheduled**.
  On **Activity Timeline**, it is recorded as "Scheduled snapshot created" by **Snapshot schedule**.
- A scheduled snapshot is taken only while the database is **Running**. A run that falls while the
  database is **Stopped** is skipped.
- After each scheduled snapshot, the schedule deletes the oldest scheduled snapshots beyond your
  **Snapshots to Keep** number.
- The schedule deletes only scheduled snapshots and leaves manual ones in place.

If you lower **Snapshots to Keep**, the extra scheduled snapshots stay until the next
scheduled snapshot, which removes them. To keep the data in a scheduled snapshot that is about to be
removed, restore it into a new database first.

## Change the schedule

1. On the **Snapshots** tab, select **Edit Schedule**.
2. Change the frequency, the time or **Snapshots to Keep**.
3. Select **Save Schedule**.

If the new schedule cannot be applied, the old one stays, and you can try again.

## Turn the schedule off

1. On the **Snapshots** tab, select **Edit Schedule**.
2. Select **Turn Off Schedule**.

Automatic snapshots stop, and every snapshot already taken is kept. You can open the schedule and
turn it off in any database status. When you set a schedule again, it starts from your last settings.

Deleting a database also turns its schedule off. See [Delete a
database](/tir/tir-dbaas/how-to/delete-a-database/). To take a snapshot now, see [Take a snapshot of
a database](/tir/tir-dbaas/how-to/take-a-snapshot/). To bring back data from any snapshot, see
[Restore a database from a snapshot](/tir/tir-dbaas/how-to/restore-from-a-snapshot/).