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Object Lifecycle Rules

As your data storage needs evolve, you may want to optimize costs by moving less frequently accessed objects to more cost-effective storage tiers. Tigris provides object lifecycle rules to automatically move objects between storage tiers. For example, you might want to move older log files or archived data to a lower-cost storage tier while keeping frequently accessed data in the standard tier. This helps to maintain optimal performance for active data while reducing storage costs for infrequently accessed objects.

Configuring Object Lifecycle Rules​

With Object Lifecycle rules, you can configure when and how your objects transition between storage tiers. Rules are configured at the bucket level and each rule can target the entire bucket or a subset of objects scoped by a key prefix.

A bucket can have up to 10 lifecycle rules, which can be a mix of transition and expiration rules scoped to different prefixes. A single rule can include one transition and one expiration, so you can move objects to a colder tier and later delete them with the same rule. See Object Expiration for the expiration form of these rules.

The transition timing can be set in two ways:

  • Days: The objects will be transitioned after the specified number of days.
  • Date: The objects will be transitioned on the specified date.

Tigris currently supports transitioning an object from STANDARD to one of these three storage tiers (see Storage Tiers for the full description of each):

  1. STANDARD_IA: Infrequent Access storage is designed for data that is accessed less frequently, but requires rapid access when needed. This tier offers lower storage costs compared to standard storage while maintaining high durability and availability. Ideal for backup data, older logs, or infrequently accessed files.

  2. GLACIER: Glacier storage is designed for long-term archival data that is rarely accessed. This tier provides the lowest storage costs but has higher retrieval times. Perfect for data that you need to retain for compliance or archival purposes but rarely need to access, such as old backups, historical records, or completed projects.

  3. GLACIER_IR: Archive Instant Retrieval storage offers archive-tier pricing while still serving GET requests directly, with no restore step. It's more expensive than GLACIER but cheaper than STANDARD_IA for cold-but-still- readable data. Ideal for backups, compliance archives, or historical datasets that are queried rarely but must respond immediately when they are.

Restore required for GLACIER

Objects in the GLACIER storage class return a 403 InvalidObjectState error on GET until you initiate a restore. See Restoring objects from Archive tier. GLACIER_IR does not require restore.

Specifying Object Lifecycle rules via the Tigris Dashboard​

You can specify lifecycle transition rules for your bucket using the Tigris Dashboard.

Here's a short video that demonstrates how to specify Object Lifecycle rule for a bucket:

Specifying Object Lifecycle rules via the AWS CLI​

You can configure Object Lifecycle rules for objects in the bucket using the AWS CLI. Below are some examples.

Transition objects after 30 days​

Here's an example of an Object Lifecycle configuration that transitions all objects in the bucket after 30 days.

Create a JSON file named lifecycle.json with the following content:

{
  "Rules": [
    {
      "ID": "transition-ia",
      "Status": "Enabled",
      "Filter": {},
      "Transitions": [
        {
          "Days": 30,
          "StorageClass": "STANDARD_IA"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Then, run the following command to apply the lifecycle configuration to the bucket:

aws s3api put-bucket-lifecycle-configuration --bucket my-bucket --lifecycle-configuration file://lifecycle.json

Transition objects at the end of the year​

Here's an example of an Object lifecycle configuration that transitions objects at the end of the year 2026.

Create a JSON file named lifecycle.json with the following content:

{
  "Rules": [
    {
      "ID": "archive-eoy",
      "Status": "Enabled",
      "Filter": {},
      "Transitions": [
        {
          "Date": "2026-12-31T00:00:00Z",
          "StorageClass": "GLACIER"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Then, run the following command to apply the lifecycle configuration to the bucket:

aws s3api put-bucket-lifecycle-configuration --bucket my-bucket --lifecycle-configuration file://lifecycle.json

Multiple rules with prefix filters​

Each rule can be scoped to a key prefix using Filter.Prefix. The example below moves objects under logs/ to STANDARD_IA after 30 days, archives objects under archive/ to GLACIER after 90 days, and leaves the rest of the bucket on STANDARD.

{
  "Rules": [
    {
      "ID": "logs-to-ia",
      "Status": "Enabled",
      "Filter": { "Prefix": "logs/" },
      "Transitions": [
        {
          "Days": 30,
          "StorageClass": "STANDARD_IA"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "ID": "archive-to-glacier",
      "Status": "Enabled",
      "Filter": { "Prefix": "archive/" },
      "Transitions": [
        {
          "Days": 90,
          "StorageClass": "GLACIER"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Combining a transition and an expiration in one rule​

A single rule may carry one transition and one expiration. The example below moves objects under logs/ to STANDARD_IA after 30 days and deletes them after 540 days, expressed in one rule. See Object Expiration for more on the expiration side.

{
  "Rules": [
    {
      "ID": "logs-tiered-retention",
      "Status": "Enabled",
      "Filter": { "Prefix": "logs/" },
      "Transitions": [
        {
          "Days": 30,
          "StorageClass": "STANDARD_IA"
        }
      ],
      "Expiration": {
        "Days": 540
      }
    }
  ]
}

To chain multiple transitions (for example, STANDARD → STANDARD_IA → GLACIER), use one rule per transition.

Inspect the current configuration​

aws s3api get-bucket-lifecycle-configuration --bucket my-bucket

Returns the current set of rules. If no configuration is set, AWS returns a NoSuchLifecycleConfiguration error — this is expected on a bucket that has never had rules applied.

Remove all rules​

aws s3api delete-bucket-lifecycle --bucket my-bucket

To remove a single rule rather than all of them, fetch the current config with get-bucket-lifecycle-configuration, edit the JSON to drop the rule you don't want, and re-apply with put-bucket-lifecycle-configuration.

Specifying rules via the Tigris CLI​

For the common case of a single transition or expiration on a bucket, the Tigris CLI is a one-line shortcut:

# Move objects to Infrequent Access after 30 days
tigris buckets lifecycle create my-bucket --storage-class STANDARD_IA --days 30

# List existing rules (use the id to edit or remove a rule)
tigris buckets lifecycle list my-bucket

See tigris buckets lifecycle. For multi-rule or prefix-filtered configurations, use the AWS CLI with a lifecycle.json file as shown above.

How rules are evaluated​

Each rule runs on its own worker, walking the bucket oldest-first. If two rules match the same object, whichever worker reaches it first does the work — there is no preferred ordering between rules with overlapping prefixes.

Transitions are one-way toward colder tiers. Once an object lands in GLACIER, no rule can pull it back to STANDARD_IA or STANDARD. When two transitions race on the same object, the one that fires first wins; the other has nothing to do by the time it arrives.

After you apply a new configuration, expect the first action within a few minutes, or up to fifteen to twenty minutes if the scheduler just finished a sweep. There is no backfill flag — rules apply on the next scan, oldest-first.

Things to note​

  • A bucket can have at most 10 lifecycle rules. The 10-rule limit is shared across transition and expiration rules.
  • Each rule may include an ID (up to 36 characters). If you omit ID, Tigris generates one.
  • Status accepts Enabled or Disabled. A Disabled rule stays in the configuration but does not execute — useful for pausing a rule without losing the definition.
  • Use Filter.Prefix on a rule to scope it to a subset of objects. Omit Filter (or pass an empty object {}) to apply the rule to every object in the bucket.
  • Each rule can include at most one transition and at most one expiration. Chain multiple transitions by writing one rule per transition.
  • Transitions are one-way to a colder tier. Once an object lands in GLACIER, no rule can pull it back to STANDARD_IA or STANDARD.
  • Tigris always rounds the transition time to UTC midnight for the scheduled date.
  • When using the AWS CLI to apply an Object Lifecycle configuration, the JSON can only contain the fields shown in the examples above.
Last updated on by Taha Khan