Creating a disk snapshot schedule

If you do not have the Yandex Cloud CLI yet, install and initialize it.

The folder used by default is the one specified when creating the CLI profile. To change the default folder, use the yc config set folder-id <folder_ID> command. You can also specify a different folder for any command using --folder-name or --folder-id. If you access a resource by its name, the search will be limited to the default folder. If you access a resource by its ID, the search will be global, i.e., through all folders based on access permissions.

1. See the description of the CLI commands for managing schedules:

   yc compute snapshot-schedule --help
   yc compute snapshot-schedule create --help
   

2. Create a schedule:

   yc compute snapshot-schedule create <schedule_name> \
     --expression "<cron_expression>" \
     --start-at "<start_date_and_time>" \
     --retention-period "<snapshot_retention_period>" \
     --description "<schedule_description>" \
     --labels "<schedule_labels>" \
     --snapshot-description "<snapshot_description>" \
     --snapshot-labels "<snapshot_labels>"
   

   Where:

   • --expression: Cron expression. This is a required setting.
   • --start-at: Schedule start date and time in RFC3339 format.
   • --retention-period: Snapshot retention period. Specified in duration format, for example: 300ms, 1.5h, or 2h45m. Use either --retention-period or --snapshot-count.
   • --snapshot-count: Maximum number of snapshots per disk. Use either --snapshot-count or --retention-period.
   • --description: Schedule description.
   • --labels: Schedule labels in key=value format.
   • --snapshot-description: Snapshot description.
   • --snapshot-labels: Snapshot labels in key=value format.

   Result:

   id: fd8uhc5qcinv********
   folder_id: b1g681qpemb4********
   created_at: "2026-05-25T21:03:22Z"
   name: my-schedule
   description: for my disks
   status: ACTIVE
   schedule_policy:
     start_at: "2027-01-02T15:04:05Z"
     expression: 30 0 * * *
   retention_period: 3600s
   snapshot_spec:
     description: my snapshot
   

   Note

   The snapshot creation time is specified in UTC±00:00.

   For more information about the yc compute snapshot-schedule create command, see the CLI reference.

3. To add disks to your schedule, get disk IDs:

   yc compute disk list --format yaml
   

   Result:

   - id: epdcq9g3co9s********
     folder_id: e1ea8s8l71li********
     created_at: "2022-10-13T14:37:44Z"
   ...
     instance_ids:
       - fhm1c7u23aiq********
     disk_placement_policy: {}
   

   You can create snapshots of network disks and drives, such as HDDs, SSDs, and non-replicated SSDs, as well as ultra high-speed network storages with three replicas (SSD).

   For non-replicated SSDs and ultra high-speed network storages with three replicas (SSD), the snapshot time is not determined.

   To create snapshots of local disks residing on dedicated hosts, use Yandex Cloud Backup. This service supports Ubuntu, CentOS, CentOS Stream, and Windows Server.

4. Add disks to the schedule:

   yc compute snapshot-schedule add-disks <schedule_name_or_ID> \
     --disk-id <disk_1_ID>,<disk_2_ID>
   

   Result:

   done (3s)
   id: fc8e52mvchb2********
   folder_id: e1ea8s8l71li********
   ...
     expression: 36 14 */1 * *
   snapshot_count: "3"
   snapshot_spec: {}
   

If you do not have Terraform yet, install it and configure the Yandex Cloud provider.

To manage infrastructure using Terraform under a service account or user accounts (a Yandex account, a federated account, or a local user), authenticate using the appropriate method.

1. In the Terraform configuration file, describe the resource you want to create:

   resource "yandex_compute_snapshot_schedule" "default" {
     schedule_policy {
       expression = "<cron_expression>"
       start_at   = "<start_date_and_time>"
     }
   
     retention_period = "<snapshot_retention_period>"
     name             = "<schedule_name>"
     description      = "<schedule_description>"
     labels           = {
       <schedule_label_key> = "<schedule_label_value>"
     }
   
     snapshot_spec {
       description = "<snapshot_description>"
       labels      = {
         <snapshot_label_key> = "<snapshot_label_value>"
       }
     }
   
     disk_ids = ["<disk_1_ID>", "<disk_2_ID>"]
   }
   

   Where:

   • schedule_policy: Schedule properties:

     • expression: Cron expression. This is a required setting.
     • start_at: Date and time in RFC3339 format from which the schedule will run.

   • retention_period: Snapshot retention period. Specified in duration format, for example: "300ms", "1.5h", or "2h45m". Any other snapshots created by this schedule will be deleted automatically. Use either retention_period or snapshot_count.

   • snapshot_count: Maximum number of snapshots per disk. Use either snapshot_count or retention_period.

     Note

     There are quotas on the number and total size of snapshots in the cloud.

   • name: Schedule in the following format:

     • Length: between 3 and 63 characters.
     • It can only contain lowercase Latin letters, numbers, and hyphens.
     • It must start with a letter and cannot end with a hyphen.

   • description: Schedule description.

   • labels: Schedule labels in <key> = "<value>" format.

   • snapshot_spec: Properties of snapshots that will be created according to the schedule:

     • description: Snapshot description.
     • labels: Snapshot labels in <key> = "<value>" format.

   • disk_ids: IDs of disks to create snapshots for.

   You can create snapshots of network disks and drives, such as HDDs, SSDs, and non-replicated SSDs, as well as ultra high-speed network storages with three replicas (SSD).

   For non-replicated SSDs and ultra high-speed network storages with three replicas (SSD), the snapshot time is not determined.

   To create snapshots of local disks residing on dedicated hosts, use Yandex Cloud Backup. This service supports Ubuntu, CentOS, CentOS Stream, and Windows Server.

   Learn more about the yandex_compute_snapshot_schedule resource properties in the Terraform provider guide.

2. Create the resources:

   1. In the terminal, navigate to the configuration file directory.

   2. Make sure the configuration is correct using this command:

      terraform validate
      

      If the configuration is valid, you will get this message:

      Success! The configuration is valid.
      

   3. Run this command:

      terraform plan
      

      You will see a list of resources and their properties. No changes will be made at this step. Terraform will show any errors in the configuration.

   4. Apply the configuration changes:

      terraform apply
      

   5. Type yes and press Enter to confirm the changes.

This will create a schedule in the specified folder. You can check the new schedule and its settings using the management console or this CLI command:

yc compute snapshot-schedule get <schedule_name>

1. Get a list of disks using the list REST API method for the Disk resource or the DiskService/List gRPC API call.

   You can create snapshots of network disks and drives, such as HDDs, SSDs, and non-replicated SSDs, as well as ultra high-speed network storages with three replicas (SSD).

   For non-replicated SSDs and ultra high-speed network storages with three replicas (SSD), the snapshot time is not determined.

   To create snapshots of local disks residing on dedicated hosts, use Yandex Cloud Backup. This service supports Ubuntu, CentOS, CentOS Stream, and Windows Server.

2. Create a snapshot schedule using the create REST API method for the SnapshotSchedule resource or the SnapshotScheduleService/Create gRPC API call.