What are the types of S3 storage in AWS?

Simple Storage Service (S3) stores object-based data. Each object contains metadata and an ID. S3 stores both structured and unstructured data, and the latency for retrieving data varies depending on the type of data and the storage class used. Amazon S3 offers different types of storage for different purposes.

Types of S3 storage

Let’s discuss these storage types below:

1. S3 Standard

This is the most frequently used type of S3 storage. It is designed for general-purpose storage and is a good choice for storing frequently accessed data, such as website assets, application files, and user-generated content. S3 Standard has a durability of 99.999999999% and an availability of 99.9%. It supports data encryption with the help of server-side encryption (SSE). The cost of using S3 Standard is competitive with other S3 storage classes. The largest object that can be stored in an S3 bucket is 5 TB. Moreover, S3 Standard is designed to be highly durable and available, storing data across multiple Availability Zones. If one Availability Zone is deleted or disrupted, the data stored in S3 Standard will still be available and accessible from the other Availability Zones.

2. S3 Intelligent-Tiering

Amazon S3 Intelligent-Tiering is a storage class within Amazon S3 with a specific feature of moving data to the most cost-effective access tier based on the storage life cycle. It automatically stores objects in three access tiers:

• Frequent Access(FA): This tier is optimized for frequently accessed data and provides low latency and high throughput.

• Infrequent Access(IA): This tier is optimized for infrequently accessed data and is more cost-effective than the Frequent Access tier.

• Archive Instant Access: This tier is the most cost-effective and optimized for rarely accessed data.

S3 Intelligent-Tiering observes access patterns and autonomously transitions objects between access tiers without compromising performance. This can help us optimize our storage costs without manually managing the placement of our data.

3. S3 Standard-Infrequent Access

This type of storage is useful when we do not want our data to be accessed frequently. It is cheaper than the S3 Standard and supports data encryption with the help of server-side encryption (SSE). S3 Standard-IA has a durability of 99.999999999% and an availability of 99.9%. Moreover, the S3 Standard-IA is designed in such a way that it is highly durable and available. It also stores data in more than one Availability Zone, so if one is deleted or disrupted, the data stored in others will still be available and accessible.

4. S3 Glacier Deep Archive

The Amazon S3 Glacier Deep Archive storage option is typically best suited for data that remains largely untouched and isn’t expected to be accessed frequently. For instance, a vast repository of patient records and diagnostic images dating back many years in a medical clinic. While these records contain valuable historical data, we might rarely need to access them in our day-to-day operations. Storing this data in the Amazon S3 Glacier Deep Archive ensures it’s readily available for legal purposes while offering incredibly high durability and reliability. Because this data sees infrequent use, it can be efficiently stored using the Glacier Deep Archive option. It is the most cost-friendly storage type and also provides an impressive durability of 99.999999999% and an availability rate of 99.9%. However, the retrieval time is 12hrs.

5. S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval

S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval is an Amazon S3 storage class designed for archival data that is rarely accessed but requires immediate retrieval. It provides millisecond access to data at a lower cost compared to standard S3 storage classes, making it suitable for cases like regulatory archives or backups that must be quickly retrievable. It is designed to deliver to a 99.9% availability rate.

6. S3 One Zone-Infrequent access

This storage class within Amazon S3 is designed for storing data that is accessed infrequently and can be stored in a single Availability Zone. It is a good choice for archived data, such as backups, logs, and historical data.

S3 One Zone-IA has a durability of 99.999999999% and an availability of 99.5%. It is also cost-effective, charging a lower storage rate than S3 Standard-IA.

7. S3 Express One Zone

S3 Express One Zone is an Amazon S3 storage class optimized for the most frequently accessed data and designed to store data in a single availability zone. It is a lower-cost option for workloads that do not need the durability of multi-zone redundancy, such as secondary backups or easily re-creatable data. This class offers slightly lower availability and durability compared to multi-zone options but provides significant cost savings for specific use cases where data loss risk is minimal.

8. S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval

S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval is intended for long-term archiving, offering cost-effective storage with flexible retrieval options. Retrieval times can vary from minutes to hours depending on the option chosen (expedited, standard, or bulk). It’s most suited for historical data that is rarely accessed but must be retained for compliance or record-keeping purposes.

9. S3 Outposts

local S3 Outposts allows organizations to extend S3 storage to their on-premises environments using AWS Outposts. This enables data residency and low-latency access to S3 storage while benefiting from AWS’s services. It’s designed for industries where local data storage and compliance requirements are critical, such as healthcare or manufacturing.

The table below provides a comprehensive overview of the types of S3 storage"

Summary

Amazon S3 is an object storage service designed to store and retrieve large amounts of structured and unstructured data. It offers various storage classes tailored for different use cases, balancing cost, durability, and access requirements. Each storage class has different characteristics related to data access frequency, cost, durability, and availability.