Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP was launched in late 2021. With FSx for ONTAP you get the favored options, efficiency, and APIs of ONTAP file techniques, with the agility, scalability, safety, and resilience of AWS, all as a totally managed service.

As we speak we’re including help for SnapLock, an ONTAP characteristic that provides you the ability to create volumes that present Write As soon as Learn Many (WORM) performance. SnapLock volumes forestall modification or deletion of recordsdata inside a specified retention interval, and can be utilized to satisfy regulatory necessities and to guard business-critical information from ransomware assaults and different malicious makes an attempt at alteration or deletion. FSx for ONTAP is the one cloud-based file system that helps SnapLock Compliance mode. FSx for ONTAP additionally helps tiering of WORM information to lower-cost storage for all SnapLock volumes.

Defending Knowledge with SnapLock
SnapLock provides you a further layer of information safety, and will be considered a part of your group’s total information safety technique. Whenever you create a quantity and allow SnapLock, you select one of many following retention modes:

Compliance – This mode is used to deal with mandates similar to SEC Rule 17a-4(f), FINRA Rule 4511 and CFTC Regulation 1.31. You need to use this mode to make sure a WORM file can’t be deleted by any person till after its retention interval expires. Volumes on this mode can’t be renamed and can’t be deleted till the retention intervals of all WORM recordsdata on the quantity have expired.

Enterprise – This mode is used to implement organizational information retention insurance policies or to check retention settings earlier than creating volumes in Compliance mode. You need to use this mode to forestall most customers from deleting WORM information, whereas permitting approved customers to carry out deletions, if needed. Volumes on this mode will be deleted even when they comprise WORM recordsdata underneath an lively retention interval.

You additionally select a default retention interval. This era signifies the size of time that every file have to be retained after it’s dedicated to the WORM state, and will be so long as 100 years, and there’s additionally an Infinite possibility. You can too set a customized retention interval for particular recordsdata or particular bushes of recordsdata and it’ll apply to these recordsdata on the time that they’re dedicated to the WORM state.

Recordsdata are dedicated to the WORM state after they turn into read-only (chmod -w on Linux or attrib +r on Home windows). You’ll be able to configure a per-volume autocommit interval (5 minutes to 10 years) to routinely commit recordsdata which have remained as-is for the interval, and you may also provoke a Authorized Maintain in Compliance mode with a view to retain particular recordsdata for authorized functions.

You even have one other attention-grabbing information safety and compliance possibility. You’ll be able to create one quantity with out SnapLock enabled, and one other one with it enabled, after which periodically replicate from the primary one to the second utilizing NetApp SnapVault. This provides you with snapshot copies of complete volumes that you may retain for months, years, or a long time as wanted.

Talking of attention-grabbing choices, you may make use of FSx for ONTAP quantity information tiering to maintain lively recordsdata on high-performance SSD storage and the opposite recordsdata on storage that’s cost-optimized for information that’s accessed sometimes.

Creating SnapLock Volumes
I can create new volumes and allow SnapLock with a few clicks. I enter the quantity title, dimension, and path as ordinary:

As I discussed earlier, I may make use of a capability pool (that is set to Auto by default, and I set a ten day cooling interval):

I scroll all the way down to the Superior part and click on Enabled, then choose Enterprise retention mode. I additionally arrange my retention intervals, allow autocommit after 9 days, and depart the opposite choices as-is:

I add a tag, and click on Create quantity to maneuver forward:

I take a fast break, and once I come again my quantity is able to use:

At this level I can mount it within the ordinary approach, create recordsdata, and permit SnapLock to do its factor!

Issues to Know
Listed below are a few issues that it is best to find out about this highly effective new characteristic:

Present Volumes – You can’t allow this characteristic for an present quantity, however you possibly can create a brand new, SnapLock-enabled quantity, and duplicate or migrate the information to it.

Quantity Deletion – As I famous earlier, you can’t delete a SnapLock Compliance quantity if it incorporates WORM recordsdata with an unexpired retention interval. Take care when setting this to keep away from creating volumes that can last more than wanted.

Pricing – There’s a further GB/month license cost for the usage of SnapLock volumes; take a look at the Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP Pricing web page for extra info.

Areas – This characteristic is accessible in all AWS Areas the place Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP is accessible.

— Jeff;