Backup, export and restore
The data in your AuraDB instance can be backed up, exported, and restored using snapshots.
A snapshot is a copy of the data in an instance at a specific point in time.
The Snapshots tab within an AuraDB instance shows a list of available snapshots.
To access the Snapshots tab:
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Navigate to the Neo4j Aura Console in your browser.
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Select the instance you want to access.
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Select the Snapshots tab.
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Only the latest snapshot is available for Free instances. Snapshots are available for 7 days for AuraDB Professional instances, 30 days for AuraDB Business Critical instances, and 60 days for AuraDB Virtual Dedicated Cloud instances. |
Snapshot types
Scheduled
AuraDB Professional AuraDB Business Critical AuraDB Virtual Dedicated Cloud
A Scheduled snapshot is a snapshot that is automatically triggered when you first create an instance, when changes to the underlying system occur (for example, a new patch release), and at a cadence depending on your plan type.
Scheduled snapshots are run automatically once a day for Professional instances and once an hour for AuraDB Business Critical and AuraDB Virtual Dedicated Cloud instances.
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For AuraDB Virtual Dedicated Cloud database instances running Neo4j v4.x, from day 0 to 7 scheduled snapshots run automatically once every 6 hours. From day 8 to 60, snapshots run once a day. |
Snapshot actions
Restore
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Restoring a snapshot overwrites the data in your instance, replacing it with the data contained in the snapshot. |
You can restore data in your instance to a previous snapshot by selecting Restore next to the snapshot you want to restore.
Restoring a snapshot requires you to confirm the action by typing RESTORE and selecting Restore.
Export and create
The ellipses (…) button next to an existing snapshot, allows you to:
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Export - Download the instance as .backup file, allowing you to store a local copy and work on your data offline. (This applies to AuraDB v5 databases, for v4, the instances can be downloaded as .dump files.)
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Create instance from snapshot - Create a new AuraDB instance using the data from the snapshot.
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The ability to Export or Create an instance from a Scheduled Virtual Dedicated Cloud snapshot is limited to 14 days. Additionally, for Virtual Dedicated Cloud instances running Neo4j version 5, the ability to export or create an instance from a Scheduled snapshot is limited to the first full snapshot, taken once per day. Use the toggle Show exportable only on top of the list of snapshots to filter by whether a snapshot is exportable or not. |
Security of backups and exported data
Neo4j Aura Enterprise automatically creates backups of each database at regular intervals. Aura stores the data securely in encrypted and dedicated cloud storage buckets. Backups are stored in the same Cloud Service Provider and region as the instance they are associated with. Users access backups through the Aura console.
In the console, it’s possible to:
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See a list of previous backups
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Choose to restore a backup
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Download a backup (which serves as the export mechanism)
Retention periods
| Tier | Aura version | Frequency of snapshots | Scheduled snapshots | On-demand snapshot [1] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Full snapshot [2] |
Differential snapshot |
Restorable days |
Exportable days |
Restorable and exportable days |
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AuraDB Free |
4, 5 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
30 |
AuraDB Professional |
4, 5 |
Daily |
N/A |
30 |
7 |
30 |
AuraDB Business Critical |
5 |
Daily |
Hourly |
30 |
7 full [3] |
30 |
AuraDB Virtual Dedicated Cloud |
4 |
Every 6 hours [4] |
60 (long), 7 (short) |
14 (long), 7 (short) |
90 |
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5 |
Daily |
Hourly |
60 |
14 full [3] |
90 |
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1. On-demand snapshots are restorable and exportable for the same period. 2. The full snapshot captures the entire database, while differential snapshots record changes since the last full snapshot. 3. The differential snapshot is not exportable. 4. One snapshot per day has a long retention period and remaining three a shorter period. |
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