# Elastic managing snapshots

**URL:** <https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-managing-snapshots/74651>\
**Category:** Elasticsearch\
**Created:** [February 10, 2017, 12:47pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-managing-snapshots/74651 "2017-02-10T12:47:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![raulk89](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@raulk89](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/raulk89)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 12:47pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-managing-snapshots/74651/1 "2017-02-10T12:47:18Z")

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Hi

When I am doing regular snapshots, let's say once or twice per day. I have understood that first snapshot that I take, it makes full backup, and after that all the backups are incremental, that are based on full snapshot.

Ok, but now antoher question pops up. Is it necessary to make full backups also from time to time..?  
Or doing incremental snapshots, for years, is enough..?

Is there a command that deletes all snapshots from specific repository..? (let's say I am doing snapshots twice per day, so 14 snapshots within a week, and I wan't to make full backup from scratch, after that I would like to delete the oldest snapshots)

And final question. Am I right that when doing snapshots as follows: snap\_1, snap\_2, snap\_3, then basically snap\_1 and snap\_2 can be deleted..? (so that all the data is included in the snap\_3)  
(Ofcourse I know it is not wise to leve just 1 backup behind, but just wanted to know if I have understood correctly)

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**Author:** ![warkolm](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/warkolm/32/39224_2.png) [@warkolm](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/warkolm)\
**Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 10:45pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-managing-snapshots/74651/2 "2017-02-10T22:45:24Z")

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> [@raulk89](#):
>
> Ok, but now antoher question pops up. Is it necessary to make full backups also from time to time..?Or doing incremental snapshots, for years, is enough..?

Personally, I would create a weekly/monthly repo and then take snapshots for that week/month. Then you can restore to that specific point a little simpler.

> [@raulk89](#):
>
> Is there a command that deletes all snapshots from specific repository..?

A delete should take wildcards.

> [@raulk89](#):
>
> Am I right that when doing snapshots as follows: snap\_1, snap\_2, snap\_3, then basically snap\_1 and snap\_2 can be deleted..?

Yes. It'll likely keep around most of the data in snap\_1 though, but we abstract it out so all you see is snap\_3.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![raulk89](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@raulk89](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/raulk89)\
**Post date:** [February 14, 2017, 12:09pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-managing-snapshots/74651/3 "2017-02-14T12:09:33Z")

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WIldcards actually are not working for me. Elasticsearch version 1.7.2

GET /\_snapshot/paetlive\_idx\_data/ss\_20170214\_135\*

{  
"error": "InvalidSnapshotNameException[[paetlive\_idx\_data:ss\_20170214\_135\*] Invalid snapshot name [ss\_20170214\_135\*], must not contain the following characters [\, /, \*, ?, ", \<, \>, |, , ,]]",  
"status": 400  
}

repository paetlive\_idx\_data has snapshot "ss\_20170214\_1350"

So, this works:  
GET /\_snapshot/paetlive\_idx\_data/ss\_20170214\_1350

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**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/1/a/1ac57faf039f6b580b3f104ef42a2a89e41014de.png) [@system](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/system)\
**Post date:** [March 14, 2017, 12:09pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-managing-snapshots/74651/4 "2017-03-14T12:09:53Z")

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