Why Use AWS Backup with AWS Control Tower

AWS Backup integration with Control Tower provides centralized and automated backup management across your multi-account environment, offering:

A Consistent Multi-Account Backup Strategy

• Standardized backup policies across organizational units
• Automated backup deployment for new accounts
• Centralized backup storage and management

Enhanced Security

• Cross-account backup copies for disaster recovery
• Dedicated backup administrator account
• KMS encryption for sensitive data

Simplified Compliance

• Centralized audit and reporting
• Automated backup policy enforcement
• Standardized retention policies
• Bespoke backup configurations can still be used where needed

Implementation Best Practices

Account Structure - Designate dedicated accounts

• Central Backup Account: Stores cross-account backup copies
• Backup Administrator Account: Manages backup auditing and reporting

Backup Planning

Follow recommended retention schedules:

• Hourly: 2-week local retention
• Daily: 2-week local + 1-month central retention
• Weekly: 1-month local + 3-month central retention
• Monthly: 3-month local + 3-month central retention

Resource Tagging Strategy

Use standardized tags for backup frequency. Possible tags:

• aws-control-tower-backuphourly
• aws-control-tower-backupdaily
• aws-control-tower-backupweekly
• aws-control-tower-backupmonthly

Security Configuration

• Implement proper KMS key policies
• Replicate KMS keys across all governed regions
• Enable backups for Security OU to protect audit and log archive accounts

Implementation

For Implementation Steps, see Enable Backups in the Control Tower User Guide [1].

Key Considerations

Prerequisites

• Existing AWS Organizations structure
• Two dedicated AWS accounts outside Control Tower
• Multi-region KMS key properly configured* and replicated to every AWS Region that you plan to govern with AWS Control Tower

• For an example KMS policy see the Prerequisites section of the Control Tower User Guide [2]

Cost considerations

• No cost for configuration
• Standard AWS Backup pricing applies

Drift Management

• Avoid modifying backup configurations directly
• Don't move administrator or central backup accounts
• Maintain KMS key policies

Service Integration

• Opt-in required for new resource types
• Review supported services in AWS Backup console
• Account movement requires backup re-enablement

Resource Retention

• Existing backups retained after disablement
• Local vaults preserved when disabled
• Cross-account copies maintained in central account

For more detail on AWS Backup and AWS Control Tower see the Control Tower User Guide. [3] If you have any issues and need assistance troubleshooting AWS Backup with AWS Control Tower please contact support. [4]

[1] https://docs.aws.amazon.com/controltower/latest/userguide/enable-backup.html

[2] https://docs.aws.amazon.com/controltower/latest/userguide/backup-prerequisites.html

[3] https://docs.aws.amazon.com/controltower/latest/userguide/backup.html

[4] https://docs.aws.amazon.com/awssupport/latest/user/case-management.html#creating-a-support-case