How to successfully delete versioned files in S3

Question

Hi,

How do I delete groups of versioned files in S3? I have thousands of files and do not want to have to select to delete each file. I have added a Lifecycle rule but it does not seem to be deleting the versions.

Thanks,

Accepted Answer

Hello

What issue do you have deleting non current versions through lifecycle?

There is a great blog post around using lifecyle policies for noncurrent versions :
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/storage/reduce-storage-costs-with-fewer-noncurrent-versions-using-amazon-s3-lifecycle/

Lifecycle policies are a great mechanism for current and non-current versions of objects. You can select how many versions to keep as well as number of days after which the non-current version of the object should be deleted. You can apply this at a prefix level or bucket level for filtering.

Answer

Hi

Once you define a lifecycle rule for a noncurrent objects for a given prefix , you also need to configure 'Days after objects become noncurrent" and "number of newer objects to retain". Please follow the blog instructions as it will show you step by step.

As always test this with a small number of objects e.g. instead of using 300, you can use the 300/2006/1 to delete objects under that prefix.

Once the lifecycle is configured, there might be a delay in seeing the effect. See below article that explains it in detail. 
https://aws.amazon.com/premiumsupport/knowledge-center/s3-lifecycle-rule-delay/

How to successfully delete versioned files in S3

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