Operations

Backups

Understand the planned backup and recovery model for protecting StrataGateway compute workloads and infrastructure data.

Planned

Development Preview

StrataGateway backup capabilities are currently being designed. Backup availability, scheduling, retention, pricing, restore workflows, storage behavior, supported resources, consistency guarantees, and API interfaces may change before public release.

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Overview

StrataGateway backups are being designed to provide a recovery mechanism for supported infrastructure resources. The backup system aims to integrate with the platform's resource lifecycle and offer straightforward protection for compute and storage workloads.

Simple recovery workflows
Predictable backup lifecycle
Clear backup status
Configurable scheduling
Transparent retention behavior
Secure backup storage
API-accessible backup operations
Integration with infrastructure operations

StrataGateway backup capabilities are currently being designed. Backup availability, scheduling, retention, pricing, restore workflows, storage behavior, supported resources, consistency guarantees, and API interfaces may change before public release.

Do not imply that production backups are currently available.

Backup model

The conceptual backup workflow follows this pattern:

Conceptual flow

Conceptual flowtext
Compute Resource
→ Backup Request / Schedule
→ Backup Creation
→ Protected Backup Data
→ Restore Workflow

The final implementation may vary depending on resource type and storage architecture.

Backups should be considered part of a broader recovery strategy, not the only protection against application or data loss.

Backups and snapshots

It is important to understand the conceptual distinction between backups and snapshots:

Backup

A recovery-oriented copy intended for longer-term protection and restoration workflows.

Snapshot

A point-in-time representation of resource state, often associated more closely with the underlying infrastructure lifecycle.

Do not claim that StrataGateway currently supports snapshots. Do not claim exact technical implementation details. The final relationship between backups, snapshots, images, and storage resources is still being designed.

Comparison overview:

CapabilityBackupSnapshot
Primary purposeRecoveryPoint-in-time infrastructure state
RetentionPolicy-basedImplementation-dependent
SchedulingPlannedUnder Evaluation
Independent lifecyclePlannedUnder Evaluation

Supported resources

Planned backup support by resource type:

ResourceBackup SupportStatus
Cloud ComputePlannedPlanned
Block StoragePlannedPlanned
Object StorageSeparate protection modelUnder Evaluation
Custom imagesSeparate lifecyclePlanned

Final backup support will depend on the implementation of each StrataGateway resource type. Do not invent products that are not already part of the roadmap.

Creating a backup

The planned manual backup workflow conceptually follows:

Conceptual flow

Conceptual flowtext
Select Resource
→ Create Backup
→ Backup Enters Processing State
→ Backup Becomes Available

Potential future CLI syntax:

Planned

Illustrative CLI syntax

Illustrative command

Illustrative commandBash
strata backups create inst_7a91c2

Do not claim this command currently exists.

Potential future API endpoint:

Planned

Illustrative endpoint

Illustrative endpoint

Illustrative endpointtext
POST /v1/instances/{instance_id}/backups

Do not claim the route is finalized.

Backup schedules

Automatic backup scheduling is planned. Potential scheduling concepts include:

DailyWeeklyCustom schedule

Scheduling options, execution windows, and available frequencies are still being designed. Do not present these as finalized schedule options. Do not invent exact execution times. Do not invent cron support unless already implemented.

Planned

Planned

Illustrative configuration concept:

Illustrative policy

Illustrative policytext
Backup Policy
Resource: web-prod-01
Frequency: Daily
Retention: Policy defined

All values shown are illustrative.

Retention

Backup retention is conceptually managed through policies that may include:

Number of retained backups
Time-based retention
Automatic expiration
Manual deletion

Retention limits and available policies are not finalized. Deleting a source resource and deleting its backups may follow separate lifecycle rules. The final behavior must be documented before release.

Restoring a backup

Possible recovery models under evaluation:

Restore into the original resource
Create a new resource from a backup
Restore attached storage
Recover selected infrastructure state
Planned

Planned / Under Evaluation

Restore behavior may differ by resource type. Some recovery workflows may create a new resource rather than modifying an existing one.

Recovery workflow

A conceptual recovery workflow:

1.

Identify the affected resource

2.

Review available backups

3.

Select an appropriate recovery point

4.

Start the restore operation

5.

Monitor restore status

6.

Validate infrastructure state

7.

Validate the application and data

8.

Reconnect traffic when appropriate

Infrastructure recovery vs. application consistency

StrataGateway can provide infrastructure recovery mechanisms. Application-level consistency and validation remain the workload owner's responsibility.

Data consistency

It is important to distinguish between backup consistency models:

Crash-consistent backups

Represents storage state without necessarily coordinating with applications running inside the instance.

Application-consistent backups

Coordinates application or filesystem state before backup creation.

The initial consistency model for StrataGateway backups has not yet been finalized. Potential guest-agent or application-aware backup functionality is still under evaluation. Do not invent a backup agent. Databases and stateful applications may require their own backup procedures in addition to infrastructure backups.

Encryption and security

Planned security principles for backup data:

Backup data should be protected at rest
Backup operations must require authorization
Restore operations must be restricted to authorized resources/accounts
API credentials must be protected
Backup metadata should avoid exposing unnecessary sensitive information

Planned security controls. Do not state exact encryption algorithms unless implemented and verified. Do not claim customer-managed encryption keys unless such a system already exists.

Authentication documentation

Backup states

Illustrative backup lifecycle states:

Planned

Illustrative backup lifecycle

Pending

Backup request accepted, awaiting execution.

Creating

Backup operation in progress.

Available

Backup completed and ready for restore.

Restoring

Restore operation in progress.

Failed

Backup or restore operation failed.

Deleting

Backup removal in progress.

Exact state names and transition behavior are not finalized.

API access

Backup operations are intended to become accessible through the REST API.

Planned

Illustrative future endpoints

Illustrative endpoint

Illustrative endpointtext
GET /v1/backups

Illustrative endpoint

Illustrative endpointtext
GET /v1/backups/{backup_id}

Illustrative endpoint

Illustrative endpointtext
POST /v1/instances/{instance_id}/backups

Illustrative endpoint

Illustrative endpointtext
POST /v1/backups/{backup_id}/restore

Illustrative endpoint

Illustrative endpointtext
DELETE /v1/backups/{backup_id}

Illustrative response

Illustrative response

Illustrative responseJSON
{
  "id": "backup_82f1a9",
  "resource_id": "inst_7a91c2",
  "status": "available",
  "created_at": "2026-07-27T18:30:00Z"
}

Endpoint paths, schemas, identifiers, timestamps, and lifecycle states may change before release.

REST API documentation

Operational guidance

Practical high-level guidance for backup operations:

Keep multiple recovery points for important workloads
Test restore procedures regularly
Maintain application-level backups for critical state
Protect infrastructure credentials
Document recovery procedures
Monitor backup failures
Understand dependency relationships before restoration

A backup that has never been tested is not a complete recovery strategy. Do not imply that StrataGateway guarantees application-level recovery.

Limitations

Planned / Preview Limitations

  • Backup functionality is still under development
  • Supported resource types are not finalized
  • Retention policies are not finalized
  • Scheduling behavior is not finalized
  • Restore behavior may differ between resources
  • Application-consistent backups are not guaranteed
  • Backup pricing is not finalized
  • Backup performance is not finalized
  • Recovery time objectives are not currently guaranteed
  • Recovery point objectives are not currently guaranteed

Do not publish fake RTO or RPO numbers. Do not publish fake durability percentages. Do not publish fake backup storage limits.

Backups and monitoring

Backups and monitoring serve complementary roles in operational visibility and recovery:

Monitoring

Helps identify infrastructure health and operational events.

Backups

Provide recovery points for supported resources.

Conceptual workflow:

Conceptual workflow

Conceptual workflowtext
Monitoring Event
→ Investigation
→ Recovery Decision
→ Backup Restore
→ Validation

Do not imply automatic restore actions exist.

Monitoring documentation

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