Unexpired Non-Current Object Versions in S3

Go back

Brendan McFarland

Service Category

Storage

Cloud Provider

AWS

Service Name

AWS S3

Inefficiency Type

Missing Lifecycle Policy

Explanation

When S3 versioning is enabled but no lifecycle rules are defined for non-current objects, outdated versions accumulate indefinitely. These non-current versions are rarely accessed but continue to incur storage charges. Over time, this leads to significant hidden costs, particularly in buckets with frequent object updates or automated data pipelines. Proper lifecycle management is required to limit or expire obsolete versions.

Relevant Billing Model

S3 charges for all object versions retained in a bucket, including non-current versions. Each version consumes full storage capacity and accrues charges until explicitly deleted or transitioned by a lifecycle policy.

Detection

Review S3 buckets with versioning enabled to determine if lifecycle policies are applied to manage non-current versions
Assess storage growth patterns and identify buckets where non-current versions represent a large share of total usage
Confirm whether retained non-current versions are actively used or required for compliance purposes
Evaluate consistency of versioning and lifecycle policy practices across production and non-production buckets

Remediation

Implement lifecycle policies to expire or transition non-current versions after an appropriate retention period
Tailor policies by bucket or prefix to align with business, compliance, or recovery requirements
Retain only the number of historical versions necessary for recovery or auditing; remove excess versions automatically
Periodically review lifecycle rules to ensure alignment with evolving requirements and prevent reaccumulation

Relevant Documentation

Submit Feedback