Automated Kubernetes Backup and Restore Workflows With Velero
Velero is an open source tool to safely back up, recover, and migrate Kubernetes clusters and persistent volumes. It works both on premises and in a public cloud. Velero consists of a server process running as a deployment in your Kubernetes cluster and a command-line interface (CLI) with which DevOps teams and platform operators configure scheduled backups, trigger ad-hoc backups, perform restores, and more.
Configuring and installing Velero involves two key steps:
- Setting up AWS resources – configuring IAM roles and policies.
- Installing Velero – deploying the Velero components into the Kubernetes cluster.
Configuring AWS IAM Roles and Policies​
Velero requires specific IAM permissions to interact with AWS resources. These permissions allow Velero to create and manage EBS snapshots and volumes, as well as read and write backup data to the designated S3 bucket. This policy ensures Velero can perform backup and restore operations within your AWS account.
To simplify the setup, we recommend using the terraform-module/velero/kubernetes module. This module automates the creation of the necessary IAM roles and policies for Velero. You can find Velero configuration parameters in the terraform-aws-platform repository.
With this configuration, the following IAM role will be created:
-
AWSIRSA_<ClusterName>_Velero: This role will be used by Velero to perform backup and restore operations by managing EBS snapshots and accessing the S3 backup bucket. The attached policy grants Velero the required permissions to perform backup and restore operations in AWS. It includes the following capabilities:
- EC2 permissions — allow Velero to create, describe, tag, and delete EBS snapshots and volumes used during backup and restore processes.
- S3 bucket access — allows listing the backup bucket and performing read/write operations on objects, including uploading backup data, retrieving it during restores, and deleting or tagging objects as needed.
Install Velero​
To deploy Velero in your Kubernetes cluster, we recommend using the add-ons approach. Here's an example of how to configure values.yaml before installation:
velero:
# -- Velero service account settings for AWS access via IRSA. Replace the role ARN with your own IAM role.
serviceAccount:
server:
create: true
name: velero-server
annotations:
eks.amazonaws.com/role-arn: "arn:aws:iam::01234567890:role/AWSIRSA_Core_Velero"
# -- Use Kubernetes secrets for AWS credentials (false = use IRSA)
credentials:
useSecret: false
configuration:
# -- Backup storage settings for Velero
backupStorageLocation:
- name: default
provider: aws
bucket: velero-core
prefix: velero
config:
region: eu-central-1
# -- Settings for volume snapshots
volumeSnapshotLocation:
- name: default
provider: aws
config:
region: eu-central-1
# -- Init container to load AWS plugin for Velero
initContainers:
- name: velero-plugin-for-aws
image: velero/velero-plugin-for-aws:v1.13.1
volumeMounts:
- mountPath: /target
name: plugins
# --------------------------------------------
# Velero Schedule: krci
# --------------------------------------------
# Description:
# Creates daily backups of the "krci" namespace
# on weekdays (Monday–Friday) at 13:00 UTC.
# Excludes PersistentVolumes and PVCs,
# does not snapshot volumes,
# stores backups in the "default" location,
# and retains them for 72 hours.
# --------------------------------------------
schedules:
krci:
disabled: true
paused: false
labels:
cluster: core
region: eu-central-1
schedule: "0 13 * * 1-5"
useOwnerReferencesInBackup: false
template:
excludedClusterScopedResources:
- persistentvolumes
excludedNamespaceScopedResources:
- persistentvolumeclaims
includedNamespaces:
- krci
snapshotVolumes: false
storageLocation: default
ttl: 72h0m0s
At the end of the file, you will find backup schedule settings that you can use as a template for creating your own schedules.