Using roles to back up and copy - Amazon Backup
Service-linked role permissions for Amazon BackupCreating a service-linked role for Amazon BackupEditing a service-linked role for Amazon BackupDeleting a service-linked role for Amazon BackupSupported Regions for Amazon Backup service-linked roles
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Using roles to back up and copy

Amazon Backup uses Amazon Identity and Access Management (IAM) service-linked roles. A service-linked role is a unique type of IAM role that is linked directly to Amazon Backup. Service-linked roles are predefined by Amazon Backup and include all the permissions that the service requires to call other Amazon services on your behalf.

A service-linked role makes setting up Amazon Backup easier because you don’t have to manually add the necessary permissions. Amazon Backup defines the permissions of its service-linked roles, and unless defined otherwise, only Amazon Backup can assume its roles. The defined permissions include the trust policy and the permissions policy, and that permissions policy cannot be attached to any other IAM entity.

You can delete a service-linked role only after first deleting its related resources. This protects your Amazon Backup resources because you can't inadvertently remove permission to access the resources.

For information about other services that support service-linked roles, see Amazon Services That Work with IAM and look for the services that have Yes in the Service-Linked Role column. Choose a Yes with a link to view the service-linked role documentation for that service.

Service-linked role permissions for Amazon Backup

Amazon Backup uses the service-linked role named AWSServiceRoleForBackup – Provides Amazon Backup permissions to list resources you can back up and to copy backups.

Amazon Backup also uses the role to delete all backups for all resource types except for Amazon EC2.

The AWSServiceRoleForBackup service-linked role trusts the following services to assume the role:

  • backup.amazonaws.com

To view the permissions for this policy, see AWSBackupServiceLinkedRolePolicyforBackup in the Amazon Managed Policy Reference.

You must configure permissions to allow an IAM entity (such as a user, group, or role) to create, edit, or delete a service-linked role. For more information, see Service-linked role permissions in the IAM User Guide.

Creating a service-linked role for Amazon Backup

You don't need to manually create a service-linked role. When you list resources to back up, set up cross-account backup, or perform backups in the Amazon Web Services Management Console, the Amazon CLI, or the Amazon API, Amazon Backup creates the service-linked role for you.

Important

This service-linked role can appear in your account if you completed an action in another service that uses the features supported by this role. To learn more, see A New Role Appeared in My IAM Account.

If you delete this service-linked role, and then need to create it again, you can use the same process to recreate the role in your account. When you list resources to back up, set up cross-account backup, or perform backups, Amazon Backup creates the service-linked role for you again.

Editing a service-linked role for Amazon Backup

Amazon Backup does not allow you to edit the AWSServiceRoleForBackup service-linked role. After you create a service-linked role, you cannot change the name of the role because various entities might reference the role. However, you can edit the description of the role using IAM. For more information, see Editing a Service-Linked Role in the IAM User Guide.

Deleting a service-linked role for Amazon Backup

If you no longer need to use a feature or service that requires a service-linked role, we recommend that you delete that role. That way you don’t have an unused entity that is not actively monitored or maintained. However, you must clean up your service-linked role before you can manually delete it.

Cleaning up a service-linked role

Before you can use IAM to delete a service-linked role, you must first delete any resources used by the role. First, you must delete all your recovery points. Then, you must delete all your backup vaults.

Note

If the Amazon Backup service is using the role when you try to delete the resources, then the deletion might fail. If that happens, wait for a few minutes, then try the operation again.

To delete Amazon Backup resources used by the AWSServiceRoleForBackup (console)

  1. To delete all your recovery points and backup vaults (except for your default vault), follow the procedure in Deleting a backup vault.

  2. To delete your default vault, use the following command in the Amazon CLI:

    aws backup delete-backup-vault --backup-vault-name Default --region us-east-1
To delete Amazon Backup resources used by the AWSServiceRoleForBackup (Amazon CLI)

  1. To delete all your recovery points, use delete-recovery-point.

  2. To delete all your backup vaults, use delete-backup-vault.

To delete Amazon Backup resources used by the AWSServiceRoleForBackup (API)

  1. To delete all your recovery points, use DeleteRecoveryPoint.

  2. To delete all your backup vaults, use DeleteBackupVault.

Manually delete the service-linked role

Use the IAM console, the Amazon CLI, or the Amazon API to delete the AWSServiceRoleForBackup service-linked role. For more information, see Deleting a service-linked role in the IAM User Guide.

Supported Regions for Amazon Backup service-linked roles

Amazon Backup supports using service-linked roles in all of the Regions where the service is available. For more information, see Amazon Backup supported features and Regions.