Volume Snapshots

Many storage systems provide the ability to create a snapshot of a persistent volume. A snapshot represents a point-in-time copy of a volume. It can be used either to provision a new volume (pre-populated with the snapshot data) or to restore the existing volume to a previous state (represented by the snapshot). For more information, see the Kubernetes documentation.

This tutorial demonstrates how to create and use a volume snapshot.

Prerequisites

• You need to create a workspace, a project and a user (project-regular). The user must be invited to the project with the role of operator. For more information, see Create Workspaces, Projects, Users and Roles.

• You need to install Kubernetes 1.17 or higher.

• Your underlying storage plugin supports snapshots.

• You have an available PVC so that you can create a snapshot for it. For more information, see Volumes.

• You need to create a volume snapshot class.

Create a Volume Snapshot

You can create a volume snapshot using either of the following ways.

Method 1: From the Volume Snapshot Page

1. Log in to the web console of KubeSphere as project-regular. On the navigation pane on the left, choose Storage > Volume Snapshots.

2. On the Volume Snapshots page on the right, click Create.

3. On the Create Snapshot page that is displayed, select a persistent volume claim that supports snapshots, enter a snapshot name, select a snapshot volume class, and then click OK. You can view the created volume snapshot in the volume snapshot list.

4. Click the Volume Snapshot Content tab, and you can view details of the volume snapshot, such as its status, capacity, and volume snapshot class.

Method 2: From the Persistent Volume Claims Page

1. Log in to the web console of KubeSphere as project-regular. On the Persistent Volume Claims page of your project, select a volume for which you want to create a snapshot.

2. On the details page, choose More > Create Snapshot.

3. In the displayed dialog box, set a name for the snapshot which serves as a unique identifier and select a Volume Snapshot Class. Click OK to finish. You can view the created volume snapshot in the volume snapshot list.

Use a Snapshot to Create a PVC

There are two ways for you to use a snapshot to create a PVC.

From the Snapshot Details Page

1. Log in to the web console of KubeSphere as project-regular. On a snapshot's details page, click Create Volume to use the snapshot. Generally, the steps are the same as creating a PVC directly.

2. In the displayed dialog box, set a name for the PVC. Click Next to continue.

   Note

   The resource you create is a Persistent Volume Claim (PVC).

3. On the Storage Settings tab, select an access mode and click Next.

4. On the Advanced Settings tab, add metadata for the PVC, such as labels and annotations. Click Create to finish.

   The created PVC is displayed on the Persistent Storage Claims page.

From the Persistent Storage Claims Page

1. Log in to the web console of KubeSphere as project-regular. On the Persistent Storage Claims page of a project, click Create.

2. In the displayed dialog box, set a name for the volume. Click Next to continue.

3. On the Storage Settings tab, select From Volume Snapshot under the Creation Method section. Select a snapshot and an access mode, and click Next to continue.

4. On the Advanced Settings tab, add metadata for the PVC, such as labels and annotations. Click Create to finish creating the PVC.

   The PVC created is displayed on the Persistent Storage Claims page.

Thanks for the feedback. If you have a specific question about how to use KubeSphere, ask it on Slack. Open an issue in the GitHub repo if you want to report a problem or suggest an improvement.