AWS Backup Management Skill

Analyze and manage AWS Backup plans, vaults, recovery points, and job statuses.

MANDATORY: Discovery-First Pattern

Always list vaults and plans before querying specific resources.

Phase 1: Discovery

#!/bin/bash
export AWS_PAGER=""

echo "=== Backup Vaults ==="
aws backup list-backup-vaults --output text \
  --query 'BackupVaultList[].[BackupVaultName,NumberOfRecoveryPoints,CreationDate]'

echo ""
echo "=== Backup Plans ==="
aws backup list-backup-plans --output text \
  --query 'BackupPlansList[].[BackupPlanId,BackupPlanName,CreationDate,LastExecutionDate]'

echo ""
echo "=== Backup Selections ==="
for plan_id in $(aws backup list-backup-plans --output text --query 'BackupPlansList[].BackupPlanId'); do
  aws backup list-backup-selections --backup-plan-id "$plan_id" --output text \
    --query "BackupSelectionsList[].[\"$plan_id\",SelectionId,SelectionName,IamRoleArn]" &
done
wait

Phase 2: Analysis

#!/bin/bash
export AWS_PAGER=""

echo "=== Recent Backup Jobs (last 24h) ==="
aws backup list-backup-jobs \
  --by-created-after "$(date -u -d '24 hours ago' +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S 2>/dev/null || date -u -v-1d +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S)" \
  --output text \
  --query 'BackupJobs[].[BackupJobId,ResourceType,State,StatusMessage,CreationDate]' | head -20

echo ""
echo "=== Failed Backup Jobs (last 7 days) ==="
aws backup list-backup-jobs \
  --by-state FAILED \
  --by-created-after "$(date -u -d '7 days ago' +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S 2>/dev/null || date -u -v-7d +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S)" \
  --output text \
  --query 'BackupJobs[].[ResourceArn,ResourceType,StatusMessage,CreationDate]' | head -15

echo ""
echo "=== Recovery Points Summary ==="
for vault in $(aws backup list-backup-vaults --output text --query 'BackupVaultList[].BackupVaultName'); do
  aws backup list-recovery-points-by-backup-vault --backup-vault-name "$vault" --max-results 5 --output text \
    --query "RecoveryPoints[].[\"$vault\",ResourceType,Status,CreationDate,CompletionDate]" &
done
wait

echo ""
echo "=== Restore Jobs (recent) ==="
aws backup list-restore-jobs --output text \
  --query 'RestoreJobs[:5].[RestoreJobId,Status,CreationDate,CompletionDate,RecoveryPointArn]' 2>/dev/null

Output Format

• Target ≤50 lines per output
• Use --output text --query for all commands
• Tab-delimited fields: VaultName, PlanName, JobId, State, ResourceType
• Aggregate job counts by status when many jobs exist
• Never dump full plan rules -- summarize schedule and lifecycle

Anti-Hallucination Rules

1. NEVER assume resource names — always discover via CLI/API in Phase 1 before referencing in Phase 2.
2. NEVER fabricate metric names or dimensions — verify against the service documentation or --help output.
3. NEVER mix CLI commands between service versions — confirm which version/API you are targeting.
4. ALWAYS use the discovery → verify → analyze chain — every resource referenced must have been discovered first.
5. ALWAYS handle empty results gracefully — an empty response is valid data, not an error to retry.

Counter-Rationalizations

Shortcut	Counter	Why
"I'll skip discovery and check known resources"	Always run Phase 1 discovery first	Resource names change, new resources appear — assumed names cause errors
"The user only asked for a quick check"	Follow the full discovery → analysis flow	Quick checks miss critical issues; structured analysis catches silent failures
"Default configuration is probably fine"	Audit configuration explicitly	Defaults often leave logging, security, and optimization features disabled
"Metrics aren't needed for this"	Always check relevant metrics when available	API/CLI responses show current state; metrics reveal trends and intermittent issues
"I don't have access to that"	Try the command and report the actual error	Assumed permission failures prevent useful investigation; actual errors are informative

Common Pitfalls

• Job states: CREATED, PENDING, RUNNING, ABORTING, ABORTED, COMPLETED, FAILED, EXPIRED, PARTIAL
• Recovery point lifecycle: Check Lifecycle for transition to cold storage and deletion rules
• Cross-region copies: Backup plans can copy to other regions -- check CopyActions in plan rules
• Vault lock: Locked vaults prevent deletion of recovery points -- check Locked and MinRetentionDays
• Resource selection: Selections use tag-based or ARN-based targeting -- verify coverage with list-protected-resources
• Compliance frameworks: Use list-frameworks and list-report-plans for compliance auditing