Operator privileges for snapshot and restore

Note

{cloud-only}

Invoking operator-only APIs or updating operator-only dynamic cluster settings typically results in changes in the cluster state. The cluster state can be included in a cluster snapshot. Snapshots are a great way to preserve the data of a cluster, which can later be restored to bootstrap a new cluster, perform migration, or disaster recovery, for example. In a traditional self-managed environment, the intention is for the restore process to copy the entire cluster state over when requested. However, in a more managed environment, such as Elasticsearch Service, data that is associated with operator-only functionality is explicitly managed by the infrastructure code.

Restoring snapshot data associated with operator-only functionality could be problematic because:

  1. A snapshot could contain incorrect values for operator-only functionalities. For example, the snapshot could have been taken in a different cluster where requirements are different or the operator privileges feature is not enabled. Restoring data associated with operator-only functionality breaks the guarantee of operator privileges.
  2. Even when the infrastructure code can correct the values immediately after a restore, there will always be a short period of time when the cluster could be in an inconsistent state.
  3. The infrastructure code prefers to configure operator-only functionality from a single place, that is to say, through API calls.

Therefore, when the operator privileges feature is enabled, snapshot data that is associated with any operator-only functionality is not restored.

Note

That information is still included when taking a snapshot so that all data is always preserved.