Object Storage Service (OSS) provides multiple storage classes, including Standard, Infrequent Access, Archive, Cold Archive, and Deep Cold Archive. These classes are designed for all data storage scenarios, from hot to cold data.
For more information about the pricing of each storage class, see OSS Pricing. For more information about the billing method for each storage class, see Storage fees.
Standard
Standard provides highly reliable, highly available, and high-performance object storage for data that is frequently accessed. Standard is suitable for various business applications, such as social networking applications, image, audio, and video resource sharing applications, large websites, and big data analytics. ZRS (Zone-redundant storage) and LRS (Locally redundant storage) are supported for Standard objects.
Standard-ZRS (Recommended)
For regions with three or more zones, a multi-zone data redundancy mechanism is used. Your data is stored redundantly across three or more zones in the same region. This ensures that you can access your data even if a zone becomes unavailable. For regions with two zones, a dual-zone data redundancy mechanism is used. Your data is stored redundantly across two zones in the same region. This ensures that you can access your data even if a zone becomes unavailable. Currently, dual-zone ZRS is supported only for the Standard storage class.
NoteThe multi-zone data redundancy mechanism is used for Standard data in the China (Hangzhou), China (Shanghai), China (Beijing), China (Zhangjiakou), China (Ulanqab), China (Shenzhen), China (Hong Kong), Japan (Tokyo), Singapore, Indonesia (Jakarta), Germany (Frankfurt), and Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) regions. The dual-zone data redundancy mechanism is used for Standard data in the UK (London), Thailand (Bangkok), and UAE (Dubai) regions.
Standard-LRS
LRS stores multiple copies of your data on multiple devices of different facilities in the same zone. LRS provides data durability and availability even if hardware failures occur.
ImportantLRS stores multiple data copies in a single zone. If the zone becomes unavailable, data in the zone is inaccessible. If your business application requires higher availability, we recommend that you use ZRS.
Infrequent Access (IA)
IA provides highly durable storage at lower prices compared with Standard. IA has a minimum billable size of 64 KB and a minimum billable storage duration of 30 days. IA is suitable for data that is infrequently accessed, such as data accessed once or twice a month. You can access IA objects in real time. You are charged data retrieval fees when you access IA objects. ZRS and LRS are supported for IA objects.
The minimum billable object size is 64 KB. This means you are charged for 64 KB of storage even if an object is smaller. The minimum storage duration is 30 days. If you store an IA object for less than 30 days, you are charged for the full 30-day storage duration. For more information, see Storage fees.
IA-ZRS (Recommended)
ZRS stores multiple copies of your data across multiple zones in the same region. Your data is still accessible even if a zone becomes unavailable.
NoteThe multi-zone data redundancy mechanism is used for IA data in the China (Hangzhou), China (Shanghai), China (Beijing), China (Zhangjiakou), China (Ulanqab), China (Shenzhen), China (Hong Kong), Japan (Tokyo), Singapore, Indonesia (Jakarta), Germany (Frankfurt), and Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) regions.
IA-LRS
LRS stores multiple copies of your data on multiple devices of different facilities in the same zone. LRS provides data durability and availability even if hardware failures occur.
ImportantLRS stores multiple data copies in a single zone. If the zone becomes unavailable, data in the zone is inaccessible. If your business application requires higher availability, we recommend that you use ZRS.
Archive Storage
Archive provides high-durability storage at lower prices compared with Standard and IA. Archive has a minimum billable size of 64 KB and a minimum billable storage duration of 60 days. You can access an Archive object after it is restored or real-time access of Archive objects is enabled. The amount of time that is required to restore an Archive object is approximately 1 minute. You are charged data retrieval fees if you restore an Archive object. If you access an Archive object after real-time access of Archive objects is enabled, you are charged Archive data retrieval fees based on the size of the Archive object. Archive is suitable for data that needs to be stored for a long period of time and is rarely accessed, such as archival data, medical images, scientific materials, and video footage. ZRS and LRS are supported for Archive objects
The minimum billable object size is 64 KB. This means you are charged for 64 KB of storage even if an object is smaller. The minimum storage duration is 60 days. If you store an Archive object for less than 60 days, you are charged for the full 60-day storage duration. For more information, see Storage fees.
Archive-ZRS (Recommended)
ZRS stores multiple copies of your data across multiple zones in the same region. Your data is still accessible even if a zone becomes unavailable.
NoteThe multi-zone data redundancy mechanism is used for Archive Storage data in the China (Hangzhou), China (Shanghai), China (Beijing), China (Zhangjiakou), China (Ulanqab), China (Shenzhen), China (Hong Kong), Japan (Tokyo), Singapore, Indonesia (Jakarta), Germany (Frankfurt), and Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) regions.
Archive-LRS
LRS stores multiple copies of your data on multiple devices of different facilities in the same zone. LRS provides data durability and availability even if hardware failures occur.
ImportantLRS stores multiple data copies in a single zone. If the zone becomes unavailable, data in the zone is inaccessible. If your business application requires higher availability, we recommend that you use ZRS.
Cold Archive
Cold Archive provides highly durable storage at lower prices compared with Archive. Cold Archive has a minimum billable size of 64 KB and a minimum billable storage duration of 180 days. You must restore a Cold Archive object before you can access it. The amount of time required to restore a Cold Archive object varies based on the object size and restoration priority. You are charged data retrieval fees and API operation calling fees when you restore Cold Archive objects. Cold Archive is suitable for cold data that needs to be stored for an extended period of time, including data that must be retained for an extended period of time to meet compliance requirements, raw data that is accumulated over an extended period of time in the big data and AI fields, retained media resources in the film and television industries, and archived videos in the online education industry. Only LRS is supported for Cold Archive objects.
LRS data is stored in a specific zone. If the zone fails, the data stored within becomes inaccessible. If your business application requires higher availability, we recommend that you use ZRS (supported for Standard, IA and Archive objects).
The single-zone redundancy storage mechanism is implemented for Cold Archive objects in the following regions: China (Hangzhou), China (Shanghai), China (Qingdao), China (Beijing), China (Zhangjiakou), China (Hohhot), China (Ulanqab), China (Shenzhen), China (Heyuan), China (Guangzhou), China (Chengdu), China (Hong Kong), US (Silicon Valley), US (Virginia), Japan (Tokyo), Singapore, Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), Indonesia (Jakarta), Philippines (Manila), Germany (Frankfurt), UK (London), and UAE (Dubai).
The minimum billable object size is 64 KB. This means you are charged for 64 KB of storage even if an object is smaller. The minimum storage duration is 180 days. If you store a Cold Archive object for less than 180 days, you are charged for the full 180-day storage duration. For more information, see Storage fees.
Deep Cold Archive
Deep Cold Archive provides highly durable storage at lower prices compared with Cold Archive. Deep Cold Archive has a minimum billable size of 64 KB and a minimum billable storage duration of 180 days. You must restore a Deep Cold Archive object before you can access it. The amount of time that is required to restore a Deep Cold Archive object varies based on the object size and restoration priority. You are charged data retrieval fees and API operation calling fees when you restore Deep Cold Archive objects. Deep Cold Archive is suitable for extremely cold data that needs to be stored for an extremely long period of time, including raw data that is accumulated over an extended period of time in the big data and AI fields, retained media resources, regulatory and compliance documents, and data that is archived by using tapes. Only LRS is supported for Deep Cold Archive objects.
LRS data is stored in a specific zone. If the zone fails, the data stored within becomes inaccessible. If your business application requires higher availability, we recommend that you use ZRS (supported for Standard, IA and Archive objects).
The single-zone redundancy storage mechanism is implemented for Deep Cold Archive objects in the following regions: China (Hangzhou), China (Shanghai), China (Beijing), China (Zhangjiakou), China (Ulanqab), China (Shenzhen), and Singapore.
The minimum billable object size is 64 KB. This means you are charged for 64 KB of storage even if an object is smaller. The minimum storage duration is 180 days. If you store a Deep Cold Archive object for less than 180 days, you are charged for the full 180-day storage duration. For more information, see Storage fees.
Comparison of storage classes
Storage class | Redundancy type | Data durability | Service availability | Minimum billable size | Minimum storage duration | Data access characteristics | Access latency |
Standard | ZRS (2AZ) | 99.9999999999% (12 nines) | 99.99% | Actual object size | None | More than one access per file per month | Real-time access |
Standard | ZRS (multi-AZ) | 99.9999999999% (12 nines) | 99.995% | Actual object size | None | More than one access per file per month | Real-time access |
Infrequent Access Storage | 99.50% | 64 KB | 30 days | Less than one access per file per month | Real-time access | ||
Archive Storage | 99.50% | 64 KB | 60 days | Less than one access per file per 90 days | Supports real-time access through direct reads or access after restoration. Restoration time: about 1 minute | ||
Standard | LRS | 99.999999999% (11 nines) | 99.99% | Actual object size | None | More than one access per file per month | Real-time access |
Infrequent Access Storage | 99.00% | 64 KB | 30 days | Less than one access per file per month | Real-time access | ||
Archive Storage | 99.00% | 64 KB | 60 days | Less than one access per file per 90 days | Supports real-time access through direct reads or access after restoration. Restoration time: about 1 minute | ||
Cold Archive | 99.00% | 64 KB | 180 days | Less than one access per file per year | Access after restoration Restoration time: 1 to 12 hours | ||
Deep Cold Archive | 99.00% | 64 KB | 180 days | Less than one access per file per year | Access after restoration Restoration time: 12 or 48 hours |
References
By default, objects uploaded to a bucket use the Standard storage class. The Standard storage class is suitable for scenarios that require frequent access and low latency. If you find that some objects no longer need to be frequently accessed, or if you want to save on storage costs, you can convert Standard objects to a more cost-effective storage class, such as Infrequent Access or Archive Storage. For more information, see Convert storage classes.
Deep Cold Archive provides a highly durable, low-cost storage service for extremely cold data that requires ultra-long-term storage. For more information, see Best practices for using Deep Cold Archive.
To understand why the storage usage of the source storage class does not decrease after a storage class conversion while the usage of the destination storage class increases, see Why does the storage usage of the source storage class remain unchanged after a storage class conversion?.