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How to Use Linode Object Storage

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How to Use Linode Object Storage

Note
Linode Object Storage is now available to the general public in the Newark and Frankfurt data centers! For billing information on Object Storage, see our Object Storage Pricing and Limitations guide.
Caution
Object Storage is similar to a subscription service. Once enabled, you will be billed at the flat rate regardless of whether or not there are active buckets on your account. You must Cancel Object Storage to stop billing for this service.

Linode’s Object Storage is a globally-available, S3-compatible method for storing and accessing data. Object Storage differs from traditional hierarchical data storage (as in a Linode’s disk) and Block Storage Volumes. Under Object Storage, files (also called objects) are stored in flat data structures (referred to as buckets) alongside their own rich metadata.

Additionally, Object Storage does not require the use of a Linode. Instead, Object Storage gives each object a unique URL with which you can access your data. An object can be publicly accessible, or you can set it to be private and only visible to you. This makes Object Storage great for sharing and storing unstructured data like images, documents, archives, streaming media assets, and file backups, and the amount of data you store can range from small collections of files up to massive libraries of information. Lastly, Linode Object Storage has the built-in ability to host a static site.

In this guide you will learn:

Enable Object Storage

Object Storage is not enabled for a Linode account by default. All that is required to enable Object Storage is to create a bucket or an Object Storage access key. To cancel Object Storage, see the Cancel Object Storage section.

Note
Billing for Object Storage will start when it is enabled on your account, regardless of how it is enabled. For example, if you enable the service by creating an access key, but you have not yet created a bucket, the $5 monthly flat rate (prorated) for Object Storage will be charged for your account. Cancelling Object Storage will stop billing for it.

Object Storage Key Pair

The first step towards using Object Storage is to create a pair of keys for the service. This pair is composed of an access key and a secret key:

  • The access key allows you to access any objects that you set to have private read permissions.

    Note
    To use your access key when viewing a private object, you first need to generate a signed URL for the object. The signed URL is much like the standard URL for your object, but some extra URL parameters are appended to it, including the access key. Instructions for generating a signed URL can be found for s3cmd and the Linode CLI, outlined in this guide.

  • Your secret key is used together with your access key to authenticate the various Object Storage tools with your Linode account. You should not share the secret key.

    Note
    Each Object Storage key pair on your Linode account has complete access to all of the buckets on your account.

Generate a Key Pair

  1. Log into the Linode Cloud Manager.

    Note
    Object Storage is not available in the Linode Classic Manager.

  2. Click on the Object Storage link in the sidebar, click the Access Keys tab, and then click the Create an Access Key link.

    Click on the 'Access Keys' tab.

  3. A prompt will appear asking you to confirm that you’d like to enable Object Storage. Click Enable Object Storage.

    Enable Object Storage

  4. The Create an Access Key menu will appear.

    The 'Create an Access Key' menu.

  5. Enter a label for the key pair. This label will be how you reference your key pair in the Linode Cloud Manager. Then, click Submit.

  6. A window will appear that contains your access key and your secret key. Write these down somewhere secure. The access key will be visible in the Linode Cloud Manager, but you will not be able to retrieve your secret key again once you close the window.

    Your access key and secret key.

    You now have the credentials needed to connect to Linode Object Storage.

Bucket Names

Bucket names, also referred to as labels, need to be unique within the same cluster, including buckets on other users’ Linode accounts. This also means if you reserve a bucket name in one cluster, it is not automatically reserved in another. For example, if you have my-bucket.us-east-1.linode.com and want my-bucket.eu-central-1.linode.com you must manually reserve them both. They are separate clusters and not guaranteed. If the label you enter is already in use, you will have to choose a different label. Additionally, bucket labels have the following rules:

  • Cannot be formatted as IP addresses.
  • Must be between 3 and 63 characters in length.
  • Can only contain lower-case characters, numbers, periods, and dashes.
  • Must start with a lowercase letter or number.
  • Cannot contain underscores (_), end with a dash (-) or period (.), have consecutive periods (.), or use dashes (-) adjacent to periods (.).
Note
A cluster is defined as all buckets hosted by a unique URL; for example: us-east-1.linodeobjects.com, us-east-2.linodeobjects.com, or eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com.

Object Storage Tools

There are a number of tools that are available to help manage Linode Object Storage. This guide explains how to install and use the following options:

  • The Linode Cloud Manager can be used to create buckets, and upload and delete objects, as well as create access keys for use with the S3 compatible clients.

  • The Linode CLI has an Object Storage plugin and can be used to create and remove buckets, add and remove objects, and convert a bucket into a static site from the command line.

  • s3cmd is a powerful command line utility that can be used with any S3-compatible object storage service, including Linode’s. s3cmd can be used to create and remove buckets, add and remove objects, convert a bucket into a static site from the command line, plus other functions like syncing entire directories up to a bucket.

  • Cyberduck is a graphical utility available for Windows and macOS and is a great option if you prefer a GUI tool.

Cloud Manager

Create a Bucket

The Cloud Manager provides a web interface for creating buckets. To create a bucket:

  1. If you have not already, log into the Linode Cloud Manager.

  2. Click on the Object Storage link in the sidebar, and then click on Add a Bucket.

    The Object Storage menu.

    If you have not created an access key or a bucket before, you will be prompted to enable Object Storage.

  3. The Create a Bucket menu will appear.

    The Create a Bucket menu.

  4. Add a label for your bucket. See the Bucket Name section for rules on naming your bucket.

  5. Choose a cluster location for the bucket to reside in.

    Note
    A cluster is defined as all buckets hosted by a unique URL; for example: us-east-1.linodeobjects.com, us-east-2.linodeobjects.com, or eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com.

  6. Click Submit. You are now ready to upload objects to your bucket.

Upload Objects to a Bucket

  1. If you have not already, log into the Linode Cloud Manager.

  2. Click on the Object Storage link in the sidebar. You will see a list of all your buckets. Click on the bucket you’d like to begin uploading objects to.

    Select an Object Storage Bucket

  3. You will see your bucket’s Objects Listing Page. In the example, the my-example-bucket does not yet contain any objects. You can use the Upload Files Pane to drag and drop a file from your computer to your object storage bucket.

    Note
    You can drag and drop multiple files to the Upload Files Pane at one time.

    Drag and drop an object to your bucket

    You can also click on the Browse Files button to bring up your computer’s file browser and select a file to upload to your bucket.

    Upload an object to your bucket using the file browser

  4. When the upload has completed, your object will be visible on the Objects Listing Page.

    Successful upload of your object

    Note
    Individual object uploads are limited to a size of 5GB each, though larger object uploads can be facilitated with multipart uploads. s3cmd and cyberduck will do this for you automatically if a file exceeds this limit as part of the uploading process.

View Bucket Objects

  1. If you have not already, log into the Linode Cloud Manager.

  2. Click on the Object Storage link in the sidebar. You will see a list of all your buckets. Click on the bucket whose objects you’d like to view.

    Select an Object Storage Bucket

  3. You will see your bucket’s Objects Listing Page, which displays all of your bucket’s objects.

    View all of your bucket's objects

  4. Click on the ellipsis menu corresponding to the object you’d like to view. Then, select Download.

    Download a bucket's object

  5. The object will be downloaded to your local computer.

Delete Objects from a Bucket

  1. If you have not already, log into the Linode Cloud Manager.

  2. Click on the Object Storage link in the sidebar. You will see a list of all your buckets. Click on the bucket whose objects you’d like to delete.

    Select an Object Storage Bucket

  3. You will see your bucket’s Objects Listing Page, which displays all of your bucket’s objects.

    View all of your bucket's objects

  4. Click on the ellipsis menu corresponding to the object you’d like to delete. Then, select Delete.

    Delete an object from your bucket

  5. A dialog box will appear prompting you to confirm if you’d like to delete the object. Click Delete to proceed. Once the object has been deleted, it will no longer be visible on the Objects Listing Page.

Delete a Bucket

Note
You can only delete an empty Object Storage bucket. See the Delete Objects from a Bucket section for information on deleting a bucket’s objects using the Cloud Manager.

  1. If you have not already, log into the Linode Cloud Manager.

  2. Click on the Object Storage link in the sidebar. You will see a list of all your buckets.

  3. Click on the ellipsis menu corresponding to the bucket you’d like to delete. Then, select Delete.

    Delete an Object Storage bucket

  4. A dialog box will appear prompting you to enter the bucket’s name as a way to confirm that you’d like to delete the bucket. Type your bucket’s name into the text entry field and click Delete.

    Confirm deleting your Object Storage bucket

    Once the bucket has been deleted, it will no longer be visible on the Buckets Listing Page.

Linode CLI

The Linode Command Line Interface (CLI) is a command line utility that allows you complete control over your Linode account. With the Object Storage plugin, you can also create and remove buckets, upload objects, and more.

Install and Configure the CLI

  1. Download the Linode CLI, or, if you have already downloaded it, make sure it has been upgraded to the latest version:

    pip install linode-cli --upgrade

  2. Configure the Object Storage plugin:

    linode-cli obj --help

    You will be prompted to enter in your Personal Access Token and default settings for deploying new Linodes.

  3. Install the boto module:

    pip install boto

Now you are ready to create buckets and upload objects.

Create a Bucket with the CLI

To create a bucket with the Linode CLI, issue the mb command. See the Bucket Name section for rules on naming your bucket.

linode-cli obj mb my-example-bucket

To delete a bucket, issue the rb command:

linode-cli obj rb my-example-bucket

If your bucket has objects in it, you will not be able to immediately delete it from the Linode CLI. Instead, remove the objects first, then delete the bucket. The s3cmd tool has commands for deleting all objects from a bucket, and it can also force-delete a bucket with objects in it.

Upload, Download, and Delete an Object with the CLI

  1. As an example object, create a text file and fill it with some example text.

    echo 'Hello World!' > example.txt

  2. To upload an object to a bucket using the Linode CLI, issue the put command. Supply the object name as the first parameter and the bucket label as the second:

    linode-cli obj put --acl-public example.txt my-example-bucket
    • If your bucket is in the Newark data center, your file will now be accessible at the URL http://my-example-bucket.us-east-1.linodeobjects.com/example.txt.
    • If your bucket is in the Frankfurt data center, your file will now be accessible at the URL http://my-example-bucket.eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com/example.txt.
    Note

    The --acl-public flag is used to make the object publicly accessible, meaning that you will be able to access the object from its URL. By default, all objects are set to private. To make a public file private, or a private file public, use the setacl command and supply the corresponding flag.

    For instance, if you want to make a public file private, you would supply the --acl-private flag:

    linode-cli obj setacl --acl-private my-example-bucket example.txt

  3. To download an object, issue the get command. Supply the label of the bucket as the first parameter and the name of the file as the second:

    linode-cli obj get my-example-bucket example.txt

  4. To delete an object, issue the rm or del command. Supply the label of the bucket as the first parameter and the name of the object as the second:

    linode-cli obj rm my-example-bucket example.txt

Create a Signed URL with the CLI

Creating a signed URL will allow you to create a link to objects with limited permissions and a time limit to access them. To create a signed URL on a preexisting object with the CLI, use the following syntax:

linode-cli obj signurl my-example-bucket example.txt +300

The output of the command will be a URL that can be used for a set period of time to access your object, even if your ACL is set to private. In this case, +300 represents the amount of time in seconds that the link will remain active, or five minutes total. Once this time has passed, your link will expire and can no longer be used.

Create a Static Site with the CLI

To create a static website from a bucket:

  1. Issue the ws-create command, including the --ws-index and --ws-error flags:

    linode-cli obj ws-create my-example-bucket --ws-index=index.html --ws-error=404.html

    The --ws-index and --ws-error flags specify which objects the bucket should use to serve the static site’s index page and error page, respectively.

  2. You need to separately upload the index.html and 404.html files (or however you have named the index and error pages) to your bucket:

    echo 'Index page' > index.html
echo 'Error page' > 404.html
linode-cli obj put index.html 404.html my-example-bucket

  3. Set the --aclpublic flag on both the index.html and 404.html files:

    linode-cli obj setacl --acl-public my-example-bucket index.html
linode-cli obj setacl --acl-public my-example-bucket 404.html

  4. Your static site is accessed from a different URL than the generic URL for your Object Storage bucket. Static sites are available at the website-us-east-1 subdomain for the Newark data center, or website-eu-central-1 subdomain for the Frankfurt data center. Using my-example-bucket as an example, navigate to either:

    • http://my-example-bucket.website-us-east-1.linodeobjects.com or
    • http://my-example-bucket.website-eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com.

For more information on hosting static websites from Linode Object Storage, see our Host a Static Site on Linode’s Object Storage guide.

Other CLI Commands

To get a list of all available buckets, issue the ls command:

linode-cli obj ls

To get a list of all objects in a bucket, issue the ls command with the label of a bucket:

linode-cli obj ls my-example-bucket

For a complete list of commands available with the Object Storage plugin, use the --help flag:

linode-cli obj --help

s3cmd

s3cmd is a command line utility that you can use for any S3-compatible Object Storage.

Install and Configure s3cmd

  1. s3cmd can be downloaded using apt on Debian and Ubuntu, and Homebrew on macOS. To download s3cmd using Homebrew, run the following command:

    brew install s3cmd
    Note

    On macOS, s3cmd might fail to install if you do not have XCode command line tools installed. If that is the case, run the following command:

    xcode-select --install

    You will be prompted to agree to the terms and conditions.

    To install s3cmd on Debian or Ubuntu, run the following command:

    apt install s3cmd

  2. Once s3cmd has been installed, you will need to configure it:

    s3cmd --configure

    You will be presented with a number of questions. To accept the default answer that appears within the brackets, press enter. Here is an example of the answers you will need to provide. Substitute eu-central-1 for the subdomain if your bucket is in the Frankfurt data center:

    Access Key: 4TQ5CJGZS92LLEQHLXB3
Secret Key: enteryoursecretkeyhere
Default Region: US
S3 Endpoint: us-east-1.linodeobjects.com
DNS-style bucket+hostname:port template for accessing a bucket: us-east-1.linodeobjects.com
Encryption password: YOUR_GPG_KEY
Path to GPG program: /usr/local/bin/gpg
Use HTTPS protocol: False
HTTP Proxy server name:
HTTP Proxy server port: 0
    Note
    It is not necessary to supply a GPG key when configuring s3cmd, though it will allow you to store and retrieve encrypted files. If you do not wish to configure GPG encryption, you can leave the Encryption password and Path to GPG program fields blank.

  3. When you are done, enter Y to save your configuration.

    Note

    s3cmd offers a number of additional configuration options that are not presented as prompts by the s3cmd --configure command. One of those options is website_endpoint, which instructs s3cmd on how to construct an appropriate URL for a bucket that is hosting a static site, similar to the S3 Endpoint in the above configuration. This step is optional, but will ensure that any commands that contain your static site’s URL will output the right text. To edit this configuration file, open the ~/s3.cfg file on your local computer:

    nano ~/.s3cfg

    Scroll down until you find the website_endpoint, then add the following value:

    http://%(bucket)s.website-us-east-1.linodeobjects.com/

    Note: Use the website-eu-central-1 subdomain for buckets in the Frankfurt data center.

You are now ready to use s3cmd to create a bucket in Object Storage.

Create a Bucket with s3cmd

You can create a bucket with s3cmd issuing the following mb command, replacing my-example-bucket with the label of the bucket you would like to create. See the Bucket Name section for rules on naming your bucket.

s3cmd mb s3://my-example-bucket

To remove a bucket, you can use the rb command:

s3cmd rb s3://my-example-bucket
Caution

To delete a bucket that has files in it, include the --recursive (or -r) option and the --force (or -f) option. Use caution when using this command:

s3cmd rb -r -f s3://my-example-bucket/

Upload, Download, and Delete an Object with s3cmd

  1. As an example object, create a text file and fill it with some example text.

    echo 'Hello World!' > example.txt

  2. Now, transfer the text file object to your bucket using s3cmd’s put command, replacing my-example-bucket with the label of the bucket you gave in the last section:

    s3cmd put example.txt s3://my-example-bucket -P
    Note
    The -P flag at the end of the command instructs s3cmd to make the object public. To make the object private, which means you will only be able to access it from a tool such as s3cmd, simply leave the ‘-P’ flag out of the command.
    Note

    If you chose to enable encryption when configuring s3cmd, you can store encrypted objects by supplying the -e flag:

    s3cmd put -e encrypted_example.txt s3://my-example-bucket

  3. The object will be uploaded to your bucket, and s3cmd will provide a public URL for the object:

    upload: 'example.txt' -> 's3://my-example-bucket/example.txt'  [1 of 1]
13 of 13   100% in    0s   485.49 B/s  done
Public URL of the object is: http://us-east-1.linodeobjects.com/my-example-bucket/example.txt
    Note
    The URL for the object that s3cmd provides is one of two valid ways to access your object. The first, which s3cmd provides, places the label of your bucket after the domain name. You can also access your object by affixing your bucket label as a subdomain: http://my-example-bucket.us-east-1.linodeobjects.com/example.txt. The latter URL is generally favored.

  4. To retrieve a file, issue the get command:

    s3cmd get s3://my-example-bucket/example.txt

    If the file you are attempting to retrieve is encrypted, you can retrieve it using the -e flag:

    s3cmd get -e s3://my-example-bucket/encrypted_example.txt

  5. To delete a file, you can issue the rm command:

     s3cmd rm s3://my-example-bucket/example.txt
    Caution

    To delete all files in a bucket, include the --recursive (or -r) option and the --force (or -f) option. Use caution when using this command:

    s3cmd rm -r -f s3://my-example-bucket/

  6. To list all available buckets, issue the ls command:

    s3cmd ls

  7. To list all objects in a bucket, issue the ls command and supply a bucket:

    s3cmd ls s3://my-example-bucket

Create a Signed URL with s3cmd

Creating a signed URL will allow you to create a link to objects with limited permissions and a time limit to access them. To create a signed URL on a preexisting object with s3cmd, use the following syntax:

s3cmd signurl s3://my-example-bucket/example.txt +300

The output of the command will be a URL that can be used for a set period of time to access your object, even if your ACL is set to private. In this case, +300 represents the amount of time in seconds that the link will remain active, or five minutes total. Once this time has passed, your link will expire and can no longer be used.

Create a Static Site with s3cmd

You can also create a static website using Object Storage and s3cmd:

  1. To create a website from a bucket, issue the ws-create command:

    s3cmd ws-create --ws-index=index.html --ws-error=404.html s3://my-example-bucket

    The --ws-index and --ws-error flags specify which objects the bucket should use to serve the static site’s index page and error page, respectively.

  2. You will need to separately upload the index.html and 404.html files (or however you have named the index and error pages) to your bucket:

    echo 'Index page' > index.html
echo 'Error page' > 404.html
s3cmd put index.html 404.html s3://my-example-bucket

  3. Your static site is accessed from a different URL than the generic URL for your Object Storage bucket. Static sites are available at the website-us-east-1 subdomain for the Newark data center, and website-eu-central-1 for the Frankfurt data center. Using my-example-bucket as an example, you would navigate to either:

    • http://my-example-bucket.website-us-east-1.linodeobjects.com or
    • http://my-example-bucket.website-eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com.

For more information on hosting a static website with Object Storage, read our Host a Static Site using Linode Object Storage guide.

Other s3cmd Commands

To upload an entire directory of files, you can use the the sync command, which will automatically sync all new or changed files. Navigate to the directory you would like to sync, then enter the following:

s3cmd sync . s3://my-example-bucket -P

This can be useful for uploading the contents of a static site to your bucket.

Note
The period in the above command instructs s3cmd to upload the current directory. If you do not want to first navigate to the directory you wish to upload, you can supply a path to the directory instead of the period.

Cyberduck

Cyberduck is a desktop application that facilitates file transfer over FTP, SFTP, and a number of other protocols, including S3.

Install and Configure Cyberduck

  1. Download Cyberduck by visiting their website.

  2. Once you have Cyberduck installed, open the program and click on Open Connection.

  3. At the top of the Open Connection dialog, select Amazon S3 from the dropdown menu.

    Open Cyberduck and click on 'Open Connection' to open the connection menu.

  4. For the Server address, enter either us-east-1.linodeobjects.com if your bucket is in the Newark data center or eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com if your bucket is in the Frankfurt data center.

  5. Enter your access key in the Access Key ID field, and your secret key in the Secret Access Key field.

  6. Click Connect.

You are now ready to create a bucket in Object Storage.

Create a Bucket with Cyberduck

To create a bucket in Cyberduck:

  1. Right click within the window frame, or click Action, then click New Folder:

    Right click or click 'Action', then click 'New Folder'

  2. Enter your bucket’s label and then click Create. See the Bucket Name section for rules on naming your bucket.

  3. To delete the bucket using Cyberduck, right click on the bucket and select Delete.

Upload, Download, and Delete an Object with Cyberduck

  1. To upload objects with Cyberduck, you can simply drag and drop the object, or directory of objects, to the bucket you’d like to upload them to, and Cyberduck will do the rest. Alternatively, you can click on the Action button and select Upload from the menu:

    Click on the 'Action' button to use the file upload dialog.

  2. To make your objects publicly accessible, meaning that you can access them from the object’s URL, you need to set the proper READ permissions. Right click on the object and select Info.

  3. Click on the Permissions tab.

  4. Click the gear icon at the bottom of the window and select Everyone.

    Open the file permissions prompt by right clicking on the file and selecting.

  5. A new entry for Everyone will appear in the Access Control List. Next to Everyone, under Permissions column heading, select READ from the drop down menu.

    Set the permissions for 'Everyone' to READ.

    Your object is now accessible via the internet, at the URL http://my-example-bucket.us-east-1.linodeobjects.com/example.txt, where my-example-bucket is the label of your bucket, us-east-1.linodeobjects.com is the cluster where your bucket is hosted, and example.txt is the name of your object.

  6. To download an object, right click on the object and select Download, or click Download As if you’d like to specify the location of the download.

  7. To delete an object, right click the object name and select Delete.

Create a Static Site with Cyberduck

To create a static site from your bucket:

  1. Select a bucket, then right click on that bucket or select the Action button at the top of the menu.

  2. Click on Info, and then select the Distribution (CDN) tab.

  3. Check the box that reads Enable Website Configuration (HTTP) Distribution:

    Check the box labeled 'Enable Website Configuration (HTTP) Distribution'

  4. You will need to separately upload the index.html and 404.html files (or however you have named the index and error pages) to your bucket. Follow the instructions from the Upload, Download, and Delete an Object with Cyberduck section to upload these files.

  5. Your static site is accessed from a different URL than the generic URL for your Object Storage bucket. Static sites are available at the website-us-east-1 subdomain for the Newark data center, and website-eu-central-1 for the Frankfurt data center. Using my-example-bucket as an example, you would navigate to either:

    • http://my-example-bucket.website-us-east-1.linodeobjects.com or
    • http://my-example-bucket.website-eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com.

    For more information on hosting a static website with Object Storage, read our Host a Static Site using Linode Object Storage guide.

Cancel Object Storage

  1. To cancel Object Storage, you must first delete all of your buckets. To delete a bucket, the bucket must be empty. For buckets that contain large amounts of objects, consider employing lifecycle policies to delete the objects.

    Caution
    If you have removed all of your buckets, but you have not also cancelled the Object Storage service, your account will continued to be billed at a flat rate of $5 per month (prorated) for the service. Make sure that you complete each step of this section to fully cancel the Object Storage service and to stop billing for it. For more information, see our Pricing and Limitations guide.

  2. Once you’ve deleted all of your buckets, navigate to the Account page in the left-hand navigation. Click on the Settings tab. In the menu, you should see a setting for Object Storage:

    Cancel Object Storage

  3. Click Cancel Object Storage. A prompt will appear asking you to confirm the cancellation. If you still have active buckets, you will be prompted to delete them.

Next Steps

There are S3 bindings available for a number of programming languages, including the popular Boto library for Python, that allow you to interact with Object Storage programmatically.

More Information

You may wish to consult the following resources for additional information on this topic. While these are provided in the hope that they will be useful, please note that we cannot vouch for the accuracy or timeliness of externally hosted materials.

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