Media Archiving & Storage Lifecycle
How to manage long-term storage costs using S3 Intelligent Tiering and Glacier deep archive — what gets archived, what stays hot, and how to configure automated archiving rules.
Media Archiving & Storage Lifecycle
Nomad Media supports two complementary approaches to storage cost management: S3 Intelligent Tiering (automatic, always-on) and Glacier deep archive (optional, configurable). Together they can significantly reduce long-term storage costs without compromising access to metadata, proxies, or AI-generated content.
Key principle: Only master files are ever archived. All proxies, thumbnails, metadata, and AI-generated outputs (transcripts, labels, captions, face data, embeddings) remain in standard hot storage at all times, regardless of the archiving tier of the master file.
S3 Intelligent Tiering
What It Is
S3 Intelligent Tiering is an AWS-native storage class that automatically moves objects through cost-optimized tiers based on access patterns. It is enabled by default on all Nomad Media deployments and requires no configuration or manual action.
How It Works
| Tier | Trigger | Approximate savings |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | Actively accessed | Baseline |
| Infrequent Access | 30 days without access | ~20% |
| Instant Archive | 90 days without access | ~60% |
Objects move between tiers automatically. If an object in a lower tier is accessed, it immediately returns to the Standard tier for that access event and the inactivity timer resets.
Access Time
All three tiers provide millisecond-level retrieval. Users experience no difference in access speed regardless of which tier an object occupies. There are no retrieval fees for the Standard or Infrequent Access tiers.
What You Need to Do
Nothing — Intelligent Tiering is enabled automatically across your Nomad Media storage. There is no per-folder or per-file configuration required.
Glacier Deep Archive
What It Is
Glacier is AWS's lowest-cost storage tier, designed for content that is rarely if ever accessed but must be retained long-term. It provides approximately 90% cost savings compared to standard S3 storage. The trade-off is retrieval time: restoring a file from Glacier takes up to 8 hours.
Glacier archiving is optional and must be explicitly configured.
What Gets Archived
Only master files are moved to Glacier. The following always remain in hot storage regardless of the master file's archiving state:
- Video, audio, and image proxies
- Thumbnails and preview images
- Asset metadata and manifests
- AI-generated outputs (transcripts, labels, captions, face data, embeddings)
This means a Glacier-archived asset remains fully searchable, its metadata is fully accessible, and users can view proxies and thumbnails — they simply cannot download or stream the original master file until it is restored.
Triggering Archiving
Manual archiving can be triggered from the Nomad UI:
- Right-click any file or folder in the directory tree
- Select Archive
- The selected asset(s) are moved to Glacier
Automated archiving is configured via the rules engine. Common rule patterns:
| Rule example | Description |
|---|---|
| Files > 5 MB not accessed in 180 days | Archive large, inactive masters automatically |
urlMatches: ["content/raw/"] | Archive all content in the RAW folder after an inactivity period |
fileExtension == '.mxf' | Target high-bitrate broadcast formats specifically |
contentLength > 5242880 | Only archive files above 5 MB |
File size threshold: AWS charges a minimum storage duration fee for Glacier objects. For very small files (under ~5 MB), the retrieval overhead and minimum storage charge can exceed the savings. It is generally not cost-effective to archive files below this threshold.
Restoring from Glacier
When a user or process needs access to a Glacier-archived master file:
- Initiate a restore from the Nomad UI (right-click → Restore) or via the API
- Wait up to 8 hours for the restore to complete
- The file is available for 7 days (configurable) before automatically returning to Glacier
During the restore window, the file behaves like any other hot asset — it can be downloaded, re-transcoded, or shared.
Restore duration is configurable. The default 7-day restore window can be extended if your workflow requires longer access. Contact Nomad Media support to adjust the default.
Glacier and External Sharing / Integrations
If an asset is in Glacier and is accessed externally — via a share link, integration, or third-party connection — the recipient can access proxy and preview versions immediately. They cannot download the original master until it has been restored. This applies to all integrations including Frame.io and other connected platforms.
Choosing the Right Approach
| Scenario | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| All content, no action needed | S3 Intelligent Tiering handles this automatically |
| Large raw / master files rarely accessed after delivery | Configure Glacier rules for RAW folder with inactivity threshold |
| Broadcast / high-bitrate files (MXF, ProRes) | Strong Glacier candidate — large file size × high savings = significant cost reduction |
| Small supporting files (< 5 MB) | Leave in standard storage — Glacier overhead not worth it |
| Content that must be immediately accessible at all times | Keep in Intelligent Tiering; do not archive to Glacier |
Related Pages
- Rules Engine Overview — how to configure folder-scoped archiving rules
- Cost Optimization — broader cost optimization strategies for Nomad Media deployments
- Proxy Generation Overview — understanding what remains hot vs. what can be archived