S3 Lifecycle & Data Temperature Trainer

Watch a lab object cool from HOT ➝ WARM ➝ COLD as it transitions Standard → IA → Glacier → Expiration, with a vertical thermometer and auto-simulation.
AWS S3 Lifecycle Rules Data Temperature Auto Simulation Sponsored by Ideafarm / SP

☁ Scenario — Semester-Based Lab Files

You store lab PDFs and starter code in: sp-labs-2026-assets.

  • Weeks 1–5: students hit lab files frequently (HOT data).
  • After exam: files are rarely used but must be kept (WARM / COLD data).
  • After 1–5 years: only exam board / audit may need them.

Lifecycle rules cool the data over time, moving it to cheaper storage and eventually expiring it safely.

Standard
Day 0–90
Very frequent access · HOT 🔥
Standard-IA
Day 90–365
Infrequent access · WARM 🌤️
Glacier
Day 365–1825
Archive · COLD ❄️
Expiration
After 5 years
Expired · OBJECT REMOVED ⚫

🧠 Data Temperature Mental Model

  • HOT: current CFAS labs that everyone downloads.
  • WARM: old labs, maybe a student rewatches once a month.
  • COLD: archived for accreditation; access is rare.
  • EXPIRED: removed after compliance window closes.

The simulator connects these ideas with a vertical thermometer so students can literally see the “heat” going down.

🧊 Storage Classes & Temperature

  • Standard: HOT 🔥 · low latency, multi-AZ, highest cost.
  • Standard-IA: WARM 🌤️ · lower cost, retrieval fee.
  • Glacier: COLD ❄️ · archive, hours to retrieve.

Lifecycle example (JSON)

{
  "Rules": [{
    "ID": "labs-2026-lifecycle",
    "Filter": { "Prefix": "secure-coding/2026/" },
    "Status": "Enabled",
    "Transitions": [
      { "Days": 90, "StorageClass": "STANDARD_IA" },
      { "Days": 365, "StorageClass": "GLACIER" }
    ],
    "Expiration": { "Days": 1825 } // 5 years
  }]
}

💰 Cost Intuition (Not to Scale)

Cost per GB-month
▲
│   Standard      (HOT)
│   Standard-IA   (WARM)
│   Glacier       (COLD)
└────────────────────────▶ Access frequency

Ask students to place real workloads (logs, lab files, images) on this scale.

🧪 Lifecycle Simulator with Vertical Thermometer

Track one lab object as it cools over time. Thermometer on the left, lifecycle nodes on the right.

Data Temp
HOT
WARM
COLD
EXPIRED
🔥Standard
Day 0–90 · Hot labs (students click often)
HOT
Current: YES (Day 0)
🌤️Standard-IA
Day 90–365 · Warm archive (sometimes used)
WARM
Current: no
❄️Glacier
Day 365–1825 · Cold archive (rarely thawed)
COLD
Current: no
🗑️Expiration
After Day 1825 · Removed according to policy
EXPIRED
Current: no
Data Temperature: HOT 🔥 (Standard — actively used lab)
Simulated object: secure-coding/2026/sqli-lab-v1.pdf
Lifecycle rule: Standard → IA (90d), IA → Glacier (365d), Expire (1825d)

📚 Versioning + Lifecycle

Versioning changes how lifecycle works. Instead of deleting an object outright, lifecycle can:

  • Expire current version (adds delete marker).
  • Expire noncurrent versions only (keep latest).

Example: keep latest exam paper, age out older versions

{
  "ID": "exam-papers-2026",
  "Filter": { "Prefix": "exams/2026/" },
  "Status": "Enabled",
  "NoncurrentVersionTransitions": [
    {
      "NoncurrentDays": 30,
      "StorageClass": "STANDARD_IA"
    }
  ],
  "NoncurrentVersionExpiration": {
    "NoncurrentDays": 365
  }
}

🧪 Mini Delete Simulator

Click an action to see how deletes behave with & without versioning.

📝 MCQ Quiz — S3 Lifecycle, Temperature & Versioning

Use for a quick concept check at the end of the lesson.

Score

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🎓 Lecturer Runbook — Suggested Flow

  1. Use Overview to introduce HOT → WARM → COLD lifecycle idea.
  2. Use Storage Classes to connect AWS classes to temperature.
  3. Open Lifecycle Simulator and demonstrate Day 30, 120, 400, 1900.
  4. Then press Auto Sim (Teaching flow) and let the whole story play.
  5. Use Versioning & Deletes to show how old versions cool and disappear.
  6. End with MCQ Quiz or a screenshot activity for students.

💡 Teaching Tips

  • Ask students to label their own project data as HOT/WARM/COLD/EXPIRED.
  • Use the thermometer screenshot in slides as a legend.
  • Emphasize lifecycle is asynchronous — transitions happen over time.