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Object Storage Service:How can I avoid being charged for the storage usage of objects that are stored for less than the minimum storage duration?

Last Updated:Nov 18, 2024

Infrequent Access (IA), Archive, Cold Archive, and Deep Cold Archive objects have a minimum storage duration. If the storage class of an object is converted or an object is deleted within the minimum storage duration, you are charged for the storage usage of objects that are stored for less than the minimum storage duration. To avoid unnecessary fees, you must be familiar with how to determine whether the objects of different storage classes meet the minimum storage duration requirements and make sure that the minimum storage duration requirement is met before you convert the storage class of an object or delete an object.

Minimum storage duration for objects of different storage classes

Storage class

Minimum storage duration

Calculation method

Standard

N/A

N/A

IA

30

Based on the last modified time of the objects.

Archive

60

Based on the last modified time of the objects.

Cold Archive

180

Based on the time when the storage classes of the objects are converted to Cold Archive.

Deep Cold Archive

180

Based on the time when the storage classes of the objects are converted to Deep Cold Archive.

Examples

The following sample code provides examples on how to query the metadata of an object and compare the values of the LastModified and TransitionTime parameters of the object with the current time to determine whether the object meets the minimum storage duration requirements:

Java

import com.aliyun.oss.OSS;
import com.aliyun.oss.OSSClientBuilder;
import com.aliyun.oss.common.auth.CredentialsProviderFactory;
import com.aliyun.oss.common.auth.EnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider;
import com.aliyun.oss.common.utils.DateUtil;
import com.aliyun.oss.model.ObjectMetadata;
import com.aliyun.oss.model.HeadObjectRequest;
import com.aliyuncs.exceptions.ClientException;
import java.util.Date;
import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.Map;

public class Demo {

    public static void main(String[] args) throws ClientException {
        // Specify the endpoint of the region in which the bucket is located. 
        String endpoint = "https://oss-cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com";
        // Obtain access credentials from environment variables. Before you run the sample code, make sure that the OSS_ACCESS_KEY_ID and OSS_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET environment variables are configured. 
        EnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider credentialsProvider = CredentialsProviderFactory.newEnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider();
        // Specify the name of the bucket. 
        String bucketName = "examplebucket";

        // Create an OSSClient instance. 
        OSS ossClient = new OSSClientBuilder().build(endpoint, credentialsProvider);

        // Specify the full path of the object. 
        String[] objectNames = {"example.txt"};

        // The mapping between the storage class and the minimum storage duration. Unit: days. 
        Map<String, Integer> minimumRetentionPeriod = new HashMap<>();
        minimumRetentionPeriod.put("Standard", 0);
        minimumRetentionPeriod.put("IA", 30);
        minimumRetentionPeriod.put("Archive", 60);
        minimumRetentionPeriod.put("ColdArchive", 180);
        minimumRetentionPeriod.put("DeepColdArchive", 180);

        for (String objectName : objectNames) {
            objectName = objectName.trim();
            try {
                // Query object metadata. 
                HeadObjectRequest headObjectRequest = new HeadObjectRequest(bucketName, objectName);
                ObjectMetadata objectMetadata = ossClient.headObject(headObjectRequest);

                // Query the storage class and last modified time of the object. 
                String storageClass = String.valueOf(objectMetadata.getObjectStorageClass());
                String lastModifiedStr = objectMetadata.getLastModified().toString();
                Date lastModified = objectMetadata.getLastModified();

                if ("ColdArchive".equals(storageClass) || "DeepColdArchive".equals(storageClass)) {
                    Object transitionTimeObj = objectMetadata.getRawMetadata().get("x-oss-transition-time");
                    String transitionTimeStr = String.valueOf(transitionTimeObj);
                    Date transitionTime = DateUtil.parseRfc822Date(transitionTimeStr);

                    if (transitionTime != null) {
                        lastModified = transitionTime;
                    } else {
                        throw new Exception(Storage class of "Object '" + objectName + '": "+ storageClass
                                + ", x-oss-transition-time" + transitionTimeStr + ". ");
                    }
                }

                // Query the current time. 
                Date currentTime = new Date();

                // Calculate the storage duration of the object. Unit: days. 
                long storageDuration = (currentTime.getTime() - lastModified.getTime()) / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24);

                // Display the object information. 
                System.out.println("Object name: " + objectName);
                System.out.println("Storage class: " + storageClass);
                System.out.println("Created at: " + lastModifiedStr);
                System.out.println("Storage duration: " + storageDuration + "Day");

                // Determine whether the object meets the minimum storage duration requirements. 
                if (minimumRetentionPeriod.containsKey(storageClass)) {
                    int minRetention = minimumRetentionPeriod.get(storageClass);
                    if (storageDuration < minRetention) {
                        int daysRemaining = minRetention - (int) storageDuration;
                        System.out.println(objectName + " does not meet the minimum storage duration requirements. The object needs to be stored for another " + daysRemining + " days. If you delete the object, you are charged"
                                + daysRemining + " days of the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration.");
                    } else {
                        int daysExceeded = (int) storageDuration - minRetention;
                        System.out.println(objectName + " meets the minimum storage duration requirements. The object is stored " + daysExceeded + " days more than the minimum storage duration. You are not charged for the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration.");
                    }
                } else {
                    System.out.println(The storage class of the objectName + " is not recognized.");
                }
                System.out.println("----------------------------------------"); // The delimiter.
            } catch (Exception e) {
                e.printStackTrace();
                System.out.println("An error occurred when I query the metadata of" + objectName + ": " + e.getMessage());
                System.out.println("----------------------------------------"); // The delimiter.
            }
        }

        // Shut down the OSSClient instance. 
        ossClient.shutdown();
    }
}

Python

import datetime
import oss2
from oss2.credentials import EnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider

# Obtain access credentials from environment variables. Before you run the sample code, make sure that the OSS_ACCESS_KEY_ID and OSS_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET environment variables are configured. 
auth = oss2.ProviderAuth(EnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider())
# Specify the endpoint of the region in which the bucket is located. For example, if the bucket is located in the China (Hangzhou) region, set the endpoint to https://oss-cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com. 
# Specify the name of the bucket. 
bucket = oss2.Bucket(auth, 'https://oss-cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com', 'examplebucket')
# Specify the full path of the single object. 
object_names = ['example.txt']

# The mapping between the storage class and the minimum storage duration. Unit: days. 
minimum_retention_period = {
    'Standard': 0,
    'IA': 30,
    'Archive': 60,
    'ColdArchive': 180,
    'DeepColdArchive': 180
}

for object_name in object_names:
    object_name = object_name.strip()

    try:
        # Query all object metadata by using the head_object method. 
        object_info = bucket.head_object(object_name)

        # Query the storage class and last modified time of the object. 
        storage_class = object_info.headers['x-oss-storage-class']
        last_modified = object_info.headers['Last-Modified']

        # Change the last modified time to the datetime object. 
        last_modified_time = datetime.datetime.strptime(last_modified, '%a, %d %b %Y %H:%M:%S GMT')

        transition_time_str = object_info.headers.get('x-oss-transition-time')
        transition_time = None
        if storage_class == 'ColdArchive' or storage_class == 'DeepColdArchive':
            if transition_time_str:
                last_modified_time = datetime.datetime.strptime(transition_time_str, "%a, %d %b %Y %H:%M:%S %Z")
            else:
                raise Exception(f"Storage class of '{object_name}': {storage_class}. x-oss-transition-time: {transition_time_str}.")


        # Query the current time. 
        current_time = datetime.datetime.now()

        # Calculate the storage duration of the object. Unit: days. 
        storage_duration = (current_time - last_modified_time).days

        # Display the object information. 
        print(f "Object name: {object_name}")
        print(f "Storage class: {storage_class}")
        print(f "Created at: {last_modified}")
        print(f "Storage duration: {storage_duration} days")

        # Determine whether the object meets the minimum storage duration requirements. 
        if storage_class in minimum_retention_period:
            min_retention = minimum_retention_period[storage_class]
            if storage_duration < min_retention:
                days_remaining = min_retention - storage_duration
                print(f"{object_name} does not meet the minimum storage duration requirements. The object needs to be stored for another {days_remaining} days. If you delete the object, you are charged {days_remaining} days of the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration.")
            else:
                days_exceeded = storage_duration - min_retention
                print(f"{object_name} meets the minimum storage duration requirements. The object is stored {days_exceeded} days more than the minimum storage duration. You are not charged for the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration.")
        else:
            print(f"The storage class of {object_name} is not recognized.")

        print("-" * 40) # The delimiter.

    except Exception as e:
        print(f "An error occurred when I query the metadata of {object_name}: {str(e)}")
        print("-" * 40) # The delimiter 

Node.js

const OSS = require("ali-oss");

// Obtain access credentials from environment variables. Before you run the sample code, make sure that the OSS_ACCESS_KEY_ID and OSS_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET environment variables are configured. 
const config = {
  accessKeyId: process.env.OSS_ACCESS_KEY_ID,
  accessKeySecret: process.env.OSS_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET,
  // Specify the region in which the bucket is located. For example, if the bucket is located in the China (Hangzhou) region, set the region to oss-cn-hangzhou. 
  region: "oss-cn-hangzhou",
  // Specify the name of the bucket. 
  bucket: "examplebucket",
};
const client = new OSS(config);

// The mapping between the storage class and the minimum storage duration. Unit: days. 
const minimum_retention_period = {
  Standard: 0,
  IA: 30,
  Archive: 60,
  ColdArchive: 180,
  DeepColdArchive: 180,
};

// Calculate the time difference in days. 
function getDays(date1, date2) {
  if (!(date1 instanceof Date) || !(date2 instanceof Date)) {
    throw new Error("Need to pass valid Date objects");
  }
  const timestamp1 = date1.getTime();
  const timestamp2 = date2.getTime();
  const diffInMilliseconds = Math.abs(timestamp2 - timestamp1);
  const diffInDays = diffInMilliseconds / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24);

  return Math.round(diffInDays);
}

// Specify the full path of the object. 
const object_names = ["example.jpg"];

(async () => {
  for (const object_name of object_names) {
    try {
      // Query all metadata of the object by using the head method. 
      const object_info = await client.head(object_name);
      const { headers } = object_info.res;

      // Query the storage class and last modified time of the object. 
      const storage_class = headers["x-oss-storage-class"];
      const last_modified = headers["last-modified"];

      let last_modified_time = new Date(last_modified);
      const transition_time_str = headers["x-oss-transition-time"];
      if (["ColdArchive", "DeepColdArchive"].includes(storage_class)) {
        if (transition_time_str)
          last_modified_time = new Date(transition_time_str);
        else {
          const errorStr = Storage class of 'Object '${object_name}': ${storage_class}. x-oss-transition-time: ${transition_time_str}. x-oss-transition-time is available only for objects whose storage class is converted to Cold Archive or Deep Cold Archive based on lifecycle rules.
          throw new Error(errorStr);
        }
      }

      const current_time=new Date(); // Query the current time. 
      const storage_duration=getDays (current_time, last_modified_time); // Calculate the storage duration of the object. Unit: days. 
      // Display the object information. 
      console.log ('Object name: ${object_name}');
      console.log ('Storage class: ${storage_class}');
      console.log ('Created at: ${last_modified}');
      console.log ('Storage duration: ${storage_duration} days ');

      // Determine whether the object meets the minimum storage duration requirements. 
      if (Object.keys(minimum_retention_period).includes(storage_class)) {
        min_retention = minimum_retention_period[storage_class];
        if (storage_duration < min_retention) {
          const days_remaining = min_retention - storage_duration;
          console.log(
            '${object_name} does not meet the minimum storage duration requirements. The object needs to be stored for another ${days_remaining} days. If you delete the object, you are charged ${days_remaining} days of the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration. `
          );
        } else {
          const days_exceeded = storage_duration - min_retention;
          console.log(
            '${object_name} meets the minimum storage duration requirements. The object is stored ${days_exceeded} days more than the minimum storage duration. You are not charged for the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration. `
          );
        }
      } else console.log(The storage class of the '${object_name} is not recognized. `);
    } catch (e) {
      console.log ('An error occurred when I query the metadata of ${object_name}:', e);
    }
  }
})();

PHP

<?php
if (is_file(__DIR__ . '/../autoload.php')) {
    require_once __DIR__ . '/../autoload.php';
}
if (is_file(__DIR__ . '/../vendor/autoload.php')) {
    require_once __DIR__ . '/../vendor/autoload.php';
}

use OSS\Credentials\EnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider;
use OSS\OssClient;
use OSS\Core\OssException;

// Specify the endpoint of the region in which the bucket is located. For example, if the bucket is located in the China (Hangzhou) region, set the endpoint to https://oss-cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com. 
$endpoint = 'http://oss-cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com';
// Specify the name of the bucket. 
$bucketName = 'examplebucket';

// Create an OSSClient instance. 
try {
    // Obtain access credentials from environment variables. Before you run the sample code, make sure that the OSS_ACCESS_KEY_ID and OSS_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET environment variables are configured. 
    $provider = new EnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider();
    $config = array(
        "provider" => $provider,
        "endpoint" => $endpoint,
    );
    $ossClient = new OssClient($config);
	// Specify the full path of the object. 
    $objectNames = ['example.txt'];
    $minimumRetentionPeriod = [
        'Standard' => 0,
        'IA' => 30,
        'Archive' => 60,
        'ColdArchive' => 180,
        'DeepColdArchive' => 180,
    ];

    foreach ($objectNames as $objectName) {
        $objectName = trim($objectName);
        try {
            // Query all metadata of an object by using the headObject method. 
            $objectInfo = $ossClient->getObjectMeta($bucketName, $objectName);

            // Query the storage class and last modified time of the object. 
            $storageClass = $objectInfo['x-oss-storage-class'];
            $lastModified = $objectInfo['last-modified'];

            // Convert the last modified time of the object to a timestamp. 
            $lastModifiedTime = strtotime($lastModified);

            if (in_array($storageClass, array("ColdArchive", "DeepColdArchive")) && isset($objectInfo["x-oss-transition-time"])) {
                $lastModifiedTime = strtotime($objectInfo["x-oss-transition-time"]);
            }

            // Query the current time. 
            $currentTime = time();

            // Calculate the storage duration of the object. Unit: days. 
            $storageDuration = floor(($currentTime - $lastModifiedTime) / (60 * 60 * 24));

            // Display the object information. 
            echo "Object name: $objectName\n";
            echo "Storage class: $storageClass\n";
            echo "Created at: $lastModified\n";
            echo "Storage duration: $storageDuration days\n";

            // Determine whether the object meets the minimum storage duration requirements. 
            if (isset($minimumRetentionPeriod[$storageClass])) {
                $minRetention = $minimumRetentionPeriod[$storageClass];
                if ($storageDuration < $minRetention) {
                    $daysRemaining = $minRetention - $storageDuration;
                    echo "$objectName does not meet the minimum storage duration requirements. The object needs to be stored for another $daysRemaining days. If you delete the object, you are charged $daysRemaining days of the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration. \n";
                } else {
                    $daysExceeded = $storageDuration - $minRetention;
                    System.out.println(echo "$objectName meets the minimum storage duration requirements. The object is stored $daysExceeded days more than the minimum storage duration. You are not charged for the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration. \n";
                }
            } else {
                The storage class of echo "$objectName is not recognized. \n";
            }
            echo str_repeat("-", 40) . "\n"; // The delimiter.
        } catch (OssException $e) {
            echo "An error occurred when I query the metadata of $objectName: " . $e->getMessage() . "\n";
            echo str_repeat("-", 40) . "\n"; // The delimiter.
        }
    }
} catch (OssException $e) {
    printf(__FUNCTION__ . ": FAILED\n");
    printf($e->getMessage() . "\n");
    return;
}

Go

package main

import (
	"context"
	"fmt"
	"log"
	"net/http"
	"strings"
	"time"

	"github.com/aliyun/alibabacloud-oss-go-sdk-v2/oss"
	"github.com/aliyun/alibabacloud-oss-go-sdk-v2/oss/credentials"
)

func main() {
	cfg := oss.LoadDefaultConfig().
		WithCredentialsProvider(credentials.NewEnvironmentVariableCredentialsProvider()).
		WithRegion("cn-hangzhou").
		WithEndpoint("https://oss-cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com")
	client := oss.NewClient(cfg)
	// Specify the full path of the object. 
	objectNames := []string{"example.txt"}
	minimumRetentionPeriod := map[string]int{
		"Standard":        0,
		"IA":              30,
		"Archive":         60,
		"ColdArchive":     180,
		"DeepColdArchive": 180,
	}
        // Specify the name of the bucket. 
	bucketName := "examplebucket"
	for _, objectName := range objectNames {
		objectName = strings.Trim(objectName, " ")
		objectInfo, err := client.HeadObject(context.TODO(), &oss.HeadObjectRequest{
			Bucket: oss.Ptr(bucketName),
			Key:    oss.Ptr(objectName),
		})
		if err != nil {
			log.Printf("An error occurred when I query the metadata of %s: %v\n", objectName, err)
			continue
		}

		storageClass := objectInfo.StorageClass
		currentTime := time.Now().Unix()
		storageDuration := (currentTime - objectInfo.LastModified.Unix()) / 60 / 60 / 24
		if *storageClass == "ColdArchive" || *storageClass == "DeepColdArchive" {
			if objectInfo.Headers.Get("x-oss-transition-time") != "" {
				transitionTime, err := time.Parse(http.TimeFormat, objectInfo.Headers.Get("x-oss-transition-time"))
				if err != nil {
					fmt.Printf("Failed to parse %s x-oss-transition-time: %v\n", objectName, err)
					continue
				}
				storageDuration = (currentTime - transitionTime.Unix()) / 60 / 60 / 24
			}
		}

		fmt.Printf("Object name: %s\n", objectName)
		fmt.Printf("Storage class: %s\n", *storageClass)
		fmt.Printf("Created at: %s\n", *objectInfo. LastModified)
		fmt.Printf("Storage duration: %d days\n", storageDuration)

		if minimumRetentionPeriod[*storageClass] != 0 {
			minRetention := minimumRetentionPeriod[*storageClass]
			daysRemaining := minRetention - int(storageDuration)
			fmt.Printf("%s doe not meet the minimum storage duration requirements. The object needs to be stored for another %d days. If you delete the object, you are charged %d days of the storage usage for the object that is stored for less than the minimum storage duration. \n", objectName, daysRemaining, daysRemaining)
		} else {
			fmt.Printf(The storage class of "%s is not recognized. \n", objectName)
		}
	}
}

References

The preceding sample code provides examples on how to query the metadata of an object by using the head_object method and compare the values of the LastModified and TransitionTime parameters of the object with the current time to determine whether the object meets the minimum storage duration requirements: If you want to determine whether multiple objects meet the minimum storage duration requirements, call the GetBucket (ListObjects), ListObjectVersions(GetBucketVersions), and ListBucketInventory operations.