https://login.veeam.com/en/oauth?client_id=nXojRrypJ8&redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.veeam.com%2Fservices%2Fauthentication%2Fredirect_url&response_type=code&scope=profile&state=eyJmaW5hbFJlZGlyZWN0TG9jYXRpb24iOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy52ZWVhbS5jb20va2IzMDMyIiwiaGFzaCI6ImRkYjAyNjZmLTEyZTEtNDczMy1iNGU2LWQ4ZDAyOGVmYmRlZCJ9
1-800-691-1991 | 9am - 8pm ET
Contact Sales Downloads Support Forums
EN

How to Create Custom Backup Policy IAM Role

KB ID: 3032
Product: Veeam Backup for AWS
Version: Any
Published: 2019-12-02
Last Modified: 2021-02-25
The Backup Policy IAM role is used to run the following backup operations:
  • Enumerating of the resources.
  • Taking EBS snapshots of selected EC2 instances volumes.
  • Creating volumes from snapshots.
  • Attaching volumes to the worker instance.

Isolated from production backup deployment

The isolated from production deployment type provides an exceptional level of protection in cases when the whole production environment is lost. This type of deployment is recommended as the most secure one.

For this type of deployment, a second "Backup account" is required. Make sure to create one using the AWS web site. Veeam Backup for AWS Management appliance must be deployed in the Backup Account.
To allow the Veeam Backup appliance to perform required operations inside of the Production Account, a Backup Policy Role must be created in the Production Account.

This role must be made available for usage from the Backup Account.

Proceed through the following steps to create such a role:

Use the following JSON to create an IAM Policy by following the instructions from the How to create IAM Policy article. 
These permissions will allow the Veeam Backup for AWS service to perform operations required for backup.

In order to backup EC2 instances, use the permissions below.

{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [
        {
            "Action": [
                "ebs:ListChangedBlocks",
                "ebs:ListSnapshotBlocks",
                "ec2:CreateSnapshot",
                "ec2:CreateSnapshots",
                "ec2:CreateTags",
                "ec2:DeleteSnapshot",
                "ec2:DeleteTags",
                "ec2:DescribeAvailabilityZones",
                "ec2:DescribeConversionTasks",
                "ec2:DescribeImages",
                "ec2:DescribeInstances",
                "ec2:DescribeRegions",
                "ec2:DescribeSnapshots",
                "ec2:DescribeSubnets",
                "ec2:DescribeVolumeAttribute",
                "ec2:DescribeVolumes",
                "ec2:GetEbsDefaultKmsKeyId",
                "ec2:ModifySnapshotAttribute",
                "events:DeleteRule",
                "events:DescribeRule",
                "events:ListTargetsByRule",
                "events:PutRule",
                "events:PutTargets",
                "events:RemoveTargets",
                "iam:GetContextKeysForPrincipalPolicy",
                "iam:ListInstanceProfiles",
                "iam:SimulatePrincipalPolicy",
                "kms:CreateGrant",
                "kms:DescribeKey",
                "kms:GetKeyPolicy",
                "kms:ListAliases",
                "kms:ListKeys",
                "kms:ReEncryptFrom",
                "kms:ReEncryptTo",
                "sns:CreateTopic",
                "sns:DeleteTopic",
                "sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
                "sns:ListTopics",
                "sns:SetTopicAttributes",
                "sns:Subscribe",
                "sns:Unsubscribe",
                "sqs:CreateQueue",
                "sqs:DeleteMessage",
                "sqs:DeleteQueue",
                "sqs:ListQueues",
                "sqs:ReceiveMessage",
                "sqs:SetQueueAttributes",
                "ssm:DescribeInstanceInformation",
                "ssm:GetCommandInvocation",
                "ssm:SendCommand"
            ],
                      "Resource": "*",
                      "Effect": "Allow"
          }
    ]
}
In order to backup RDS instances, use the permissions below. 
{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [
        {
            "Action": [
                "events:DeleteRule",
                "events:DescribeRule",
                "events:ListTargetsByRule",
                "events:PutRule",
                "events:PutTargets",
                "events:RemoveTargets",
                "iam:GetContextKeysForPrincipalPolicy",
                "iam:GetRole",
                "iam:SimulatePrincipalPolicy",
                "kms:CreateGrant",
                "kms:DescribeKey",
                "kms:GetKeyPolicy",
                "kms:ListKeys",
                "rds:AddTagsToResource",
                "rds:CopyDBSnapshot",
                "rds:CreateDBSnapshot",
                "rds:DeleteDBSnapshot",
                "rds:DescribeDBInstances",
                "rds:DescribeDBSnapshots",
                "rds:ListTagsForResource",
                "rds:ModifyDBSnapshotAttribute",
                "sns:CreateTopic",
                "sns:DeleteTopic",
                "sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
                "sns:ListTopics",
                "sns:SetTopicAttributes",
                "sns:Subscribe",
                "sns:Unsubscribe",
                "sqs:CreateQueue",
                "sqs:DeleteMessage",
                "sqs:DeleteQueue",
                "sqs:ListQueues",
                "sqs:ReceiveMessage",
                "sqs:SendMessage",
                "sqs:SetQueueAttributes"
            ],
                      "Resource": "*",
                      "Effect": "Allow"
          }
    ]
}
In order to backup VPC settings, use the permissions below. 
{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [
        {
            "Action": [
                "ec2:DescribeAddresses",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnAuthorizationRules",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnEndpoints",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnRoutes",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnTargetNetworks",
                "ec2:DescribeCustomerGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeDhcpOptions",
                "ec2:DescribeEgressOnlyInternetGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeInstances",
                "ec2:DescribeInternetGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeManagedPrefixLists",
                "ec2:DescribeNatGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeNetworkAcls",
                "ec2:DescribeNetworkInterfaces",
                "ec2:DescribeRegions",
                "ec2:DescribeRouteTables",
                "ec2:DescribeSecurityGroups",
                "ec2:DescribeSubnets",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayAttachments",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayMulticastDomains",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayPeeringAttachments",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayRouteTables",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayVpcAttachments",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcAttribute",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcEndpoints",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcEndpointServiceConfigurations",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcPeeringConnections",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcs",
                "ec2:DescribeVpnConnections",
                "ec2:DescribeVpnGateways",
                "ec2:GetManagedPrefixListEntries",
                "ec2:GetTransitGatewayRouteTableAssociations",
                "ec2:GetTransitGatewayRouteTablePropagations",
                "ec2:SearchTransitGatewayRoutes",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeListeners",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeTags",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeTargetGroups",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeTargetHealth",
                "iam:GetContextKeysForPrincipalPolicy",
                "iam:ListAccountAliases",
                "iam:SimulatePrincipalPolicy",
                "ram:GetResourceShares",
                "ram:ListPrincipals",
                "ram:ListResources",
                "ram:ListResourceSharePermissions"
            ],
                      "Resource": "*",
                      "Effect": "Allow"
          }
    ]
}
  1. Navigate to Roles.
  2. Choose Create role. 
  3. Select the type of the trusted entity Another AWS Account.
  4. In the Account ID field, enter the ID of your Backup Account (you can get this number in the AWS console of the Backup Account, in My Account located in the top-right menu).
  5. Select the Require external ID checkbox and enter a passphrase to raise the level of security for the role.
  6. Click Next: Permissions.
  7. In the filter policies search box, enter the name of the policy created in Step 1.
  8. In the first column, select the policy.
  9. Click Next: Tags.
  10. Enter tagging info if needed and click Next: Review.
  11. Assign a name to the IAM Role. This name will be used in Veeam Backup for AWS (e.g. vb4aws_restore_role).
  12. Click Create role.
  13. Once the role is created, you will be able to see it in the list of available roles.

Backup inside production deployment

This type of deployment (since it is not very secure) is recommended for test, demo and small environments only!

Please use the following JSON text to create IAM Policy by following instructions from How to create IAM Policy article. These permissions will allow the backup service to perform operations required for backup.

In order to backup EC2 instances, use the permissions below.

{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [
        {
            "Action": [
                "ebs:ListChangedBlocks",
                "ebs:ListSnapshotBlocks",
                "ec2:AttachVolume",
                "ec2:CreateKeyPair",
                "ec2:CreateSnapshot",
                "ec2:CreateSnapshots",
                "ec2:CreateTags",
                "ec2:CreateVolume",
                "ec2:DeleteKeyPair",
                "ec2:DeleteSnapshot",
                "ec2:DeleteTags",
                "ec2:DeleteVolume",
                "ec2:DeregisterImage",
                "ec2:DescribeAccountAttributes",
                "ec2:DescribeAvailabilityZones",
                "ec2:DescribeConversionTasks",
                "ec2:DescribeImages",
                "ec2:DescribeInstanceAttribute",
                "ec2:DescribeInstances",
                "ec2:DescribeInstanceStatus",
                "ec2:DescribeKeyPairs",
                "ec2:DescribeRegions",
                "ec2:DescribeSecurityGroups",
                "ec2:DescribeSnapshots",
                "ec2:DescribeSubnets",
                "ec2:DescribeRouteTables",
                "ec2:DescribeVolumeAttribute",
                "ec2:DescribeVolumes",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcEndpoints",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcs",
                "ec2:DescribeTags",
                "ec2:DetachVolume",
                "ec2:ImportImage",
                "ec2:ModifyInstanceAttribute",
                "ec2:ModifySnapshotAttribute",
               "ec2:DescribeVolumeAttribute",
               "ec2:GetEbsDefaultKmsKeyId",
                "ec2:RunInstances",
                "ec2:StartInstances",
                "ec2:StopInstances",
                "ec2:TerminateInstances",
                "events:DeleteRule",
                "events:DescribeRule",
                "events:ListTargetsByRule",
                "events:PutRule",
                "events:PutTargets",
                "events:RemoveTargets",
                "iam:GetContextKeysForPrincipalPolicy",
                "iam:GetRole",
                "iam:ListAttachedRolePolicies",
                "iam:ListInstanceProfilesForRole",
                "iam:ListRolePolicies",
                "iam:SimulatePrincipalPolicy",
                "kms:DescribeKey",
                "kms:ListAliases",
                "kms:CreateGrant",
                "kms:GetKeyPolicy",
                "kms:ReEncryptFrom",
                "kms:ReEncryptTo",
                "kms:ListKeys",
                "s3:GetBucketLocation",
                "servicequotas:ListServiceQuotas",
                "sns:CreateTopic",
                "sns:DeleteTopic",
                "sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
                "sns:ListTopics",
                "sns:SetTopicAttributes",
                "sns:Subscribe",
                "sns:Unsubscribe",
                "ssm:GetCommandInvocation",
                "ssm:SendCommand",
                "sts:AssumeRole",
                "sts:GetCallerIdentity",
                "sts:GetSessionToken",
                "sqs:DeleteMessage",
                "sqs:ListQueues",
                "sqs:ReceiveMessage",
                "sqs:DeleteQueue",
                "sqs:SendMessage",
                "sqs:CreateQueue",
                "sqs:SetQueueAttributes",
                "ssm: DescribeInstanceInformation",
                "ssm: GetCommandInvocation",
                "ssm: SendCommand"
                ],
                      "Resource": "*",
                      "Effect": "Allow"
          }
    ]
}
In order to backup RDS instances, use the permissions below. 
{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [
        {
            "Action": [
                "events:DeleteRule",
                "events:DescribeRule",
                "events:ListTargetsByRule",
                "events:PutRule",
                "events:PutTargets",
                "events:RemoveTargets",
                "iam:GetContextKeysForPrincipalPolicy",
                "iam:GetRole",
                "iam:SimulatePrincipalPolicy",
                "kms:CreateGrant",
                "kms:DescribeKey",
                "kms:GetKeyPolicy",
                "kms:ListKeys",
                "rds:AddTagsToResource",
                "rds:CopyDBSnapshot",
                "rds:CreateDBSnapshot",
                "rds:DeleteDBSnapshot",
                "rds:DescribeDBInstances",
                "rds:DescribeDBSnapshots",
                "rds:ListTagsForResource",
                "rds:ModifyDBSnapshotAttribute",
                "sns:CreateTopic",
                "sns:DeleteTopic",
                "sns:ListSubscriptionsByTopic",
                "sns:ListTopics",
                "sns:SetTopicAttributes",
                "sns:Subscribe",
                "sns:Unsubscribe",
                "sqs:CreateQueue",
                "sqs:DeleteMessage",
                "sqs:DeleteQueue",
                "sqs:ListQueues",
                "sqs:ReceiveMessage",
                "sqs:SendMessage",
                "sqs:SetQueueAttributes"
            ],
                      "Resource": "*",
                      "Effect": "Allow"
          }
    ]
}
In order to backup VPC settings, use the permissions below. 
{
    "Version": "2012-10-17",
    "Statement": [
        {
            "Action": [
                "ec2:DescribeAddresses",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnAuthorizationRules",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnEndpoints",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnRoutes",
                "ec2:DescribeClientVpnTargetNetworks",
                "ec2:DescribeCustomerGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeDhcpOptions",
                "ec2:DescribeEgressOnlyInternetGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeInstances",
                "ec2:DescribeInternetGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeManagedPrefixLists",
                "ec2:DescribeNatGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeNetworkAcls",
                "ec2:DescribeNetworkInterfaces",
                "ec2:DescribeRegions",
                "ec2:DescribeRouteTables",
                "ec2:DescribeSecurityGroups",
                "ec2:DescribeSubnets",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayAttachments",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayMulticastDomains",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayPeeringAttachments",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayRouteTables",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGateways",
                "ec2:DescribeTransitGatewayVpcAttachments",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcAttribute",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcEndpoints",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcEndpointServiceConfigurations",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcPeeringConnections",
                "ec2:DescribeVpcs",
                "ec2:DescribeVpnConnections",
                "ec2:DescribeVpnGateways",
                "ec2:GetManagedPrefixListEntries",
                "ec2:GetTransitGatewayRouteTableAssociations",
                "ec2:GetTransitGatewayRouteTablePropagations",
                "ec2:SearchTransitGatewayRoutes",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeListeners",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeLoadBalancers",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeTags",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeTargetGroups",
                "elasticloadbalancing:DescribeTargetHealth",
                "iam:GetContextKeysForPrincipalPolicy",
                "iam:ListAccountAliases",
                "iam:SimulatePrincipalPolicy",
                "ram:GetResourceShares",
                "ram:ListPrincipals",
                "ram:ListResources",
                "ram:ListResourceSharePermissions"
            ],
                      "Resource": "*",
                      "Effect": "Allow"
          }
    ]
}
  1. Navigate to Roles.
  2. 3. Choose Create role.
  3. Select type of trusted entity AWS Service.
  4. Select your use case EC2. Choose EC2 in Select your use case
  5. Press Next: Permissions button.
  6. Enter the name of the policy created on step 1 in filter policies search box.
  7. Select the policy with ticking on the checkbox in the first column.
  8. Press Next: Tags button.
  9. Enter tagging info if desired and press Next: Review button.
  10. Give a name to the IAM Role - you will be using this name in the Veeam Backup for AWS UI (e.g. vb4aws_pol2role).
  11. Press Create role button.
  12. After the successful creation of the role you will be able to see it in the list of all available roles.
  13. To add this role to the Veeam Backup for AWS service, you should update Trust relationships for the created role as described in this article.
KB ID: 3032
Product: Veeam Backup for AWS
Version: Any
Published: 2019-12-02
Last Modified: 2021-02-25
BACK TO KB SEARCH

Couldn't find what you were looking for?

Below you can submit an idea for a new knowledge base article.
Report a typo on this page:

Please select a spelling error or a typo on this page with your mouse and press CTRL + Enter to report this mistake to us. Thank you!

Spelling error in text

Knowledge base content request
By submitting, you agree that your personal data will be managed by Veeam in accordance with the Privacy Policy.

ty icon

Thank you!

We have received your request and our team will reach out to you shortly.

OK

error icon

Oops! Something went wrong.

Please go back try again later.

Stay up to date with Veeam product updates, latest news, and recent content.
By subscribing, you are agreeing to receive information about Veeam products and events and to have your personal information managed in accordance with the terms of Veeam's Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time.