exporting-rds-to-s3

aws/agent-toolkit-for-aws

Export RDS/Aurora snapshots to S3 in Parquet format for analytics and migration.

What is exporting-rds-to-s3?

Automates exporting Amazon RDS and Aurora database snapshots to S3 in Apache Parquet format. Use this skill when you need to move database data to S3 for analytics tools like Athena, Glue, or Redshift Spectrum, or for backup and data migration workflows.

Identify or create RDS/Aurora database snapshots
Set up IAM roles with proper trust policies and permissions
Configure KMS encryption for exports
Prepare and validate S3 bucket configuration
Execute and monitor export tasks to completion
Verify exported Parquet data and provide access guidance for analytics services

How to install exporting-rds-to-s3

npx skills add https://github.com/aws/agent-toolkit-for-aws --skill exporting-rds-to-s3

Prerequisites

AWS account with RDS or Aurora database instances
Existing database snapshot or permission to create snapshots
S3 bucket for export destination
IAM permissions to create roles and manage KMS keys

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How to use exporting-rds-to-s3

1.Identify the RDS or Aurora database and snapshot to export
2.Create or configure an IAM role with S3 PutObject and KMS permissions, ensuring trust policy includes export.rds.amazonaws.com
3.Prepare the target S3 bucket and verify it is accessible
4.Initiate the export task specifying the snapshot, S3 path, and KMS encryption key
5.Monitor export progress and wait for task completion
6.Verify the exported Parquet files in S3 and configure access for downstream analytics tools

Use cases

Good for

Export production RDS snapshots to S3 for analytics queries via Athena without impacting the database
Migrate Aurora PostgreSQL data to S3 for processing with AWS Glue ETL jobs
Create encrypted backups of MySQL databases in S3 with Parquet format for long-term retention
Enable Redshift Spectrum queries over exported RDS data stored in S3
Prepare database snapshots for data lake ingestion and cross-account access

Who it's for

AWS database administrators managing RDS/Aurora exports
Data engineers building analytics pipelines with Athena or Glue
DevOps engineers automating database backup and migration workflows
Solutions architects designing data lake architectures on AWS

exporting-rds-to-s3 FAQ

Which database engines are supported for export to S3?

MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB, Aurora MySQL, and Aurora PostgreSQL are supported. Oracle and SQL Server snapshots cannot be exported to S3.

What format are the exported files in?

Exported data is stored in Apache Parquet format, which is optimized for analytics queries and compression.

How do I troubleshoot IAM role permission errors?

Ensure the role trust policy allows export.rds.amazonaws.com with aws:SourceAccount and aws:SourceArn conditions, includes S3 PutObject and KMS permissions, and wait 10–15 seconds after role creation for propagation.

Can I export to S3 without KMS encryption?

The skill handles KMS encryption setup as part of the workflow; refer to the full procedure for encryption configuration options.

What should I do if the export task fails or gets stuck?

Check the export task status for failure reasons. Common causes include S3 bucket deletion, IAM role modification, or KMS key being disabled during export.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from aws/agent-toolkit-for-aws.

name: exporting-rds-to-s3 description: Exports Amazon RDS or Aurora database snapshots to Amazon S3 in Apache Parquet format for analytics, backup, or data migration. Handles snapshot selection or creation, IAM role setup, KMS encryption, S3 bucket preparation, export task execution, progress monitoring, and data verification. Use when exporting RDS/Aurora data to S3 for Athena, Glue, or Redshift Spectrum consumption. version: 1

Exporting RDS/Aurora to S3

Overview

Domain expertise for exporting Amazon RDS and Aurora database snapshots to Amazon S3 in Apache Parquet format. Covers the full workflow: snapshot identification or creation, IAM role and KMS encryption setup, S3 bucket preparation, export task initiation, progress monitoring, data verification, and post-export access guidance for analytics services like Athena, Glue, and Redshift Spectrum.

Export an RDS or Aurora snapshot to S3

To export a database snapshot to S3 with proper IAM roles, encryption, and monitoring, follow the procedure exactly. See RDS to S3 export procedure.

Troubleshooting

Database not found

Verify the database identifier spelling, case, and region. For Aurora, use describe-db-clusters instead of describe-db-instances.

Export not supported

Snapshot export supports MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB, Aurora MySQL, and Aurora PostgreSQL only. Oracle and SQL Server are not supported.

IAM role permission errors

Ensure the role trust policy allows export.rds.amazonaws.com with aws:SourceAccount and aws:SourceArn conditions for confused deputy protection, and has S3 PutObject and KMS permissions. Wait 10–15 seconds after role creation for propagation.

Export stuck or failed

Check the export task status for failure reasons. Common causes: S3 bucket deleted, IAM role modified, or KMS key disabled during export. See the full procedure for detailed troubleshooting.