Published Date: July 2, 2025
Validated: Yes
Audience: Everyone
Products and Versions Covered:
Cloud (CVC)
Jama Connect® Version(s): All current Cloud versions
IMPORTANT: Access to the REST API is limited to users with a Named Creator Jama Connect license, including access to v1, labs, and SCIM endpoints. Users without a Named Creator Jama Connect license, including those with a Creator Float License, do not have access.
Summary
This article, updated June 1, 2026, explains how Jama Connect Cloud backs up and retains tenant data. You will learn what data is backed up, how backups are created, where they are stored, how long they are retained, and what happens when a tenant license expires.
Jama Connect Cloud automatically backs up all tenant data, including databases and uploaded assets. Backup processes are designed to support disaster recovery, ensure data durability across regions, and comply with data retention requirements.
Resolution
What is a tenant?
A tenant is an isolated Jama Connect Cloud environment assigned to a specific customer. Each tenant includes the application, services, database schema, and file storage required to operate Jama Connect.
Tenant data includes:
Tenant metadata — Tenant name, ID, public URL, application version, and service versions
Tenant database — Users and all content created within Jama Connect
Tenant file system (assets) — Avatars, attachments, diagrams, equations, reports, and other uploaded files
What is a bulkhead?
A Bulkhead is a region-specific hosting environment for multiple tenants. It provides shared infrastructure resources, including application services, database servers, and file storage systems. Each tenant operates independently within the Bulkhead.
Which tenant data is backed up?
All tenant data is backed up.
To restore a tenant, Jama Connect requires:
The tenant database
Tenant assets (file system data)
How is the tenant data backed up?
Tenant Database
Jama Connect Cloud uses automated processes to back up tenant databases:
mysqldump creates tenant-specific logical backups.
MySQL Enterprise Backup performs full physical backups of the database storage for disaster recovery.
Full database backups occur daily starting at noon UTC.
Incremental backups occur every 30 minutes.
Backup start times vary by tenant to distribute system load and maintain platform performance.
Tenant Assets
Jama Connect Cloud uses Duplicity to back up tenant assets.
A full backup is created every 14 days.
Incremental backups occur daily.
Backups begin after 3:00 UTC, but the exact start time varies by tenant.
The system stores only file differences between full backups to reduce storage usage and improve efficiency.
Where is the tenant backup stored?
Tenant data is stored in AWS S3 buckets located in the same AWS region as the tenant’s Bulkhead. Data is replicated to a secondary AWS region for disaster recovery.
Each S3 bucket provides durability across at least three AWS Availability Zones.
Database Backup Regions
EU Bulkheads
Primary Region: eu-west-1
Replication Region: eu-central-1
US Bulkheads
Primary Region: us-west-2
Replication Region: us-east-2
Asset Backup Regions
EU Bulkheads
Primary Region: eu-west-1
Replication Region: eu-central-1
US Bulkheads
Primary Region: us-east-1
Replication Region: us-east-2
Are backups encrypted?
Yes. All tenant backup data stored in AWS S3 is encrypted at rest using AES-256 server-side encryption with Amazon S3-managed encryption keys (SSE-S3).
Who has access to backup data?
Access to production tenant backup data is restricted to authorized Jama Connect personnel and automated systems responsible for backup management.
How long are backups retained?
Tenant database and asset backups are retained for no longer than 60 days to support GDPR compliance.
How are backups deleted?
S3 lifecycle policies automatically delete backups after the 60-day retention period.
What happens when a tenant's license expires?
The system deletes the tenant’s database and assets 60 days after license expiration.
Daily backups stored in S3 are automatically deleted over the next 60 days, leaving no backups.
Additional Resources
- To learn about the database backup program: MySQL 8.0 Reference Manual 6.5.4 mysqldump — A Database Backup Program
- To learn about MySQL Enterprise Backup: MySQL Enterprise Backup 8.0 User's Guide
- To learn about Duplicity: duplicity_Encrypted bandwidth-efficient backup.
- Learn about Amazon S3.
- For details:
Protecting data with server-side encryption - Amazon Simple Storage Service
Feedback:
We welcome your input! Please sign in to leave any comments, suggestions, or ideas for improvement below.
Comments
0 comments
Please sign in to leave a comment.