Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) provides object storage that expands on demand and remains available through a web API. Development teams treat S3 as an online drive where they can upload and retrieve vast datasets without managing hardware.
Why blockchain projects rely on S3
- Node backups
Full nodes produce large state files. Operators export snapshots to S3, then restore quickly if a server fails. - Front-end hosting for decentralized applications
dApps store HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and media assets in S3 buckets that pair with a content delivery network. Smart contracts remain on the chain while users load the interface from the cloud. - Data warehousing and analytics
Analytics firms archive transaction histories, contract logs, and compliance records in S3, then process the data with cloud computing services as needed.
Practical example
A blockchain analytics company ingests multiple ledgers, compresses raw records, and writes them to S3. Engineers launch temporary clusters for queries and visualizations, paying only for the storage and computing they use.