Configure EFS Cross-Region Replication Using the AWS Console

Amazon Elastic File System (EFS) is a fully managed, cloud-native NFS file storage service designed to work seamlessly with AWS cloud services and on-premises systems. To support disaster recovery, regulatory compliance, and enhanced availability, AWS offers EFS replication—an automated, asynchronous feature that allows you to duplicate your file system across AWS Regions. This guide provides a step-by-step walkthrough to Configure EFS Cross-Region Replication Using the AWS Console

Create EFS Replication

Open the AWS Management Console

1. Go to: https://console.aws.amazon.com/efs
2. Make sure you’re in the source AWS Region .

Select Your Source File System

1. In the left panel, click File systems.
2. Select the EFS file system you want to replicate.
3. Click on the file system name to open its details page.

Create Replication

1. In the Replication tab, click Create replication.
2. Fill in the following:

• Destination Region: Choose your target Region.
• KMS key: Choose either the default AWS KMS key or a custom key (used to encrypt data at rest).
• Replication name tag: Add a tag to identify the replication setup.

3. Click Create replication.

Monitor the Replication

After creation:

AWS automatically creates a new EFS file system in the destination Region.

Replication begins automatically and is asynchronous.

You can view replication status under:

•  Replication tab in source file system
  
• Destination file system will have read-only status

Verify in Destination Region

1. Switch to the destination AWS Region in the AWS Console.
   
2. Go to EFS File Systems.
   

You should see a new file system created by replication.

• Replication does not replicate mount targets. You need to create them manually in the destination Region if needed.
• Replication lag can vary depending on changes and data volume.
• You can only replicate to one destination Region at a time per file system.

With EFS replication, you can enhance your application’s resilience by creating a geographically redundant copy of your file system. This setup is ideal for disaster recovery, business continuity, or cross-Region failover strategies. Once replication is configured, AWS handles the rest—keeping your data in sync with minimal manual effort. Always monitor replication status and test failover procedures to ensure your setup meets recovery objectives.

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