Move objects from one folder to other in the same S3 Bucket using C# in AWS

Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service) is a scalable storage service provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS). It is widely used for storing and retrieving any amount of data at any time from anywhere on the web. In this blog, we will walk through the steps to move a folder from one root to another within the same S3 bucket using C#.

Introduction

Amazon S3 is designed to make web-scale computing easier by allowing users to store and retrieve any amount of data, at any time, from anywhere on the web. It provides developers and IT teams with secure, durable, highly scalable object storage. Some common use cases for S3 include data backup and restore, disaster recovery, data archiving, and content storage for websites and applications.

Key Concepts

• Buckets: Buckets are containers for storing objects (files) in S3. Each bucket has a unique name and is used to store data objects.
• Objects: Objects are the fundamental entities stored in S3, consisting of data and metadata. Objects are uniquely identified within a bucket by a key (name).
• Keys: Keys are the unique identifiers for objects within a bucket. They can include slashes ("/") to simulate a directory structure, which allows for the organization of objects into folders.
• Moving a Folder in S3: Moving a folder within the same S3 bucket involves copying all the objects from the source folder to the destination folder and then deleting the original objects. Below are the detailed steps and code snippets to achieve this in C#.

Step-by-Step Implementation

 

1. Set up AWS SDK for .NET

Ensure you have the AWS SDK for .NET installed. You can install it via NuGet Package Manager.

Install-Package AWSSDK.S3

2. Initialize the Amazon S3 Client

Create an instance of AmazonS3Client using your AWS credentials.

using Amazon.S3;
using Amazon.S3.Model;
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Threading.Tasks;

namespace S3FolderMove
{
    class Program
    {
        private static readonly string sourceFolder = "source-folder/";
        private static readonly string destinationFolder = "destination-folder/";
        private static readonly string bucketName = "your-bucket-name";
        private static readonly AmazonS3Client s3Client = new AmazonS3Client(Amazon.RegionEndpoint.USEast1);

        static async Task Main(string[] args)
        {
            await MoveFolderAsync(sourceFolder, destinationFolder);
            Console.WriteLine("Folder moved successfully.");
        }

        public static async Task MoveFolderAsync(string sourceFolder, string destinationFolder)
        {
            ListObjectsV2Request listRequest = new ListObjectsV2Request
            {
                BucketName = bucketName,
                Prefix = sourceFolder
            };

            ListObjectsV2Response listResponse;
            do
            {
                listResponse = await s3Client.ListObjectsV2Async(listRequest);

                foreach (S3Object s3Object in listResponse.S3Objects)
                {
                    string sourceKey = s3Object.Key;
                    string destinationKey = destinationFolder + sourceKey.Substring(sourceFolder.Length);

                    // Copy the object
                    CopyObjectRequest copyRequest = new CopyObjectRequest
                    {
                        SourceBucket = bucketName,
                        SourceKey = sourceKey,
                        DestinationBucket = bucketName,
                        DestinationKey = destinationKey
                    };
                    await s3Client.CopyObjectAsync(copyRequest);

                    // Delete the original object
                    DeleteObjectRequest deleteRequest = new DeleteObjectRequest
                    {
                        BucketName = bucketName,
                        Key = sourceKey
                    };
                    await s3Client.DeleteObjectAsync(deleteRequest);

                    Console.WriteLine($"Moved {sourceKey} to {destinationKey}");
                }

                listRequest.ContinuationToken = listResponse.NextContinuationToken;
            } while (listResponse.IsTruncated);
        }
    }
}

Explanation of Code

 

Amazon S3 Client Initialization

private static readonly AmazonS3Client s3Client = new AmazonS3Client(Amazon.RegionEndpoint.USEast1);

This initializes the S3 client with the specified AWS region. Ensure your AWS credentials are configured properly.

Listing Objects

ListObjectsV2Request listRequest = new ListObjectsV2Request
{
    BucketName = bucketName,
    Prefix = sourceFolder
};

This creates a request to list all objects in the source folder.

Copying and Deleting Objects

foreach (S3Object s3Object in listResponse.S3Objects)
{
    string sourceKey = s3Object.Key;
    string destinationKey = destinationFolder + sourceKey.Substring(sourceFolder.Length);

    // Copy the object
    CopyObjectRequest copyRequest = new CopyObjectRequest
    {
        SourceBucket = bucketName,
        SourceKey = sourceKey,
        DestinationBucket = bucketName,
        DestinationKey = destinationKey
    };
    await s3Client.CopyObjectAsync(copyRequest);

    // Delete the original object
    DeleteObjectRequest deleteRequest = new DeleteObjectRequest
    {
        BucketName = bucketName,
        Key = sourceKey
    };
    await s3Client.DeleteObjectAsync(deleteRequest);
}

This code copies each object from the source folder to the destination folder and then deletes the original object from the source folder.

Conclusion

Moving a folder within an S3 bucket involves listing the objects, copying them to the new location, and deleting the originals. Using the AWS SDK for .NET makes this process straightforward and efficient. With the provided code snippets, you can easily implement this functionality in your C# applications.

By understanding and utilizing S3's powerful features, you can effectively manage and manipulate your data, ensuring it is organized and accessible. This approach can be beneficial for various use cases, such as data migration, reorganization, and archival processes.