> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cloud.vessl.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Plan for data retention

> What happens to your data when a contract expires, and how to back it up.

## Boot disk vs NFS

* **Boot disk** — local to each node. It can be lost if the node is relocated due to a hardware fault, and it's deleted when the contract expires. Don't keep your only copy of important data here.
* **[NFS shared storage](/vm-clusters/nfs-storage)** — shared across all nodes in the cluster. It's also deleted when the contract expires.

## At expiry

<Warning>
  When your contract expires, all VMs are stopped and **all data — boot disk and NFS — is deleted immediately**. There is no grace period and no recovery. Back up anything important before the expiry date.
</Warning>

## Expiry reminders

We email you before expiry so you have time to back up or extend:

* **7 days before** (D-7)
* **3 days before** (D-3)
* **1 day before** (D-1)
* **On the expiry date** (D-0)

All reminders are sent at 00:00 UTC.

## Back up your data

Before expiry, copy anything you need off the cluster — for example with `rsync` to your own machine, or by syncing NFS to object storage such as S3.