Medusa
Medusa is a command-line backup system for Apache Cassandra, intended for Linux and self-hosted deployments.
What Medusa is
Medusa is a command-line backup system for Apache Cassandra, intended for Linux and self-hosted deployments. It handles single-node backups and restores as well as cluster-wide restores in place or to a remote location. You can create full or differential backups and purge them by age or count. Storage choices include local disks, Google Cloud Storage, Azure Blob Storage, AWS S3, and compatible S3 services. Medusa supports Cassandra clusters configured with single tokens or vnodes. Its verification command checks that a backup completed and that its manifest and files are present; it also checks file hashes, with MD5 calculations available as a configuration option. Configuration documentation covers client SSL and S3 server-side encryption using KMS or customer-provided keys. Installation instructions cover pip and Debian packages, including offline installation, and call for installation on each Cassandra node. Medusa requires Python 3.9 or newer. It is Apache-2.0 licensed and free to use. A stated constraint is that deployments with multiple Cassandra data-folder directories are unsupported.
Good
- Supports full and differential backups.
- Offers local and cloud storage destinations.
- Verifies backup files and hashes.
- Supports single-token and vnode clusters.
Watch out
- Requires Python 3.9 or newer.
- Does not support multiple Cassandra data-folder directories.
Who it suits
Medusa suits Cassandra operators who want command-line backups, flexible storage destinations, and node- or cluster-level restore options. It requires a self-hosted Linux environment and Python 3.9 or newer.
Verdict
Medusa covers backup, restore, verification, and retention needs for supported Cassandra deployments. Check its data-folder limitation before adopting it.
Plans and prices
From Medusa's own pricing page, checked 11 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Medusa for Apache Cassandra | Free | Apache-2.0 licensed · no price listed |
The facts
Each one read from Medusa's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Backup and restore
- It supports single-node backup and restore, cluster-wide in-place restore, and cluster-wide remote restore.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Backup integrity
- The verify command checks backup completion, manifest and file presence, and file hashes; MD5 checks can be enabled.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Backups and restores
- It supports single node backups and restores, cluster wide in place and remote restores, and full or differential backups.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Backup storage
- Supported storage includes local storage, Google Cloud Storage, Azure Blob Storage, AWS S3, and compatible S3 services.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Backup types
- It supports full and differential backups, and backup purging.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Cluster support
- It supports Cassandra clusters using single tokens or vnodes.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Cluster topology
- It supports Cassandra clusters using either single tokens or vnodes.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Container image
- The project links to a Cassandra Medusa Docker image published as k8ssandra/medusa.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Deployment
- Installation documentation describes installing Medusa on each Cassandra node with pip or Debian packages.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Installation
- The project documents pip and Debian package installation, including offline installation steps.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Integrity checks
- Configuration can enable MD5 calculations during backups and verification; file size is used by default.checked 11 Oct 2026
- License
- The GitHub repository identifies the project license as Apache-2.0.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Notable limit
- The project says deployments with multiple Cassandra data-folder directories are not supported.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Notable limitation
- The project says it does not support Cassandra deployments with multiple data folder directories.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Medusa is a command-line backup and restore system for Apache Cassandra.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Retention controls
- Configuration supports purging by backup age or backup count, with zero meaning no purge by that threshold.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Runtime requirement
- Medusa requires Python 3.9 or newer.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Security configuration
- Configuration options include client SSL certificate and key paths, storage connection SSL, and S3 server-side encryption settings.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Storage integrations
- Supported backup storage includes local storage, Google Cloud Storage, Azure Blob Storage, AWS S3, and S3-compatible services.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Support
- The README directs user questions and general or development discussions to the #cassandra-medusa channel on ASF Slack.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Support channel
- The repository directs user questions and general or development discussions to the #cassandra-medusa channel on ASF Slack.checked 4 Oct 2026
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