---
title: "Snapshot Management"
slug: "snapshot-endpoints"
updated: 2024-05-08T01:22:13Z
published: 2024-05-08T01:22:13Z
canonical: "docs.oscal.io/snapshot-endpoints"
---

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

# Snapshot Management

**Snapshot Endpoints** allow the creation and management of snapshots for OSCAL content, providing for version history.

The following methods are available for making and managing point-in-time snapshots of an OSCAL file.

| **Method** | **Endpoint** | **Description** |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `GET` | `/{model-name}/{identifier}/snapshot` | Returns a list of every relevant snapshot. |
| `POST` | `/{model-name}/{identifier}/snapshot` | Creates a new snapshot of the OSCAL content in its current state. |
| `GET` | `/{model-name}/{identifier}/snapshot/{identifier}` | Retrieves a specific snapshot. |
| `PUT` | `/{model-name}/{identifier}/snapshot/{identifier}` | Modifies the snapshot description, type, and label. |
| `DELETE` | `/{model-name}/{identifier}/snapshot/{identifier}` | Removes the identified snapshot. |

### Snapshot Date/Timestamp

When creating a snapshot via the `POST` method, the server *must* assign a `snapshot-created` property in the OSCAL metadata of the snapshot copy. This *must* contain a date/time stamp representing when the snapshot was created. The specification deliberately excludes any ability to modify this date/timestamp. The implementation *should* ensure this property cannot be altered by endpoint calls.

### Other Snapshot Properties

The `POST` and `PUT` methods include the ability to add and manage a `snapshot-description` property as well as `snapshot-label` and `snapshot-type` properties. All are optional. While no more than one description is allowed, any number of label and type properties are allowed.