Couchbase 6.6 has introduced the ability to back up its document database directly to AWS S3 or any S3-compatible object store using the cbbackupmgr utility, allowing users to specify an S3 bucket as a backup destination. Object storage, characterized by flat storage systems and unique identifiers for accessing data, is becoming a standard for cloud-based data storage, offering advantages such as RESTful API access, scalability, and cost-effective, limitless storage capacity. These attributes make object storage ideal for various deployment types, including cloud-native and hybrid cloud environments, and beneficial for tasks like disaster recovery and big data analytics. AWS S3 is particularly noted for its role in disaster recovery and file sharing, while other alternatives like AWS Glacier and Nutanix Objects offer different performance and cost options. The transition to containerized workloads is also driving new approaches to file storage and access, reducing previous challenges associated with mounting filesystems.