InvalidSnapshot.NotFound
AWS InvalidSnapshot.NotFound means the specified EBS snapshot does not exist for the account and region context of the request.
Last reviewed: February 12, 2026|Editorial standard: source-backed technical guidance
What Does Invalid Snapshot Not Found Mean?
EC2 cannot resolve the referenced snapshot in the caller account-region visibility scope, so launch/restore flows fail until a valid snapshot reference is supplied.
Common Causes
- -Snapshot ID is mistyped or references a snapshot in a different AWS region.
- -Snapshot was deleted after the ID was captured in automation or IaC state.
- -Cross-account copy/share assumptions are wrong for the credentials being used.
- -Image pipeline rotated snapshot IDs, but downstream jobs still use stale values.
How to Fix Invalid Snapshot Not Found
- 1Confirm snapshot ID from authoritative inventory immediately before use.
- 2Verify the request runs in the correct account and region endpoint.
- 3Call `DescribeSnapshots` with the same credentials to confirm visibility.
- 4If snapshot copy/create just ran, wait for completion before dependent operations.
Step-by-Step Diagnosis for Invalid Snapshot Not Found
- 1Capture snapshot ID, region, account ID, and request ID from the failing call.
- 2Correlate `CopySnapshot`/`DeleteSnapshot` events in CloudTrail around failure time.
- 3Diff launch template or IaC snapshot references against current snapshot inventory.
- 4Validate assumed role/account path used by the caller matches expected ownership.
Snapshot Visibility and Ownership Checks
- -Validate snapshot ID with same role and region endpoint (example: snapshot exists in source account but not shared to target account).
- -Inspect snapshot lifecycle history for deletion/rotation events (example: retention policy removed snapshot still referenced in template).
Image Pipeline and Reference Freshness
- -Audit AMI/snapshot catalog propagation timing (example: downstream job consumes snapshot ID before copy completes).
- -Invalidate stale snapshot references in automation caches (example: old state file still pins retired snapshot ID).
How to Verify the Fix
- -Run `DescribeSnapshots --snapshot-ids` with the same role and region to confirm snapshot visibility.
- -Replay the failing launch/restore action and verify InvalidSnapshot.NotFound no longer appears.
- -Confirm templates and pipeline metadata no longer reference retired snapshot IDs.
How to Prevent Recurrence
- -Resolve snapshot IDs from a live inventory feed right before dependent EC2 operations.
- -Gate pipelines with snapshot ownership and region checks for every referenced ID.
- -Track snapshot retention/deletion events and automatically invalidate stale references.
Pro Tip
- -enforce a preflight `DescribeSnapshots` existence check in launch pipelines and fail fast if snapshot ownership/region visibility does not match expected scope.
Decision Support
Compare Guide
403 Forbidden vs 404 Not Found: When to Hide Resources
Use 403 for explicit access denial, or 404 to conceal resource existence when security policy requires reducing endpoint and object enumeration risk.
Compare Guide
404 Not Found vs 410 Gone: Missing vs Permanent Removal
Learn when to return 404 (missing or temporary absence) versus 410 (intentional permanent removal), including redirect and cache implications.
Playbook
Resource State Playbook (404 / 410 / ResourceNotFound)
Use this playbook to separate temporary missing-resource lookups from permanent removals, then fix scope, lifecycle, and identifier drift safely.
Official References
Provider Context
This guidance is specific to AWS services. Always validate implementation details against official provider documentation before deploying to production.