[role="xpack"]
[testenv="basic"]
[[index-lifecycle-management]]
= {ilm-init}: Manage the index lifecycle

[partintro]
--
You can configure {ilm} ({ilm-init}) policies to automatically manage indices 
according to your performance, resiliency, and retention requirements. 
For example, you could use {ilm-init} to:

* Spin up a new index when an index reaches a certain size or number of documents
* Create a new index each day, week, or month and archive previous ones
* Delete stale indices to enforce data retention standards
 
You can create and manage index lifecycle policies through {kib} Management or the {ilm-init} APIs.
When you enable {ilm} for {beats} or the {ls} {es} output plugin, 
default policies are configured automatically.

[role="screenshot"]
image:images/ilm/index-lifecycle-policies.png[]

[TIP]
To automatically back up your indices and manage snapshots, 
use <<getting-started-snapshot-lifecycle-management,snapshot lifecycle policies>>.

* <<overview-index-lifecycle-management>>
* <<ilm-concepts>>
* <<getting-started-index-lifecycle-management>>
* <<example-using-index-lifecycle-policy>>
* <<set-up-lifecycle-policy>>
* <<index-lifecycle-error-handling>>
* <<start-stop-ilm>>
* <<ilm-with-existing-indices>>
* <<skipping-rollover>>
* <<index-lifecycle-and-snapshots>>
* <<index-lifecycle-management-api>>
* <<ilm-actions>>

--
include::ilm-overview.asciidoc[]

include::ilm-concepts.asciidoc[]

include::ilm-tutorial.asciidoc[]

include::example-index-lifecycle-policy.asciidoc[leveloffset=-1]

include::ilm-actions.asciidoc[]

include::set-up-lifecycle-policy.asciidoc[]

include::error-handling.asciidoc[]

include::start-stop.asciidoc[]

include::ilm-with-existing-indices.asciidoc[]

include::ilm-skip-rollover.asciidoc[]

include::ilm-and-snapshots.asciidoc[]