MinIO — High-Performance S3-Compatible Object Storage

What it is

MinIO is an open-source, high-performance object storage server that implements the AWS S3 API. It is designed for cloud-native workloads including AI/ML data lakes, backup targets, and application storage.

MinIO targets DevOps teams and developers who need S3-compatible storage without AWS dependency. It runs on any hardware from a single laptop to multi-node distributed clusters.

How it saves time or tokens

MinIO provides a drop-in replacement for AWS S3. Existing code using the AWS SDK, boto3, or any S3 client works with MinIO by changing the endpoint URL. This eliminates vendor lock-in and reduces cloud storage costs for on-premises or hybrid deployments.

How to use

1. Run MinIO with Docker:

docker run -d --name minio -p 9000:9000 -p 9001:9001 \
  -e MINIO_ROOT_USER=minioadmin \
  -e MINIO_ROOT_PASSWORD=minioadmin \
  -v minio-data:/data \
  minio/minio server /data --console-address ':9001'

1. Open http://localhost:9001 and log in with minioadmin/minioadmin.

1. Create a bucket and start uploading files via the web console or any S3 client.

Example

import boto3

s3 = boto3.client(
    's3',
    endpoint_url='http://localhost:9000',
    aws_access_key_id='minioadmin',
    aws_secret_access_key='minioadmin',
)

# Create a bucket
s3.create_bucket(Bucket='my-data')

# Upload a file
s3.upload_file('report.pdf', 'my-data', 'reports/2026/report.pdf')

# List objects
for obj in s3.list_objects_v2(Bucket='my-data')['Contents']:
    print(obj['Key'])

Related on TokRepo

• Self-Hosted Tools -- Self-hosted infrastructure and storage
• Database Tools -- Data storage and management solutions

Common pitfalls

• The default minioadmin credentials are public knowledge. Change MINIO_ROOT_USER and MINIO_ROOT_PASSWORD before any non-local deployment.
• MinIO erasure coding requires a minimum of 4 drives for data protection. Single-drive setups provide no redundancy.
• MinIO uses port 9000 for the S3 API and 9001 for the web console. Ensure both ports are accessible if running behind a firewall.