How can I set up an alert for no S3 bucket uploads in a specific time frame?

If you want to detect issues faster, consider triggering a Lambda function every time a file is created. This function can write the upload time to a parameter store, and another Lambda can check periodically to send alerts if the time exceeds the threshold you're concerned about.

Setting up a CloudWatch Alarm is a great idea too! You can create an alarm that directly utilizes S3 metrics, like monitoring for put requests. It's a simple way to get notified if uploads stop.

Just a heads-up! Depending on your needs, constantly checking S3 might not be the most efficient method. If uploads are sporadic, it could lead to false alarms. Tracking the upload process and using Dead Man Snitch services might provide a better approach to monitor your workflows.

Using S3 event notifications could also work. You can set up a notification that fires if no events are detected. Just make sure it's configured correctly to catch the lack of uploads.

You can use CloudWatch metrics to monitor the number of put requests on your S3 bucket. Set an alert that triggers if the count goes below 1 within the last 5 minutes. That's a straightforward method to catch any upload issues.