diff --git a/.changeset/search-lightning-cult.md b/.changeset/search-lightning-cult.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..79cd256e77
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/search-lightning-cult.md
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+---
+'@backstage/plugin-search-backend-module-elasticsearch': minor
+---
+
+**BREAKING**: In order to remain interoperable with all currently supported
+deployments of Elasticsearch, this package will now conditionally use either
+the `@elastic/elasticsearch` or `@opensearch-project/opensearch` client when
+communicating with your deployed cluster.
+
+If you do not rely on types exported from this package, or if you do not make
+use of the `createElasticSearchClientOptions` or `newClient` methods on the
+`ElasticSearchSearchEngine` class, then upgrading to this version should not
+require any further action on your part. Everything will continue to work as it
+always has.
+
+If you _do_ rely on either of the above methods or any underlying types, some
+changes may be needed to your custom code. A type guard is now exported by this
+package (`isOpenSearchCompatible(options)`), which you may use to help clarify
+which client options are compatible with which client constructors.
+
+If you are using this package with the `search.elasticsearch.provider` set to
+`aws`, and you are making use of the `newClient` method in particular, you may
+wish to start using the `@opensearch-project/opensearch` client in your custom
+code.
diff --git a/docs/features/search/search-engines.md b/docs/features/search/search-engines.md
index 9bb8b8c343..a5ff780c8a 100644
--- a/docs/features/search/search-engines.md
+++ b/docs/features/search/search-engines.md
@@ -80,15 +80,16 @@ const searchEngine = await ElasticSearchSearchEngine.initialize({
 const indexBuilder = new IndexBuilder({ logger: env.logger, searchEngine });
 ```
 
-For the engine to be available, your backend package needs a dependency into
+For the engine to be available, your backend package needs a dependency on
 package `@backstage/plugin-search-backend-module-elasticsearch`.
 
 ElasticSearch needs some additional configuration before it is ready to use
 within your instance. The configuration options are documented in the
 [configuration schema definition file.](https://github.com/backstage/backstage/blob/master/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/config.d.ts)
 
-The underlying functionality is using official ElasticSearch client version 7.x,
-meaning that ElasticSearch version 7 is the only one confirmed to be supported.
+The underlying functionality uses either the official ElasticSearch client
+version 7.x (meaning that ElasticSearch version 7 is the only one confirmed to
+be supported), or the OpenSearch client, when the `aws` provider is configured.
 
 Should you need to create your own bespoke search experiences that require more
 than just a query translator (such as faceted search or Relay pagination), you
@@ -97,9 +98,19 @@ search clients. The version of the client need not be the same as one used
 internally by the elastic search engine plugin. For example:
 
 ```typescript
-import { Client } from '@elastic/elastic-search';
+import { isOpenSearchCompatible } from '@backstage/plugin-search-backend-module-elasticsearch';
+import { Client as ElasticClient } from '@elastic/elastic-search';
+import { Client as OpenSearchClient } from '@opensearch-project/opensearch';
 
-const client = searchEngine.newClient(options => new Client(options));
+const client = searchEngine.newClient(options => {
+  // In reality, you would only import / instantiate one of the following, but
+  // for illustrative purposes, here are both:
+  if (isOpenSearchCompatible(options)) {
+    return new OpenSearchClient(options);
+  } else {
+    return new ElasticClient(options);
+  }
+});
 ```
 
 #### Set custom index template
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/api-report.md b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/api-report.md
index 04b7f96f93..eed2b1b10a 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/api-report.md
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/api-report.md
@@ -5,60 +5,27 @@
 ```ts
 /// <reference types="node" />
 
+import { ApiResponse } from '@opensearch-project/opensearch';
 import { BatchSearchEngineIndexer } from '@backstage/plugin-search-backend-node';
-import { Client } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
+import { BulkHelper } from '@opensearch-project/opensearch/lib/Helpers';
+import { BulkStats } from '@opensearch-project/opensearch/lib/Helpers';
 import { Config } from '@backstage/config';
 import type { ConnectionOptions } from 'tls';
 import { IndexableDocument } from '@backstage/plugin-search-common';
 import { IndexableResultSet } from '@backstage/plugin-search-common';
 import { Logger } from 'winston';
+import { Readable } from 'stream';
 import { SearchEngine } from '@backstage/plugin-search-common';
 import { SearchQuery } from '@backstage/plugin-search-common';
-
-// @public (undocumented)
-export interface ElasticSearchAgentOptions {
-  // (undocumented)
-  keepAlive?: boolean;
-  // (undocumented)
-  keepAliveMsecs?: number;
-  // (undocumented)
-  maxFreeSockets?: number;
-  // (undocumented)
-  maxSockets?: number;
-}
-
-// @public (undocumented)
-export type ElasticSearchAuth =
-  | {
-      username: string;
-      password: string;
-    }
-  | {
-      apiKey:
-        | string
-        | {
-            id: string;
-            api_key: string;
-          };
-    };
+import { TransportRequestPromise } from '@opensearch-project/opensearch/lib/Transport';
 
 // @public
-export interface ElasticSearchClientOptions {
+export interface BaseElasticSearchClientOptions {
   // (undocumented)
   agent?: ElasticSearchAgentOptions | ((opts?: any) => unknown) | false;
   // (undocumented)
-  auth?: ElasticSearchAuth;
-  // (undocumented)
-  cloud?: {
-    id: string;
-    username?: string;
-    password?: string;
-  };
-  // (undocumented)
   compression?: 'gzip';
   // (undocumented)
-  Connection?: ElasticSearchConnectionConstructor;
-  // (undocumented)
   disablePrototypePoisoningProtection?: boolean | 'proto' | 'constructor';
   // (undocumented)
   enableMetaHeader?: boolean;
@@ -69,28 +36,14 @@ export interface ElasticSearchClientOptions {
   // (undocumented)
   name?: string | symbol;
   // (undocumented)
-  node?:
-    | string
-    | string[]
-    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions
-    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions[];
-  // (undocumented)
   nodeFilter?: (connection: any) => boolean;
   // (undocumented)
-  nodes?:
-    | string
-    | string[]
-    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions
-    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions[];
-  // (undocumented)
   nodeSelector?: ((connections: any[]) => any) | string;
   // (undocumented)
   opaqueIdPrefix?: string;
   // (undocumented)
   pingTimeout?: number;
   // (undocumented)
-  provider?: 'aws' | 'elastic';
-  // (undocumented)
   proxy?: string | URL;
   // (undocumented)
   requestTimeout?: number;
@@ -112,6 +65,118 @@ export interface ElasticSearchClientOptions {
   Transport?: ElasticSearchTransportConstructor;
 }
 
+// @public (undocumented)
+export interface ElasticSearchAgentOptions {
+  // (undocumented)
+  keepAlive?: boolean;
+  // (undocumented)
+  keepAliveMsecs?: number;
+  // (undocumented)
+  maxFreeSockets?: number;
+  // (undocumented)
+  maxSockets?: number;
+}
+
+// @public (undocumented)
+export type ElasticSearchAliasAction =
+  | {
+      remove: {
+        index: any;
+        alias: any;
+      };
+      add?: undefined;
+    }
+  | {
+      add: {
+        indices: any;
+        alias: any;
+        index?: undefined;
+      };
+      remove?: undefined;
+    }
+  | {
+      add: {
+        index: any;
+        alias: any;
+        indices?: undefined;
+      };
+      remove?: undefined;
+    }
+  | undefined;
+
+// @public (undocumented)
+export type ElasticSearchAuth =
+  | OpenSearchAuth
+  | {
+      apiKey:
+        | string
+        | {
+            id: string;
+            api_key: string;
+          };
+    };
+
+// @public
+export type ElasticSearchClientOptions =
+  | ElasticSearchElasticSearchClientOptions
+  | OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions;
+
+// @public
+export class ElasticSearchClientWrapper {
+  // (undocumented)
+  bulk(bulkOptions: {
+    datasource: Readable;
+    onDocument: () => ElasticSearchIndexAction;
+    refreshOnCompletion?: string | boolean;
+  }): BulkHelper<BulkStats>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  createIndex({
+    index,
+  }: {
+    index: string;
+  }): TransportRequestPromise<ApiResponse<Record<string, any>, unknown>>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  deleteIndex({
+    index,
+  }: {
+    index: string | string[];
+  }): TransportRequestPromise<ApiResponse<Record<string, any>, unknown>>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  static fromClientOptions(
+    options: ElasticSearchClientOptions,
+  ): ElasticSearchClientWrapper;
+  // (undocumented)
+  getAliases({
+    aliases,
+  }: {
+    aliases: string[];
+  }): TransportRequestPromise<ApiResponse<Record<string, any>, unknown>>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  indexExists({
+    index,
+  }: {
+    index: string | string[];
+  }): TransportRequestPromise<ApiResponse<boolean, unknown>>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  putIndexTemplate(
+    template: ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate,
+  ): TransportRequestPromise<ApiResponse<Record<string, any>, unknown>>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  search({
+    index,
+    body,
+  }: {
+    index: string | string[];
+    body: Object;
+  }): TransportRequestPromise<ApiResponse<Record<string, any>, unknown>>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  updateAliases({
+    actions,
+  }: {
+    actions: ElasticSearchAliasAction[];
+  }): TransportRequestPromise<ApiResponse<Record<string, any>, unknown>>;
+}
+
 // @public
 export type ElasticSearchConcreteQuery = {
   documentTypes?: string[];
@@ -150,6 +215,35 @@ export type ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody = {
   template?: Record<string, any>;
 };
 
+// @public
+export interface ElasticSearchElasticSearchClientOptions
+  extends BaseElasticSearchClientOptions {
+  // (undocumented)
+  auth?: ElasticSearchAuth;
+  // (undocumented)
+  cloud?: {
+    id: string;
+    username?: string;
+    password?: string;
+  };
+  // (undocumented)
+  Connection?: ElasticSearchConnectionConstructor;
+  // (undocumented)
+  node?:
+    | string
+    | string[]
+    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions
+    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions[];
+  // (undocumented)
+  nodes?:
+    | string
+    | string[]
+    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions
+    | ElasticSearchNodeOptions[];
+  // (undocumented)
+  provider?: 'elastic';
+}
+
 // @public (undocumented)
 export type ElasticSearchHighlightConfig = {
   fragmentDelimiter: string;
@@ -166,6 +260,14 @@ export type ElasticSearchHighlightOptions = {
   numFragments?: number;
 };
 
+// @public (undocumented)
+export type ElasticSearchIndexAction = {
+  index: {
+    _index: string;
+    [key: string]: any;
+  };
+};
+
 // @public (undocumented)
 export interface ElasticSearchNodeOptions {
   // (undocumented)
@@ -258,7 +360,7 @@ export type ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexerOptions = {
   indexSeparator: string;
   alias: string;
   logger: Logger;
-  elasticSearchClient: Client;
+  elasticSearchClientWrapper: ElasticSearchClientWrapper;
 };
 
 // @public (undocumented)
@@ -273,4 +375,67 @@ export interface ElasticSearchTransportConstructor {
     DEFAULT: string;
   };
 }
+
+// @public
+export const isOpenSearchCompatible: (
+  opts: ElasticSearchClientOptions,
+) => opts is OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions;
+
+// @public (undocumented)
+export type OpenSearchAuth = {
+  username: string;
+  password: string;
+};
+
+// @public (undocumented)
+export interface OpenSearchConnectionConstructor {
+  // (undocumented)
+  new (opts?: any): any;
+  // (undocumented)
+  roles: {
+    MASTER: string;
+    DATA: string;
+    INGEST: string;
+  };
+  // (undocumented)
+  statuses: {
+    ALIVE: string;
+    DEAD: string;
+  };
+}
+
+// @public
+export interface OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions
+  extends BaseElasticSearchClientOptions {
+  // (undocumented)
+  auth?: OpenSearchAuth;
+  // (undocumented)
+  connection?: OpenSearchConnectionConstructor;
+  // (undocumented)
+  node?: string | string[] | OpenSearchNodeOptions | OpenSearchNodeOptions[];
+  // (undocumented)
+  nodes?: string | string[] | OpenSearchNodeOptions | OpenSearchNodeOptions[];
+  // (undocumented)
+  provider?: 'aws';
+}
+
+// @public (undocumented)
+export interface OpenSearchNodeOptions {
+  // (undocumented)
+  agent?: ElasticSearchAgentOptions;
+  // (undocumented)
+  headers?: Record<string, any>;
+  // (undocumented)
+  id?: string;
+  // (undocumented)
+  roles?: {
+    master: boolean;
+    data: boolean;
+    ingest: boolean;
+  };
+  // (undocumented)
+  ssl?: ConnectionOptions;
+  // (undocumented)
+  url: URL;
+}
 ```
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/package.json b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/package.json
index 99339ef99c..0bfc0902de 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/package.json
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/package.json
@@ -23,11 +23,12 @@
     "clean": "backstage-cli package clean"
   },
   "dependencies": {
-    "@acuris/aws-es-connection": "^2.2.0",
     "@backstage/config": "^1.0.1",
     "@backstage/plugin-search-backend-node": "^0.6.3-next.0",
     "@backstage/plugin-search-common": "^0.3.5",
-    "@elastic/elasticsearch": "7.13.0",
+    "@elastic/elasticsearch": "^7.13.0",
+    "@opensearch-project/opensearch": "^1.1.0",
+    "aws-os-connection": "^0.1.0",
     "aws-sdk": "^2.948.0",
     "elastic-builder": "^2.16.0",
     "lodash": "^4.17.21",
@@ -37,7 +38,8 @@
   "devDependencies": {
     "@backstage/backend-common": "^0.14.1-next.0",
     "@backstage/cli": "^0.17.3-next.0",
-    "@elastic/elasticsearch-mock": "^1.0.0"
+    "@elastic/elasticsearch-mock": "^1.0.0",
+    "@short.io/opensearch-mock": "^0.3.1"
   },
   "files": [
     "dist",
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientOptions.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientOptions.ts
index c5d1f11b0c..74523020db 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientOptions.ts
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientOptions.ts
@@ -16,17 +16,60 @@
 import type { ConnectionOptions as TLSConnectionOptions } from 'tls';
 
 /**
- * Options used to configure the `@elastic/elasticsearch` client and
- * are what will be passed as an argument to the
- * {@link ElasticSearchSearchEngine.newClient} method
- *
- * They are drawn from the `ClientOptions` class of `@elastic/elasticsearch`,
- * but are maintained separately so that this interface is not coupled to
+ * Typeguard to differentiate ElasticSearch client options which are compatible
+ * with OpenSearch vs. ElasticSearch clients. Useful when calling the
+ * {@link ElasticSearchSearchEngine.newClient} method.
  *
  * @public
  */
-export interface ElasticSearchClientOptions {
-  provider?: 'aws' | 'elastic';
+export const isOpenSearchCompatible = (
+  opts: ElasticSearchClientOptions,
+): opts is OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions => {
+  return opts?.provider === 'aws';
+};
+
+/**
+ * Options used to configure the `@elastic/elasticsearch` client or the
+ * `@opensearch-project/opensearch` client, depending on the given config. It
+ * will be passed as an argument to the
+ * {@link ElasticSearchSearchEngine.newClient} method.
+ *
+ * @public
+ */
+export type ElasticSearchClientOptions =
+  | ElasticSearchElasticSearchClientOptions
+  | OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions;
+
+/**
+ * Options used to configure the `@opensearch-project/opensearch` client.
+ *
+ * They are drawn from the `ClientOptions` class of `@opensearch-project/opensearch`,
+ * but are maintained separately so that this interface is not coupled to it.
+ *
+ * @public
+ */
+export interface OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions
+  extends BaseElasticSearchClientOptions {
+  provider?: 'aws';
+  auth?: OpenSearchAuth;
+  connection?: OpenSearchConnectionConstructor;
+  node?: string | string[] | OpenSearchNodeOptions | OpenSearchNodeOptions[];
+  nodes?: string | string[] | OpenSearchNodeOptions | OpenSearchNodeOptions[];
+}
+
+/**
+ * Options used to configure the `@elastic/elasticsearch` client.
+ *
+ * They are drawn from the `ClientOptions` class of `@elastic/elasticsearch`,
+ * but are maintained separately so that this interface is not coupled to it.
+ *
+ * @public
+ */
+export interface ElasticSearchElasticSearchClientOptions
+  extends BaseElasticSearchClientOptions {
+  provider?: 'elastic';
+  auth?: ElasticSearchAuth;
+  Connection?: ElasticSearchConnectionConstructor;
   node?:
     | string
     | string[]
@@ -37,8 +80,21 @@ export interface ElasticSearchClientOptions {
     | string[]
     | ElasticSearchNodeOptions
     | ElasticSearchNodeOptions[];
+  cloud?: {
+    id: string;
+    username?: string;
+    password?: string;
+  };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Base client options that are shared across `@opensearch-project/opensearch`
+ * and `@elastic/elasticsearch` clients.
+ *
+ * @public
+ */
+export interface BaseElasticSearchClientOptions {
   Transport?: ElasticSearchTransportConstructor;
-  Connection?: ElasticSearchConnectionConstructor;
   maxRetries?: number;
   requestTimeout?: number;
   pingTimeout?: number;
@@ -56,25 +112,24 @@ export interface ElasticSearchClientOptions {
   headers?: Record<string, any>;
   opaqueIdPrefix?: string;
   name?: string | symbol;
-  auth?: ElasticSearchAuth;
   proxy?: string | URL;
   enableMetaHeader?: boolean;
-  cloud?: {
-    id: string;
-    username?: string;
-    password?: string;
-  };
   disablePrototypePoisoningProtection?: boolean | 'proto' | 'constructor';
 }
 
+/**
+ * @public
+ */
+export type OpenSearchAuth = {
+  username: string;
+  password: string;
+};
+
 /**
  * @public
  */
 export type ElasticSearchAuth =
-  | {
-      username: string;
-      password: string;
-    }
+  | OpenSearchAuth
   | {
       apiKey:
         | string
@@ -101,6 +156,22 @@ export interface ElasticSearchNodeOptions {
   };
 }
 
+/**
+ * @public
+ */
+export interface OpenSearchNodeOptions {
+  url: URL;
+  id?: string;
+  agent?: ElasticSearchAgentOptions;
+  ssl?: TLSConnectionOptions;
+  headers?: Record<string, any>;
+  roles?: {
+    master: boolean;
+    data: boolean;
+    ingest: boolean;
+  };
+}
+
 /**
  * @public
  */
@@ -127,6 +198,23 @@ export interface ElasticSearchConnectionConstructor {
     ML: string;
   };
 }
+
+/**
+ * @public
+ */
+export interface OpenSearchConnectionConstructor {
+  new (opts?: any): any;
+  statuses: {
+    ALIVE: string;
+    DEAD: string;
+  };
+  roles: {
+    MASTER: string;
+    DATA: string;
+    INGEST: string;
+  };
+}
+
 /**
  * @public
  */
@@ -139,3 +227,5 @@ export interface ElasticSearchTransportConstructor {
     DEFAULT: string;
   };
 }
+
+// todo(iamEAP) implement canary types to ensure we remain compatible through upgrades.
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientWrapper.test.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientWrapper.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..5bd8bb30b0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientWrapper.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,337 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2022 The Backstage Authors
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+import { ConfigReader } from '@backstage/config';
+import { Client as ElasticSearchClient } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
+import { Client as OpenSearchClient } from '@opensearch-project/opensearch';
+import Mock from '@short.io/opensearch-mock';
+import { Readable } from 'stream';
+
+import { ElasticSearchClientWrapper } from './ElasticSearchClientWrapper';
+import {
+  createElasticSearchClientOptions,
+  ElasticSearchClientOptions,
+} from './ElasticSearchSearchEngine';
+
+jest.mock('@elastic/elasticsearch', () => ({
+  ...jest.requireActual('@elastic/elasticsearch'),
+  Client: jest.fn().mockReturnValue({
+    search: jest
+      .fn()
+      .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+    cat: {
+      aliases: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+    },
+    helpers: {
+      bulk: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+    },
+    indices: {
+      create: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+      delete: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+      exists: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+      putIndexTemplate: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+      updateAliases: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'es', args })),
+    },
+  }),
+}));
+
+jest.mock('@opensearch-project/opensearch', () => ({
+  ...jest.requireActual('@opensearch-project/opensearch'),
+  Client: jest.fn().mockReturnValue({
+    search: jest
+      .fn()
+      .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+    cat: {
+      aliases: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+    },
+    helpers: {
+      bulk: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+    },
+    indices: {
+      create: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+      delete: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+      exists: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+      putIndexTemplate: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+      updateAliases: jest
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementation(async args => ({ client: 'os', args })),
+    },
+  }),
+}));
+
+describe('ElasticSearchClientWrapper', () => {
+  describe('elasticSearchClient', () => {
+    let esOptions: ElasticSearchClientOptions;
+
+    beforeEach(async () => {
+      esOptions = await createElasticSearchClientOptions(
+        new ConfigReader({
+          node: 'http://localhost:9200',
+        }),
+      );
+      jest.clearAllMocks();
+    });
+
+    it('instantiation', () => {
+      ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+      expect(ElasticSearchClient).toHaveBeenCalledWith(esOptions);
+    });
+
+    it('search', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const searchInput = { index: 'xyz', body: { eg: 'etc' } };
+      const result = (await wrapper.search(searchInput)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the ElasticSearch client's search with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(searchInput);
+    });
+
+    it('bulk', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const bulkInput = {
+        datasource: Readable.from([{}]),
+        onDocument() {
+          return { index: { _index: 'xyz' } };
+        },
+        refreshCompletion: 'xyz',
+      };
+      const result = (await wrapper.bulk(bulkInput)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the ElasticSearch client's bulk helper with expected input
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(bulkInput);
+    });
+
+    it('putIndexTemplate', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const indexTemplate = { name: 'xyz', body: { index_patterns: ['*'] } };
+      const result = (await wrapper.putIndexTemplate(indexTemplate)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the ElasticSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(indexTemplate);
+    });
+
+    it('indexExists', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const input = { index: 'xyz' };
+      const result = (await wrapper.indexExists(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the ElasticSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(input);
+    });
+
+    it('deleteIndex', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const input = { index: 'xyz' };
+      const result = (await wrapper.deleteIndex(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(input);
+    });
+
+    it('createIndex', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const input = { index: 'xyz' };
+      const result = (await wrapper.createIndex(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(input);
+    });
+
+    it('getAliases', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const input = { aliases: ['xyz'] };
+      const result = (await wrapper.getAliases(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual({
+        format: 'json',
+        name: input.aliases,
+      });
+    });
+
+    it('updateAliases', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(esOptions);
+
+      const input = { actions: [{ remove: { index: 'xyz', alias: 'abc' } }] };
+      const result = (await wrapper.updateAliases(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('es');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual({
+        body: { actions: input.actions },
+      });
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe('openSearchClient', () => {
+    const mock = new Mock();
+    let osOptions: ElasticSearchClientOptions;
+
+    beforeEach(() => {
+      osOptions = {
+        provider: 'aws',
+        node: 'https://my-es-cluster.eu-west-1.es.amazonaws.com',
+        connection: mock.getConnection(),
+      };
+
+      jest.clearAllMocks();
+    });
+
+    it('instantiation', () => {
+      ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+      expect(OpenSearchClient).toHaveBeenCalledWith(osOptions);
+    });
+
+    it('search', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const searchInput = { index: 'xyz', body: { eg: 'etc' } };
+      const result = (await wrapper.search(searchInput)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client's search with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(searchInput);
+    });
+
+    it('bulk', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const bulkInput = {
+        datasource: Readable.from([{}]),
+        onDocument() {
+          return { index: { _index: 'xyz' } };
+        },
+        refreshCompletion: 'xyz',
+      };
+      const result = (await wrapper.bulk(bulkInput)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client's bulk helper with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(bulkInput);
+    });
+
+    it('putIndexTemplate', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const indexTemplate = { name: 'xyz', body: { index_patterns: ['*'] } };
+      const result = (await wrapper.putIndexTemplate(indexTemplate)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(indexTemplate);
+    });
+
+    it('indexExists', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const input = { index: 'xyz' };
+      const result = (await wrapper.indexExists(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(input);
+    });
+
+    it('deleteIndex', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const input = { index: 'xyz' };
+      const result = (await wrapper.deleteIndex(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(input);
+    });
+
+    it('createIndex', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const input = { index: 'xyz' };
+      const result = (await wrapper.createIndex(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual(input);
+    });
+
+    it('getAliases', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const input = { aliases: ['xyz'] };
+      const result = (await wrapper.getAliases(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual({
+        format: 'json',
+        name: input.aliases,
+      });
+    });
+
+    it('updateAliases', async () => {
+      const wrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(osOptions);
+
+      const input = { actions: [{ remove: { index: 'xyz', alias: 'abc' } }] };
+      const result = (await wrapper.updateAliases(input)) as any;
+
+      // Should call the OpenSearch client with expected input.
+      expect(result.client).toBe('os');
+      expect(result.args).toStrictEqual({
+        body: { actions: input.actions },
+      });
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientWrapper.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientWrapper.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..bcf67e091c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchClientWrapper.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,209 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2021 The Backstage Authors
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+import { Client as ElasticSearchClient } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
+import { Client as OpenSearchClient } from '@opensearch-project/opensearch';
+import { Readable } from 'stream';
+import {
+  ElasticSearchClientOptions,
+  isOpenSearchCompatible,
+} from './ElasticSearchClientOptions';
+import { ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate } from './types';
+
+/**
+ * @public
+ */
+export type ElasticSearchAliasAction =
+  | {
+      remove: { index: any; alias: any };
+      add?: undefined;
+    }
+  | {
+      add: { indices: any; alias: any; index?: undefined };
+      remove?: undefined;
+    }
+  | {
+      add: { index: any; alias: any; indices?: undefined };
+      remove?: undefined;
+    }
+  | undefined;
+
+/**
+ * @public
+ */
+export type ElasticSearchIndexAction = {
+  index: {
+    _index: string;
+    [key: string]: any;
+  };
+};
+
+/**
+ * A wrapper class that exposes logical methods that are conditionally fired
+ * against either a configured Elasticsearch client or a configured Opensearch
+ * client.
+ *
+ * This is necessary because, despite its intention to be API-compatible, the
+ * opensearch client does not support API key-based authentication. This is
+ * also the sanest way to accomplish this while making typescript happy.
+ *
+ * In the future, if the differences between implementations become
+ * unmaintainably divergent, we should split out the Opensearch and
+ * Elasticsearch search engine implementations.
+ *
+ * @public
+ */
+export class ElasticSearchClientWrapper {
+  private readonly elasticSearchClient: ElasticSearchClient | undefined;
+  private readonly openSearchClient: OpenSearchClient | undefined;
+
+  private constructor({
+    openSearchClient,
+    elasticSearchClient,
+  }: {
+    openSearchClient?: OpenSearchClient;
+    elasticSearchClient?: ElasticSearchClient;
+  }) {
+    this.openSearchClient = openSearchClient;
+    this.elasticSearchClient = elasticSearchClient;
+  }
+
+  static fromClientOptions(options: ElasticSearchClientOptions) {
+    if (isOpenSearchCompatible(options)) {
+      return new ElasticSearchClientWrapper({
+        openSearchClient: new OpenSearchClient(options),
+      });
+    }
+
+    return new ElasticSearchClientWrapper({
+      elasticSearchClient: new ElasticSearchClient(options),
+    });
+  }
+
+  search({ index, body }: { index: string | string[]; body: Object }) {
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.search({ index, body });
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.search({ index, body });
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+
+  bulk(bulkOptions: {
+    datasource: Readable;
+    onDocument: () => ElasticSearchIndexAction;
+    refreshOnCompletion?: string | boolean;
+  }) {
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.helpers.bulk(bulkOptions);
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.helpers.bulk(bulkOptions);
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+
+  putIndexTemplate(template: ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate) {
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.indices.putIndexTemplate(template);
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.indices.putIndexTemplate(template);
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+
+  indexExists({ index }: { index: string | string[] }) {
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.indices.exists({ index });
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.indices.exists({ index });
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+
+  deleteIndex({ index }: { index: string | string[] }) {
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.indices.delete({ index });
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.indices.delete({ index });
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+
+  createIndex({ index }: { index: string }) {
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.indices.create({ index });
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.indices.create({ index });
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+
+  getAliases({ aliases }: { aliases: string[] }) {
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.cat.aliases({
+        format: 'json',
+        name: aliases,
+      });
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.cat.aliases({
+        format: 'json',
+        name: aliases,
+      });
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+
+  updateAliases({ actions }: { actions: ElasticSearchAliasAction[] }) {
+    const filteredActions = actions.filter(Boolean);
+    if (this.openSearchClient) {
+      return this.openSearchClient.indices.updateAliases({
+        body: {
+          actions: filteredActions,
+        },
+      });
+    }
+
+    if (this.elasticSearchClient) {
+      return this.elasticSearchClient.indices.updateAliases({
+        body: {
+          actions: filteredActions,
+        },
+      });
+    }
+
+    throw new Error('No client defined');
+  }
+}
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.test.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.test.ts
index 7892b731ed..cc88f456b6 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.test.ts
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.test.ts
@@ -16,8 +16,9 @@
 
 import { getVoidLogger } from '@backstage/backend-common';
 import { ConfigReader } from '@backstage/config';
-import { Client, errors } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
+import { errors } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
 import Mock from '@elastic/elasticsearch-mock';
+import { ElasticSearchClientWrapper } from './ElasticSearchClientWrapper';
 import {
   ElasticSearchConcreteQuery,
   decodePageCursor,
@@ -70,7 +71,7 @@ const customIndexTemplate = {
 describe('ElasticSearchSearchEngine', () => {
   let testSearchEngine: ElasticSearchSearchEngine;
   let inspectableSearchEngine: ElasticSearchSearchEngineForTranslatorTests;
-  let client: Client;
+  let clientWrapper: ElasticSearchClientWrapper;
 
   beforeEach(() => {
     testSearchEngine = new ElasticSearchSearchEngine(
@@ -86,7 +87,7 @@ describe('ElasticSearchSearchEngine', () => {
       getVoidLogger(),
     );
     // eslint-disable-next-line dot-notation
-    client = testSearchEngine['elasticSearchClient'];
+    clientWrapper = testSearchEngine['elasticSearchClientWrapper'];
   });
 
   describe('custom index template', () => {
@@ -686,7 +687,7 @@ describe('ElasticSearchSearchEngine', () => {
     });
 
     it('should handle index/search type filtering correctly', async () => {
-      const elasticSearchQuerySpy = jest.spyOn(client, 'search');
+      const elasticSearchQuerySpy = jest.spyOn(clientWrapper, 'search');
       await testSearchEngine.query({
         term: 'testTerm',
         filters: {},
@@ -725,7 +726,7 @@ describe('ElasticSearchSearchEngine', () => {
     });
 
     it('should create matchAll query if no term defined', async () => {
-      const elasticSearchQuerySpy = jest.spyOn(client, 'search');
+      const elasticSearchQuerySpy = jest.spyOn(clientWrapper, 'search');
       await testSearchEngine.query({
         term: '',
         filters: {},
@@ -759,7 +760,7 @@ describe('ElasticSearchSearchEngine', () => {
     });
 
     it('should query only specified indices if defined', async () => {
-      const elasticSearchQuerySpy = jest.spyOn(client, 'search');
+      const elasticSearchQuerySpy = jest.spyOn(clientWrapper, 'search');
       await testSearchEngine.query({
         term: '',
         filters: {},
@@ -809,7 +810,7 @@ describe('ElasticSearchSearchEngine', () => {
           type: 'test-index',
           indexPrefix: '',
           indexSeparator: '-index__',
-          elasticSearchClient: client,
+          elasticSearchClientWrapper: clientWrapper,
         }),
       );
       expect(indexerMock.on).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.ts
index 31112e3446..4fa0d4e110 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.ts
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngine.ts
@@ -14,10 +14,7 @@
  * limitations under the License.
  */
 
-import {
-  awsGetCredentials,
-  createAWSConnection,
-} from '@acuris/aws-es-connection';
+import { awsGetCredentials, createAWSConnection } from 'aws-os-connection';
 import { Config } from '@backstage/config';
 import {
   IndexableDocument,
@@ -26,47 +23,17 @@ import {
   SearchEngine,
   SearchQuery,
 } from '@backstage/plugin-search-common';
-import { Client } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
 import esb from 'elastic-builder';
 import { isEmpty, isNaN as nan, isNumber } from 'lodash';
 import { v4 as uuid } from 'uuid';
 import { Logger } from 'winston';
-import type { ElasticSearchClientOptions } from './ElasticSearchClientOptions';
+import { ElasticSearchClientOptions } from './ElasticSearchClientOptions';
 import { ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer } from './ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer';
+import { ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate } from './types';
+import { ElasticSearchClientWrapper } from './ElasticSearchClientWrapper';
 
 export type { ElasticSearchClientOptions };
 
-/**
- * Elasticsearch specific index template
- * @public
- */
-export type ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate = {
-  name: string;
-  body: ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody;
-};
-
-/**
- * Elasticsearch specific index template body
- * @public
- */
-export type ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody = {
-  /**
-   * Array of wildcard (*) expressions used to match the names of data streams and indices during creation.
-   */
-  index_patterns: string[];
-  /**
-   * An ordered list of component template names.
-   * Component templates are merged in the order specified,
-   * meaning that the last component template specified has the highest precedence.
-   */
-  composed_of?: string[];
-  /**
-   * See available properties of template
-   * https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/reference/7.15/indices-put-template.html#put-index-template-api-request-body
-   */
-  template?: Record<string, any>;
-};
-
 /**
  * Search query that the elasticsearch engine understands.
  * @public
@@ -143,7 +110,7 @@ function isBlank(str: string) {
  * @public
  */
 export class ElasticSearchSearchEngine implements SearchEngine {
-  private readonly elasticSearchClient: Client;
+  private readonly elasticSearchClientWrapper: ElasticSearchClientWrapper;
   private readonly highlightOptions: ElasticSearchHighlightConfig;
 
   constructor(
@@ -153,7 +120,8 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngine implements SearchEngine {
     private readonly logger: Logger,
     highlightOptions?: ElasticSearchHighlightOptions,
   ) {
-    this.elasticSearchClient = this.newClient(options => new Client(options));
+    this.elasticSearchClientWrapper =
+      ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions(elasticSearchClientOptions);
     const uuidTag = uuid();
     this.highlightOptions = {
       preTag: `<${uuidTag}>`,
@@ -177,7 +145,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngine implements SearchEngine {
     if (options.provider === 'elastic') {
       logger.info('Initializing Elastic.co ElasticSearch search engine.');
     } else if (options.provider === 'aws') {
-      logger.info('Initializing AWS ElasticSearch search engine.');
+      logger.info('Initializing AWS OpenSearch search engine.');
     } else {
       logger.info('Initializing ElasticSearch search engine.');
     }
@@ -269,7 +237,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngine implements SearchEngine {
 
   async setIndexTemplate(template: ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate) {
     try {
-      await this.elasticSearchClient.indices.putIndexTemplate(template);
+      await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.putIndexTemplate(template);
       this.logger.info('Custom index template set');
     } catch (error) {
       this.logger.error(`Unable to set custom index template: ${error}`);
@@ -284,7 +252,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngine implements SearchEngine {
       indexPrefix: this.indexPrefix,
       indexSeparator: this.indexSeparator,
       alias,
-      elasticSearchClient: this.elasticSearchClient,
+      elasticSearchClientWrapper: this.elasticSearchClientWrapper,
       logger: this.logger,
     });
 
@@ -292,13 +260,13 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngine implements SearchEngine {
     indexer.on('error', async e => {
       this.logger.error(`Failed to index documents for type ${type}`, e);
       try {
-        const response = await this.elasticSearchClient.indices.exists({
+        const response = await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.indexExists({
           index: indexer.indexName,
         });
         const indexCreated = response.body;
         if (indexCreated) {
           this.logger.info(`Removing created index ${indexer.indexName}`);
-          await this.elasticSearchClient.indices.delete({
+          await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.deleteIndex({
             index: indexer.indexName,
           });
         }
@@ -319,7 +287,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngine implements SearchEngine {
       ? documentTypes.map(it => this.constructSearchAlias(it))
       : this.constructSearchAlias('*');
     try {
-      const result = await this.elasticSearchClient.search({
+      const result = await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.search({
         index: queryIndices,
         body: elasticSearchQuery,
       });
@@ -398,7 +366,7 @@ export function encodePageCursor({ page }: { page: number }): string {
   return Buffer.from(`${page}`, 'utf-8').toString('base64');
 }
 
-async function createElasticSearchClientOptions(
+export async function createElasticSearchClientOptions(
   config?: Config,
 ): Promise<ElasticSearchClientOptions> {
   if (!config) {
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.test.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.test.ts
index 4e0e8e229f..eff056c3f4 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.test.ts
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.test.ts
@@ -16,13 +16,13 @@
 
 import { getVoidLogger } from '@backstage/backend-common';
 import { TestPipeline } from '@backstage/plugin-search-backend-node';
-import { Client } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
 import Mock from '@elastic/elasticsearch-mock';
 import { range } from 'lodash';
+import { ElasticSearchClientWrapper } from './ElasticSearchClientWrapper';
 import { ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer } from './ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer';
 
 const mock = new Mock();
-const client = new Client({
+const clientWrapper = ElasticSearchClientWrapper.fromClientOptions({
   node: 'http://localhost:9200',
   Connection: mock.getConnection(),
 });
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ describe('ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer', () => {
       indexSeparator: '-index__',
       alias: 'some-type-index__search',
       logger: getVoidLogger(),
-      elasticSearchClient: client,
+      elasticSearchClientWrapper: clientWrapper,
     });
 
     // Set up all requisite Elastic mocks.
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.ts
index fd16d0c963..87a4472a15 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.ts
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer.ts
@@ -16,9 +16,9 @@
 
 import { BatchSearchEngineIndexer } from '@backstage/plugin-search-backend-node';
 import { IndexableDocument } from '@backstage/plugin-search-common';
-import { Client } from '@elastic/elasticsearch';
 import { Readable } from 'stream';
 import { Logger } from 'winston';
+import { ElasticSearchClientWrapper } from './ElasticSearchClientWrapper';
 
 /**
  * Options for instansiate ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ export type ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexerOptions = {
   indexSeparator: string;
   alias: string;
   logger: Logger;
-  elasticSearchClient: Client;
+  elasticSearchClientWrapper: ElasticSearchClientWrapper;
 };
 
 function duration(startTimestamp: [number, number]): string {
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer extends BatchSearchEngineIndexer {
   private readonly removableAlias: string;
   private readonly logger: Logger;
   private readonly sourceStream: Readable;
-  private readonly elasticSearchClient: Client;
+  private readonly elasticSearchClientWrapper: ElasticSearchClientWrapper;
   private bulkResult: Promise<any>;
 
   constructor(options: ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexerOptions) {
@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer extends BatchSearchEngineIndexer {
     this.indexName = this.constructIndexName(`${Date.now()}`);
     this.alias = options.alias;
     this.removableAlias = `${this.alias}_removable`;
-    this.elasticSearchClient = options.elasticSearchClient;
+    this.elasticSearchClientWrapper = options.elasticSearchClientWrapper;
 
     // The ES client bulk helper supports stream-based indexing, but we have to
     // supply the stream directly to it at instantiation-time. We can't supply
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer extends BatchSearchEngineIndexer {
 
     // Keep a reference to the ES Bulk helper so that we can know when all
     // documents have been successfully written to ES.
-    this.bulkResult = this.elasticSearchClient.helpers.bulk({
+    this.bulkResult = this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.bulk({
       datasource: this.sourceStream,
       onDocument() {
         that.processed++;
@@ -98,16 +98,15 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer extends BatchSearchEngineIndexer {
   async initialize(): Promise<void> {
     this.logger.info(`Started indexing documents for index ${this.type}`);
 
-    const aliases = await this.elasticSearchClient.cat.aliases({
-      format: 'json',
-      name: [this.alias, this.removableAlias],
+    const aliases = await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.getAliases({
+      aliases: [this.alias, this.removableAlias],
     });
 
     this.removableIndices = [
       ...new Set(aliases.body.map((r: Record<string, any>) => r.index)),
     ] as string[];
 
-    await this.elasticSearchClient.indices.create({
+    await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.createIndex({
       index: this.indexName,
     });
   }
@@ -140,25 +139,23 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer extends BatchSearchEngineIndexer {
       )}`,
       result,
     );
-    await this.elasticSearchClient.indices.updateAliases({
-      body: {
-        actions: [
-          {
-            remove: { index: this.constructIndexName('*'), alias: this.alias },
-          },
-          this.removableIndices.length
-            ? {
-                add: {
-                  indices: this.removableIndices,
-                  alias: this.removableAlias,
-                },
-              }
-            : undefined,
-          {
-            add: { index: this.indexName, alias: this.alias },
-          },
-        ].filter(Boolean),
-      },
+    await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.updateAliases({
+      actions: [
+        {
+          remove: { index: this.constructIndexName('*'), alias: this.alias },
+        },
+        this.removableIndices.length
+          ? {
+              add: {
+                indices: this.removableIndices,
+                alias: this.removableAlias,
+              },
+            }
+          : undefined,
+        {
+          add: { index: this.indexName, alias: this.alias },
+        },
+      ].filter(Boolean),
     });
 
     // If any indices are removable, remove them. Do not bubble up this error,
@@ -166,7 +163,7 @@ export class ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer extends BatchSearchEngineIndexer {
     if (this.removableIndices.length) {
       this.logger.info('Removing stale search indices', this.removableIndices);
       try {
-        await this.elasticSearchClient.indices.delete({
+        await this.elasticSearchClientWrapper.deleteIndex({
           index: this.removableIndices,
         });
       } catch (e) {
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/index.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/index.ts
index 8ac86970a1..8c3b9e3c6d 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/index.ts
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/index.ts
@@ -15,13 +15,25 @@
  */
 
 export { ElasticSearchSearchEngine } from './ElasticSearchSearchEngine';
+export { isOpenSearchCompatible } from './ElasticSearchClientOptions';
 export type {
+  BaseElasticSearchClientOptions,
   ElasticSearchAgentOptions,
   ElasticSearchConnectionConstructor,
+  ElasticSearchElasticSearchClientOptions,
   ElasticSearchTransportConstructor,
   ElasticSearchNodeOptions,
   ElasticSearchAuth,
+  OpenSearchAuth,
+  OpenSearchConnectionConstructor,
+  OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions,
+  OpenSearchNodeOptions,
 } from './ElasticSearchClientOptions';
+export type {
+  ElasticSearchAliasAction,
+  ElasticSearchClientWrapper,
+  ElasticSearchIndexAction,
+} from './ElasticSearchClientWrapper';
 export type {
   ElasticSearchConcreteQuery,
   ElasticSearchClientOptions,
@@ -30,10 +42,12 @@ export type {
   ElasticSearchQueryTranslator,
   ElasticSearchQueryTranslatorOptions,
   ElasticSearchOptions,
-  ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate,
-  ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody,
 } from './ElasticSearchSearchEngine';
 export type {
   ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer,
   ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexerOptions,
 } from './ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexer';
+export type {
+  ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate,
+  ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody,
+} from './types';
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/types.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/types.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..a83e8b09b6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/engines/types.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2022 The Backstage Authors
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+/**
+ * Elasticsearch specific index template
+ * @public
+ */
+export type ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate = {
+  name: string;
+  body: ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody;
+};
+
+/**
+ * Elasticsearch specific index template body
+ * @public
+ */
+export type ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody = {
+  /**
+   * Array of wildcard (*) expressions used to match the names of data streams and indices during creation.
+   */
+  index_patterns: string[];
+  /**
+   * An ordered list of component template names.
+   * Component templates are merged in the order specified,
+   * meaning that the last component template specified has the highest precedence.
+   */
+  composed_of?: string[];
+  /**
+   * See available properties of template
+   * https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/reference/7.15/indices-put-template.html#put-index-template-api-request-body
+   */
+  template?: Record<string, any>;
+};
diff --git a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/index.ts b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/index.ts
index adf7fa43f2..cb4f62098a 100644
--- a/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/index.ts
+++ b/plugins/search-backend-module-elasticsearch/src/index.ts
@@ -20,13 +20,18 @@
  * @packageDocumentation
  */
 
-export { ElasticSearchSearchEngine } from './engines';
+export { ElasticSearchSearchEngine, isOpenSearchCompatible } from './engines';
 export type {
+  BaseElasticSearchClientOptions,
   ElasticSearchAgentOptions,
+  ElasticSearchAliasAction,
+  ElasticSearchClientWrapper,
   ElasticSearchConcreteQuery,
   ElasticSearchClientOptions,
+  ElasticSearchElasticSearchClientOptions,
   ElasticSearchHighlightConfig,
   ElasticSearchHighlightOptions,
+  ElasticSearchIndexAction,
   ElasticSearchQueryTranslator,
   ElasticSearchQueryTranslatorOptions,
   ElasticSearchConnectionConstructor,
@@ -38,4 +43,8 @@ export type {
   ElasticSearchSearchEngineIndexerOptions,
   ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplate,
   ElasticSearchCustomIndexTemplateBody,
+  OpenSearchAuth,
+  OpenSearchConnectionConstructor,
+  OpenSearchElasticSearchClientOptions,
+  OpenSearchNodeOptions,
 } from './engines';
diff --git a/yarn.lock b/yarn.lock
index 345aa3d510..015ab547a1 100644
--- a/yarn.lock
+++ b/yarn.lock
@@ -2,13 +2,6 @@
 # yarn lockfile v1
 
 
-"@acuris/aws-es-connection@^2.2.0":
-  version "2.3.0"
-  resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@acuris/aws-es-connection/-/aws-es-connection-2.3.0.tgz#bfa736163bdfe2e7fc12f8529eead949fb4e73fe"
-  integrity sha512-k8jSkdNwpSPty7oautGaJXoAzzPjP7WKbmaAE9i+vJrKWg9n2UtjesHeDhOAPzV9MG8EzXofGozYjaLdeTP+Ug==
-  dependencies:
-    aws4 "^1.11.0"
-
 "@ampproject/remapping@^2.1.0":
   version "2.1.2"
   resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@ampproject/remapping/-/remapping-2.1.2.tgz#4edca94973ded9630d20101cd8559cedb8d8bd34"
@@ -2079,10 +2072,10 @@
     find-my-way "^4.3.3"
     into-stream "^6.0.0"
 
-"@elastic/elasticsearch@7.13.0":
-  version "7.13.0"
-  resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@elastic/elasticsearch/-/elasticsearch-7.13.0.tgz#6dcf511dfa91187e22c81e54f41f4bd0fd96b4d6"
-  integrity sha512-WgwLWo2p9P2tdqzBGX9fHeG8p5IOTXprXNTECQG2mJ7z9n93N5AFBJpEw4d35tWWeCWi9jI13A2wzQZH7XZ/xw==
+"@elastic/elasticsearch@^7.13.0":
+  version "7.17.0"
+  resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@elastic/elasticsearch/-/elasticsearch-7.17.0.tgz#589fb219234cf1b0da23744e82b1d25e2fe9a797"
+  integrity sha512-5QLPCjd0uLmLj1lSuKSThjNpq39f6NmlTy9ROLFwG5gjyTgpwSqufDeYG/Fm43Xs05uF7WcscoO7eguI3HuuYA==
   dependencies:
     debug "^4.3.1"
     hpagent "^0.1.1"
@@ -5127,6 +5120,16 @@
     rxjs "7.5.5"
     tslib "2.0.3"
 
+"@opensearch-project/opensearch@^1.1.0":
+  version "1.1.0"
+  resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@opensearch-project/opensearch/-/opensearch-1.1.0.tgz#8b3c8b4cbcea01755ba092d2997bf0b4ca7f22f7"
+  integrity sha512-1TDw92JL8rD1b2QGluqBsIBLIiD5SGciIpz4qkrGAe9tcdfQ1ptub5e677rhWl35UULSjr6hP8M6HmISZ/M5HQ==
+  dependencies:
+    debug "^4.3.1"
+    hpagent "^0.1.1"
+    ms "^2.1.3"
+    secure-json-parse "^2.4.0"
+
 "@opentelemetry/api@^1.0.1":
   version "1.0.4"
   resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@opentelemetry/api/-/api-1.0.4.tgz#a167e46c10d05a07ab299fc518793b0cff8f6924"
@@ -5420,6 +5423,15 @@
   dependencies:
     any-observable "^0.3.0"
 
+"@short.io/opensearch-mock@^0.3.1":
+  version "0.3.1"
+  resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@short.io/opensearch-mock/-/opensearch-mock-0.3.1.tgz#41678404b94342ac60263a8df590f9b1efa80622"
+  integrity sha512-gwLTzxJrZNGVQNn+FHLhpw7at3jHb6tNczq2hvFPJ3C3nLaCBRkbP2IQHrIDzklLBVFV83Ug0Xgs73A5o9eLtg==
+  dependencies:
+    fast-deep-equal "^3.1.3"
+    find-my-way "^4.3.3"
+    into-stream "^6.0.0"
+
 "@sideway/address@^4.1.0":
   version "4.1.1"
   resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/@sideway/address/-/address-4.1.1.tgz#9e321e74310963fdf8eebfbee09c7bd69972de4d"
@@ -8250,6 +8262,13 @@ available-typed-arrays@^1.0.2:
   dependencies:
     array-filter "^1.0.0"
 
+aws-os-connection@^0.1.0:
+  version "0.1.0"
+  resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/aws-os-connection/-/aws-os-connection-0.1.0.tgz#02c1be08cf63448c5bdc9d47b03b7ad3222b662c"
+  integrity sha512-WBN2S/5zgzfPpEiOTEW7IPJX+hlq+AQeAVKK4AL/Th0SfRRKu6a46i4aZKovQslBkKnmcSFvy+mHSJ299N8YWA==
+  dependencies:
+    aws4 "^1.11.0"
+
 aws-sdk-mock@^5.2.1:
   version "5.7.0"
   resolved "https://registry.npmjs.org/aws-sdk-mock/-/aws-sdk-mock-5.7.0.tgz#b2a9454c78d008186c3f1a460b79cdb9cc9dfdc4"