Upgrade the minor engine version of RDS MySQL-ApsaraDB RDS(RDS)-阿里云帮助中心

For information about minor engine version updates for ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL or Serverless ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instances, see AliSQL Minor Engine Version Release Notes.

To upgrade the minor engine version for other database engines, see the following topics:

Version statuses

Offline: A version is set to offline if it has a known critical defect or has been expired for more than one year. You cannot create new instances that use an offline version.
Expired: A version is set to expired after its expiration date has passed. For information about the expiration dates of minor engine versions, see AliSQL Minor Engine Version Release Notes.
Stable: All versions that are not offline or expired are considered stable.

How it works

Warning

The automatic upgrade feature is a supplemental tool and does not guarantee immediate upgrades to the latest minor engine version for all instances. You can check the version status on the Basic Information page of your instance and promptly upgrade the minor engine version to prevent potential risks associated with outdated versions. If you cancel a system-initiated upgrade task or fail to upgrade to the latest stable version after you receive an upgrade prompt in the console, you are liable for any business interruptions, data loss, or other consequences. For more information, see ApsaraDB Service Agreement.

Automatic upgrade: ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instances, including Serverless instances, are configured for automatic minor engine version upgrades by default. When your minor engine version is older than the latest available version, the system periodically schedules an upgrade task. Notifications are primarily sent for unstable versions. If a minor version has no known stability or security issues, you may not receive a notification. You can view the automatic upgrade settings on the Basic Information page. The automatic upgrade is performed within the maintenance window that you configure. You can also change the upgrade time in Event Management or cancel the task before it starts. For more information, see Scheduled Events.
Note
- The system sends notifications about upgrade tasks through channels such as text messages and emails. To receive these notifications, subscribe to Cloud Database Failure or O&M Notification in the Message Center and configure your contact information.
- You can cancel or reschedule system-initiated maintenance tasks at any time. For more information, see Scheduled Events.
Manual upgrade: You can change the upgrade setting to Manual Upgrade on the Basic Information page of your instance. If the current instance version has a critical defect, is expired, or is offline, instances configured for Manual Upgrade will also receive an upgrade task.

Impacts

Upgrading the minor engine version may cause an instance switchover. For more information about the impacts of an instance switchover, see Impacts of an instance switchover.
Automatic upgrades are performed within the maintenance window that you configure. You can change the maintenance window on the Basic Information page of your instance.
For manual upgrades, perform the operation during off-peak hours or ensure that your application has an automatic reconnection mechanism. You must configure the automatic reconnection mechanism in your application's code.

Notes

Outdated minor engine versions may pose risks, such as business interruptions and data loss. We recommend that you upgrade the minor engine version of your instance on a regular basis or after you receive a maintenance notification from Alibaba Cloud.
If a primary instance has read-only instances with a minor engine version older than the target, the system upgrades the read-only instances before the primary instance.
If the minor engine version of an instance is offline or not on the maintenance list, the system automatically upgrades the instance to the latest version during an instance upgrade, a specification change, or a hardware upgrade performed by Alibaba Cloud.
You cannot downgrade the minor engine version after an upgrade.
After you upgrade the minor engine version of an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL or Serverless ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance that uses the General-purpose instance family, the value of Backup Usage on the Basic Information page may be displayed as 0. The value returns to normal after the next scheduled backup is completed.
Upgrade tasks are not automatically pushed to newly purchased instances. To upgrade to the latest version, you can manually upgrade the minor engine version on the Basic Information page of the instance.
You cannot cancel an upgrade after it starts. If an upgrade fails, the system rolls back all changes, and the instance retains its previous engine version and metadata.
If a minor engine version meets the conditions for being taken offline, its status is set to offline, regardless of whether it is still within its lifecycle.

Upgrade risks

Risk	Description
Risk of .NET connection issues	If you upgrade your instance to 20230630 (official MySQL 8.0.31) or a later version, you may encounter risks when you use a .NET connection. For more information, see .NET compatibility issue.
Compatibility risk	If you upgrade your instance to 20210930 or a later version, a PHP compatibility issue may be triggered. If this issue occurs, retry the connection.
Inconsistent database behavior	Some minor version upgrades may cause inconsistent database behavior. For example, when you upgrade your instance to MySQL 8.0.19 or a later version, the widths attribute for integer data types is deprecated and no longer displayed. For more information, see the official MySQL documentation. ApsaraDB RDS is consistent with the official MySQL version in terms of behavioral changes that are caused by upgrades.

Modify automatic upgrade settings

Go to the Instances page. In the top navigation bar, select the region in which the RDS instance resides. Then, find the RDS instance and click the ID of the instance.
In the Configuration Information section, click Settings to the right of Automated Update of Minor Engine Version.
Select Automatic Upgrade or Manual Upgrade, and then click OK.

Manually upgrade the minor engine version

Go to the Instances page. In the top navigation bar, select the region in which the RDS instance resides. Then, find the RDS instance and click the ID of the instance.
In the Configuration Information section, click Update Minor Engine Version.

Note
If this button is not displayed, the minor engine version of your instance is the latest version.
In the dialog box that appears, select a version from the Latest Version drop-down list, specify the Update Time, and then click OK.

View upgrade progress and history

To view the upgrade progress or history, go to the task list in the ApsaraDB RDS console and view task details, such as the task type, status, progress, and start and end times. The task list page shows only tasks that were run within the last 30 days. These tasks include automatic and manual upgrades. For more information, see Task list for an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance.

FAQ

Q: What methods can I use to upgrade the minor engine version of an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance?

A: You can use one of the following methods to upgrade the minor engine version: automatic upgrade and manual upgrade.

Q: Can I roll back a minor engine version upgrade for an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance?

A: No. Minor engine version upgrades for ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL use an in-place rolling update method and cannot be rolled back.

Q: How do I change the upgrade method for the minor engine version of an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance?

A: For more information, see Modify automatic upgrade settings.

Q: Can I cancel a minor engine version upgrade after it starts?

A: No, you cannot cancel the upgrade. If the upgrade fails, all changes are rolled back, and the instance retains its previous engine version and metadata.

Q: Why does the engine version number returned by the SELECT @@version statement remain unchanged after a minor engine version upgrade?

A: The upgrade applies to the AliSQL minor engine version, not the MySQL engine version. You can run the show variables like '%rds_release_date%' command to query your minor engine version.

Q: Can I upgrade the minor engine version by only one version at a time?

A: You can upgrade your instance to any of the available later minor engine versions. The available versions are displayed in the ApsaraDB RDS console.

Q: What are the impacts of a minor engine version upgrade? Why does an instance switchover occur? Are there other critical risks?

A: To ensure business stability, the system first upgrades the standby instance, then automatically switches your workloads to it. There are no other critical risks. For information about the impacts of an instance switchover, see Impacts of an instance switchover.

Q: When I upgrade the minor engine version of a primary instance, are the minor engine versions of its read-only instances automatically upgraded?

A: If the primary instance has read-only instances and their minor engine version is older than the target version, the system first upgrades the read-only instances and then the primary instance. If there are multiple read-only instances, the system upgrades them sequentially, not simultaneously.

Q: I changed the specifications of my ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance. Why was the minor engine version also upgraded?

A: If the minor engine version of an instance is offline or not on the maintenance list, the system automatically upgrades the version to the latest one when you upgrade the instance, perform a specification change, or Alibaba Cloud upgrades the instance hardware.

Q: How do I view the progress and history of minor engine version upgrades for my ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance?

A: For more information, see View upgrade progress and history.

Q: I enabled automatic minor engine version upgrades. Why hasn't my instance been automatically upgraded?

A: Your instance may not have been automatically upgraded due to one of the following reasons:

If your instance uses the classic network, it cannot be automatically upgraded. You must switch the network type from classic network to a VPC (Virtual Private Cloud).
The proxy minor version is outdated. You must upgrade the proxy minor version first.
Automatic upgrades are scheduled maintenance tasks. The system does not immediately upgrade an instance when a new version is released.

Q: Can I use an API operation to upgrade the minor engine version and configure the upgrade policy?

A: Yes, you can. For more information, see Related API operations.

Q: I cannot upgrade the minor engine version for an instance that is in the classic network. When I try to switch to a VPC, no eligible vSwitch is available in the destination zone. How do I create a VPC? Is there a fee?

A: Creating a VPC is free. For more information about how to switch the network type from classic network to VPC, see Change the network type.

Q: Can I choose not to upgrade the minor engine version? What are the impacts?

A: Yes, you can. Minor engine version upgrades are not mandatory. However, we strongly recommend that you regularly upgrade the minor engine version. If you use an old version, you will miss out on new features, security patches, and performance optimizations.

Related APIs

API	Description
UpgradeDBInstanceKernelVersion	Upgrades the minor engine version of an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance.
ModifyDBInstanceAutoUpgradeMinorVersion	Specifies whether the minor engine version is upgraded automatically or manually.

Upgrade a minor engine version