Help Center/ Data Warehouse Service/ User Guide/ DWS Cluster O&M/ Upgrading a DWS Cluster
Updated on 2026-09-15 GMT+08:00
View PDF
Share

Upgrading a DWS Cluster

DWS allows users to upgrade clusters on the console. For details, see Upgrading a Cluster.

During cluster O&M operations, DWS will send SMS notifications to keep you informed. It is important to be careful when performing any operations on the cluster during this time.

If a node needs to be replaced due to a hardware fault, the repairCluster event will be triggered. You can check the event progress by Subscribing to DWS Cluster Events.

A cluster is charged by hour or in yearly/monthly mode as long as it is in the Available state, You will not see any difference in the bills if a faulty node or system upgrade causes a short interruption, for example, 15 minutes. If such events cause major system interruption, which is a very rare case, you will not be charged for those downtime hours.

Precautions

  • During an upgrade, a cluster will be automatically restarted and will be unavailable for a short period of time. You are advised to upgrade a cluster during off-peak hours.
  • After a cluster is upgraded to 8.1.3 or later, it enters the observation period. During this period, you can check service status and roll back to the earlier version if necessary.
  • Upgrading the cluster from 9.0.3 to 9.1.0 changes the disk_cache_base_paths value for the cache path, which brings the performance back to normal.
  • Upgrading the cluster does not affect the original cluster data or specifications.

Upgrade Version Description

The following figure shows the cluster version.

Figure 1 Version description
Table 1 Upgrade Version Description

Upgrade Type

Cluster Version Change

Duration

Impact

Service patch

The last digit of the version number will change, for example, from 1.1.0 to 1.1.1.

Less than 10 minutes

If the target version is 8.1.3 or later, online patch upgrade is supported. During the upgrade, you do not have to stop services, but the services may be interrupted for seconds.

If the target version is earlier than 8.1.3, services will be interrupted for 1 to 3 minutes. You are advised to perform an upgrade during off-peak hours.

Service upgrade

The first two digits of the version number will change, for example, from 1.1.0 to 1.2.0.

Less than 30 minutes

If the target version is 8.1.1 or later, you can upgrade it online. During the upgrade, services do not need to be stopped, but may be interrupted for seconds. You are advised to perform the upgrade during off-peak hours.

Hot patch

The version number is extended by one digit (in 0001-9999 format), for example, 8.2.1.112.0002-dws-xxx.tar.gz.

Less than 10 minutes for a single hot patch

Services are not affected. After the hot patch is uninstalled, the issues fixed by the hot patch may recur.

Service patch upgrade and service upgrade will cause temporary service interruptions in clusters of earlier versions. You are advised to check the current cluster version and select a proper upgrade window. Hot patch installation does not affect services and is suitable for rectifying emergency issues.

Upgrading a Cluster

You can upgrade the version of a cluster 8.1.1 or later on the console.

  1. Log in to the DWS console.
  2. Choose Cluster > Cluster List. All clusters are displayed by default.
  3. In the cluster list, click the name of a cluster.
  4. In the navigation pane, choose Upgrade Management.
  5. On the Upgrade Management page, select the target version from the drop-down list, confirm the information, and click Upgrade. In the displayed dialog box, click OK to submit the upgrade request. For details, see Table 2.

    Before the upgrade, it is crucial to verify if it meets the inspection conditions. Click Immediate Inspection to complete the inspection and proceed to the next step only if it passes. For more information, see Viewing Inspection Results.
    Figure 2 Upgrading a cluster
    Table 2 Upgrade parameters

    Parameter

    Description

    Remarks

    Type

    You can select Upgrade or Hot patch.

    A hot patch installation prevents DR setup in the cluster.

    Current Version

    Current version of the cluster

    -

    Target Version

    Target version

    If the current version is the latest, No target version available is displayed.

    Current Status

    Status of the cluster, which can be pending upgrade, upgrading, upgraded and pending submission, upgrade failed, submitting, submission failed, or upgrade completed.

    -

    Operation

    The following operations are supported:

    • Upgrade: Deliver an upgrade task. When the upgrade task is complete, the service observation period starts.
    • Roll Back: Deliver an upgrade rollback task.
    • Submit: When the upgrade task is complete, click this button to complete the cluster upgrade.
    • Retry: Deliver the upgrade task again.

    If an upgrade task is successfully delivered but not submitted, the wlm thread occupies the system storage space and affects the system performance. To prevent this, verify and submit the upgrade task in a timely manner.

  6. Check whether the cluster is successfully upgraded.

    • If the cluster version is 8.1.3 or later, the cluster enters the service observation period after the upgrade is complete. If you have verified your services, click Submit on the Upgrade Management page to complete the cluster upgrade. If the upgrade impacts your cluster's performance, you can click Rollback to roll back the upgrade. If you are using a version of 8.1.3 or earlier, you will not be able to roll back or submit upgrade tasks until the cluster upgrade is finished.
      Figure 3 Cluster upgrade success
    • If the cluster upgrade fails, click Rollback to roll back to the original cluster version, or click Retry to deliver the upgrade again.
      Figure 4 Cluster upgrade failure

Parent Topic: DWS Cluster O&M