Kubeblocks Minor Version Upgrade

Minor Version Upgrade

Overview

KubeBlocks supports upgrading the database engine's minor version (e.g., MySQL 8.0.33 → 8.0.35, PostgreSQL 16.1 → 16.2). The upgrade performs a rolling update: secondary pods restart first, then a switchover promotes a secondary to primary, and finally the original primary restarts — minimizing downtime.

Official docs: https://kubeblocks.io/docs/preview/user_docs/handle-an-exception/upgrade-database-engine

Pre-Check

Before proceeding, verify the cluster is healthy and no other operation is running:

# Cluster must be Running
kubectl get cluster <cluster-name> -n <namespace> -o jsonpath='{.status.phase}'

# No pending OpsRequests
kubectl get opsrequest -n <namespace> -l app.kubernetes.io/instance=<cluster-name> --field-selector=status.phase!=Succeed

If the cluster is not Running or has a pending OpsRequest, wait for it to complete before proceeding.

Check current version and available upgrade targets:

# Current version
kubectl get cluster <cluster-name> -n <namespace> -o jsonpath='{.spec.componentSpecs[*].serviceVersion}'

# Available versions
kubectl get cmpv

Workflow

- [ ] Step 1: Check current version
- [ ] Step 2: List available versions
- [ ] Step 3: Update serviceVersion in Cluster CR
- [ ] Step 4: Verify upgrade

Step 1: Check Current Version

kubectl get cluster <cluster> -n <ns> -o jsonpath='{.spec.componentSpecs[*].serviceVersion}'

Or check from the running pods:

kubectl get cluster <cluster> -n <ns> -o yaml | grep serviceVersion

Step 2: List Available Versions

List available component versions for the addon:

kubectl get cmpv

Example output:

NAME                        VERSIONS                          AGE
apecloud-mysql              8.0.30, 8.0.33, 8.0.35           10d
postgresql                  14.11.0, 15.7.0, 16.4.0          10d
redis                       7.0.6, 7.2.4                      10d
mongodb                     6.0.5, 7.0.12                     10d

For detailed information about a specific version:

kubectl get cmpv <addon-name> -o yaml

This shows the exact image tags, compatibility rules, and supported version transitions.

Step 3: Update serviceVersion

Edit the Cluster CR to set the new serviceVersion:

kubectl edit cluster <cluster> -n <ns>

Change the serviceVersion field in the relevant component spec:

spec:
  componentSpecs:
  - name: <component>
    serviceVersion: "8.0.35"    # new version
    # ... rest of component spec

Or patch it directly. Before patching, validate with dry-run:

kubectl patch cluster <cluster> -n <ns> --type merge -p '
{
  "spec": {
    "componentSpecs": [
      {
        "name": "<component>",
        "serviceVersion": "<new-version>"
      }
    ]
  }
}' --dry-run=server

If dry-run reports errors, fix the patch before proceeding.

kubectl patch cluster <cluster> -n <ns> --type merge -p '
{
  "spec": {
    "componentSpecs": [
      {
        "name": "<component>",
        "serviceVersion": "<new-version>"
      }
    ]
  }
}'

Step 4: Verify Upgrade

Watch Rolling Upgrade Progress

kubectl get pods -n <ns> -l app.kubernetes.io/instance=<cluster> -w

Success condition: All pods .status.phase = Running | Typical: 5-15min for rolling upgrade | If stuck >20min: kubectl describe pod <pod> -n <ns>

The rolling upgrade follows this sequence:

1. Secondary pods restart first with the new version
2. A switchover promotes an upgraded secondary to primary
3. The original primary (now secondary) restarts with the new version

This order matters: by upgrading secondaries first, the cluster maintains a working primary throughout the process. If a secondary fails to start on the new version, the primary is still on the old (known-good) version and the cluster remains fully operational — you can investigate and roll back without any write downtime. Upgrading the primary last also ensures the switchover only happens once, minimizing the brief write interruption to a single event.

Ref: https://kubeblocks.io/blog/in-place-updates

Confirm New Version

# Check cluster spec
kubectl get cluster <cluster> -n <ns> -o jsonpath='{.spec.componentSpecs[*].serviceVersion}'

# Verify from the database itself
# MySQL
kubectl exec -it <pod> -n <ns> -- mysql -u root -p -e "SELECT VERSION();"

# PostgreSQL
kubectl exec -it <pod> -n <ns> -- psql -U postgres -c "SELECT version();"

# Redis
kubectl exec -it <pod> -n <ns> -- redis-cli INFO server | grep redis_version

# MongoDB
kubectl exec -it <pod> -n <ns> -- mongosh --eval "db.version()"

Important Notes

• Only minor version upgrades are supported through this method (e.g., 8.0.33 → 8.0.35). Major version upgrades require migration.
• Always backup before upgrading: use the backup skill to create a full backup first.
• Check the ComponentVersion CR for supported upgrade paths — not all version transitions may be allowed.
• The rolling upgrade process ensures zero downtime for read traffic and only brief interruption for write traffic during switchover.

Troubleshooting

Upgrade stuck or pods in CrashLoopBackOff:

• Check pod events: kubectl describe pod <pod> -n <ns>
• Check logs: kubectl logs <pod> -n <ns>
• The new version may be incompatible; check ComponentVersion for valid transitions

Version not available:

• Ensure the addon is installed with a version that includes the target engine version
• Update the addon: helm upgrade kb-addon-<addon> kubeblocks/<addon> -n kb-system --version <addon-version>

Rollback:

• Set serviceVersion back to the previous version to trigger a rollback
• This follows the same rolling restart process

For general agent safety conventions (dry-run, status confirmation, production protection), see safety-patterns.md.