This topic describes the billing rules for Data Transmission Service (DTS), including what is billed, when billing starts and stops, and how Internet traffic fees are calculated.
DTS pricing depends on the task type, billing method, cluster type, source and destination regions, number of links, and subscription duration. For distributed database sources such as PolarDB-X 1.0, a DMS logical database, a sharded MongoDB cluster, Simple Log Service (SLS), or Tair/Redis, data synchronization and data validation pricing also depends on the number of nodes.
For pricing details and cost estimates, see DTS pricing and Pricing Calculator.
What's free
The following DTS components are not billed:
Schema migration in data migration tasks
Full data migration in data migration tasks
Inbound Internet traffic for data migration and change tracking tasks -- for example, migrating data from an on-premises database to an ApsaraDB or self-managed database on an ECS instance over the public network
Traffic within Alibaba Cloud for data migration and change tracking tasks, unless the Access Method of the destination database instance is set to Public IP Address
Billing by task type
Data migration
Data migration supports only the pay-as-you-go billing method.
What is billed: Incremental data migration only. Schema migration and full data migration are free.
When billing starts and stops:
Billing starts when incremental data migration begins running.
Billing stops when incremental data migration is paused or has failed. No charges are incurred during these periods.
After data migration completes, terminate or release the instance to stop charges. A running incremental migration task incurs charges even if the source data is not changing. For more information, see Terminate a DTS instance and Release DTS instances.
Data synchronization
Data synchronization has two deployment modes: standard sync tasks and serverless tasks.
Standard sync task
Billable item: Incremental synchronization
Pay-as-you-go:
Billing starts after the Incremental Data Collection module starts. This means billing begins after the sync task passes the precheck and is purchased.
Billing continues while incremental data synchronization is paused.
Billing stops when incremental data synchronization fails.
Subscription:
A one-time fee is charged based on the selected configuration and quantity at purchase.
For subscription tasks that are no longer needed, especially those with auto-renewal enabled, cancel auto-renewal or release the instance to avoid ongoing charges. For more information, see Manage auto-renewal and Release DTS instances.
Serverless task
Billable item: Resource (DU) usage
Serverless tasks support only the pay-as-you-go billing method.
Billing starts after the Incremental Data Collection module starts. This means billing begins after the serverless task passes the precheck and is purchased.
Billing continues while incremental data synchronization is paused.
For more information about serverless billing, see Billing of serverless instances.
Change tracking
Billable item: Change tracking channel
Pay-as-you-go:
Billing starts after the task is configured and successfully started.
Subscription:
A one-time fee is charged based on the selected configuration and quantity at purchase.
For subscription tasks that are no longer needed, especially those with auto-renewal enabled, cancel auto-renewal or release the instance to avoid ongoing charges. For more information, see Manage auto-renewal and Release DTS instances.
Data traffic: Data traffic fees are incurred for the traffic generated when a client consumes data from a change tracking channel. No fees are currently charged.
Data validation
Data validation includes full validation and incremental validation. For billing details, see Billing of data validation.
Dedicated cluster
Dedicated cluster billing includes three components: cluster specification, Internet traffic, and storage resource. For billing details, see Billing of DTS dedicated clusters.
Internet traffic fees
Internet traffic fees (outbound traffic fees) apply to data migration and change tracking tasks when the Access Method of the destination database instance is set to Public IP Address.
| Traffic direction | Charged? | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Outbound | Yes | Migrating data from a self-managed database on ECS or an ApsaraDB database to an on-premises database over the public network |
| Inbound | No | Migrating data from an on-premises database to a self-managed database on ECS or an ApsaraDB database over the public network |
| Within Alibaba Cloud | Only when destination Access Method is Public IP Address | Traffic between Alibaba Cloud services |
Internet traffic is billed based on actual usage at USD 0.154 per GB. Usage under 1 GB is billed as 1 GB.
Customers in the EU/EEA can request reduced or exempted fees for eligible use cases under the Regulation (EU) 2023/2854 (Data Act). For more information, contact Support and Services.
Pay-as-you-go billing notes
The following rules apply to all pay-as-you-go task types (data migration, data synchronization, serverless, and change tracking):
In the hour before an overdue payment occurs, if the instance runs for 30 minutes or less, half an hour is charged. If the instance runs for more than 30 minutes, one hour is charged.
FAQ
Why am I still charged for a pay-as-you-go instance that is not transferring data?
A pay-as-you-go DTS instance is billed based on resource usage while an incremental task is running, regardless of whether the source data changes. After the data transfer completes, terminate or release the instance to stop charges. For more information, see Terminate a DTS instance and Release DTS instances.
How do I delete a DTS instance?
Delete a DTS instance by releasing it. For more information, see Release DTS instances.
Are sync instances charged even though schema and full data synchronization are free?
Yes. Although Schema Migration and Full Data Migration (shown in the Progress section of the console) are free, every sync instance includes an Incremental Data Synchronization task by default. This incremental task is what incurs charges.