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    ApsaraDB RDS:Minor engine version updates and release notes for DuckDB-based analytical instances

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    ApsaraDB RDS:Minor engine version updates and release notes for DuckDB-based analytical instances

    Last Updated:Jul 03, 2026

    You can upgrade the minor engine version for a DuckDB-based analytical instance automatically or manually. Upgrades improve instance performance, add new features, and fix security issues to continuously optimize the service and ensure database security.

    DuckDB-based analytical instance minor engine version release notes

    MySQL 8.0

    Minor version

    MySQL version

    Description

    Version expiration date

    20260629

    8.0.36

    New features

    • DuckDB supports high-precision Decimal.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixed a compatibility issue caused by different implicit type conversion rules for VARCHAR and JSON.

    ——

    20260529

    8.0.36

    New features

    • The DuckDB engine supports auto-increment values. This feature requires you to set duckdb_support_auto_increment=ON.

    • Adds a background asynchronous checkpoint thread for DuckDB. This feature requires you to set duckdb_enable_background_checkpoint=ON.

    • Supports the json_objectagg function.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where the convert_tz function could not parse some time zones.

    • Fixes a compatibility issue with interval caused by different decimal rounding rules.

    • Fixes an issue where creating a partitioned table with a specified partition engine caused replication interruption.

    • Fixes an issue where DuckDB failed to parse column and table names that contain special characters such as backticks or backslashes.

    • Fixes an issue where cross-database rename table operations failed.

    • Fixes the valid values of the duckdb_disabled_optimizers parameter.

    • Fixes an issue where retrying a failed engine conversion triggered the tablespace missing error.

    —

    20260511

    8.0.36

    New features

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where failing to delete a generated column in DuckDB caused replication interruption.

    • Fixes an issue where DuckDB failed to add a column with a NOT NULL constraint.

    —

    20260417

    8.0.36

    New features

    • In duckdb_sql_normalization mode:

      • Supports the VALUES ROW syntax.

      • Supports resolving system variables.

      • Fixes an issue where the GROUP_CONCAT function might return incorrect results when processing the utf8mb4 character set.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where the rollback appender caused the instance to crash.

    • Fixes an issue where Write-Ahead Logging (WAL) logs caused an instance startup failure.

    • Fixes an issue where invalid values were inserted into `datetime` fields (GitHub issue #131).

    • Fixes a crash caused by performing partition-level operations on a non-partitioned table.

    • Fixes a table creation failure caused by DuckDB's inability to correctly recognize some escape characters.

    • Fixes an issue where some tables were not successfully converted during the creation of a DuckDB instance.

    • Fixes an execution error caused by DuckDB incorrectly reordering JSON functions.

    • Fixes an issue where executing the greatest function in DuckDB could cause instance failures.

    —

    20260326

    8.0.36

    New features

    • Upgrades DuckDB to v1.4.4 (DuckDB v1.4.4 Release).

    • Adds the duckdb_max_threads_per_query_rpl parameter to limit the number of threads available for data synchronization.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where CREATE SEQUENCE caused replication interruption.

    —

    20260313

    8.0.36

    New features

    • Compatibility enhancements

      • Fixes a compatibility issue with the json_contains function.

      • Fixes a compatibility issue with the find_in_set function.

      • Fixes an issue where @NULL could not be correctly rewritten in duckdb_sql_normalization mode.

      • Ignores all index hints in duckdb_sql_normalization mode.

      • Supports the Field function.

      • Supports the member of function.

    • Supports implicit type conversion between Bit, Boolean, and Numeric types.

    • Adds the duckdb_convert_tables_with_generated_columns parameter to control DuckDB's support for generated columns.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where modifying the default value of a binary column failed.

    • Fixes a crash caused by alter table disable keys.

    • Fixes a memory allocation issue with the group_concat function.

    • Fixes a replication error caused by a disordered schema.

    —

    20260210

    8.0.36

    New features

    • The DuckDB engine supports generated columns.

    • The DuckDB engine supports the latin1 character set.

    • In duckdb_sql_normalization mode:

      • Supports using string types as input for some date functions.

      • Fixes an issue where CAST(string AS SIGNED) returned incorrect results due to decimal rounding.

      • Fixes an issue where the GROUP_CONCAT and COUNT(DISTINCT) functions might return incorrect results when multiple columns were used as input parameters.

    • Adds the duckdb_prefer_high_precision parameter. When this parameter is enabled, the DuckDB engine prefers to use large integer algebraic calculations to prioritize compatibility.

    Bug fixes

    • Adds the duckdb_batch_max_row_count parameter to control the maximum number of rows in a batched temporary table. This prevents batch commit failures for large transactions.

    • Fixes an issue where the json function could cause instance failures.

    • Fixes an issue where the string '-' could not be correctly converted to the DOUBLE type.

    • Fixes an issue where columns in the HAVING clause could not be correctly bound when not in only_full_group_by mode.

    —

    20260127

    8.0.36

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes a crash caused using a cursor result set when executing a PreparedStatement on a DuckDB table.

    —

    20260119

    8.0.36

    New features

    • Supports inequality comparisons for blob and varchar.

    • In duckdb_sql_normalization mode:

      • Supports the FROM DUAL syntax.

      • Fixes an issue where some characters in the utf8mb4 character set could not be correctly normalized.

      • Fixes an issue where UNIX_TIMESTAMP and CONVERT_TZ could not correctly use a string literal as input.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an instance restart failure during the engine conversion phase.

    • Fixes a crash during the parallel engine conversion of a partitioned table.

    —

    20260109

    8.0.36

    Performance optimizations

    • Optimizes the DuckDB engine transaction to support Binlog Free Flush, which improves data import performance.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes a replication interruption caused by a DuckDB commit failure.

    • Fixes an error in cross-database queries in duckdb_sql_normalization mode.

    • Fixes an issue where the concat function could cause a crash.

    —

    20251229

    8.0.36

    New features

    • Adds an SQL normalization feature, controlled by the duckdb_sql_normalization parameter. When this parameter is enabled, SELECT statements are rewritten for normalization to resolve the following compatibility issues:

      • Supports queries on views.

      • Supports using a string literal as input for date functions.

      • Supports using a non-constant expression for `expr` in the time interval expression Interval expr unit.

      • Supports the alias syntax expr 'alias' and expr "alias".

      • Supports the binary modifier for column names.

      • Ensures compatibility with operator associativity.

      • Supports using both explicit and implicit JOINs in a single SQL statement.

      • Supports # comments.

      • Supports specifying a separator in the group_concat function and using multiple expressions as input parameters.

      • Supports binary strings prefixed with 0x.

      • Supports using multiple expressions as input parameters for the count(distinct ... ) function.

      • Supports comparisons between the year type and numeric literal types.

    • Compatibility optimizations:

      • Supports comparisons between date types and numeric types.

      • Supports converting varchar to the bool type.

    • Adds the duckdb_max_threads_per_query parameter to limit the maximum number of threads for a single SQL query.

    Performance optimizations

    • Optimizes the loading efficiency of the compression algorithm during checkpoints.

    • Optimizes the performance of executing COPY DDL on DuckDB tables.

    Bug fixes

    • Adapts cross-transaction batching for log_replica_updates = OFF.

    • Fixes an issue where json_unquote could cause a crash.

    • Fixes an issue where the unix_timestamp(date) function did not consider the time zone.

    • Fixes an issue where some SQL statements could not be successfully executed when not in only_full_group_by mode.

    —

    20251209

    8.0.36

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes a crash that occurred during the execution of COPY DDL and the deletion of foreign keys.

    • Fixes an issue where relay logs were stacked when duckdb_commit_multi_trx_due_to_rotate was set to OFF.

    • Fixes a data duplication issue during DTS data synchronization.

    • Fixes a replication interruption caused by the alternate application of binary logs from different databases.

    —

    20251128

    8.0.36

    New features

    • Supports converting InnoDB partitioned tables to DuckDB non-partitioned tables.

    • DuckDB SQL supports parsing strings prefixed with x or b, such as x'FF' and b'11111111'.

    • Supports storing decimal fields with more than 38 digits of precision as decimal(38) in DuckDB.

    • Adds switches to determine whether to commit cross-transaction batches due to reader, rollback, or length.

    • Supports configuring the duckdb_checkpoint_threshold parameter to control the frequency of DuckDB checkpoint.

    Performance optimizations

    • Optimizes the append efficiency of Decimal fields.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where query results were truncated due to SQL timeout.

    • Fixes a community bug where UNION ALL execution unexpectedly hangs issue#19971.

    • Fixes a data duplication issue on the DuckDB secondary instance when writing data in duckdb_data_import_mode.

    —

    20251104

    8.0.36

    New features

    • Supports enabling cross-transaction batching in binary logging mode.

    • Supports regular expression functions: REGEXP, REGEXP_INSTR, REGEXP_LIKE, REGEXP_REPLACE, REGEXP_SUBSTR, and RLIKE.

    Performance optimizations

    • Optimizes the replication performance when DTS writes data to a DuckDB-based analytical primary instance.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes a replication interruption caused by a DDL statement with a specified algorithm.

    • Supports converting BLOB to a character type using CAST(blob as CHAR).

    • Fixes an SQL error that occurred after performing a UNION operation on a field with a non-binary collation.

    • Fixes an instance crash caused by append.

    • Fixes an issue where temporary tables were left over from engine conversion operations during startup.

    —

    20250922

    8.0.36

    New features

    • Implements CrashSafe for binary logging in the DuckDB engine.

    • Disables Replace and CREATE TABLE AS SELECT statements in the DuckDB engine.

    • The DuckDB engine supports the json_unquote, json_contains, and json_contains_path functions.

    • Upgrades DuckDB to v1.3.2.

    Performance optimizations

    • Optimizes performance issues related to loading compression algorithms in the DuckDB engine.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where the table type for a Recursive CTE was incorrectly identified.

    • Fixes an issue where duckdb_maximum_threads did not take effect at startup.

    • Fixes an issue where the DuckDB engine did not respond to a kill command during SQL execution.

    —

    MySQL 5.7

    Minor version

    MySQL version

    Description

    Version expiration date

    20260630

    5.7.44

    New features

    • Jemalloc is upgraded from 5.2 to 5.3.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixed a monitoring breakpoint issue during DuckDB checkpoint.

    • Fixed an issue where table conversion fails when the table is too large.

    • Fixed an issue where cross-schema RENAME TABLE fails.

    • Fixed an issue where the default value is incorrect after a column with a default value of length 0 is added.

    • Fixed a parsing error that occurs when DuckDB column or table names contain special characters such as backticks (`) and backslashes (\).

    • Fixed an issue where modifying the default value of a BINARY column fails.

    ——

    20260520

    5.7.44

    New features

    • In duckdb_sql_normalization mode:

      • Supports the VALUES ROW syntax.

      • Supports resolving system variables.

      • Fixes an issue where the GROUP_CONCAT function might return incorrect results when processing the utf8mb4 character set.

    • Upgrades DuckDB to v1.5.2.

    Bug fixes

    • Fixes an issue where DuckDB failed to add a column with a NOT NULL constraint.

    • Fixes an issue where the rollback appender caused the instance to crash.

    • Fixes an issue where WAL logs caused an instance startup failure.

    • Fixes an issue where invalid values were inserted into `datetime` fields (GitHub issue #131).

    • Fixes a crash caused by performing partition-level operations on a non-partitioned table.

    • Fixes a table creation failure caused by DuckDB's inability to correctly recognize some escape characters.

    • Fixes an issue where some tables were not successfully converted during the creation of a DuckDB instance.

    • Fixes an execution error caused by DuckDB incorrectly reordering JSON functions.

    • Fixes an issue where executing the greatest function in DuckDB could cause instance failures.

    • Fixes an issue where CREATE SEQUENCE caused replication interruption.

    —

    20260324

    5.7.44

    New features

    • The DuckDB engine supports generated columns.

    • Compatibility enhancements

      • Fixes a compatibility issue with the json_contains function.

      • Fixes a compatibility issue with the find_in_set function.

      • Fixes an issue where @NULL could not be correctly rewritten in duckdb_sql_normalization mode.

      • Ignores all index hints in duckdb_sql_normalization mode.

      • Supports the Field function.

      • Supports the member of function.

    • Supports implicit type conversion between Bit, Boolean, and Numeric types.

    —

    20260227

    5.7.44

    New features

    • Supports converting InnoDB partitioned tables to DuckDB non-partitioned tables.

    • The DuckDB engine supports the latin1 character set.

    • Adds an SQL normalization feature, controlled by the duckdb_sql_normalization parameter. When this parameter is enabled, SELECT statements are rewritten for normalization to resolve the following compatibility issues:

      • Supports queries on view.

      • Supports using a string literal as input for date functions.

      • Supports using a non-constant expression for `expr` in the time interval expression Interval expr unit.

      • Supports the alias syntax expr 'alias' and expr "alias".

      • Supports the binary modifier for column names.

      • Ensures compatibility with operator associativity.

      • Supports using both explicit and implicit JOINs in a single SQL statement.

      • Supports # comments.

      • Supports specifying a separator in the group_concat function and using multiple expressions as input parameters.

      • Supports binary strings prefixed with 0x.

      • Supports using multiple expressions as input parameters for the count(distinct ... ) function.

      • Supports comparisons between the year type and numeric literal types.

    20260127

    5.7.44

    Bug fixes

    • Fixed an issue where an instance would enter an abnormal state if it restarted during the DPI engine transformation phase.

    • Fixes an issue where json_unquote could cause a crash.

    • Fixes an issue where the unix_timestamp(date) function did not consider the time zone.

    • Fixes an issue where some SQL statements could not be successfully executed when not in only_full_group_by mode.

    —

    Overview of minor engine version upgrades

    You can choose to upgrade the minor engine version of your DuckDB-based analytical instance automatically or manually:

    • Automatic upgrade: By default, minor engine versions are upgraded automatically for DuckDB-based analytical instances. You can view the automatic upgrade settings on the Basic Information page. If your minor engine version is not the latest, the system periodically creates proactive operations and maintenance (O&M) tasks to upgrade it. The automatic upgrade is performed within the maintenance window that you set.

      Note

      • You will be notified of system-initiated upgrade tasks through channels such as text messages and emails. To receive these notifications, subscribe to 'ApsaraDB Fault or O&M Notification' in the Message Hub and configure your contact information.

      • You can cancel proactive O&M tasks at any time or choose to perform them at the scheduled time. For more information, see Scheduled events.

    • Manual upgrade: On the Basic Information page of your instance, you can change the upgrade setting to Manual Upgrade. If the current instance version has critical bugs, is expired, or is unpublished, instances set to manual upgrade will also receive proactive O&M tasks to upgrade the minor engine version.

    Warning

    Automatic upgrades are an auxiliary method. They do not guarantee that all instances are immediately upgraded to the latest minor engine version. You can check the status of the engine version on the Basic Information page of your instance and promptly upgrade the minor engine version to avoid potential risks associated with older engine versions. If you cancel a system-initiated upgrade task or fail to upgrade to the latest stable version after receiving an upgrade prompt in the console, you are responsible for any resulting business interruptions, data loss, or other consequences. For more information, see Terms of Service.

    Precautions

    • Upgrading the minor engine version may cause an instance switchover. Perform the upgrade during off-peak hours, or ensure that your application has an automatic reconnection mechanism. For more information about the effects of an instance switchover, see Effects of an instance switchover.

    • You cannot downgrade to an earlier minor engine version after an upgrade.

    • Automatic upgrades are performed within the maintenance window that you set. You can change the maintenance window on the Basic Information page of your instance.

    • An outdated engine version may pose risks such as business interruptions and data loss. You should upgrade your minor engine version periodically or after you receive an O&M notification from Alibaba Cloud.

    • If the engine version of an instance is unpublished or no longer maintained, the instance is automatically upgraded to the latest minor engine version when you upgrade or downgrade the instance specifications, or when Alibaba Cloud upgrades the instance hardware.

    • Upgrade tasks are not pushed for newly purchased instances. To upgrade to the latest version, you can upgrade the minor engine version on the Basic Information page of the instance.

    • After the upgrade process starts, it cannot be canceled. If the upgrade fails, all changes are rolled back, and the instance retains its previous database engine version, metadata, and other configurations.

    • When an engine version meets the unpublishing criteria, its status is set to unpublished, regardless of whether it is still within its lifecycle.

    Modify automatic upgrade settings

    1. 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.

    2. In the Configuration Information section, click Settings to the right of Automated Update of Minor Engine Version.

    3. Select Automatic Upgrade or Manual Upgrade, and then click OK.

    Manually upgrade the minor engine version

    1. 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.

    2. In the Configuration Information section, click Update Minor Engine Version.

      Note

      If this button is not displayed, the engine is already on the latest version.

    3. In the dialog box that appears, select a version from the Latest Version list, select an Update Time, and click OK.

    View upgrade progress and history

    To view the progress or history of minor version upgrades, you can log on to the Tasks page of the RDS console to view task details, including the task type, status, progress, start time, and end time. The Tasks page displays only tasks from the past 30 days, including both automatic and manual upgrades. For more information, see Task Hub.

    FAQ

    Q: After upgrading the minor engine version, why does `SELECT @@version` show the same version?

    A: The minor engine version update applies to the Alibaba Cloud kernel version, not the MySQL kernel version. You can run show variables like '%rds_release_date%' to query your minor engine version.

    Q: Can I only upgrade to the next immediate minor version?

    A: You can upgrade to any available minor version. The available versions are displayed in the console.

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

    A: To ensure service stability, the upgrade is performed on the secondary instance first. After the secondary instance is upgraded, an automatic switchover is performed. There are no other critical risks. For more information about the effects of an instance switchover, see Effects of an instance switchover.

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

    A: If the engine version of an instance is unpublished or no longer maintained, the instance is automatically upgraded to the latest minor engine version when you upgrade or downgrade the instance specifications, or when Alibaba Cloud upgrades the instance hardware.

    Q: I enabled automatic minor engine version upgrades. Why has my instance not been upgraded?

    A: An automatic upgrade may not have occurred for the following reasons:

    • The proxy minor version is too low and must be upgraded first.

    • Automatic upgrades are scheduled O&M tasks. They are not performed immediately after a new version is released.

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

    A: Yes, you can. Upgrading the minor engine version is not mandatory. However, we strongly recommend that you update the minor engine version on a regular basis. If you continue to use an old version, you cannot use new features, receive security patches for known vulnerabilities, or benefit from official performance optimizations.