Why didn't my RDS for Microsoft SQL Server instance upgrade even though I have automatic upgrade turned on?

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I have an Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS) for Microsoft SQL Server instance with Automatic Minor Version Upgrade turned on. I want to know why the instance doesn't automatically upgrade to the latest minor version.

Resolution

Amazon RDS automatically upgrades the minor version of the instance in the maintenance window. This occurs when the newer minor version is set as the preferred minor version. However, if the newer version isn't set as the preferred version, then Amazon RDS for Microsoft SQL Server isn't upgraded.

Amazon RDS doesn't automatically set every newly released minor engine version as the preferred version. Before Amazon RDS designates the new minor version as the preferred minor version, the following criteria are considered:

  • Known security issues
  • Bugs in the newer Amazon RDS version
  • Overall fleet stability after the minor version is released

For new minor versions that contain bug fixes, Amazon RDS schedules the upgrade for DB instances and turns on the Automatic Minor Version Upgrade option. The upgrade occurs during the maintenance window that's configured for the DB instance.

Run the following AWS Command Line Interface (AWS CLI) command to verify that the newly released version is set as the preferred minor version. Replace engine, engine-version, and region to your RDS for Microsoft SQL Server instance configuration:

aws rds describe-db-engine-versions --engine sqlserver-se --engine-version 15.00.4073.23.v1 --region ap-southeast-2 --query "DBEngineVersions[*].ValidUpgradeTarget[*].{AutoUpgrade:AutoUpgrade,EngineVersion:EngineVersion}" --output table --color off

Note: If you receive errors when you run AWS CLI commands, then see Troubleshoot AWS CLI errors. Also, make sure that you're using the most recent AWS CLI version.

The following output from the command indicates that the AutoUpgrade column is set to False. This means that the instance with version 15.00.4073.23.v1 isn't eligible for automatic upgrade to versions 15.00.4153.1.v1 or 15.00.4198.2.v1. This is because none of the newer released versions are set as the preferred version. The RDS for Microsoft SQL Server instance doesn't automatically upgrade to a newer minor version.

-------------------------------------|     DescribeDBEngineVersions      |
+--------------+--------------------+
|  AutoUpgrade |   EngineVersion    |
+--------------+--------------------+
|  False       |  15.00.4153.1.v1   |
|  False       |  15.00.4198.2.v1   |
+--------------+--------------------+

Related information

Upgrading the Microsoft SQL Server DB engine

2 Comments

Hi. I have received an email from AWS saying the versions of my RDS MS SQL instances are being depreciated. I have auto minor version upgrades enabled, but none have ever upgraded.

Running this...

aws rds describe-db-engine-versions --engine sqlserver-se --engine-version 15.00.4073.23.v1

shows that none of the available minor versions are auto-upgradable. Is there a reason for this?

Dave
replied 5 months ago

Thank you for your comment. We'll review and update the Knowledge Center article as needed.

profile pictureAWS
MODERATOR
replied 5 months ago