yugabyted

YugabyteDB uses a two-server architecture, with YB-TServers managing the data and YB-Masters managing the metadata. However, this can introduce a burden on new users who want to get started right away. To manage YugabyteDB, you can use yugabyted. yugabyted acts as a parent server across the YB-TServer and YB-Masters servers. yugabyted also provides a UI similar to the YugabyteDB Anywhere UI, with a data placement map and metrics dashboard.

The yugabyted executable file is located in the YugabyteDB home's bin directory.

For examples of using yugabyted to deploy single- and multi-node clusters, see Examples.

Syntax

yugabyted [-h] [ <command> ] [ <flags> ]

• command: command to run
• flags: one or more flags, separated by spaces.

Example

$ ./bin/yugabyted start

Online help

You can access command-line help for yugabyted by running one of the following examples from the YugabyteDB home:

$ ./bin/yugabyted -h

$ ./bin/yugabyted -help

For help with specific yugabyted commands, run 'yugabyted [ command ] -h'. For example, you can print the command-line help for the yugabyted start command by running the following:

$ ./bin/yugabyted start -h

Commands

The following commands are available:

• backup
• cert
• collect_logs
• configure
• configure_read_replica
• connect
• demo
• destroy
• finalize_upgrade
• restore
• start
• status
• stop
• version
• xcluster

backup

Use the yugabyted backup command to take a backup of a YugabyteDB database into a network file storage directory or public cloud object storage.

To use backup, the yugabyted node must be started with --backup_daemon=true to initialize the backup/restore agent. See the start command.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted backup [flags]

Examples:

Take a backup into AWS S3 bucket:

./bin/yugabyted backup --database=yb-demo-northwind --cloud_storage_uri=s3://[bucket_name]

Take a backup into Network file storage:

./bin/yugabyted backup --database=yb-demo-northwind --cloud_storage_uri=/nfs-dir

Determine the status of a backup task:

./bin/yugabyted backup --database=yb-demo-northwind --cloud_storage_uri=s3://[bucket_name] --status

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--cloud_storage_uri cloud_storage_location

Cloud location to store the backup data files.

--database database

YSQL Database to be backed up to cloud storage.

--keyspace keyspace

YCQL Keyspace to be backed up to cloud storage.

--status

Check the status of the backup task.

cert

Use the yugabyted cert command to create TLS/SSL certificates for deploying a secure YugabyteDB cluster.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted cert [command] [flags]

Commands

The following sub-commands are available for the yugabyted cert command:

• generate_server_certs

generate_server_certs

Use the yugabyted cert generate_server_certs sub-command to generate keys and certificates for the specified hostnames.

For example, to create node server certificates for hostnames 127.0.0.1, 127.0.0.2, 127.0.0.3, execute the following command:

./bin/yugabyted cert generate_server_certs --hostnames=127.0.0.1,127.0.0.2,127.0.0.3

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--hostnames hostnames

Hostnames of the nodes to be added in the cluster. Mandatory flag.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server.

collect_logs

Use the yugabyted collect_logs command to generate a zipped file with all logs.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted collect_logs [flags]

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--stdout stdout

Redirect the logs.tar.gz file's content to stdout. For example, docker exec \<container-id\> bin/yugabyted collect_logs --stdout > yugabyted.tar.gz

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server whose logs are desired.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server whose logs are desired.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server whose logs are desired.

configure

Use the yugabyted configure command to do the following:

• Configure the data placement policy of the cluster.
• Enable or disable encryption at rest.
• Configure point-in-time recovery.
• Run yb-admin commands on a cluster.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted configure [command] [flags]

Commands

The following sub-commands are available for yugabyted configure command:

• data_placement
• encrypt_at_rest
• point_in_time_recovery
• admin_operation

data_placement

EA Use the yugabyted configure data_placement sub-command to set or modify placement policy of the nodes of the deployed cluster, and specify the preferred region(s).

For example, you would use the following command to create a multi-zone YugabyteDB cluster:

./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement --fault_tolerance=zone

data_placement flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--fault_tolerance fault-tolerance

Specify the fault tolerance for the cluster. This flag can accept one of the following values: zone, region, cloud. For example, when the flag is set to zone (--fault_tolerance=zone), yugabyted applies zone fault tolerance to the cluster, placing the nodes in three different zones, if available.

--constraint_value data-placement-constraint-value

Specify the data placement and preferred region(s) for the YugabyteDB cluster. This is an optional flag. The flag takes comma-separated values in the format cloud.region.zone:priority. The priority is an integer and is optional, and determines the preferred region(s) in order of preference. You must specify the same number of data placement values as the replication factor.

--rf replication-factor

Specify the replication factor for the cluster. This is an optional flag which takes a value of 3 or 5.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server.

encrypt_at_rest

Use the yugabyted configure encrypt_at_rest sub-command to enable or disable encryption at rest for the deployed cluster.

To use encryption at rest, OpenSSL must be installed on the nodes.

For example, to enable encryption at rest for a deployed YugabyteDB cluster, execute the following:

./bin/yugabyted configure encrypt_at_rest --enable

To disable encryption at rest for a YugabyteDB cluster which has encryption at rest enabled, execute the following:

./bin/yugabyted configure encrypt_at_rest --disable

encrypt_at_rest flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--disable disable

Disable encryption at rest for the cluster. There is no need to set a value for the flag. Use --enable or --disable flag to toggle encryption features on a YugabyteDB cluster.

--enable enable

Enable encryption at rest for the cluster. There is no need to set a value for the flag. Use --enable or --disable flag to toggle encryption features on a YugabyteDB cluster.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server.

point_in_time_recovery

Use the yugabyted configure point_in_time_recovery sub-command to configure a snapshot schedule for a specific database.

Examples:

Enable point-in-time recovery for a database:

./bin/yugabyted configure point_in_time_recovery --enable --retention <retention_period> --database <database_name>

Disable point-in-time recovery for a database:

./bin/yugabyted configure point_in_time_recovery --disable --database <database_name>

Display point-in-time schedules configured on the cluster:

./bin/yugabyted configure point_in_time_recovery --status

admin_operation

Use the yugabyted configure admin_operation command to run a yb-admin command on the YugabyteDB cluster.

For example, get the YugabyteDB universe configuration:

./bin/yugabyted configure admin_operation --command 'get_universe_config'

admin_operation flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server.

--command yb-admin-command

Specify the yb-admin command to be executed on the YugabyteDB cluster.

--master_addresses master-addresses

Comma-separated list of current masters of the YugabyteDB cluster.

configure_read_replica

Use the yugabyted configure_read_replica command to configure, modify, or delete a read replica cluster.

Before configuring a read replica, you should have a primary cluster deployed, along with the read replica nodes.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted configure_read_replica [command] [flags]

Commands

The following sub-commands are available for the yugabyted configure_read_replica command:

• new
• modify
• delete

new

Use the sub-command yugabyted configure_read_replica new to configure a new read replica cluster.

For example, to create a new read replica cluster, execute the following command:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica new --rf=1 --data_placement_constraint=cloud1.region1.zone1

new flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--rf read-replica-replication-factor

Replication factor for the read replica cluster.

--data_placement_constraint read-replica-constraint-value

Data placement constraint value for the read replica cluster. This is an optional flag. The flag takes comma-separated values in the format cloud.region.zone:num_of_replicas.

modify

Use the sub-command yugabyted configure_read_replica modify to modify an existing read replica cluster.

For example, modify a read replica cluster using the following commands.

Change the replication factor of the existing read replica cluster:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica modify --rf=2

Change the replication factor and also specify the placement constraint:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica modify --rf=2 --data_placement_constraint=cloud1.region1.zone1,cloud2.region2.zone2

modify flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--rf read-replica-replication-factor

Replication factor for the read replica cluster.

--data_placement_constraint read-replica-constraint-value

Data placement constraint value for the read replica cluster. This is an optional flag. The flag takes comma-separated values in the format cloud.region.zone.

delete

Use the sub-command yugabyted configure_read_replica delete to delete an existing read replica cluster.

For example, delete a read replica cluster using the following command:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica delete

delete flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

connect

Use the yugabyted connect command to connect to the cluster using ysqlsh or ycqlsh.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted connect [command] [flags]

Commands

The following sub-commands are available for the yugabyted connect command:

• ysql
• ycql

ysql

Use the yugabyted connect ysql sub-command to connect to YugabyteDB with ysqlsh.

ycql

Use the yugabyted connect ycql sub-command to connect to YugabyteDB with ycqlsh.

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server to connect to.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server to connect to.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server to connect to.

demo

Use the yugabyted demo command to use the demo Northwind sample dataset with YugabyteDB.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted demo [command] [flags]

Commands

The following sub-commands are available for the yugabyted demo command:

• connect
• destroy

connect

Use the yugabyted demo connect sub-command to load the Northwind sample dataset into a new yb_demo_northwind SQL database, and then open the ysqlsh prompt for the same database.

destroy

Use the yugabyted demo destroy sub-command to shut down the yugabyted single-node cluster and remove data, configuration, and log directories. This sub-command also deletes the yb_demo_northwind database.

Flags

-h | --help

Print the help message and exit.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server to connect to or destroy.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server to connect to or destroy.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server to connect to or destroy.

destroy

Use the yugabyted destroy command to delete a cluster.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted destroy [flags]

For examples, see Destroy a local cluster.

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server that needs to be destroyed.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server that needs to be destroyed.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server that needs to be destroyed.

finalize_upgrade

Use the yugabyted finalize_upgrade command to finalize and upgrade the YSQL catalog to the new version and complete the upgrade process.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted finalize_upgrade [flags]

For example, finalize the upgrade process after upgrading all the nodes of the YugabyteDB cluster to the new version as follows:

yugabyted finalize_upgrade --upgrade_ysql_timeout <time_limit_ms>

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--upgrade_ysql_timeout upgrade_timeout_in_ms

Custom timeout for the YSQL upgrade in milliseconds. Default timeout is 60 seconds.

restore

Use the yugabyted restore command to restore a database in the YugabyteDB cluster from a network file storage directory or from public cloud object storage.

To use restore, the yugabyted node must be started with --backup_daemon=true to initialize the backup/restore agent. See the start command.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted restore [flags]

Examples:

Restore a database from AWS S3 bucket:

./bin/yugabyted restore --database=yb-demo-northwind --cloud_storage_uri=s3://[bucket_name]

Restore a database from a network file storage directory:

./bin/yugabyted restore --database=yb-demo-northwind --cloud_storage_uri=/nfs-dir

Restore the database to a point in time in history:

./bin/yugabyted restore --database yugabyte --recover_to_point_in_time '2024-01-29 9:30:00 PM'

Note: To be able to restore to a point in time, PITR scheduling has to be enabled on the database using yugabyted configure point_in_time_recovery.

Determine the status of a restore task:

./bin/yugabyted restore --database=yb-demo-northwind --cloud_storage_uri=s3://[bucket_name] --status

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--cloud_storage_uri cloud_storage_location

Cloud location to store the backup data files.

--database database

YSQL Database to be backed up to cloud storage.

--keyspace keyspace

YCQL Keyspace to be backed up to cloud storage.

--recover_to_point_in_time pitr

Restore to the specified point-in-time with timestamp enclosed in single quotes.

--status

Check the status of the backup task.

start

Use the yugabyted start command to start a one-node YugabyteDB cluster for running YSQL and YCQL workloads in your local environment.

To use encryption in transit, OpenSSL must be installed on the nodes.

If you want to use backup and restore, start the node with --backup_daemon=true to initialize the backup and restore agent. You also need to download and extract the YB Controller release to the yugabyte-2.23.1.0 release directory.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted start [flags]

Examples:

Create a local single-node cluster:

./bin/yugabyted start

Create a local single-node cluster with encryption in transit and authentication:

./bin/yugabyted start --secure

Create a single-node locally and join other nodes that are part of the same cluster:

./bin/yugabyted start --join=host:port,[host:port]

Create a single-node locally and set advanced flags using a configuration file:

./bin/yugabyted start --config /path/to/configuration-file

For more advanced examples, see Examples.

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--advertise_address bind-ip

IP address or local hostname on which yugabyted will listen.

--join master-ip

The IP or DNS address of the existing yugabyted server that the new yugabyted server will join, or if the server was restarted, rejoin. The join flag accepts IP addresses, DNS names, or labels with correct DNS syntax (that is, letters, numbers, and hyphens).

--config path-to-config-file

yugabyted advanced configuration file path. Refer to Use a configuration file.

--base_dir base-directory

The directory where yugabyted stores data, configurations, and logs. Must be an absolute path.

--data_dir data-directory

The directory where yugabyted stores data. Must be an absolute path. Can be configured to a directory different from the one where configurations and logs are stored.

--log_dir log-directory

The directory to store yugabyted logs. Must be an absolute path. This flag controls where the logs of the YugabyteDB nodes are stored. By default, logs are written to ~/var/logs.

--background bool

Enable or disable running yugabyted in the background as a daemon. Does not persist on restart. Default: true

--cloud_location cloud-location

Cloud location of the yugabyted node in the format cloudprovider.region.zone. This information is used for multi-zone, multi-region, and multi-cloud deployments of YugabyteDB clusters.

--fault_tolerance fault_tolerance

Determines the fault tolerance constraint to be applied on the data placement policy of the YugabyteDB cluster. This flag can accept the following values: none, zone, region, cloud.

--ui bool

Enable or disable the webserver UI (available at http://localhost:15433). Default: true

--secure

Enable encryption in transit and authentication for the node.

Encryption in transit requires SSL/TLS certificates for each node in the cluster.

• When starting a local single-node cluster, a certificate is automatically generated for the cluster.

• When deploying a node in a multi-node cluster, you need to generate the certificate for the node using the --cert generate_server_certs command and copy it to the node before you start the node using the --secure flag, or the node creation will fail.

When authentication is enabled, the default user is yugabyte in YSQL, and cassandra in YCQL. When a cluster is started, yugabyted outputs a message Credentials File is stored at <credentials_file_path.txt> with the credentials file location.

For examples creating secure local multi-node, multi-zone, and multi-region clusters, refer to Examples.

--read_replica read_replica_node

Use this flag to start a read replica node.

--backup_daemon backup-daemon-process

Enable or disable the backup daemon with yugabyted start. Default: false

If you start a cluster using the --backup_daemon flag, you also need to download and extract the YB Controller release to the yugabyte-2.23.1.0 release directory.

--enable_pg_parity_early_access PostgreSQL-compatibilty

Enable Enhanced PostgreSQL Compatibility Mode. Default: false

Advanced flags

The advanced flags supported by the start command are as follows:

--ycql_port ycql-port

The port on which YCQL will run.

--ysql_port ysql-port

The port on which YSQL will run.

--master_rpc_port master-rpc-port

The port on which YB-Master will listen for RPC calls.

--tserver_rpc_port tserver-rpc-port

The port on which YB-TServer will listen for RPC calls.

--master_webserver_port master-webserver-port

The port on which YB-Master webserver will run.

--tserver_webserver_port tserver-webserver-port

The port on which YB-TServer webserver will run.

--webserver_port webserver-port

The port on which main webserver will run.

--callhome bool

Enable or disable the call home feature that sends analytics data to Yugabyte. Default: true.

--master_flags master_flags

Specify extra master flags as a set of key value pairs. Format (key=value,key=value).

To specify any CSV value flags, enclose the values inside curly braces {}. Refer to Pass additional flags to YB-Master and YB-TServer.

--tserver_flags tserver_flags

Specify extra tserver flags as a set of key value pairs. Format (key=value,key=value).

To specify any CSV value flags, enclose the values inside curly braces {}. Refer to Pass additional flags to YB-Master and YB-TServer.

--ysql_enable_auth bool

Enable or disable YSQL authentication. Default: false.

If the YSQL_PASSWORD environment variable exists, then authentication mode is automatically set to true.

--use_cassandra_authentication bool

Enable or disable YCQL authentication. Default: false.

If the YCQL_USER or YCQL_PASSWORD environment variables exist, then authentication mode is automatically set to true.

Note that the corresponding environment variables have higher priority than the command-line flags.

--initial_scripts_dir initial-scripts-dir

The directory from where yugabyted reads initialization scripts.

Script format - YSQL .sql, YCQL .cql.

Initialization scripts are executed in sorted name order.

Use a configuration file

You can set advanced flags using a configuration file, specified using the --config flag. The configuration file is a JSON file with advanced flags and the corresponding values you want to set. For example, you could start a node using a configuration file as follows:

1. Create a configuration file.

   vi ~/yugabyted.conf
   

2. Configure the desired advanced flags in the file. For example:

   {
       "master_webserver_port": 7100,
       "tserver_webserver_port": 9100,
       "master_flags": "ysql_enable_packed_row=true,ysql_beta_features=true",
       "Tserver_flags": "ysql_enable_packed_row=true,ysql_beta_features=true,yb_enable_read_committed_isolation=true,enable_deadlock_detection=true,enable_wait_queues=true",
   }
   

3. Start the node using the config flag.

   ./bin/yugabyted start --config ~/yugabyted.conf
   

Deprecated flags

--daemon bool

Enable or disable running yugabyted in the background as a daemon. Does not persist on restart. Use --background instead. Default: true.

--listen bind-ip

The IP address or localhost name to which yugabyted will listen.

status

Use the yugabyted status command to check the status.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted status [flags]

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server whose status is desired.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server whose status is desired.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server whose status is desired.

stop

Use the yugabyted stop command to stop a YugabyteDB cluster.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted stop [flags]

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server that needs to be stopped.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server that needs to be stopped.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server that needs to be stopped.

version

Use the yugabyted version command to check the version number.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted version [flags]

Flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--data_dir data-directory

The data directory for the yugabyted server whose version is desired.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server whose version is desired.

--log_dir log-directory

The log directory for the yugabyted server whose version is desired.

xcluster

Use the yugabyted xcluster command to set up or delete xCluster replication between two clusters.

Syntax

Usage: yugabyted xcluster [command] [flags]

Commands

The following sub-commands are available for the yugabyted xcluster command:

• checkpoint
• set_up
• status
• delete

checkpoint

Use the sub-command yugabyted xcluster checkpoint to checkpoint a new xCluster replication between two clusters. This command needs to be run from the source cluster of the replication.

For example, to create a new xCluster replication, execute the following command:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster checkpoint --replication_id <replication_id> --databases <comma_seperated_database_names>

The checkpoint command takes a snapshot of the database and determines whether any of the databases to be replicated need to be copied to the target (bootstrapped). If bootstrapping is required for any database, yugabyted outputs a message Bootstrap is required for database(s) along with the commands required for bootstrapping.

checkpoint flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--databases xcluster-databases

Comma-separated list of databases to be added to the replication.

--replication_id xcluster-replication-id

A string to uniquely identify the replication.

set_up

Use the sub-command yugabyted xcluster set_up to set up xCluster replication between two clusters. Run this command from the source cluster of the replication.

For example, to set up xCluster replication between two clusters, run the following command from a node on the source cluster:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster set_up --target_address <ip_of_any_target_cluster_node> --replication_id <replication_id>

If bootstrap was required for any database, add the --bootstrap_done flag after completing the bootstrapping steps:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster set_up --target_address <ip_of_any_target_cluster_node> --replication_id <replication_id> --bootstrap_done

set_up flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--target_address xcluster-target-address

IP address of a node in the target cluster.

--replication_id xcluster-replication-id

The replication ID of the xCluster replication to be set up.

--bootstrap_done xcluster-bootstrap-done

This flag indicates that bootstrapping step has been completed.

After running yugabyted xcluster checkpoint for an xCluster replication, if bootstrapping is required for any database, yugabyted outputs a message Bootstrap is required for database(s) along with the commands required for bootstrapping.

status

Use the sub-command yugabyted xcluster status to display information about the specified xCluster replications. This command can be run on either the source or target cluster.

For example, to display replication information for all xCluster replications to or from a cluster, run the following command:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster status

To display the status of a specific xCluster replication, run the following command:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster status --replication_id <replication_id>

status flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--replication_id xcluster-replication-id

The replication ID of the xCluster replication whose status you want to output.

Optional. If not specified, the status of all replications for the cluster is displayed.

delete

Use the sub-command yugabyted xcluster delete to delete an existing xCluster replication. Run this command from the source cluster.

For example, delete an xCluster replication using the following command:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster delete --replication_id <replication_id> --target_address <ip_of_any_target_cluster_node>

delete flags

-h | --help

Print the command-line help and exit.

--base_dir base-directory

The base directory for the yugabyted server.

--target_address xcluster-target-address

IP address of a node in the target cluster.

If the target is not available, the output of yugabyted xcluster delete will include the command that you will need to run on the target cluster (after bringing it back up) to remove the replication from the target.

--replication_id xcluster-replication-id

The replication ID of the xCluster replication to delete.

Environment variables

In the case of multi-node deployments, all nodes should have similar environment variables.

Changing the values of the environment variables after the first run has no effect.

YSQL

Set YSQL_PASSWORD to use the cluster in enforced authentication mode.

The following are combinations of environment variables and their uses:

• YSQL_PASSWORD

  Update the default yugabyte user's password.

• YSQL_PASSWORD, YSQL_DB

  Update the default yugabyte user's password and create YSQL_DB named DB.

• YSQL_PASSWORD, YSQL_USER

  Create YSQL_USER named user and DB with password YSQL_PASSWORD.

• YSQL_USER

  Create YSQL_USER named user and DB with password YSQL_USER.

• YSQL_USER, YSQL_DB

  Create YSQL_USER named user with password YSQL_USER and YSQL_DB named DB.

• YSQL_DB

  Create YSQL_DB named DB.

• YSQL_USER, YSQL_PASSWORD, YSQL_DB

  Create YSQL_USER named user with password YSQL_PASSWORD and YSQL_DB named DB.

YCQL

Set YCQL_USER or YCQL_PASSWORD to use the cluster in enforced authentication mode.

The following are combinations of environment variables and their uses:

• YCQL_PASSWORD

  Update the default cassandra user's password.

• YCQL_PASSWORD, YCQL_KEYSPACE

  Update the default cassandra user's password and create YCQL_KEYSPACE named keyspace.

• YCQL_PASSWORD, YCQL_USER

  Create YCQL_USER named user and DB with password YCQL_PASSWORD.

• YCQL_USER

  Create YCQL_USER named user and DB with password YCQL_USER.

• YCQL_USER, YCQL_KEYSPACE

  Create YCQL_USER named user with password YCQL_USER and YCQL_USER named keyspace.

• YCQL_KEYSPACE

  Create YCQL_KEYSPACE named keyspace.

• YCQL_USER, YCQL_PASSWORD, YCQL_KEYSPACE

  Create YCQL_USER named user with password YCQL_PASSWORD and YCQL_KEYSPACE named keyspace.

Examples

To deploy any type of secure cluster (that is, using the --secure flag) or use encryption at rest, OpenSSL must be installed on your machine.

Running on macOS

Port conflicts

macOS Monterey enables AirPlay receiving by default, which listens on port 7000. This conflicts with YugabyteDB and causes yugabyted start to fail. Use the --master_webserver_port flag when you start the cluster to change the default port number, as follows:

./bin/yugabyted start --master_webserver_port=9999

Alternatively, you can disable AirPlay receiving, then start YugabyteDB normally, and then, optionally, re-enable AirPlay receiving.

Loopback addresses

On macOS, every additional node after the first needs a loopback address configured to simulate the use of multiple hosts or nodes. For example, for a three-node cluster, you add two additional addresses as follows:

sudo ifconfig lo0 alias 127.0.0.2
sudo ifconfig lo0 alias 127.0.0.3

The loopback addresses do not persist upon rebooting your computer.

Destroy a local cluster

If you are running YugabyteDB on your local computer, you can't run more than one cluster at a time. To set up a new local YugabyteDB cluster using yugabyted, first destroy the currently running cluster.

To destroy a local single-node cluster, use the destroy command as follows:

./bin/yugabyted destroy

To destroy a local multi-node cluster, use the destroy command with the --base_dir flag set to the base directory path of each of the nodes. For example, for a three node cluster, you would execute commands similar to the following:

./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=${HOME}/var/node1
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=${HOME}/var/node2
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=${HOME}/var/node3

./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node1
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node2
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node3

If the cluster has more than three nodes, execute a destroy --base_dir=<path to directory> command for each additional node until all nodes are destroyed.

Create a single-node cluster

Create a single-node cluster with a given base directory. Note the need to provide a fully-qualified directory path for the base_dir parameter.

./bin/yugabyted start --advertise_address=127.0.0.1 \
    --base_dir=/Users/username/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/data1

To create secure single-node cluster with encryption in transit and authentication enabled, add the --secure flag as follows:

./bin/yugabyted start --secure --advertise_address=127.0.0.1 \
    --base_dir=/Users/username/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/data1

When authentication is enabled, the default user and password is yugabyte and yugabyte in YSQL, and cassandra and cassandra in YCQL.

Create certificates for a secure local multi-node cluster

Secure clusters use encryption in transit, which requires SSL/TLS certificates for each node in the cluster. Generate the certificates using the --cert generate_server_certs command and then copy them to the respective node base directories before you create a secure local multi-node cluster.

Create the certificates for SSL and TLS connection:

./bin/yugabyted cert generate_server_certs --hostnames=127.0.0.1,127.0.0.2,127.0.0.3

Certificates are generated in the <HOME>/var/generated_certs/<hostname> directory.

Copy the certificates to the respective node's <base_dir>/certs directory:

cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.1/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node1/certs
cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.2/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node2/certs
cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.3/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node3/certs

Create a local multi-node cluster

To create a cluster with multiple nodes, you first create a single node, and then create additional nodes using the --join flag to add them to the cluster. If a node is restarted, you would also use the --join flag to rejoin the cluster.

To create a secure multi-node cluster, ensure you have generated and copied the certificates for each node.

To create a cluster without encryption and authentication, omit the --secure flag.

To create the cluster, do the following:

1. Start the first node by running the following command:

   ./bin/yugabyted start --secure --advertise_address=127.0.0.1 \
       --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node1 \
       --cloud_location=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1a
   

2. On macOS, configure loopback addresses for the additional nodes as follows:

   sudo ifconfig lo0 alias 127.0.0.2
   sudo ifconfig lo0 alias 127.0.0.3
   

3. Add two more nodes to the cluster using the --join flag, as follows:

   ./bin/yugabyted start --secure --advertise_address=127.0.0.2 \
       --join=127.0.0.1 \
       --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node2 \
       --cloud_location=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1b
   ./bin/yugabyted start --secure --advertise_address=127.0.0.3 \
       --join=127.0.0.1 \
       --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node3 \
       --cloud_location=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1c
   

Create a multi-zone cluster

• Secure
• Insecure

After starting the yugabyted processes on all the nodes, configure the data placement constraint of the cluster as follows:

./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement --fault_tolerance=zone

The preceding command automatically determines the data placement constraint based on the --cloud_location of each node in the cluster. If there are three or more zones available in the cluster, the configure command configures the cluster to survive at least one availability zone failure. Otherwise, it outputs a warning message.

The replication factor of the cluster defaults to 3.

You can set the data placement constraint manually and specify preferred regions using the --constraint_value flag, which takes the comma-separated value of cloud.region.zone:priority. For example:

./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement \
    --fault_tolerance=region \
    --constraint_value=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1a:1,aws.us-west-1.us-west-1a,aws.us-central-1.us-central-1a:2

This indicates that us-east is the preferred region, with a fallback option to us-central.

You can set the replication factor of the cluster manually using the --rf flag. For example:

./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement --fault_tolerance=zone \
    --constraint_value=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1a,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1b,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1c \
    --rf=3

Create a multi-region cluster

• Secure
• Insecure

After starting the yugabyted processes on all nodes, configure the data placement constraint of the cluster as follows:

./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement --fault_tolerance=region

The preceding command automatically determines the data placement constraint based on the --cloud_location of each node in the cluster. If there are three or more regions available in the cluster, the configure command configures the cluster to survive at least one availability region failure. Otherwise, it outputs a warning message.

The replication factor of the cluster defaults to 3.

You can set the data placement constraint manually and specify preferred regions using the --constraint_value flag, which takes the comma-separated value of cloud.region.zone:priority. For example:

./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement \
    --fault_tolerance=region \
    --constraint_value=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1a:1,aws.us-west-1.us-west-1a,aws.us-central-1.us-central-1a:2

This indicates that us-east is the preferred region, with a fallback option to us-central.

You can set the replication factor of the cluster manually using the --rf flag. For example:

./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement \
    --fault_tolerance=region \
    --constraint_value=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1a,aws.us-west-1.us-west-1a,aws.us-central-1.us-central-1a \
    --rf=3

Create a multi-region cluster in Docker

Docker-based deployments are in EA .

You can run yugabyted in a Docker container. For more information, see the Quick Start.

The following example shows how to create a multi-region cluster. If the ~/yb_docker_data directory already exists, delete and re-create it.

Note that the --join flag only accepts labels that conform to DNS syntax, so name your Docker container accordingly using only letters, numbers, and hyphens.

rm -rf ~/yb_docker_data
mkdir ~/yb_docker_data

docker network create yb-network

docker run -d --name yugabytedb-node1 --net yb-network \
    -p 15433:15433 -p 7001:7000 -p 9001:9000 -p 5433:5433 \
    -v ~/yb_docker_data/node1:/home/yugabyte/yb_data --restart unless-stopped \
    yugabytedb/yugabyte:2.23.1.0-b220 \
    bin/yugabyted start \
    --base_dir=/home/yugabyte/yb_data --background=false

docker run -d --name yugabytedb-node2 --net yb-network \
    -p 15434:15433 -p 7002:7000 -p 9002:9000 -p 5434:5433 \
    -v ~/yb_docker_data/node2:/home/yugabyte/yb_data --restart unless-stopped \
    yugabytedb/yugabyte:2.23.1.0-b220 \
    bin/yugabyted start --join=yugabytedb-node1 \
    --base_dir=/home/yugabyte/yb_data --background=false

docker run -d --name yugabytedb-node3 --net yb-network \
    -p 15435:15433 -p 7003:7000 -p 9003:9000 -p 5435:5433 \
    -v ~/yb_docker_data/node3:/home/yugabyte/yb_data --restart unless-stopped \
    yugabytedb/yugabyte:2.23.1.0-b220 \
    bin/yugabyted start --join=yugabytedb-node1 \
    --base_dir=/home/yugabyte/yb_data --background=false

Create and manage read replica clusters

To create a read replica cluster, you first create a YugabyteDB cluster; this example assumes a 3-node cluster is deployed. Refer to Create a local multi-node cluster.

You add read replica nodes to the primary cluster using the --join and --read_replica flags.

Create a read replica cluster

• Secure
• Insecure

./bin/yugabyted cert generate_server_certs --hostnames=127.0.0.4,127.0.0.5,127.0.0.6,127.0.0.7,127.0.0.8

cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.4/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node4/certs
cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.5/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/nod45/certs
cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.6/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node6/certs
cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.7/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node7/certs
cp $HOME/var/generated_certs/127.0.0.8/* $HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node8/certs

Configure a new read replica cluster

After starting all read replica nodes, configure the read replica cluster using configure_read_replica new command as follows:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica new --base_dir ~/yb-cluster/node4

The preceding command automatically determines the data placement constraint based on the --cloud_location of each node in the cluster. After the command is run, the primary cluster will begin asynchronous replication with the read replica cluster.

You can set the data placement constraint manually and specify the number of replicas in each cloud location using the --data_placement_constraint flag, which takes the comma-separated value of cloud.region.zone:num_of_replicas. For example:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica new \
    --base_dir ~/yb-cluster/node4 \
    --constraint_value=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1d:1,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1e:1,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1d:1

When specifying the --data_placement_constraint flag, you must provide the following:

• include all the zones where a read replica node is to be placed.

• specify the number of replicas for each zone; each zone should have at least one read replica node.

  The number of replicas in any cloud location should be less than or equal to the number of read replica nodes deployed in that cloud location.

The replication factor of the read replica cluster defaults to the number of different cloud locations containing read replica nodes; that is, one replica in each cloud location.

You can set the replication factor manually using the --rf flag. For example:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica new \
    --base_dir ~/yb-cluster/node4 \
    --rf <replication_factor>

When specifying the --rf flag:

• If the --data_placement_constraint flag is provided
  • All rules for using the --data_placement_constraint flag apply.
  • Replication factor should be equal the number of replicas specified using the --data_placement_constraint flag.
• If the --data_placement_constraint flag is not provided:
  • Replication factor should be less than or equal to total read replica nodes deployed.
  • Replication factor should be greater than or equal to number of cloud locations that have a read replica node; that is, there should be at least one replica in each cloud location.

Modifying a configured read replica cluster

You can modify an existing read replica cluster configuration using the configure_read_replica modify command and specifying new values for the --data_placement_constraint and --rf flags.

For example:

./yugabyted configure_read_replica modify \
--base_dir=~/yb-cluster/node4 \
--data_placement_constraint=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1d:2,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1e:1,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1d:2

This changes the data placement configuration of the read replica cluster to have 2 replicas in aws.us-east-1.us-east-1d cloud location as compared to one replica set in the original configuration.

When specifying new --data_placement_constraint or --rf values, the same rules apply.

Delete a read replica cluster

To delete a read replica cluster, destroy all read replica nodes using the destroy command:

./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node4
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node5
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node6
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node7
./bin/yugabyted destroy --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node8

After destroying the nodes, run the configure_read_replica delete command to delete the read replica configuration:

./bin/yugabyted configure_read_replica delete --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node1

Enable and disable encryption at rest

To enable encryption at rest in a deployed local cluster, run the following command:

./bin/yugabyted configure encrypt_at_rest \
    --enable \
    --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node1

To enable encryption at rest in a deployed multi-zone or multi-region cluster, run the following command from any VM:

./bin/yugabyted configure encrypt_at_rest --enable

To disable encryption at rest in a local cluster with encryption at rest enabled, run the following command:

./bin/yugabyted configure encrypt_at_rest \
    --disable \
    --base_dir=$HOME/yugabyte-2.23.1.0/node1

To disable encryption at rest in a multi-zone or multi-region cluster with this type of encryption enabled, run the following command from any VM:

./bin/yugabyted configure encrypt_at_rest --disable

Set up xCluster replication between clusters

Use the following steps to set up xCluster replication between two YugabyteDB clusters.

To set up xCluster replication, you first need to deploy two (source and target) clusters. Refer to Create a multi-zone cluster. In addition, if you need to bootstrap the databases in the target cluster, set the --backup_daemon flag to true and install YB Controller. See the start command.

• Secure clusters
• Insecure clusters

Bootstrap databases for xCluster

After running yugabyted xcluster checkpoint, you must bootstrap the databases before you can set up the xCluster replication. Bootstrapping is the process of preparing the databases on the target cluster for replication, and involves the following:

• For databases that don't have any data, apply the same database and schema to the target cluster.
• For databases that do have data, you need to back up the databases on the source, and restore to the target. The commands to do this are provided in the output of the yugabyted xcluster checkpoint command.

If the cluster was not started using the --backup_daemon flag, you must manually complete the backup and restore using distributed snapshots.

Monitor and delete xCluster replication

After setting up the replication between the clusters, you can display the replication status using the yugabyted xcluster status command:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster status

To delete an xCluster replication, use the yugabyted xcluster delete command as follows:

./bin/yugabyted xcluster delete \
    --replication_id=<replication_id> \
    --target_address=<IP-of-any-target-node>

Pass additional flags to YB-Master and YB-TServer

You can set additional configuration options for the YB-Master and YB-TServer processes using the --master_flags and --tserver_flags flags.

For example, to create a single-node cluster and set additional flags for the YB-TServer process, run the following:

./bin/yugabyted start --tserver_flags="pg_yb_session_timeout_ms=1200000,ysql_max_connections=400"

When setting CSV value flags, such as --ysql_hba_conf_csv, you need to enclose the values inside curly braces {}. For example:

./bin/yugabyted start --tserver_flags="ysql_hba_conf_csv={host all all 127.0.0.1/0 password,"host all all 0.0.0.0/0 ldap ldapserver=***** ldapsearchattribute=cn ldapport=3268 ldapbinddn=***** ldapbindpasswd=""*****"""}"

For more information on additional server configuration options, see YB-Master and YB-TServer.

Upgrade a YugabyteDB cluster

To use the latest features of the database and apply the latest security fixes, upgrade your YugabyteDB cluster to the latest release.

Upgrading an existing YugabyteDB cluster that was deployed using yugabyted includes the following steps:

1. Stop the one running YugabyteDB node using the yugabyted stop command.

   ./bin/yugabyted stop --base_dir <path_to_base_dir>
   

2. Start the new yugabyted process (from the new downloaded release) by executing the yugabyted start command. Use the previously configured --base_dir when restarting the instance.

   ./bin/yugabyted start --base_dir <path_to_base_dir>
   

3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 for all nodes.

4. Finish the upgrade by running yugabyted finalize_upgrade command. This command can be run from any node.

   ./bin/yugabyted finalize_upgrade --base_dir <path_to_base_dir>
   

   Use the --upgrade_ysql_timeout flag to specify custom YSQL upgrade timeout. Default value is 60000 ms.

   ./bin/yugabyted finalize_upgrade --base_dir <path_to_base_dir> --upgrade_ysql_timeout 10000
   

Upgrade a cluster from single to multi zone

The following steps assume that you have a running YugabyteDB cluster deployed using yugabyted, and have downloaded the update:

1. Stop the first node by using yugabyted stop command:

   ./bin/yugabyted stop
   

2. Start the YugabyteDB node by using yugabyted start command by providing the necessary cloud information as follows:

   ./bin/yugabyted start --advertise_address=<host-ip> \
     --cloud_location=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1a \
     --fault_tolerance=zone
   

3. Repeat the previous step on all the nodes of the cluster, one node at a time. If you are deploying the cluster on your local computer, specify the base directory for each node using the --base-dir flag.

4. After starting all nodes, specify the data placement constraint on the cluster using the following command:

   ./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement --fault_tolerance=zone
   

   To manually specify the data placement constraint, use the following command:

   ./bin/yugabyted configure data_placement \
     --fault_tolerance=zone \
     --constraint_value=aws.us-east-1.us-east-1a,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1b,aws.us-east-1.us-east-1c \
     --rf=3