About upgrades

A major upgrade is when you upgrade from one major version of TimescaleDB, to the next major version. For example, when you upgrade from TimescaleDB 1 to TimescaleDB 2.

A minor upgrade is when you upgrade within your current major version of TimescaleDB. For example, when you upgrade from TimescaleDB 2.5 to TimescaleDB 2.6.

If you originally installed TimescaleDB using Docker, you can upgrade from within the Docker container. For more information, and instructions, see the Upgrading with Docker section.

Upgrade automatically

Timescale Cloud avoids the manual work involved in updating your TimescaleDB version. Upgrades take place automatically during a maintenance window picked by you. Learn more about automatic version upgrades in Timescale Cloud.

Try Timescale Cloud for free

Plan your upgrade

You can upgrade your on-premise TimescaleDB installation in-place. This means that you do not need to dump and restore your data. However, it is still important that you plan for your upgrade ahead of time.

Before you upgrade:

  • Read the release notes for the TimescaleDB version you are upgrading to.
  • Check which PostgreSQL version you are currently running. You might need to upgrade to the latest PostgreSQL version before you begin your TimescaleDB upgrade.
  • Perform a backup of your database. While TimescaleDB upgrades are performed in-place, upgrading is an intrusive operation. Always make sure you have a backup on hand, and that the backup is readable in the case of disaster.

Check your version

You can check which version of TimescaleDB you are running, at the psql command prompt. Use this to check which version you are running before you begin your upgrade, and again after your upgrade is complete:

  2. \dx timescaledb
  4.     Name     | Version |   Schema   |                             Description
  6. -------------+---------+------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------
  8.  timescaledb | x.y.z   | public     | Enables scalable inserts and complex queries for time-series data
  10. (1 row)