Clone instances

This page explains cloning, and describes how to clone an instance.

Overview

Cloning a Cloud SQL instance creates a new instance that is a copy of the source instance. The new instance is completely independent from the source instance.

Frequently asked questions

Question Answer
Does cloning impact performance? No. Cloning has no performance impact on the source instance.
Are backups copied to the new instance? No. The new instance creates new automated backups. Manual backups are not copied over from the source instance.
Does the new instance have the same IP address or addresses? No. The new instance has a new IP address or addresses.
Does the new instance have the same configuration settings? Yes. The new instance will have the same settings such as database flags, connectivity options, machine type, and storage and memory settings.
Are replicas copied to the new instance? No. You need to create new replicas for the new instance.
Can you clone a replica? No. You can't clone a replica.
Can you make a clone from an earlier point in time? Yes. Point-in-time recovery uses cloning to restore an instance from an earlier point in time. This helps you recover your database from a destructive event.
Can you clone an instance that was once a clone? Yes. You can clone and instance that was cloned from another instance.
Are database users copied to the new instance? Yes, but database user passwords are not copied, and need to be re-created.

Cloning an instance

Console

  1. In the Google Cloud console, go to the Cloud SQL Instances page.

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find the row of the instance to clone. At the right end of the row, click the More Actions menu.
  3. Click Create clone.
  4. On the Create a clone page, update the instance ID if needed, and click Create clone, leaving Clone current state of instance selected.

    You are returned to the instance listing page while the clone initializes.

gcloud

Clone the instance:

gcloud sql instances clone SOURCE_INSTANCE_NAME TARGET_INSTANCE_NAME

Terraform

To clone the instance, use a Terraform resource

sql_mysql_instance_clone/main.tf 
resource "google_sql_database_instance" "clone" {
  name             = "mysql-instance-clone-name"
  region           = "us-central1"
  database_version = "MYSQL_8_0"
  clone {
    source_instance_name = google_sql_database_instance.source.id
  }
  deletion_protection =  "true"
}

REST v1

Clone the instance.

Before using any of the request data, make the following replacements:

  • project-id: The project ID
  • source-instance-id: The source instance ID
  • target-instance-id: The target instance ID

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/project-id/instances/source-instance-id/clone

Request JSON body: 

{
  "cloneContext":
  {
    "destinationInstanceName": "target-instance-id"
  }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

Clone the instance.

Before using any of the request data, make the following replacements:

  • project-id: The project ID
  • source-instance-id: The source instance ID
  • target-instance-id: The target instance ID

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/sql/v1beta4/projects/project-id/instances/source-instance-id/clone

Request JSON body: 

{
  "cloneContext":
  {
    "destinationInstanceName": "target-instance-id"
  }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

Cloning an instance with a private IP

If your Cloud SQL instance uses a private IP, you can optionally specify an allocated IP range for the clone's new IP address. For example, google-managed-services-default.

gcloud

Clone the instance, optionally specifying the allocated IP range you want to use:

gcloud sql instances clone SOURCE_INSTANCE_NAME TARGET_INSTANCE_NAME \
--allocated-ip-range-name ALLOCATED_IP_RANGE_NAME

REST v1

Clone the instance, optionally specifying the allocated IP range you want to use:

Before using any of the request data, make the following replacements:

  • project-id: The project ID
  • source-instance-id: The source instance ID
  • target-instance-id: The target instance ID
  • allocated-ip-range-name: The name of an allocated IP range

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/project-id/instances/source-instance-id/clone

Request JSON body: 

{
  "cloneContext":
  {
    "destinationInstanceName": "target-instance-id",
    "allocatedIpRange": "allocated-ip-range-name"
  }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

Clone the instance, optionally specifying the allocated IP range you want to use:

Before using any of the request data, make the following replacements:

  • project-id: The project ID
  • source-instance-id: The source instance ID
  • target-instance-id: The target instance ID
  • allocated-ip-range-name: The name of an allocated IP range

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/sql/v1beta4/projects/project-id/instances/source-instance-id/clone

Request JSON body: 

{
  "cloneContext":
  {
    "destinationInstanceName": "target-instance-id",
    "allocatedIpRange": "allocated-ip-range-name"
  }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

If you don't specify an allocated IP range, the following behavior is applied:

  • If the source instance was created with a specified range, the cloned instance is created in the same range.
  • If the source instance was not created with a specified range, the cloned instance is created in a random range.

Troubleshoot

Issue Troubleshooting
Cloning fails with constraints/sql.restrictAuthorizedNetworks error. The cloning operation is blocked by the Authorized Networks configuration. Authorized Networks are configured for public IP addresses in the Connectivity section of the Google Cloud console, and cloning is not permitted due to security considerations.

Remove all Authorized Networks entries from the Cloud SQL instance if you can. Otherwise, create a replica without any Authorized Networks entries.