Use advanced disaster recovery (DR)

This page describes how to use advanced disaster recovery (DR). Advanced DR provides two main capabilities:

  • Replica failover lets you fail over your primary instance to the DR replica immediately in the event of a regional failure.
  • Switchover lets you reverse the roles of the primary instance and a DR replica with zero data loss. You can use switchover to restore a deployment to its original deployment state after replica failover, or you can use switchover to test DR.

Advanced DR is supported only on Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition instances.

Before you begin

If you plan to use the Google Cloud SDK, then you must use version 502.0.0 or later. To check the version of the Google Cloud SDK, run gcloud --version. To update the Google Cloud SDK, run gcloud components update.

To install the Google Cloud SDK, see Install the gcloud CLI.

Primary instance requirements

The primary instance must be a Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition instance and have a designated DR replica.

You must enable point-in-time recovery (PITR) on the primary instance. To enable PITR, see Use point-in-time recovery (PITR).

If you're creating your Cloud SQL instance with a DNS write endpoint (Preview), then your primary instance must have the same SSL configuration as the designated DR replica before you invoke the switchover or replica failover operation. For example, if you configure your DR replica to enforce SSL encryption, but the primary instance allows unencrypted connections, then clients won't be able to connect to the new primary instance after the switchover or failover operation completes.

DR replica requirements

The designated DR read replica must meet the following requirements:

  • Must be the same database version as the primary instance, running PostgreSQL 12, 13, 14, 15, or 16

  • Must be in a separate region from the primary instance

  • Must be a direct read replica; can't be a cascading replica

  • If configured with a flag that requires the replica to have a greater or equal value than the primary instance, then the flag must be configured with a value equal to the primary instance

  • Can't have the cloudsql.logical_decoding flag configured; can't have any logical slots or logical replication configured

  • Must store the transaction logs used for PITR in Cloud Storage

  • Can't be an external replica

DR replica recommendations

This section provides recommendations for your DR replica. The following recommendations can help you avoid performance issues in your deployment:

  • Use the same disk size as the primary instance or enable auto-growth.
  • Use a consistent HA configuration. If you enable HA on the primary instance, then also enable HA on the DR replica.
  • Use a consistent data cache configuration. If you enable data cache on the primary instance, then also enable data cache on the DR replica.
  • Configure any appropriate database flags for your DR replica before and after any switchover or replica failover operations.

Create a replica to satisfy DR replica requirements

If the primary instance doesn't already have a cross-region read replica that satisfies the DR replica requirements, then create one.

Console

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find the primary instance.
  3. In the Actions column, click the More Actions menu.
  4. Select Create read replica.
  5. In the Instance ID field, enter a name for the DR replica.
  6. In the Database version field, the same major version of the primary instance is selected for you.
  7. In the Choose a region and zonal availability section of the page, do the following:
    • Select a _different_ region than the region of your primary instance.
    • Optional. Select Multiple zones for the DR replica.
    • Optional. Select the Primary and Secondary zones for the DR replica.
  8. In the Customize your instance section of the page, you can update the settings for your DR replica. For more details about each setting, see the About instance settings page.
  9. For Machine shapes, select the same machine type as your primary instance.
  10. For Flags, configure any flags that are required for your database.
  11. Click Create replica.

Cloud SQL creates a backup of the primary instance and creates the replica. You are returned to the instance page for the primary.

gcloud

To create a replica that meets the requirements of a DR replica, run the following command:

gcloud sql instances create REPLICA_NAME \
   --master-instance-name=PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME \
   --region=REPLICA_REGION_NAME \
   --database-version=DATABASE_VERSION \
   --tier=MACHINE_TYPE \
   --availability-type=AVAILABILITY_TYPE
   --edition="ENTERPRISE_PLUS"

Replace the following variables:

  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.
  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • REPLICA_REGION_NAME: specify a region that is different than the region of the primary instance.
  • DATABASE_VERSION: specify the version string that matches the database major and minor version of the primary instance, for example POSTGRES_16.

    The database major and minor versions must be the same for both the primary and DR replica.

  • MACHINE_TYPE: specify the same machine type as the primary instance. We recommend that the machine type matches the machine type of the primary instance.
  • AVAILABILITY_TYPE: if the primary instance is configured for high availability, then we recommend that you specify REGIONAL to enable high availability.
  • EDITION: specify ENTERPRISE_PLUS.

REST v1

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

  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and DR replica.
  • DATABASE_VERSION: version string that matches the database version of the primary instance, for example POSTGRES_16. The database version must be the same for both the primary and DR replica.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica instance that you're creating.
  • REPLICA_REGION: the region of DR replica instance. The replica region must be different from the region of the primary instance.
  • MACHINE_TYPE: specify the same machine type as the primary instance. We recommend that you select the same machine type as the primary instance.
  • AVAILABILITY_TYPE: if the primary instance is configured for high availability, then we recommend that you specify REGIONAL to enable high availability.

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances

Request JSON body: 

{
  "masterInstanceName": "PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME",
  "project": "PROJECT_ID",
  "databaseVersion": "DATABASE_VERSION",
  "name": "REPLICA_NAME",
  "region": "REPLICA_REGION",
  "settings":
  {
    "tier": "MACHINE_TYPE",
    "availabilityType": "AVAILABILITY_TYPE",
    "settingsVersion": 0,
    "replicationType": "ASYNCHRONOUS",
  }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

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

  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and DR replica.
  • DATABASE_VERSION: version string that matches the database version of the primary instance, for example POSTGRES_16. The database version must be the same for both the primary and DR replica.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica instance that you're creating.
  • REPLICA_REGION: the region of DR replica instance. The replica region must be different from the region of the primary instance.
  • MACHINE_TYPE: specify the same machine type as the primary instance. We recommend that the disk size matches the disk size of the primary instance.
  • AVAILABILITY_TYPE: if the primary instance is configured for high availability, then we recommend that you specify REGIONAL to enable high availability.

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1beta4/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances

Request JSON body: 

{
  "masterInstanceName": "PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME",
  "project": "PROJECT_ID",
  "databaseVersion": "DATABASE_VERSION",
  "name": "REPLICA_NAME",
  "region": "REPLICA_REGION",
  "settings":
  {
    "tier": "MACHINE_TYPE",
    "availabilityType": "AVAILABILITY_TYPE",
    "settingsVersion": 0,
    "replicationType": "ASYNCHRONOUS",
  }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

Designate the DR replica for the primary instance

The following procedures describe how to designate one of the cross-region replicas of a primary instance as a DR replica for switchover or replica failover.

Console

To designate a DR replica for a primary instance, do the following:

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find and select the primary instance. The Overview page for the primary instance appears.
  3. In the navigation menu, click Replicas.
  4. In the list of read replicas, find the cross-region read replica that you want to designate as the DR replica.
  5. For the replica, click the more_vert Actions button, and select Designate as DR replica.
  6. Click Confirm.

gcloud

To designate a DR replica to a primary instance, use the following command:

gcloud sql instances patch PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME \
   --failover-dr-replica-name=REPLICA_NAME

Replace the following variables:

  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.

REST v1

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

  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.

HTTP method and URL: 

PATCH https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME

Request JSON body: 

{
  "replicationCluster": {
     "failoverDrReplicaName": "REPLICA_NAME"
   }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

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

  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.

HTTP method and URL: 

PATCH https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/sql/v1beta4/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME

Request JSON body: 

{
  "replicationCluster": {
     "failoverDrReplicaName": "REPLICA_NAME"
   }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

Change the DR replica designation

If the replica meets the requirements, then you can designate a different replica as the DR replica. The old DR replica loses the DR replica designation.

Console

To change the DR replica for a primary instance, do the following:

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find and select the primary instance. The Overview page for the primary instance appears.
  3. In the navigation menu, click Replicas.
  4. In the list of read replicas, find the cross-region read replica that you want to designate as the new DR replica.
  5. For the replica, click the more_vert Actions button, and select Designate as DR replica.

gcloud

To change the DR replica, run the designate command again, and specify a different DR replica.

REST

To change the DR replica, make the designate API request again, and specify a different DR replica.

View the DR replica designation

You can check which DR replica is assigned to the primary instance by using the gcloud CLI or the Cloud SQL Admin API. You can also check whether a replica is a designated DR replica.

To find out which DR replica is designated for a primary instance, use the following procedure.

Console

To find out which read replica is the designated DR replica for a primary instance, do the following:

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find and select the primary instance. The Overview page for the primary instance appears.
  3. In the navigation menu, click Replicas.
  4. In the list of read replicas, verify that PostgreSQL disaster recovery replica appears in the Type column for the designated DR replica.

gcloud

To find out which instance is the designated DR replica of a primary instance, use the following command:

gcloud sql instances describe PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME

Replace the following variable:

  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance

The output of this command contains the field named failoverDrReplica which identifies the designated DR replica.

REST v1

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project that contains the instance.
  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.

HTTP method and URL: 

GET https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project that contains the instance.
  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.

HTTP method and URL: 

GET https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1beta4/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

To check whether a replica is a DR replica, use one of the following procedures.

Console

To check whether a replica instance is a DR replica, do the following:

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find the replica instance.
  3. Verify that PostgreSQL disaster recovery replica appears in the Type column for the designated DR replica.

gcloud

To check whether a replica instance is a DR replica, run the following command:

gcloud sql instances describe REPLICA_NAME

Replace the following variable:

  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the read replica that you want to check

If the replica is a DR replica, then the output of the command contains the field drReplica=true.

REST v1

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project that contains the instance.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the replica.

HTTP method and URL: 

GET https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/REPLICA_NAME

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project that contains the instance.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the replica.

HTTP method and URL: 

GET https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/sql/v1beta4/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/REPLICA_NAME

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

Remove the DR replica

You can clear the DR replica designation from a primary instance. However, if no DR replica is assigned to a primary instance, then you can't perform switchover or replica failover.

Console

To remove a designated DR replica from a primary instance, do the following:

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find and select the primary instance. The Overview page for the primary instance appears.
  3. In the navigation menu, click Replicas.
  4. In the list of read replicas, find the cross-region read replica that you want to remove.
  5. For the replica, click the more_vert Actions button, and select Remove as DR replica.
  6. Click Confirm.

gcloud

To remove the DR replica designation, run the following command on the primary instance:

gcloud sql instances patch PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME \
  --clear-failover-dr-replica-name

Replace the following variable:

  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance from which you want to remove the designated DR replica

REST v1

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and DR replica.
  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • Set the failoverDrReplicaName field to an empty string.

HTTP method and URL: 

PATCH https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME

Request JSON body: 

{
  "replicationCluster": {
     "failoverDrReplicaName": ""
   }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and DR replica.
  • PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME: the name of the primary instance.
  • Set the failoverDrReplicaName field to an empty string.

HTTP method and URL: 

PATCH https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/sql/v1beta4/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/PRIMARY_INSTANCE_NAME

Request JSON body: 

{
  "replicationCluster": {
     "failoverDrReplicaName": ""
   }
}

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

Perform a switchover

After you've designated a DR replica, you can perform the switchover operation. However, as a best practice, avoid performing the switchover operation under the following circumstances:

  • The primary instance is being actively used.
  • Admin operations are in progress, such as automated backup or the enablement or disablement of high availability (HA).

To avoid a timeout, consider performing switchover when the transaction volume is low.

When switchover completes, the operation takes a backup of the new primary instance (the former DR replica) as soon as the new primary instance is promoted. After this backup is complete, then point-in-time-recovery (PITR) is fully enabled on the new primary instance. This backup can take between 5 and 15 minutes to complete depending on the disk size. PITR coverage starts only after this backup has completed. For more information about the considerations of using PITR with advanced DR, see Use PITR with advanced DR.

After the switchover operation is complete, you'll notice that the direction of replication is reversed.

After your old primary instance is reconfigured as a read replica, the DNS write endpoint, which previously resolved to the old primary instance, resolves to the new primary instance.

Before you begin

Before you perform the switchover operation, do the following:

  • Designate a DR replica. You can only perform a switchover between the primary instance and the designated DR replica.
  • Verify that the primary instance and the DR replica are online.
  • Make sure that PITR is enabled on the primary instance. To enable PITR, see Use point-in-time recovery (PITR).
  • If you're using a DNS write endpoint, then verify that the SSL configuration for the primary instance and the DR replica are the same. For example, if the DR replica is configured to enforce SSL encryption, but the primary instance allows unencrypted connections, then clients won't be able to connect to the new primary instance after the switchover operation completes.
  • Take an on-demand backup of the primary instance. This backup is a precaution in case you need to recover from any unexpected failures.

Perform the switchover operation

Console

To perform the switchover operation, do the following:

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Find the designated DR replica of the primary instance.
  3. Click the DR replica instance. The Overview page for the DR replica appears.
  4. Click the Switchover button.
  5. On the Perform switchover between the primary and DR replica page, enter the name of the primary instance in the Instance ID field.
  6. Click Switchover.

gcloud

To perform the switchover operation, run the following command:

gcloud sql instances switchover REPLICA_NAME
   [--db-timeout=TIMEOUT_DURATION ]

Replace the following variables:

  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the designated DR replica that you want the primary instance to switch roles with.
  • TIMEOUT_DURATION: optional. the timeout period to allow for the completion of database operations on the instance.

    • If you don't specify this parameter, the switchover operation includes a timeout of 10 minutes.

    You can increase the value of this timeout by specifying the --db-timeout parameter. Replace TIMEOUT_DURATION with a time period duration of up to 24 hours, including an initial notation for the format. For example, for 30 seconds, specify 30s. For 24 hours, specify 24h. You can also specify fractional units of time period by using decimals up to 9 places. For example, for 30.5 minutes, specify 30.5m.

    If you don't have any pending operations, then you can decrease the value of this timeout.

REST v1

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and the DR replica.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/REPLICA_NAME/switchover

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and the DR replica.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/sql/v1beta4/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/REPLICA_NAME/switchover

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

Perform DR by invoking a replica failover

In the event of a regional failure or a disaster, you can perform DR by invoking a replica failover operation to your designated DR replica. To perform a replica failover, you promote the designated DR replica. In contrast with switchover, the promotion of the DR replica is immediate.

Since the DR replica assumes the role of the primary instance immediately, it's possible that the replica doesn't have all of the data from the old primary instance due to replication lag. For this reason, a replica failover can incur data loss.

As part of the promotion process, replica failover takes a backup of the new primary instance (the former DR replica) right after the DR replica becomes the new primary instance. After this backup is complete, point-in-time-recovery (PITR) is fully enabled on the new primary instance. This backup can take between 5 and 15 minutes to complete depending on the disk size of the new (and old) primary instance. During this backup period, PITR isn't available.

When the old primary instance comes back online, the replica failover process takes a backup. After this backup is taken, the old primary instance is recreated as a read replica of the new primary instance.

For more information about the considerations of using PITR with advanced DR, see Use PITR with advanced DR.

After you invoke the replica failover operation, the DNS write endpoint, which previously resolved to the old primary instance, resolves to the new primary instance.

Before you begin

Before you can perform a replica failover, do the following:

  • If you haven't done so already, then designate a DR replica. You can only perform a replica failover between the primary instance and the designated DR replica.
  • Make sure the DR replica is online and healthy.

Perform the replica failover operation

Console

To perform the replica failover operation, do the following:

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

    Go to Cloud SQL Instances

  2. Click the DR replica instance. The Overview page for the DR replica appears.
  3. Click the Replica Failover button.
  4. On the Perform replica failover between the primary and DR replica page, enter the name of the primary instance in the Instance ID field to confirm that you want to proceed with the operation.
  5. To start the replica failover, click Replica Failover.

gcloud

To invoke a replica failover to the DR replica, use the following command:

gcloud sql instances promote-replica \
   REPLICA_NAME --failover

Replace the following variable:

  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica

REST v1

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and DR replica.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.
  • ENABLE_REPLICA_FAILOVER: set to true to use replica failover. If you set to false, then the API uses the regular promoteReplica method without replica failover.

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/REPLICA_NAME/promoteReplica?failover=ENABLE_REPLICA_FAILOVER

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

REST v1beta4

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

  • PROJECT_ID: the ID or project number of the Google Cloud project of the primary instance and DR replica.
  • REPLICA_NAME: the name of the DR replica.
  • ENABLE_REPLICA_FAILOVER: set to true to use replica failover. If you set to false, then the API uses the regular promoteReplica method without replica failover.

HTTP method and URL: 

POST https://sqladmin.googleapis.com/sql/v1beta4/projects/PROJECT_ID/instances/REPLICA_NAME/promoteReplica?failover=ENABLE_REPLICA_FAILOVER

To send your request, expand one of these options:

You should receive a JSON response similar to the following:

Check the status of a replica failover

Replica failover occurs in two phases. The first phase is the promotion of the DR replica. The second phase is the recreation of the old primary instance as a read replica.

To check the status of replica failover, check the status of each phase.

  1. Check the status of the first phase.

    Console

    To check if the DR replica has been promoted to a standalone instance, do the following:

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

      Go to Cloud SQL Instances

    2. Find the name of the DR replica that you promoted.
    3. Verify that PostgreSQL VERSION appears in the Type column for the new primary instance.

    gcloud

    You can check the status by running the following command:

    gcloud sql instances describe DR_REPLICA_NAME

    Replace the following variable:

    • DR_REPLICA_NAME: the name of the promoted DR replica

    In the output, check that the following field appears and the replica has become a standalone Cloud SQL primary instance:

    instanceType: CLOUD_SQL_INSTANCE

  2. To verify the completion of the second phase, check the operations log on the instance for the message RECONFIGURE_OLD_PRIMARY.

    The appearance of this message depends on when the old primary instance returns online, which can take minutes or days in the event of a disaster.

    For more information on how to check the operations logs on an instance, see View instance logs.

Use PITR with advanced DR

With both switchover and replica failover, as soon as the DR replica is promoted to a primary instance, the following changes occur to support backup and PITR:

  • Backup configuration, including any automated backup scheduling, is copied from the old primary instance to the new primary instance.

  • A new backup is taken to support PITR on the new primary instance.

  • The transaction log retention policy is copied from the old primary instance to the new primary instance.

For both the backup configuration and transaction log retention policies, we recommend that you verify that the settings inherited from the old primary instance are correct for the new primary instance.

Start of PITR coverage

At the end of the switchover operation, Cloud SQL schedules automated backups and takes the first backup of the new primary instance. If you want PITR coverage to begin sooner than later, then we recommend that you verify that the first backup is successful. The newly promoted primary instance has PITR coverage only after the first automated backup has completed successfully.

For more information about how to view the backups that are available for an instance, see View a list of backups.

PITR coverage for instances during switchover and replica failover

When an instance participates in a switchover or a replica failover operation, the instance spends time as a read replica. PITR and restoring a backup are supported during the time period that the instance spends as a read replica and as a primary instance.

You can perform PITR to a time before the switchover when the instance was a primary instance. For both switchover and replica failover operations, Cloud SQL initiates a best-effort backup for the new primary instance as soon as the new primary instance is promoted. PITR is enabled on the promoted instance only after this backup is completed. This backup can take 5 to 15 minutes to complete depending on the disk size.

Split-brain during replica failover

It's possible that split-brain occurs when the primary instance continues to accept writes while a replica is promoted using replica failover. After the replica is promoted, when the old primary instance is available again, it is rebuilt as a replica of the promoted instance and a final backup is made. This backup can be used to recover any split-brain data that was not written to the promoted replica.

Deletion of backups and transaction logs on replicas

If a primary instance that was enabled with PITR and backups becomes a read replica, then the last backup and PITR retention policy from its time as a primary instance is preserved and applied during its time as a replica. Even though the new primary instance is not taking backups, the old backups and transaction logs used for PITR are deleted on the read replica according to the last configured policy.

For example, if the instance is configured to have daily automated backups and keep 7 backups with 7 days of PITR logs, then when this instance becomes a read replica, anything older than 7 days is deleted once a day.

If you need to delete backups sooner, then you can remove backups manually. For more information, see Delete a backup.

Limitations

  • Advanced DR isn't supported for Cloud SQL instances that use Private Service Connect. Advanced DR does support private services access.

  • You can't designate a Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition read replica instance as DR replica if the primary instance stores its transaction logs for point-in-time recovery (PITR) on disk. To check where an instance stores its logs for PITR, see Check the storage location of transaction logs used for PITR.

  • You can't designate an external replica as a DR replica.

  • Terraform isn't supported for switchover or replica failover operations.

  • Advanced DR isn't supported for PostgreSQL 17.

Troubleshoot

Issue Troubleshooting
Switchover operation has failed.
  • Check the volume of transactions on the database. If the transaction volume is high, then the operation might timeout. Consider retrying the operation when the transaction load is lower.
Switchover operation has failed and the primary instance is stuck in read-only mode. Perform a database restart to bring the primary instance back to write mode.
Switchover operation has completed, but the Google Cloud console doesn't show the new reversed roles for the instances. Refresh your browser to show the updated topology.
Replica failover operation has failed.
  • If failover to the DR replica has failed, then promote to a regular (non-DR) read replica instead.

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