Service software updates in Amazon OpenSearch Service

Note

See the release notes for descriptions of the changes and additions made in each major service software release.

Amazon OpenSearch Service regularly releases system software updates that add features or otherwise improve your domains. The Notifications panel in the console is the easiest way to see if an update is available or check the status of an update. Each notification includes details about the service software update. The notification severity is Informational if the update is optional and High if it's required.

Service software updates differ from OpenSearch version upgrades. For information about upgrading to a later version of OpenSearch, see Upgrading Amazon OpenSearch Service domains.

Domain update considerations

Consider the following when deciding whether to update your domain:

• If you take no action on required updates, OpenSearch Service still updates your domain service software automatically after a certain timeframe (typically two weeks). In this situation, OpenSearch Service sends notifications when it starts the update and when the update is complete.

• If you start an update manually, OpenSearch Service doesn't send a notification when it starts the update, only when the update is complete.

• Software updates use blue/green deployments to minimizes downtime. Updates can temporarily strain a cluster's dedicated master nodes, so make sure to maintain sufficient capacity to handle the associated overhead.

Manually updating your domain lets you take advantage of new features more quickly. When you choose Update, OpenSearch Service places the request in a queue and begins the update when it has time. Updates typically complete within minutes, but can also take several hours or even days if your system is experiencing heavy load. Consider updating your domain at a low traffic time to avoid long update periods.

Patch releases

Service software versions that end in "-P" and a number, such as R20211203-P4, are patch releases. Patches are likely to include performance improvements, minor bug fixes, and security fixes or posture improvements. Patch releases do not include new features or breaking changes, and they generally do not have a direct or noticeable impact on users.

Request a service software update

To request a service software update (console)

1. Go to https://aws.amazon.com and choose Sign In to the Console.

2. Under Analytics, choose Amazon OpenSearch Service.

3. In the navigation pane, under Domains, choose the domain name to open its settings.

4. Choose Actions, Update and confirm the update.

To request a service software update (AWS CLI and AWS SDKs)

You can use the following commands to see if an update is available, check upgrade eligibility, and request an update:

• describe-domain (DescribeDomain)

• start-service-software-update (StartServiceSoftwareUpdate)

For more information, see the AWS CLI command reference and Configuration API reference for Amazon OpenSearch Service.

Tip

After requesting an update, you might have a narrow window of time in which you can cancel it. The duration of this PENDING_UPDATE state can vary greatly and depends on your AWS Region and the number of concurrent updates OpenSearch Service is performing. To cancel, use the console or cancel-service-software-update (CancelServiceSoftwareUpdate) command.

Monitoring service software update events

OpenSearch Service sends a notification when a service software update is available, required, started, completed, or failed. You can view these notifications on the Notifications panel of the OpenSearch Service console. It also sends these notifications as events to Amazon EventBridge, where you can configure rules that send an email or perform a specific action when an event is received. For an example walkthrough, see Tutorial: Sending Amazon SNS alerts for available software updates.

For the format of each service software event sent to Amazon EventBridge, see Service software update events.

When domains are ineligible for an update

Your domain is ineligible for a service software update if it's in any of the following states:

State	Description
Domain in processing	The domain is in the middle of a configuration change. Check update eligibility after the operation completes.
Red cluster status	One or more indices in the cluster is red. For troubleshooting steps, see Red cluster status.
High error rate	The OpenSearch cluster is returning a large number of 5xx errors when attempting to process requests. This problem is usually the result of too many simultaneous read or write requests. Consider reducing traffic to the cluster or scaling your domain.
Split brain	Split brain means your OpenSearch cluster has more than one master node and has split into two clusters that never will rejoin on their own. You can avoid split brain by using the recommended number of dedicated master nodes. For help recovering from split brain, contact AWS Support.
Amazon Cognito integration issue	Your domain uses authentication for OpenSearch Dashboards, and OpenSearch Service can't find one or more Amazon Cognito resources. This problem usually occurs if the Amazon Cognito user pool is missing. To correct the issue, recreate the missing resource and configure the OpenSearch Service domain to use it.
Other OpenSearch Service service issue	Issues with OpenSearch Service itself might cause your domain to display as ineligible for an update. If none of the previous conditions apply to your domain and the problem persists for more than a day, contact AWS Support.