Synchronize data from MySQL to ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ - Data Transmission Service

Data Transmission Service (DTS) supports synchronizing data from a MySQL database, such as a self-managed MySQL database or an RDS for MySQL instance, to an ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance. This topic describes how to synchronize data from an RDS for MySQL instance to an ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance.

Prerequisites

You have created a destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance that is not a Serverless instance. For more information, see Manage instances or Manage instances.
Note
For more information about the supported versions of the source and destination databases, see Synchronization solutions.
You have created a topic in the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance to receive the synchronized data. For more information, see Manage topics or Manage topics.
Important
For 4.x versions, the topic's Message Type must be Partitionally Ordered Message.
For 5.x versions, the topic's Message Type must be Ordered Message.

Precautions

Type	Description
Source database limits	The table to be synchronized must have a primary key or a UNIQUE constraint to prevent data duplication in the target database. The tables to be synchronized must have a primary key or a UNIQUE constraint, and the fields must be unique. Otherwise, duplicate data may exist in the destination database. If you synchronize data at the table level and need to edit the objects, such as mapping table or column names, a single data synchronization task supports a maximum of 1,000 tables. If you exceed this limit, an error is reported when you submit the task. In this case, split the tables into multiple tasks or configure a task to synchronize the entire database. Binary logs: Binary logging is enabled for ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instances by default. You must make sure that the `binlog_row_image` parameter is set to `full`. Otherwise, a precheck error is reported and the data synchronization task cannot start. For more information about how to set parameters, see Set instance parameters. Important If the source instance is a self-managed MySQL database, you must enable binary logging and set the `binlog_format` parameter to `row` and the `binlog_row_image` parameter to `full`. If the source self-managed MySQL database is in a primary/primary architecture where the two databases are the primary and secondary of each other, you must enable the `log_slave_updates` parameter. This ensures that DTS can obtain all binary logs. For more information, see Create a database account for a self-managed MySQL database and configure binary logging. The local binary logs of an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance must be retained for at least 3 days. We recommend that you retain them for 7 days. The local binary logs of a self-managed MySQL database must be retained for at least 7 days. Otherwise, the DTS task may fail because DTS cannot obtain the binary logs. In extreme cases, data may be inconsistent or lost. Issues that are caused by a binary log retention period shorter than the required period are not covered by the DTS Service-level agreement (SLA). Note For more information about how to set the Retention Period for local binary logs of an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance, see Automatically delete local logs. During full data synchronization, do not perform DDL operations to change the database or table schemas. Otherwise, the data synchronization task fails. Note During full data synchronization, DTS queries the source database. This creates metadata locks, which may block DDL operations on the source database. During the runtime of the DTS instance, data changes from operations that are not recorded in binary logs are not synchronized to the destination database. Examples of such operations include data recovery using physical backups and cascade operations. Note If this occurs, you can remove the database or table from the synchronization objects and then add it back. This is allowed if your business permits. For more information, see Modify synchronization objects. If the source database is MySQL 8.0.23 or later and the data to be synchronized contains invisible columns, data may be lost because DTS cannot obtain the data of these columns. Note You can run the `ALTER TABLE <table_name> ALTER COLUMN <column_name> SET VISIBLE;` command to make the invisible columns visible. For more information, see Invisible Columns. Tables without a primary key automatically generate an invisible primary key. You must also make this invisible primary key visible. For more information, see Generated Invisible Primary Keys.
Other limits	A Serverless ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance cannot be used as the destination instance. You can synchronize data only to specific topics in the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance. For RocketMQ V4.x, the Message Type of the destination topic must be Partitionally Ordered Message. If the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance is in a different region from the Instance Region of the source database, DTS accesses the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance using its public endpoint, which incurs data transfer costs. You must ensure that public access is enabled for the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance. Note You can view the status of the Internet access permissions on the Basic Information tab of the Instance Details page in the target ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ console. For more information about the data transfer costs for the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance, see Public bandwidth pricing. RocketMQ V5.x: The Message Type of the destination topic must be Ordered Message. The destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance supports a maximum message body of 4 MB. If you want to upgrade or downgrade the class of the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance in DTS, the message is delivered in a new rule configuration different from before. During initial full data synchronization, DTS consumes some read and write resources of the source and destination databases. This may increase the database server load. Before you synchronize data, evaluate the performance of the source and destination databases. We recommend that you synchronize data during off-peak hours. For example, you can synchronize data when the CPU utilization of the source and destination databases is below 30%. During initial full data synchronization, concurrent INSERT operations cause table fragmentation in the destination database. After the initial full data synchronization is complete, the table storage space in the destination database is larger than that in the source database. During data synchronization, do not use tools such as pt-online-schema-change to perform online DDL operations on the synchronization objects in the source database. Otherwise, the task fails. If data from sources other than DTS is written to the destination database during data synchronization, data inconsistency may occur between the source and destination databases. If the Always-Encrypted (EncDB) feature is enabled for the RDS for MySQL instance, full data synchronization is not supported. Note An RDS for MySQL instance for which Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) is enabled supports full and incremental data synchronization. If an instance fails, DTS helpdesk will try to recover the instance within 8 hours. During the recovery process, operations such as restarting the instance and adjusting parameters may be performed. Note When parameters are adjusted, only the parameters of the DTS instance are modified. The parameters of the database are not modified. The parameters that may be modified include but are not limited to those described in Modify instance parameters.
Special cases	If the source database is a self-managed MySQL database: If a primary/secondary failover occurs in the source database during synchronization, the sync task fails. The latency of DTS is calculated based on the difference between the current timestamp and the timestamp of the last data record synchronized to the destination database. If no DML operations are performed on the source database for a long time, the latency information may be inaccurate. If the displayed latency is too high, you can perform a DML operation on the source database to update the latency information. Note If you choose to synchronize the entire database, you can also create a heartbeat table. The heartbeat table is updated or written to every second. DTS periodically runs the CREATE DATABASE IF NOT EXISTS `test` command on the source database to advance the binary log offset. If the source database is an Amazon Aurora MySQL instance or another MySQL instance in cluster mode, make sure that the domain name or IP address configured for the task and its resolution result always point to the read/write (RW) node. Otherwise, the sync task may not run properly. If the source database is an ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance: ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instances that do not record transaction logs, such as read-only instances of ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL 5.6, cannot be used as a source database. DTS periodically runs the CREATE DATABASE IF NOT EXISTS `test` command on the source database to advance the binary log offset.

Billing

Synchronization type	Task configuration fee
Full data synchronization	Free of charge.
Incremental data synchronization	Charged. For more information, see Billing overview.

SQL operations that can be synchronized

Operation type	SQL statement
DML	INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE
DDL	CREATE TABLE, ALTER TABLE, DROP TABLE, RENAME TABLE, and TRUNCATE TABLE CREATE VIEW, ALTER VIEW, and DROP VIEW CREATE PROCEDURE, ALTER PROCEDURE, and DROP PROCEDURE CREATE FUNCTION, DROP FUNCTION, CREATE TRIGGER, and DROP TRIGGER CREATE INDEX and DROP INDEX

Permissions required for database accounts

Database	Required permissions	How to create and grant permissions
Source RDS for MySQL instance	Read permissions on the objects to be synchronized.	Create an account and Modify the permissions of an account.

Note

If you did not create the source database account and grant permissions in the RDS for MySQL console, ensure that the account has the REPLICATION CLIENT, REPLICATION SLAVE, SHOW VIEW, and SELECT permissions.

Procedure

Use one of the following methods to go to the Data Synchronization page and select the region in which the data synchronization instance resides.
DTS console
1. Log on to the DTS console.
2. In the left-side navigation pane, click Data Synchronization.
3. In the upper-left corner of the page, select the region in which the data synchronization task resides.
DMS console
Note
The actual operations may vary based on the mode and layout of the DMS console. For more information, see Simple mode and Customize the layout and style of the DMS console.
1. Log on to the DMS console.
2. In the top navigation bar, move the pointer over Data + AI and choose DTS (DTS) > Data Synchronization.
3. From the drop-down list to the right of Data Synchronization Tasks, select the region in which the data synchronization instance resides.
Click Create Task to go to the task configuration page.

Configure the source and destination databases. The following table describes the parameters.

Category	Configuration	Description
None	Task Name	The name of the DTS task. DTS automatically generates a task name. We recommend that you specify a descriptive name that makes it easy to identify the task. You do not need to specify a unique task name.
Source Database	Select Existing Connection	If you use a database instance that is registered with DTS, select the instance from the drop-down list. DTS automatically populates the following database parameters for the instance. For more information, see Manage database connections. Note In the DMS console, you can select the database instance from the Select a DMS database instance drop-down list. If you fail to register the instance with DTS, or you do not need to use the instance that is registered with DTS, you must configure the following database information.
	Database Type	Select MySQL.
	Access Method	Select Alibaba Cloud Instance.
	Instance Region	Select the region where the source RDS for MySQL instance resides.
	Replicate Data Across Alibaba Cloud Accounts	In this example, a database of the current Alibaba Cloud account is used. Select No.
	RDS Instance ID	Select the ID of the source RDS for MySQL instance.
	Database Account	Enter the database account of the source RDS for MySQL instance. For more information about the permission requirements, see Permissions required for database accounts.
	Database Password	The password that is used to access the database.
	Encryption	Specifies whether to encrypt the connection to the database. You can select Non-encrypted or SSL-encrypted based on your business requirements. If you want to set this parameter to SSL-encrypted, you must enable SSL encryption for the ApsaraDB RDS for MySQL instance before you configure the DTS task. For more information, see Use a cloud certificate to enable SSL encryption.
Destination Database	Select Existing Connection	If you use a database instance that is registered with DTS, select the instance from the drop-down list. DTS automatically populates the following database parameters for the instance. For more information, see Manage database connections. Note In the DMS console, you can select the database instance from the Select a DMS database instance drop-down list. If you fail to register the instance with DTS, or you do not need to use the instance that is registered with DTS, you must configure the following database information.
	Database Type	Select RocketMQ.
	Access Method	Select Alibaba Cloud Instance.
	Instance Region	Select the region where the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance resides.
	RocketMQ version	Select the version of the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance.
	Instance ID	Select the ID of the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance.
	Database Account	Enter the database account of the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance and the password of the account. Note This parameter is required only when RocketMQ version is set to 5.x. You can obtain it on the Intelligent Identity Recognition tab of Resource Access Management in the ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ console.
	Database Password
	Topic	From the drop-down list, select the topic that is used to receive data.
	Topic That Stores DDL Information	From the drop-down list, select the topic that is used to store DDL information. Note If this parameter is not selected, the DDL information is stored by default in the topic selected in the Topic field.

Click Test Connectivity and Proceed in the lower part of the page.
Note
- Make sure that the CIDR blocks of DTS servers can be automatically or manually added to the security settings of the source and destination databases to allow access from DTS servers. For more information, see Add DTS server IP addresses to a whitelist.
- If the source or destination database is a self-managed database and its Access Method is not set to Alibaba Cloud Instance, click Test Connectivity in the CIDR Blocks of DTS Servers dialog box.

Configure the objects to be synchronized.

In the Configure Objects step, configure the objects that you want to synchronize.

Configuration	Description
Synchronization Types	By default, Incremental Data Synchronization is selected. You can select only Full Data Synchronization. You cannot select Schema Synchronization. After the precheck is complete, DTS synchronizes the historical data of the selected objects from the source database to the destination database. The historical data is the basis for subsequent incremental synchronization. Note When the destination is an ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance, Schema Synchronization is not supported.
Processing Mode of Conflicting Tables	Precheck and Report Errors: checks whether the destination database contains tables that have the same names as tables in the source database. If the source and destination databases do not contain tables that have identical table names, the precheck is passed. Otherwise, an error is returned during the precheck, and the data synchronization task cannot be started. Note If the source and destination databases contain tables with identical names and the tables in the destination database cannot be deleted or renamed, you can use the object name mapping feature to rename the tables that are synchronized to the destination database. For more information, see Map object names. Ignore Errors and Proceed: skips the precheck for identical table names in the source and destination databases. Warning If you select Ignore Errors and Proceed, data inconsistency may occur and your business may be exposed to potential risks. If the source and destination databases have the same schema and a data record in the destination database has the same primary key value or unique key value as a data record in the source database: During full data synchronization, DTS does not synchronize the data record to the destination database. The existing data record in the destination database is retained. During incremental data synchronization, DTS synchronizes the data record to the destination database. The existing data record in the destination database is overwritten. If the source and destination databases have different schemas, data may fail to be initialized. In this case, only some columns are synchronized, or the data synchronization instance fails. Proceed with caution.
Format of the data delivered to RocketMQ.	Select the storage format for the data to be synchronized to the destination topic. For more information, see Data storage formats in message queues.
Synchronize all fields	You can choose whether to synchronize only the pre-image of fields that are updated by an UPDATE statement to the old field of the destination topic. The pre-image is the data before the UPDATE statement is executed. Note This configuration item is available only when Format of the data delivered to RocketMQ. is set to Canal JSON. Yes: Synchronizes the pre-image of the entire row that contains the fields updated by an UPDATE statement. No (default): Synchronizes only the pre-image of fields updated by UPDATE statements.
Rules of the ordered messages delivered to RocketMQ.	Select the message ordering rule for writing the synchronized data to the destination topic. For more information, see Message ordering rules for RocketMQ.
Name of DTS producer group	Set the producer group (ProducerGroup) that sends messages to the destination topic. Note The default value is dts-producer-group.
Limits of RocketMQ messaging transactions per second (TPS)	You can set the maximum messaging transactions per second (TPS) for writing synchronized data to the destination topic. For more information about messaging TPS, see Computing specifications. Important The value must be less than or equal to the maximum TPS of the ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance. For more information, see Instance type limits. When the synchronization instance is running, the actual message TPS of the ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance may fluctuate slightly around the specified value.
Whether to filter large size of records.	Specify whether to filter out message bodies larger than 4 MB from being written to the destination topic. Important If you select No, the synchronization instance will fail if the message body exceeds 4 MB.
Capitalization of Object Names in Destination Instance	The capitalization of database names, table names, and column names in the destination instance. By default, DTS default policy is selected. You can select other options to ensure that the capitalization of object names is consistent with that in the source or destination database. For more information, see Specify the capitalization of object names in the destination instance.
Source Objects	Select one or more objects from the Source Objects section and click the icon to add the objects to the Selected Objects section. Note You can select databases or tables as synchronization objects.
Selected Objects	In this example, no extra configuration is required. You can use the mapping feature to set the topic name in the destination ApsaraMQ for RocketMQ instance, set filter conditions, select the SQL operations to synchronize, and set the partition key. For more information, see Mapping information.

Click Next: Advanced Settings to configure advanced settings.

Configuration	Description
Dedicated Cluster for Task Scheduling	By default, DTS schedules the task to the shared cluster if you do not specify a dedicated cluster. If you want to improve the stability of data synchronization instances, purchase a dedicated cluster. For more information, see What is a DTS dedicated cluster.
Retry Time for Failed Connections	The retry time range for failed connections. If the source or destination database fails to be connected after the data synchronization task is started, DTS immediately retries a connection within the time range. Valid values: 10 to 1440. Unit: minutes. Default value: 720. We recommend that you set this parameter to a value greater than 30. If DTS reconnects to the source and destination databases within the specified time range, DTS resumes the data synchronization task. Otherwise, the data synchronization task fails. Note If you specify different retry time ranges for multiple data synchronization tasks that have the same source or destination database, the shortest retry time range takes precedence. When DTS retries a connection, you are charged for the DTS instance. We recommend that you specify the retry time range based on your business requirements. You can also release the DTS instance at your earliest opportunity after the source and destination instances are released.
Retry Time for Other Issues	The retry time range for other issues. For example, if the DDL or DML operations fail to be performed after the data synchronization task is started, DTS immediately retries the operations within the time range. Valid values: 1 to 1440. Unit: minutes. Default value: 10. We recommend that you set this parameter to a value greater than 10. If the failed operations are successfully performed within the specified time range, DTS resumes the data synchronization task. Otherwise, the data synchronization task fails. Important The value of the Retry Time for Other Issues parameter must be smaller than the value of the Retry Time for Failed Connections parameter.
Enable Throttling for Full Data Synchronization	During full data synchronization, DTS uses the read and write resources of the source and destination databases. This may increase the load on the database servers. You can configure the Queries per second (QPS) to the source database, RPS of Full Data Migration, and Data migration speed for full migration (MB/s) parameters for full data synchronization tasks to reduce the load on the destination database server. Note You can configure this parameter only if Full Data Synchronization is selected for the Synchronization Types parameter.
Enable Throttling for Incremental Data Synchronization	Specifies whether to enable throttling for incremental data synchronization. You can enable throttling for incremental data synchronization based on your business requirements. To configure throttling, you must configure the RPS of Incremental Data Synchronization and Data synchronization speed for incremental synchronization (MB/s) parameters. This reduces the load on the destination database server.
Whether to delete SQL operations on heartbeat tables of forward and reverse tasks	Specifies whether to write SQL operations on heartbeat tables to the source database while the DTS instance is running. Valid values: Yes: does not write SQL operations on heartbeat tables. In this case, a latency of the DTS instance may be displayed. No: writes SQL operations on heartbeat tables. In this case, features such as physical backup and cloning of the source database may be affected.
Environment Tag	You can select an environment tag to identify the instance. In this example, you do not need to select a tag.
Configure ETL	Specifies whether to enable the extract, transform, and load (ETL) feature. For more information, see What is ETL? Valid values: Yes: configures the ETL feature. You can enter data processing statements in the code editor. For more information, see Configure ETL in a data migration or data synchronization task. No: does not configure the ETL feature.
Monitoring and Alerting	Specifies whether to configure alerting for the data synchronization instance. If the task fails or the synchronization latency exceeds the specified threshold, alert contacts will receive notifications. Valid values: No: does not enable alerting. Yes: configures alerting. In this case, you must also configure the alert threshold and alert notification settings. For more information, see the "Configure monitoring and alerting when you create a DTS task" section of the Configure monitoring and alerting topic.

Save the task settings and run a precheck.
- To view the parameters to be specified when you call the relevant API operation to configure the DTS task, move the pointer over Next: Save Task Settings and Precheck and click Preview OpenAPI parameters.
- If you do not need to view or have viewed the parameters, click Next: Save Task Settings and Precheck in the lower part of the page.
Note
- Before you can start the data synchronization task, DTS performs a precheck. You can start the data synchronization task only after the task passes the precheck.
- If the data synchronization task fails the precheck, click View Details next to each failed item. After you analyze the causes based on the check results, troubleshoot the issues. Then, rerun the precheck.
- If an alert is triggered for an item during the precheck:
  If an alert item cannot be ignored, click View Details next to the failed item and troubleshoot the issue. Then, run a precheck again.
  If an alert item can be ignored, click Confirm Alert Details. In the View Details dialog box, click Ignore. In the message that appears, click OK. Then, click Precheck Again to run a precheck again. If you ignore the alert item, data inconsistency may occur, and your business may be exposed to potential risks.

Purchase the instance.

Wait until the Success Rate becomes 100%. Then, click Next: Purchase Instance.

On the buy page, configure the Billing Method and Instance Class parameters for the data synchronization task. The following table describes the parameters.

Section	Parameter	Description
New Instance Class	Billing Method	Subscription: You pay for a subscription when you create a data synchronization instance. The subscription billing method is more cost-effective than the pay-as-you-go billing method for long-term use. Pay-as-you-go: A pay-as-you-go instance is billed on an hourly basis. The pay-as-you-go billing method is suitable for short-term use. If you no longer require a pay-as-you-go data synchronization instance, you can release the instance to reduce costs.
	Resource Group Settings	The resource group to which the data synchronization instance belongs. Default value: default resource group. For more information, see What is Resource Management?
	Instance Class	DTS provides instance classes that vary in synchronization speed. You can select an instance class based on your business requirements. For more information, see Instance classes of data synchronization instances.
	Subscription Duration	If you select the subscription billing method, specify the subscription duration and the number of data synchronization instances that you want to create. The subscription duration can be one to nine months, one year, two years, three years, or five years. Note This parameter is available only if you select the Subscription billing method.

Read and select Data Transmission Service (Pay-as-you-go) Service Terms.
Click Buy and Start. In the dialog box that appears, click OK.
You can view the progress of the task in the task list.

Mapping information

In the Selected Objects list box, move the pointer over the topic name.
Click Edit next to the destination topic name.

In the dialog box that appears, configure the mapping information.