CockroachDB Workload Export Tool

A command-line utility for exporting workload data from a CockroachDB cluster into a portable zip file for analysis.

Purpose

This tool simplifies the process of exporting workload data for analysis, including:

1. Statement and transaction statistics
2. Contention events
3. Cluster metadata, including node topology and configuration
4. Table schemas
5. Zone configurations
6. System settings

Prerequisites

• CockroachDB cluster (v21.1 or later recommended)
• Network access to the CockroachDB cluster
• User with appropriate read permissions on system tables

Installation

From Binary Releases

Download the appropriate binary for your platform from the releases page.

From Source

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/cockroachlabs/workload-exporter.git
cd workload-exporter

# Build the binary
go build -o workload-exporter

Usage

Export Command

Export workload data from a CockroachDB cluster to a zip file:

workload-exporter export \
  -c "postgresql://user:password@host:26257/database?sslmode=verify-full" \
  [options]

Export Options:

• --connection-url, -c: Connection string for CockroachDB (required)
• --output-file, -o: Output zip file name (default: "workload-export.zip")
• --start, -s: Start time in RFC3339 format (default: current time - 6 hours)
• --end, -e: End time in RFC3339 format (default: current time + 1 hour)
• --debug: Enable debug logging output

Examples

Basic Export

Export workload data:

# Export
workload-exporter export -c "postgresql://user:password@source-host:26257/?sslmode=verify-full"

Specific time period

Export for a specific time period:

# Export a specific time window (times must be in RFC3339 format)
workload-exporter export \
  -c "postgresql://user:password@host:26257/?sslmode=verify-full" \
  -s "2025-04-18T13:25:00Z" \
  -e "2025-04-18T20:25:00Z"

Custom output file

Export using a custom file:

workload-exporter export \
  -c "postgresql://user:password@host:26257/?sslmode=verify-full" \
  -o "my-export.zip"

Enable debug logging

Export with verbose debug output:

workload-exporter export \
  -c "postgresql://user:password@host:26257/?sslmode=verify-full" \
  --debug

File Format

The export zip file contains:

Metadata

• metadata.json: Export metadata including:
  • Cluster version, ID, name, and organization
  • SQL statistics aggregation and flush intervals
  • Export configuration (connection string with password redacted, time range, output file)
  • Timestamp of export

Statistics Data (CSV format with headers)

• crdb_internal.statement_statistics.csv: Statement execution statistics
• crdb_internal.transaction_statistics.csv: Transaction execution statistics
• crdb_internal.transaction_contention_events.csv: Lock contention events
• crdb_internal.gossip_nodes.csv: Cluster node information

Note: Statistics tables are filtered by the specified time range using their timestamp columns.

Database Schemas

• [database_name].schema.txt: CREATE statements for all tables in each user database
  • One file per database (excludes system databases: system, crdb_internal, postgres)

Configuration

• zone_configurations.txt: All zone configuration SQL statements from the cluster

Building from Source

Requirements:

• Go 1.18 or later

# Get dependencies
go mod tidy

# Build
go build -o workload-exporter

Using as a Go Library

You can import and use workload-exporter in your Go projects as a library.

Installation

go get github.com/cockroachlabs/workload-exporter@latest

Or specify a version:

go get github.com/cockroachlabs/[email protected]

Example Usage

package main

import (
    "log"
    "time"

    "github.com/cockroachlabs/workload-exporter/pkg/export"
)

func main() {
    // Create exporter configuration
    config := export.Config{
        ConnectionString: "postgresql://user:password@host:26257/?sslmode=verify-full",
        OutputFile:       "my-export.zip",
        TimeRange: export.TimeRange{
            Start: time.Now().Add(-6 * time.Hour),
            End:   time.Now(),
        },
    }

    // Initialize exporter
    exporter, err := export.NewExporter(config)
    if err != nil {
        log.Fatalf("Failed to create exporter: %v", err)
    }
    defer exporter.Close()

    // Perform export
    if err := exporter.Export(); err != nil {
        log.Fatalf("Export failed: %v", err)
    }

    log.Println("Export completed successfully")
}

API Documentation

The main types and functions are:

• export.Config: Configuration for the export operation

  • ConnectionString: PostgreSQL connection URL for CockroachDB
  • OutputFile: Path to output zip file
  • TimeRange: Time window for filtering statistics data

• export.TimeRange: Defines the time window

  • Start: Beginning of time range (inclusive)
  • End: End of time range (inclusive)

• export.NewExporter(config Config): Creates a new exporter instance

  • Returns (*Exporter, error)
  • Establishes database connection

• exporter.Export(): Performs the complete export operation

  • Returns error if any step fails
  • Creates zip file at the configured OutputFile path

• exporter.Close(): Closes the database connection

  • Should be called when done (typically with defer)
  • Returns error

For full API documentation, see pkg.go.dev.

Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

Ensure your connection string includes the proper SSL mode and authentication credentials:

postgresql://user:password@host:26257/database?sslmode=verify-full

Time Format Errors

Start and end times must be in RFC3339 format:

• Correct: 2025-04-18T13:25:00Z
• Correct: 2025-04-18T13:25:00-05:00
• Incorrect: 2025-04-18 13:25:00

Permission Errors

The database user must have read access to:

• crdb_internal tables
• System settings (for cluster metadata)
• All user databases (for schema export)

Empty Exports

If the time range doesn't contain any data, the CSV files will only contain headers. Adjust your --start and --end flags to capture the desired time period.

License

MIT License