Documentation

InfluxDB inch tool

Use the InfluxDB inch tool to simulate streaming data to InfluxDB and measure your performance (for example, the impact of cardinality on write throughput). To do this, complete the following tasks:

Install InfluxDB inch

  1. To install inch, run the following command in your terminal:

    $ go install github.com/influxdata/inch/cmd/inch
  2. Verify inch is successfully installed in your GOPATH/bin (default on Unix $HOME/go/bin).

Use InfluxDB inch

  1. Log into the InfluxDB instance you want to test (for InfluxDB Enterprise, log into the data node(s) to test).

  2. Run inch, specifying options (metrics) to test (see Options table below). For example, your syntax may look like this:

    inch -v -c 8 -b 10000 -t 2,5000,1 -p 100000 -consistency any

    This example starts generating a workload with:

    • 8 concurrent (-c) write streams
    • 10000 points per batch (-b)
    • tag cardinality (-t) of 10000 unique series (2x5000x1)
    • 10000 points (-p) per series
    • any write -consistency

    Note: By default, inch writes generated test results to a database named stress. To change the name of the inch database, include the -db string option, for example, inch -db test.

  3. To view the last 50 inch results, run the following query against the inch database:

     > select * from stress limit 50

Options

inch options listed in alphabetical order.

OptionDescriptionExample
-b intbatch size (default 5000; recommend between 5000-10000 points)-b 10000
-c intnumber of streams writing concurrently (default 1)-c 8
-consistency stringwrite consistency (default “any”); values supported by the Influxdb API include “all”, “quorum”, or “one”.-consistency any
-db stringname of the database to write to (default “stress”)-db stress
-delay durationdelay between writes (in seconds s, minutes m, or hours h)-delay 1s
-drydry run (maximum write performance perf possible on the specified database)-dry
-f inttotal unique field key-value pairs per point (default 1)-f 1
-host stringhost (default http://localhost:8086")-host http://localhost:8086
-m intthe number of measurements (default 1)-m 1
-max-errors intthe number of InfluxDB errors that can occur before terminating the inch command-max-errors 5
-p intpoints per series (default 100)-p 100
-report-host stringhost to send metrics toreport-host http://localhost:8086
-report-tags stringcomma-separated k=v (key-value?) tags to report alongside metrics-report-tags cpu=cpu1
-shard-duration stringshard duration (default 7d)-shard-duration 7d
-t [string]**comma-separated integers that represent tags.-t [100,20,4]
-target-latency durationif specified, attempt to adapt write delay to meet target.
-time durationtime span to spread writes over.-time 1h
-vverbose; prints out details as you’re running the test.-v

** -t [string] each integer represents a tag key and the number of tag values to generate for the key (default [10,10,10]). Multiply each integer to calculate the tag cardinality. For example, -t [100,20,4] has a tag cardinality of 8000 unique series.


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InfluxDB OSS 2.9.0: API tokens are hashed by default

Stronger token security in InfluxDB OSS 2.9.0 — tokens are hashed on disk by default. Existing tokens are hashed on first startup and can’t be recovered afterward. Capture any plaintext tokens you still need before you upgrade.

View InfluxDB OSS 2.9.0 release notes

Hashed tokens authenticate exactly like unhashed tokens — clients and integrations keep working.

Also new in 2.9.0:

  • Configurable backup compression
  • Restore support for backups containing hashed tokens
  • Tighter Edge Data Replication queue validation
  • Flux upgrade
  • Compaction reliability improvements

Key enhancements in Explorer 1.9

Explorer 1.9 is now available with InfluxQL support, an AI-assisted Flux to SQL converter (beta), and new live sample data simulators.

View Explorer 1.9 release notes

Explorer 1.9 includes new features and improvements that make it easier to query, visualize, and manage data.

Highlights:

  • Flux to SQL converter (beta): Convert Flux queries to SQL with an AI-assisted converter.
  • InfluxQL support: Query data with InfluxQL in the Data Explorer and dashboards, and save and load InfluxQL queries.
  • InfluxQL visualizations: Render line and bar charts from InfluxQL results with per-tag series grouping.
  • Query error history: Review a history of query errors in the query tool.
  • Live sample data simulators: Generate continuous live sample data with new bird data and signal generator simulators.

For more details, see Explorer 1.9 release notes

InfluxDB 3.10 is now available

InfluxDB 3 Core 3.10 adds an automatic catalog format upgrade, a configurable query-concurrency limit, and processing engine improvements.

Key updates in InfluxDB 3 Core 3.10:

  • Catalog format upgrade: the on-disk catalog automatically upgrades from format v2 to v3 on first 3.10 startup. Migration is one-way—back up your catalog before upgrading.
  • --max-concurrent-queries: limit concurrent queries (adjustable at runtime).
  • GET /ready endpoint for readiness probes.
  • Processing engine: cross-database queries and trigger lockdown flags.

For more information, see the InfluxDB 3 Core release notes.

InfluxDB 3.10 is now available

InfluxDB 3 Enterprise 3.10 adds automated backup and restore, row-level deletions, and user management, with an automatic catalog format upgrade and performance preview improvements.

Key updates in InfluxDB 3 Enterprise 3.10:

  • Catalog format upgrade: the on-disk catalog automatically upgrades from format v2 to v3 on first 3.10 startup. Migration is one-way—back up your catalog before upgrading.
  • Automated backup and restore (beta)
  • Row-level deletions
  • User management (authentication and RBAC) — preview
  • Performance preview improvements

Backup and restore, row-level deletions, and the performance preview require the Enterprise storage engine upgrade (opt-in beta). Beta and preview features are subject to breaking changes and aren’t recommended for production use.

For more information, see the InfluxDB 3 Enterprise release notes

Telegraf Enterprise is now generally available

Telegraf Enterprise is now generally available, along with Telegraf Controller v1.0.

Telegraf Enterprise combines Telegraf Controller, a centralized management console for Telegraf, with official support from InfluxData. Manage configurations, monitor fleet health, and operate tens of thousands of Telegraf agents from a single system.

InfluxDB Docker latest tag changing to InfluxDB 3 Core

On September 15, 2026, the latest tag for InfluxDB Docker images will point to InfluxDB 3 Core. To avoid unexpected upgrades, use specific version tags in your Docker deployments.

If using Docker to install and run InfluxDB, the latest tag will point to InfluxDB 3 Core. To avoid unexpected upgrades, use specific version tags in your Docker deployments. For example, if using Docker to run InfluxDB v2, replace the latest version tag with a specific version tag in your Docker pull command–for example:

docker pull influxdb:2