Data retention in InfluxDB
This page documents an earlier version of InfluxDB OSS. InfluxDB 3 Core is the latest stable version.
API token hashing is enabled by default in InfluxDB OSS 2.9.0
Stronger token security: tokens are stored as hashes on disk, so a copy of the database file doesn’t expose usable tokens. Existing tokens are hashed on first startup and the original strings can’t be recovered afterward — capture any plaintext tokens you still need before you upgrade.
For more information, see Token hashing.
The InfluxDB retention enforcement service checks for and removes data with timestamps beyond the defined retention period of the bucket the data is stored in. This service is designed to automatically delete “expired” data and optimize disk usage without any user intervention.
By default, the retention enforcement service runs every 30 minutes.
You can
configure this interval with the
storage-retention-check-interval
configuration option.
Bucket retention period
A bucket retention period is the duration of time that a bucket retains data. You can specify the retention period when you create or update a bucket. Retention periods can be infinite or as short as an hour. Points in a bucket with timestamps beyond the defined retention period (relative to now) are eligible for deletion.
Shard group duration
InfluxDB stores data on disk in shards. Each shard belongs to a shard group and each shard group has a shard group duration. The shard group duration defines the duration of time that each shard in the shard group covers. Each shard contains only points with timestamps in a specific time range defined by the shard group duration.
By default, shard group durations are set automatically based on the bucket retention period, but can also be explicitly defined when creating or updating a bucket.
For more information, see InfluxDB shard group duration.
View bucket retention periods and shard group durations
Use the influx bucket list command
to view the retention period and shard group duration of buckets in your organization.
When does data actually get deleted?
The InfluxDB retention enforcement service runs at regular intervals and deletes shard groups, not individual points. The service will only delete a shard group when the entire time range covered by the shard group is beyond the bucket retention period.
Data is queryable until deleted
Even though data may be older than the specified bucket retention period, it is queryable until removed by the retention enforcement service.
To calculate the possible time data will persist before being deleted:
- minimum:
bucket-retention-period - maximum
bucket-retention-period + shard-group-duration
For example, if your bucket retention period is three days (3d) and your
shard group duration is one day (1d), the retention enforcement service
deletes all shard groups with data that is three to four days old the next
time the service runs.
4d
3d
2d
1d
0d
Deleted
3d retention period
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Support and feedback
Thank you for being part of our community! We welcome and encourage your feedback and bug reports for InfluxDB OSS v2 and this documentation. To find support, use the following resources:
Customers with an annual or support contract can contact InfluxData Support.