Documentation

EXPLAIN command

The EXPLAIN command returns the logical plan and the physical plan for the specified SQL statement.

EXPLAIN [ANALYZE] [VERBOSE] statement

EXPLAIN

Returns the logical plan and physical (execution) plan of a statement. To output more details, use EXPLAIN VERBOSE.

EXPLAIN doesn’t execute the statement. To execute the statement and view runtime metrics, use EXPLAIN ANALYZE.

Example EXPLAIN

EXPLAIN
SELECT
  room,
  avg(temp) AS temp
FROM home
GROUP BY room

View EXPLAIN example output

EXPLAIN ANALYZE

Executes a statement and returns the execution plan and runtime metrics of the statement. The report includes the logical plan and the physical plan annotated with execution counters, number of rows produced, and runtime metrics sampled during the query execution.

If the plan requires reading lots of data files, EXPLAIN and EXPLAIN ANALYZE may truncate the list of files in the report. To output more information, including intermediate plans and paths for all scanned Parquet files, use EXPLAIN ANALYZE VERBOSE.

Example EXPLAIN ANALYZE

EXPLAIN ANALYZE
SELECT
  room,
  avg(temp) AS temp
FROM home
WHERE time >= '2023-01-01' AND time <= '2023-12-31'
GROUP BY room

View EXPLAIN ANALYZE example output

EXPLAIN ANALYZE VERBOSE

Executes a statement and returns the execution plan, runtime metrics, and additional details helpful for debugging the statement.

The report includes the following:

  • the logical plan
  • the physical plan annotated with execution counters, number of rows produced, and runtime metrics sampled during the query execution
  • Information truncated in the EXPLAIN report–for example, the paths for all Parquet files retrieved for the query.
  • All intermediate physical plans that DataFusion and the Querier generate before generating the final physical plan–helpful in debugging to see when an ExecutionPlan node is added or removed, and how InfluxDB optimizes the query.

Example EXPLAIN ANALYZE VERBOSE

EXPLAIN ANALYZE VERBOSE SELECT temp FROM home
WHERE time >= now() - INTERVAL '7 days' AND room = 'Kitchen'
ORDER BY time

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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