Troubleshooting HeatWave — Common Issues, Causes & Fixes

Introduction

Even though HeatWave is highly stable, DBAs occasionally encounter load failures, memory issues, or cluster instability. This article covers the most common HeatWave problems and how to fix them.

1. HeatWave Load Failures

Common Causes

1. Unsupported column types

2. Corrupted InnoDB data

3. Exceeded memory limits

4. Large JSON fields

Solutions

Run:

Then fix:

• Convert JSON → Generated columns

• Reduce precision on large DECIMAL(65,30)

• Normalize string columns

• Increase HeatWave cluster size

2. HeatWave Cluster Node Failures

Nodes may enter ERROR state.

Check reason

Fix

• Cluster auto-recovers if possible

• If not → Restart HeatWave cluster:

3. Memory Allocation Issues

Cause:
Data segments exceed node RAM.

Fixes:

• Add more worker nodes

• Drop unneeded columns from HeatWave load list

• Use sys.heatwave_advisor to optimize data types

4. Query Not Using HeatWave

Symptoms

EXPLAIN shows MySQL using InnoDB instead of HeatWave.

Check reason

Common causes

• Unsupported functions

• Joins missing primary key

• ON clause mismatch

• Complex subqueries not rewriteable

Solutions

• Rewrite query

• Add primary keys

• Apply required CAST/CONVERT functions

5. Table Out of Sync with HeatWave

Cause:
DML operations happen frequently.

Fix:
Reload:

Conclusion

Most HeatWave issues are fixable using built-in advisor tools, proper monitoring, and query adjustments. Understanding internals dramatically reduces troubleshooting time.