When working with YugabyteDB YSQL snapshots, it’s common to see two different UUIDs and wonder:
❓ Which snapshot did I restore?
❓ What is this restoration UUID used for?
❓ How do I see details of a restore operation?
This tip walks through a complete, end-to-end example:
1. Create data
2. Take multiple snapshots
3. Restore a snapshot
4. Correlate Snapshot UUIDs ↔ Restoration UUIDs
5. Verify the restore
🧠 Key Concept (TL;DR)
| UUID Type | What it Represents |
|---|---|
| Snapshot UUID | The snapshot artifact (point-in-time copy of data). |
| Restoration UUID | A restore operation that applies a snapshot (each restore generates a new UUID). |
👉 Each restore creates a new Restoration UUID, even if you restore the same snapshot multiple times.
🧪 Step 0: Setup Variables
export YB_HOME=/root/yugabyte-2025.2.0.0
export YB_MASTER="127.0.0.1:7100"
🧪 Step 1: Create a Test Table
CREATE TABLE north_pole_accounts (
id INT PRIMARY KEY,
name TEXT,
gift_count INT
);
Insert some festive sample data:
INSERT INTO north_pole_accounts VALUES
(1, 'Santa Claus', 1000000),
(2, 'Mrs. Claus', 500000),
(3, 'Rudolph', 250000),
(4, 'Dasher', 200000),
(5, 'Blitzen', 200000);
Verify:
SELECT * FROM north_pole_accounts ORDER BY id;
Example:
yugabyte=# SELECT * FROM north_pole_accounts ORDER BY id;
id | name | gift_count
----+-------------+------------
1 | Santa Claus | 1000000
2 | Mrs. Claus | 500000
3 | Rudolph | 250000
4 | Dasher | 200000
5 | Blitzen | 200000
(5 rows)
📸 Step 2: Take the First Snapshot
$YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
create_database_snapshot ysql.yugabyte
Example:
[root@localhost ~]# $YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
create_database_snapshot ysql.yugabyte
Started snapshot creation: 8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8
This UUID is the Snapshot UUID.
✏️ Step 3: Modify Data and Take Another Snapshot
Update the data:
UPDATE north_pole_accounts
SET gift_count = gift_count - 10000
WHERE name = 'Santa Claus';
Take a second snapshot of the database:
$YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
create_database_snapshot ysql.yugabyte
Example:
[root@localhost ~]# $YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
create_database_snapshot ysql.yugabyte
Started snapshot creation: 751cad5d-3d71-4d0f-92eb-4945d459a5fe
📋 Step 4: List All Snapshots
$YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
list_snapshots
Example:
[root@localhost ~]# $YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
list_snapshots
Snapshot UUID State Creation Time
8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8 COMPLETE 2025-12-21 23:36:02.687373
751cad5d-3d71-4d0f-92eb-4945d459a5fe COMPLETE 2025-12-21 23:40:10.805329
No snapshot restorations
🔄 Step 5: Restore a Snapshot
Restore the first snapshot (before Santa’s gift count changed):
$YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
restore_snapshot 8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8
Example:
[root@localhost ~]# $YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
restore_snapshot 8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8
Started restoring snapshot: 8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8
Restoration id: 3a837c02-01b5-4f08-a6b4-7c51103b10c8
🎯 This UUID is the Restoration UUID.
📋 Step 6: List Snapshots Again (Notice Restorations)
$YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
list_snapshots
Example:
[root@localhost ~]# $YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
list_snapshots
Snapshot UUID State Creation Time
8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8 COMPLETE 2025-12-21 23:36:02.687373
751cad5d-3d71-4d0f-92eb-4945d459a5fe COMPLETE 2025-12-21 23:40:10.805329
Restoration UUID State
3a837c02-01b5-4f08-a6b4-7c51103b10c8 RESTORED
What this tells us:
● Two Snapshot UUIDs exist:
○
8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8○
751cad5d-3d71-4d0f-92eb-4945d459a5fe
● One restore operation has occurred:
○ Restoration UUID
3a837c02-01b5-4f08-a6b4-7c51103b10c8
At this point, it is not yet obvious which snapshot was restored.
🔍 Step 7: Correlate Restoration UUID → Snapshot UUID
This is the most important command in this tip.
$YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
list_snapshot_restorations \
3a837c02-01b5-4f08-a6b4-7c51103b10c8
Example:
[root@localhost ~]# $YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
list_snapshot_restorations \
3a837c02-01b5-4f08-a6b4-7c51103b10c8
{
"restorations": [
{
"id": "3a837c02-01b5-4f08-a6b4-7c51103b10c8",
"snapshot_id": "8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8",
"state": "RESTORED"
}
]
}
✅ This explicitly shows:
● Which snapshot was restored
● The final state of the restore operation
📋 Step 8: List All Restorations (Optional)
$YB_HOME/bin/yb-admin \
--init_master_addrs "$YB_MASTER" \
list_snapshot_restorations
This is useful when:
● Multiple restores have been performed
● You are auditing operational history
● You are investigating failed restores
✅ Step 9: Verify the Restored Data
SELECT * FROM north_pole_accounts;
You should see data exactly as it existed at the time snapshot 8ecc6226-e5f2-4111-b8eb-e115b5f104a8 was taken.
Example:
yugabyte=# SELECT * FROM north_pole_accounts ORDER BY id;
id | name | gift_count
----+-------------+------------
1 | Santa Claus | 1000000
2 | Mrs. Claus | 500000
3 | Rudolph | 250000
4 | Dasher | 200000
5 | Blitzen | 200000
(5 rows)
⚠️ Important Notes & Gotchas
● YSQL snapshots are database-level only
● Table-level snapshots are not supported for YSQL
● Restoration UUIDs are informational
○ They are not reused
○ They are not passed into
restore_snapshot
● Each restore generates a new Restoration UUID
● Restoration UUIDs are essential for auditing and troubleshooting
📚 Reference
YugabyteDB yb-admin backup and snapshot commands
🎯 Summary
● Snapshot UUID = the stored point-in-time database snapshot
● Restoration UUID = a restore operation
● Use
list_snapshot_restorationsto correlate restores to snapshots● YSQL snapshots operate at the database level
● Each restore is tracked independently for observability
Have Fun!