# Upgrading an Upstash regional database to global
## The constraint
There is no in-place upgrade. A regional database cannot become a
global one. You create a new global database and move the data.
## The move
1. Create the global database with the right primary region (where
your writes happen) and the read regions you need.
2. Export from the regional database. RDB export or key-by-key
DUMP/RESTORE both work; pick by data size.
3. Import into the global database.
4. Verify: key counts, spot-checked values, TTLs.
5. Cut over writes first, then reads. Keep the regional database
around until the global one has served clean traffic for a full
TTL cycle.
## What changes after the move
- Reads get faster worldwide; writes now travel to the primary
region, so measure write latency from your app region.
- Reads become eventually consistent across regions. If any flow
assumed read-your-writes, add the primary-region read or
client-side hold for just-written values.
- Billing changes: replicated writes count as commands, and fixed
plans add per-read-region charges.
## Verify
Same checks as any migration: key count parity, value spot checks,
TTL preservation, and latency measurements from every region you
serve before you delete the regional database.