How to Automate CockroachDB Operations with AI Using Cockroach University

Cockroach Labs launched three new hands-on courses on Cockroach University that teach developers and database administrators how to use AI agents to automate CockroachDB operations such as rolling restarts, encryption key rotation, and planned node maintenance. The courses leverage the CockroachDB Agent Skills repository, a collection of machine-executable operational workflows that AI agents like Claude Code can execute directly with built-in guardrails. This initiative aims to help teams build practical experience with AI-assisted database operations before applying them in production.

AI agents aren't just changing how applications interact with databases, they're changing how teams operate them. Tasks that once meant stepping through runbooks line by line can now be handled by AI agents using structured, machine-executable skills, including: rolling restarts encryption key rotation planned node maintenance That's what’s driving CockroachDB Agent Skills https://github.com/cockroachlabs/cockroachdb-skills : a public repository of operational workflows that AI agents like Claude Code can execute directly, with built-in guardrails. makes it easy to learn how to put those skills to work, with three new hands-on courses and a https://learn.cockroachlabs.com/ Cockroach University of the https://learn.cockroachlabs.com/plan/trial-subscription free trial . https://www.cockroachlabs.com/blog/cockroachdb-training-subscription/ CockroachDB Training Subscription As AI becomes part of day-to-day database operations, teams need more than new tooling; they need repeatable ways to use it confidently. These courses help developers and database administrators build practical experience with AI-assisted operational workflows, before applying them in production. How do AI agents automate CockroachDB operations? CockroachDB's Agent Skills repository https://github.com/cockroachlabs/cockroachdb-skills is a curated collection of structured, machine-executable capabilities that encode CockroachDB operational expertise. Instead of manually following runbooks, you give AI agents like Claude Code, Cursor, or any tool that supports the a skill, and it handles the operational sequence for you. https://agentskills.io/ Agent Skills specification That consistency matters just as much as speed. By standardizing how common operational tasks are performed, Agent Skills help reduce manual variation while making proven operational practices easier to adopt across teams. Skills are organized by domain: resilience and disaster recovery https://www.cockroachlabs.com/blog/disaster-recovery-cockroachdb-surviving-failures/ , security and governance, observability, performance, and more. They're part of CockroachDB's broader , which also includes the https://www.cockroachlabs.com/blog/cockroachdb-ai-agents-agent-ready-database/ Agent Ready ecosystem and the redesigned https://www.cockroachlabs.com/blog/cockroachdb-ai-agents-managed-mcp-server/ CockroachDB Cloud MCP Server , all supporting AI agents as first-class database users. https://www.cockroachlabs.com/blog/cockroachdb-ai-agents-cli-database-automation/ ccloud CLI When we launched Agent Skills, building training around them felt like a natural next step. We chose rolling restarts, encryption at rest, and planned node maintenance as the first three courses because they're practical entry points. These are routine operational tasks where agentic automation can immediately streamline day-to-day workflows. Together, the three courses teach you how to direct AI agents through common administrative tasks, while understanding the CockroachDB behaviors that keep applications available and data secure. Related The Architect's Playbook for Building AI-Ready Systems https://www.cockroachlabs.com/guides/architects-playbook-ai-ready-systems/ – AI agents need infrastructure that scales without sacrificing consistency or reliability. This guide covers practical architectures and design patterns for building AI-ready systems on distributed SQL, from vector workloads to global scalability. What do you learn in an AI-powered CockroachDB training course? Each course is a self-paced, on-demand lab where you use Claude Code to complete a real CockroachDB https://www.cockroachlabs.com/product/overview/ operational task from start to finish. No prerequisites required, just bring your curiosity and a willingness to work alongside an AI agent. Rolling restarts course In this course, you will: Use Claude Code to perform rolling restarts on a five-node CockroachDB cluster while maintaining application availability Direct Claude through the draining process and observe how CockroachDB transfers leaseholders and completes in-flight requests Tune cluster settings that control graceful shutdown behavior Encryption at rest course In this Cockroach University course, you will: Begin by observing how data is written to storage files when encryption is not enabled, and the risks that come with it Direct Claude to enable encryption at rest, verify encryption status using CockroachDB's administrative interfaces, and understand how data keys are managed internally. Learn how to execute key rotation without downtime or service disruption. Planned node maintenance course In this course you will: Work with a five-node cluster and direct Claude to take a node out of service in a controlled, graceful manner Before performing maintenance, verify cluster health and confirm the cluster can tolerate the temporary loss of a node Monitor how CockroachDB redistributes replicas to preserve consistency and fault tolerance, then bring the node back online and confirm the cluster returns to a healthy, balanced state All three courses are available now on the Cockroach University on-demand courses page https://learn.cockroachlabs.com/page/on-demand-courses . This is just the beginning: We're developing more AI-powered courses, including multi-region database conversion, , and an on-demand version of our live Vector Search at Scale training. https://www.cockroachlabs.com/docs/stable/disaster-recovery-overview point-in-time recovery How can teams try CockroachDB training for free? The new Training Subscription free trial https://learn.cockroachlabs.com/plan/trial-subscription gives your team 90 days of access to six instructor-led courses, with no commitment required. Certifications aren't included in the trial but can be purchased separately. As AI becomes part of everyday database operations, structured training helps teams develop the skills and shared practices needed to use it effectively. The full CockroachDB Training Subscription https://www.cockroachlabs.com/blog/cockroachdb-training-subscription/ provides 12 months of unlimited access to the entire training catalog: instructor-led courses offered at least twice per month across US, EMEA, and APAC time zones 65+ hands-on labs developer and administrator learning paths professional certifications purchase separately with free trial Whether you're evaluating CockroachDB, scaling a multi-region deployment https://www.cockroachlabs.com/blog/build-a-highly-available-multi-region-database/ , or onboarding new team members, the subscription is designed to remove barriers and accelerate your team's path to production. Related Architecting Persistent Memory for Multi-Agent Systems https://www.cockroachlabs.com/webinars/architecting-persistent-long-term-memory-for-multi-agent-systems/ – Production agents must remember context across sessions, and that memory layer has to be fast, consistent, and globally available. This webinar explores how to architect persistent memory for multi-agent systems backed by distributed SQL. How do you get started with Cockroach University? Head to learn.cockroachlabs.com https://learn.cockroachlabs.com/ to browse the full course catalog. The three new Agent Skills courses are free and available now, no subscription required. To explore the Training Subscription, . https://learn.cockroachlabs.com/plan/trial-subscription start with the free 90-day trial Want to explore Agent Skills on your own? The CockroachDB Agent Skills repository https://github.com/cockroachlabs/cockroachdb-skills is public on GitHub and installs in one line: npx skills add cockroachlabs/cockroachdb-skills. Cockroach University is the central hub for hands-on CockroachDB training, whether you're exploring new database features, preparing for certification, or learning how AI can automate database operations. The teams that invest in structured training deploy faster, avoid costly missteps, spend less time fighting infrastructure, and more time building what matters. Start a free trial of CockroachDB https://www.cockroachlabs.com/signup | Try the Training Subscription free Nathan Zamecnik is Director of Learning at Cockroach Labs, where he leads the strategy and development of technical training, certifications, and hands-on learning experiences for customers, partners, and employees. Previously, he built and scaled training and certification programs at Elastic and MongoDB, creating global learning initiatives and growing high-performing education teams. With a career focused on technical enablement, Nathan is passionate about helping developers and database professionals build the skills they need to successfully adopt modern distributed data platforms.