Manage your Astra plan
In the Astra Portal, you can view and change your organization’s plan.
There are three tiers of plans for Astra organizations: Free, Standard, and Enterprise.
For complete plan details and IBM Sales contact information, see the IBM watsonx.data pricing page and the Astra DB pricing page. The Astra DB pricing page includes tables for databases using on-demand capacity or provisioned capacity (PCU groups), as well as general metering for storage, data transfer, and premium runtime.
Free plan
Organizations on the Free plan receive a fixed amount of credits each month. Once these credits are consumed, your Astra DB Serverless databases are hibernated until the next billing cycle refreshes the credit balance or you upgrade to a Standard or Enterprise plan.
The Free plan has the following limitations that can be removed by upgrading to a Standard or Enterprise plan:
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No more than five Astra DB Serverless databases.
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Inactive Astra DB Serverless databases are automatically hibernated and scheduled for deletion.
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Cannot export metrics for Astra DB Serverless databases.
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Cannot use premium features, such as private endpoints or multi-region databases.
Standard plan
The Standard plan is a paid plan that includes premium features such as private endpoints, customer-managed encryption keys, and enterprise organization management.
The Standard plan offers consumption-based pricing that scales with your usage. Depending on the offering you choose, your plan can be billed in advance or in arrears. For more information, review the details of each Standard plan offer.
Standard plan offerings are IBM watsonx.data as a Service Multicloud offerings that you purchase through IBM or the AWS Marketplace.
Upgrade to the Standard plan
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You must complete the entire upgrade process to fully activate your Astra plan and access your upgraded Astra organizations. There are steps that you must take in the IBM SaaS Console and the Astra Portal:
These requirements apply to new plan activations and renewals that were previously managed by DataStax. |
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In the Astra Portal, click Upgrade.
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In the Standard plan section, compare and purchase your preferred offering:
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Pay per use: Purchase directly from IBM.
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Prepaid subscription: Purchase directly from IBM.
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AWS Marketplace: Purchase an IBM watsonx.data PayGo offering on the AWS Marketplace.
The Pay per use and Prepaid subscription options are recommended over the AWS Marketplace option due to direct integration with the IBM SaaS Console.
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After purchasing an offering, make sure you receive the following emails:
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IBM purchase confirmation with order number.
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IBMid creation confirmation email if you didn’t use an existing IBMid.
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IBM watsonx.data subscription confirmation email.
An Astra plan is classified as an IBM watsonx.data subscription. It can take some time to process your purchase and generate the watsonx.data subscription. If you don’t receive the watsonx.data subscription confirmation email within 24 hours, contact IBM Support.
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In the watsonx.data subscription confirmation email, follow the link to the IBM SaaS Console, sign in with the IBMid that you used to purchase your plan, and then make sure your new watsonx.data subscription is listed under Assign subscriptions.
If the IBM SaaS Console is empty or missing your new watsonx.data subscription, try the following:
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Make sure you signed in with the IBMid that you used to purchase your plan.
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Make sure you received the watsonx.data subscription confirmation email.
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Contact IBM Support.
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Click Assign to finish setting up the IBM SaaS account for your Astra plan.
This account is used to manage your Astra subscription, instances (Astra organizations), and administrators.
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Enter a name and optional description for your IBM SaaS account, and then click Next.
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Deploy an initial IBM SaaS instance.
Each IBM SaaS instance generates an Astra organization. Your first IBM SaaS instance creates your first upgraded Astra organization, and it creates an Astra enterprise to manage all organizations that are associated with the same IBM SaaS account.
The following information is used to deploy the IBM SaaS instance and generate your Astra organization and enterprise:
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Instance region: The instance’s region has no effect on the regions where your Astra DB databases can be deployed.
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Instance name: Becomes the organization name.
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Tenant owner email address: Invites the initial Organization Administrator to your new Astra organization.
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IBM SaaS account owner email: Invites the initial Enterprise Administrator to your Astra enterprise.
After you deploy an initial IBM SaaS instance, you can manage your enterprise and organizations in the Astra Portal and the IBM SaaS Console at any time as needed. For example:
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Transfer existing organizations into your IBM SaaS-managed enterprise.
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Deploy additional instances to create new Astra organizations under the same enterprise.
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Manage administrators and users within your enterprise and organizations.
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When your IBM SaaS instance is ready (Running), make sure you (or the designated recipient) receive the following emails and take the required action to claim your Astra enterprise and initial organization.
If either Astra invitation isn’t accepted, then the corresponding administrator isn’t activated, and you can’t manage that entity.
If the same user receives both invitations, they must accept each invitation individually. If different users receive the invitations, make sure both users accept their invitation.
If you don’t receive the welcome and invitation emails within 48 hours, contact IBM Support.
Email Recipient Required action Welcome to your IBM SaaS instance
Instance tenant owner or IBM SaaS account owner
None.
Indicates that the instance has been provisioned.
It can take some time to provision IBM SaaS instances. You can check your instance’s status in the IBM SaaS Console.
Astra enterprise invitation
IBM SaaS account owner
Follow the link in the email to accept the invitation and activate the initial Enterprise Administrator.
The IBM SaaS account owner must sign in to the Astra Portal with the IBMid sign in option. Other sign-in methods aren’t valid for this invitation.
Initially, the enterprise has only one organization. To import existing organizations and create more organizations, see the following steps.
Astra organization invitation
Instance tenant owner
Follow the link in the email to accept the invitation and activate the initial Organization Administrator.
The tenant owner must sign in to the Astra Portal with the email address that received the invitation. You can use any sign-in method as long as the associated email address is the same.
You can now interact with this organization through the Astra Portal, including creating databases, generating tokens, and inviting users. To import existing databases and organizations, see the following steps.
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Optional: To create more Astra organizations, create more IBM SaaS instances in your IBM SaaS account.
Every time you create an instance, that instance’s tenant owner must accept their Astra organization invitation email to activate their administrator privileges in that organization. The invitation must be accepted even if every instance has the same owner.
All IBM SaaS instances created in the same IBM SaaS account are automatically associated with the same Astra enterprise.
The IBM SaaS account owner only receives the initial enterprise invitation. The IBM SaaS account owner doesn’t receive organization (IBM SaaS instance) invitations, and they cannot accept those invitation on behalf of IBM SaaS instance tenant owners.
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Optional: To add existing Astra organizations to your upgraded plan and Astra enterprise, see Add an organization to your enterprise.
Enterprise plan
The Enterprise plan is an annual contract-based plan with negotiated pricing, billing, and support options. It is an IBM watsonx.data as a Service Multicloud offering.
The Enterprise plan includes premium features such as private endpoints, customer-managed encryption keys, and enterprise organization management.
Upgrade to the Enterprise plan
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You must complete the entire upgrade process to fully activate your upgraded Astra plan and unlock premium features and regions for your Astra organizations. There are steps that you must take in the IBM SaaS Console and the Astra Portal:
These requirements apply to new plan activations and renewals that were previously managed by DataStax. |
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In the Astra Portal, click Upgrade, click Get an estimate, and then submit the information request form.
An IBM Sales representative will contact you to discuss your use case and provide a pricing estimate. If you choose to proceed with the Enterprise plan, your IBM Sales representative will help guide you through the contract and plan activation process.
You must complete all required actions to fully activate your upgraded plan, as described in the remaining steps. For assistance with plan activation, contact your IBM Sales representative or IBM Support.
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When the watsonx.data subscription associated with your Enterprise plan is available, make sure you have the following:
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An existing IBMid account or a new IBMid account confirmation email.
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An IBM watsonx.data subscription confirmation email or another confirmation that your watsonx.data subscription is ready.
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Access the IBM SaaS Console directly or through the link in your watsonx.data subscription confirmation email, and then sign in with the IBMid associated with your Enterprise plan.
If you aren’t sure which IBMid to use, contact your IBM Sales representative or IBM Support.
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Make sure your new watsonx.data subscription is listed under Assign subscriptions.
If the IBM SaaS Console is empty or missing your new watsonx.data subscription, try the following:
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Make sure you signed in with the correct IBMid.
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Make sure you received a watsonx.data subscription confirmation email or other confirmation.
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Contact IBM Support.
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Click Assign to finish setting up the IBM SaaS account for your Astra plan.
This account is used to manage your Astra subscription, instances (Astra organizations), and administrators.
-
Enter a name and optional description for your IBM SaaS account, and then click Next.
-
Deploy an initial IBM SaaS instance.
Each IBM SaaS instance generates an Astra organization. Your first IBM SaaS instance creates your first upgraded Astra organization, and it creates an Astra enterprise to manage all organizations that are associated with the same IBM SaaS account.
The following information is used to deploy the IBM SaaS instance and generate your Astra organization and enterprise:
-
Instance region: The instance’s region has no effect on the regions where your Astra DB databases can be deployed.
-
Instance name: Becomes the organization name.
-
Tenant owner email address: Invites the initial Organization Administrator to your new Astra organization.
-
IBM SaaS account owner email: Invites the initial Enterprise Administrator to your Astra enterprise.
After you deploy an initial IBM SaaS instance, you can manage your enterprise and organizations in the Astra Portal and the IBM SaaS Console at any time as needed. For example:
-
Transfer existing organizations into your IBM SaaS-managed enterprise.
-
Deploy additional instances to create new Astra organizations under the same enterprise.
-
Manage administrators and users within your enterprise and organizations.
-
-
When your IBM SaaS instance is ready (Running), make sure you (or the designated recipient) receive the following emails and take the required action to claim your Astra enterprise and initial organization.
If either Astra invitation isn’t accepted, then the corresponding administrator isn’t activated, and you can’t manage that entity.
If the same user receives both invitations, they must accept each invitation individually. If different users receive the invitations, make sure both users accept their invitation.
If you don’t receive the welcome and invitation emails within 48 hours, contact IBM Support.
Email Recipient Required action Welcome to your IBM SaaS instance
Instance tenant owner or IBM SaaS account owner
None.
Indicates that the instance has been provisioned.
It can take some time to provision IBM SaaS instances. You can check your instance’s status in the IBM SaaS Console.
Astra enterprise invitation
IBM SaaS account owner
Follow the link in the email to accept the invitation and activate the initial Enterprise Administrator.
The IBM SaaS account owner must sign in to the Astra Portal with the IBMid sign in option. Other sign-in methods aren’t valid for this invitation.
Initially, the enterprise has only one organization. To import existing organizations and create more organizations, see the following steps.
Astra organization invitation
Instance tenant owner
Follow the link in the email to accept the invitation and activate the initial Organization Administrator.
The tenant owner must sign in to the Astra Portal with the email address that received the invitation. You can use any sign-in method as long as the associated email address is the same.
You can now interact with this organization through the Astra Portal, including creating databases, generating tokens, and inviting users. To import existing databases and organizations, see the following steps.
-
Optional: To create more Astra organizations, create more IBM SaaS instances in your IBM SaaS account.
Every time you create an instance, that instance’s tenant owner must accept their Astra organization invitation email to activate their administrator privileges in that organization. The invitation must be accepted even if every instance has the same owner.
All IBM SaaS instances created in the same IBM SaaS account are automatically associated with the same Astra enterprise.
The IBM SaaS account owner only receives the initial enterprise invitation. The IBM SaaS account owner doesn’t receive organization (IBM SaaS instance) invitations, and they cannot accept those invitation on behalf of IBM SaaS instance tenant owners.
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Optional: To add existing Astra organizations to your upgraded plan and Astra enterprise, see Add an organization to your enterprise.
Renew a DataStax-managed Enterprise plan
To renew an Enterprise plan that started prior to IBM’s acquisition of DataStax, you must complete the entire IBM SaaS account and IBM SaaS instance deployment process described in Upgrade to the Enterprise plan. You can skip the first step if you have already received a renewal notice from a DataStax or IBM Sales representative.
Downgrade your plan
To downgrade to the Standard plan from an Enterprise plan, discuss this change with your IBM Sales representative near the end of your contract term.
To downgrade to the Free plan from a paid plan, contact IBM Support.
