# Amazon RDS for Oracle Now Supports the July 2026 Release Update!

Hey, it's me, Shiichan! Today's pick from AWS What's New is one for anyone running Oracle on RDS.

## What was announced?

AWS What's New announced that Amazon RDS for Oracle now supports Oracle's July 2026 Release Update (RU). It covers these Oracle Database versions:

- 19c
- 21c
- 26ai

The RU includes security fixes, so AWS recommends upgrading to it.

## The story so far

This release also comes with a naming change. RUs for Oracle Database 19c now follow a new format, `<version>.ru-<YYYY-MM>.mrp-<YYYY-MM>.r<N>`. This July 2026 RU, for example, is named `19.0.0.0.ru-2026-07.mrp-2026-07.r1`. Oracle Database 21c, on the other hand, keeps its existing naming format.

## What changes

For 19c and 26ai, whenever Oracle ships a monthly Critical Security Patch Update (CSPU), Amazon RDS will bundle it with other recommended fixes and make it available as an MRP version — so you get a single version each month that already rolls in the latest security patch.

## Dive Deep

You can apply this RU a few different ways:

- Manually, from the Amazon RDS Management Console
- Via the AWS SDK or CLI
- Automatically, by enabling Automatic Minor Version Upgrade during your maintenance window

You can also use an AWS Organizations upgrade rollout policy to stage the rollout — apply it to non-production environments first, validate it, and then automatically apply the same update to production.

## Wrap-up

- Amazon RDS for Oracle now supports the July 2026 Release Update for Database versions 19c, 21c, and 26ai.
- The RU naming format for 19c has changed (21c keeps its old format).
- For 19c and 26ai, monthly CSPUs now arrive bundled as MRP versions.
- You can apply it via the console, SDK/CLI, or Automatic Minor Version Upgrade.
- An AWS Organizations upgrade rollout policy lets you stage the rollout from non-production to production.
- Worth checking if you're a DBA or infra owner planning maintenance for Amazon RDS for Oracle.