RDS AbortedClients Increase after Enabling Proxy

The increase in AbortedClients after enabling RDS Proxy is not necessarily normal expected behavior, but it can occur in certain situations. Here are some points to consider:

1. Connection Management: RDS Proxy manages a pool of database connections and reuses them to improve efficiency. This can sometimes lead to an increase in AbortedClients if connections are not being properly managed or closed.

2. Idle Connections: RDS Proxy keeps idle connections open to quickly respond to new requests. If these connections are timing out or being closed unexpectedly, it could contribute to the AbortedClients count.

3. Connection Pool Settings: The default settings for RDS Proxy might not be optimal for your specific use case. You may need to adjust settings such as the minimum and maximum connection counts or the idle client timeout.

4. Client Application Behavior: The increase could be related to how your client application is interacting with the proxy. Ensure that your application is properly closing connections when they're no longer needed.

5. Proxy Pinning: Some SQL operations can cause "pinning," where a client connection is tied to a specific database connection. This can potentially lead to more aborted connections if not managed correctly.

To address this issue:

1. Review your application code to ensure proper connection handling.
2. Monitor relevant CloudWatch metrics for RDS Proxy, such as DatabaseConnections and ClientConnections.
3. Adjust RDS Proxy settings, particularly connection pool configurations and timeouts.
4. Enable and analyze RDS Proxy logs to identify any specific issues or patterns.
5. Consider using connection pooling in your application if you're not already doing so.

While the increase in AbortedClients doesn't necessarily indicate a problem if your application is functioning normally, it's worth investigating to ensure optimal performance and resource utilization. If the issue persists or impacts your application, you may need to contact AWS support for further assistance.
Sources
RDS Proxy causing a consistent increase in DB Connections from Lambda | AWS re:Post
RDS connections issue | AWS re:Post
Persistent High Connection Counts in RDS with Proxy: Seeking Community Insights and Solutions | AWS re:Post