diff --git a/.circleci/config.yml b/.circleci/config.yml
index 106be5b..c0c7166 100644
--- a/.circleci/config.yml
+++ b/.circleci/config.yml
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@ commands:
             - run: |
                   sudo apt update
                   sudo apt install -y make bash git jq docker
+                  sudo python3 -m pip install --upgrade pip
+                  sudo pip3 install boto3
 
 jobs:
     test:
@@ -19,26 +21,30 @@ jobs:
             - run: make test
             - run: make test-destroy
 
-    redhat:
+    dockerhub:
         parameters:
             package:
                 type: string
-        machine: true
-        steps:
-            - setup_environment
-            - checkout
-            - run: docker login -u unused --password ${REDHAT_REGISTRY_KEY_NODE} scan.connect.redhat.com
-            - run: make build-<<parameters.package>> redhat-verify-<<parameters.package>> VARIANT=redhat
-
-    redhat-ciab:
-        machine: true
+        machine:
+            # https://circleci.com/docs/2.0/images/linux-vm/16.04-to-20.04-migration/
+            image: ubuntu-2004:202201-02
         steps:
             - setup_environment
             - checkout
-            - run: docker login -u unused --password ${REDHAT_REGISTRY_KEY_CIAB} scan.connect.redhat.com
-            - run: make build-ciab redhat-verify-ciab VARIANT=redhat
+            - run: docker login -u ${DOCKER_HUB_USER} --password ${DOCKER_HUB_KEY}
+            - run: make build-<<parameters.package>> publish-<<parameters.package>>
+            - when:
+                condition:
+                    matches:
+                        pattern: "^node(-.+)?$"
+                        value: <<parameters.package>>
+                steps:
+                    - run: docker logout
+                    - run: echo "${GCLOUD_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_SINGLESTORE_PUBLIC}" | base64 -d >./dockerconfig.json
+                    - run: cat ./dockerconfig.json | docker login -u _json_key --password-stdin https://gcr.io
+                    - run: make publish-gcr-<<parameters.package>>
 
-    dockerhub:
+    gcr-public:
         parameters:
             package:
                 type: string
@@ -48,7 +54,8 @@ jobs:
         steps:
             - setup_environment
             - checkout
-            - run: docker login -u ${DOCKER_HUB_USER} --password ${DOCKER_HUB_KEY}
+            - run: echo "${GCLOUD_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_SINGLESTORE_PUBLIC}" | base64 -d >./dockerconfig.json
+            - run: cat ./dockerconfig.json | docker login -u _json_key --password-stdin https://gcr.io
             - run: make build-<<parameters.package>> publish-<<parameters.package>>
 
     ubi-gcr-internal:
@@ -58,7 +65,7 @@ jobs:
             - checkout
             # We can't use Bash variables in CircleCI so we just duplicate the ""./dockerconfig.json"
             # string here.
-            - run: echo "${GCLOUD_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_INTERNAL}" | base64 -d >./dockerconfig.json
+            - run: echo "${GCLOUD_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_SINGLESTORE_PUBLIC}" | base64 -d >./dockerconfig.json
             - run: cat ./dockerconfig.json | docker login -u _json_key --password-stdin https://gcr.io
             - run: make build-node redhat-verify-ubi-gcr-internal-node VARIANT=redhat
 
@@ -83,6 +90,9 @@ workflows:
                                   "node-7-3",
                                   "node-7-5",
                                   "node-7-6",
+                                  "node-7-8",
+                                  "node-8-0",
+                                  "node-8-1",
                                   "dynamic-node",
                                   "ciab",
                                   "tools",
@@ -90,29 +100,6 @@ workflows:
                   requires:
                       - test
 
-            - publish-redhat:
-                  name: publish-redhat-<< matrix.package >>
-                  type: approval
-                  matrix:
-                      parameters:
-                          # Must match line 93.
-                          package:
-                              [
-                                  "node",
-                                  "node-7-0",
-                                  "node-7-1",
-                                  "node-7-3",
-                                  "node-7-5",
-                                  "node-7-6"
-                              ]
-                  requires:
-                      - test
-
-            - publish-redhat-ciab:
-                  name: publish-redhat-ciab
-                  type: approval
-                  requires:
-                      - test
 
             - dockerhub:
                   name: dockerhub-<< matrix.package >>
@@ -128,6 +115,9 @@ workflows:
                                   "node-7-3",
                                   "node-7-5",
                                   "node-7-6",
+                                  "node-7-8",
+                                  "node-8-0",
+                                  "node-8-1",
                                   "dynamic-node",
                                   "ciab",
                                   "tools",
@@ -135,27 +125,6 @@ workflows:
                   requires:
                       - publish-dockerhub-<< matrix.package >>
 
-            - redhat:
-                  name: redhat-<< matrix.package >>
-                  matrix:
-                      parameters:
-                          package:
-                              [
-                                  "node",
-                                  "node-7-0",
-                                  "node-7-1",
-                                  "node-7-3",
-                                  "node-7-5",
-                                  "node-7-6"
-                              ]
-                  requires:
-                      - publish-redhat-<< matrix.package >>
-
-            - redhat-ciab:
-                  name: redhat-ciab
-                  requires:
-                      - publish-redhat-ciab
-
             - publish-ubi-gcr-internal:
                   name: publish-ubi-gcr-internal
                   type: approval
@@ -165,4 +134,28 @@ workflows:
             - ubi-gcr-internal:
                   name: ubi-gcr-internal
                   requires:
-                      - publish-ubi-gcr-internal
\ No newline at end of file
+                      - publish-ubi-gcr-internal
+
+            - publish-gcr-public:
+                  name: publish-gcr-public-<< matrix.package >>
+                  type: approval
+                  matrix:
+                      parameters:
+                          # Must match line 71.
+                          package:
+                              [
+                                  "node-cloud",
+                              ]
+                  requires:
+                      - test
+
+            - gcr-public:
+                name: gcr-public-<< matrix.package >>
+                matrix:
+                    parameters:
+                        package:
+                            [
+                                "node-cloud",
+                            ]
+                requires:
+                    - publish-gcr-public-<< matrix.package >>
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c7904c6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+.idea
+.vscode
+lib
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/Dockerfile-base b/Dockerfile-base
index 7bb200b..ec84350 100644
--- a/Dockerfile-base
+++ b/Dockerfile-base
@@ -16,10 +16,12 @@ RUN yum install yum-utils -y
 RUN yum-config-manager --save --setopt=skip_missing_names_on_install=0
 
 # updates and basic utilities
-ARG RELEASE_CHANNEL=production
+ARG RELEASE_CHANNEL
+RUN rpm --import https://repo.almalinux.org/almalinux/RPM-GPG-KEY-AlmaLinux
+
 # currently yum update-minimal fails on curl, so we need to update curl before
 RUN yum update curl -y && yum -y update-minimal --setopt=tsflags=nodocs \
-      --security --sec-severity=Important --sec-severity=Critical \
+      --security --sec-severity=Important --sec-severity=Critical --nobest \
  && yum install -y yum-utils wget procps
 
 RUN yum-config-manager --add-repo https://release.memsql.com/${RELEASE_CHANNEL}/rpm/x86_64/repodata/memsql.repo \
@@ -28,17 +30,8 @@ RUN yum-config-manager --add-repo https://release.memsql.com/${RELEASE_CHANNEL}/
 RUN dnf --enablerepo=* clean all && dnf update -y; exit 0
 
 # address vulnarabilities found by `grype --only-fixed` command
-RUN yum remove vim-minimal platform-python-pip.noarch -y && yum update expat libxml2 libgcrypt -y
-
-# jq 1.6
-ENV JQ_VERSION='1.6'
-RUN wget --no-check-certificate https://raw.githubusercontent.com/stedolan/jq/master/sig/jq-release.key -O /tmp/jq-release.key && \
-    wget --no-check-certificate https://raw.githubusercontent.com/stedolan/jq/master/sig/v${JQ_VERSION}/jq-linux64.asc -O /tmp/jq-linux64.asc && \
-    wget --no-check-certificate https://github.com/stedolan/jq/releases/download/jq-${JQ_VERSION}/jq-linux64 -O /tmp/jq-linux64 && \
-    gpg --import /tmp/jq-release.key && \
-    gpg --verify /tmp/jq-linux64.asc /tmp/jq-linux64 && \
-    cp /tmp/jq-linux64 /usr/bin/jq && \
-    chmod +x /usr/bin/jq && \
-    rm -f /tmp/jq-release.key && \
-    rm -f /tmp/jq-linux64.asc && \
-    rm -f /tmp/jq-linux64
+RUN yum update expat libxml2 gnupg2 libgcrypt openssl-libs pcre2 curl libcurl-minimal systemd platform-python python3-libs gnutls libksba sqlite-libs zlib libcom_err krb5-libs dbus libtasn1 libarchive unbound-libs tar platform-python-setuptools python3-setuptools-wheel sqlite-libs systemd systemd-libs systemd-pam oniguruma gnutls python3-rpm python3-unbound rpm rpm-build-libs rpm-libs rpm-plugin-systemd-inhibit unbound-libs -y
+RUN yum remove vim-minimal platform-python-pip.noarch -y
+
+RUN yum install -y jq-1.6
+RUN yum install -y which
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/Dockerfile-ciab b/Dockerfile-ciab
index 25a5942..128daaa 100644
--- a/Dockerfile-ciab
+++ b/Dockerfile-ciab
@@ -1,15 +1,20 @@
 # vim: ft=dockerfile
-ARG BASE_IMAGE
+# CHANGED FROM SOURCE: set the base image to fit the LOCALLY BUILT image
+# (which was built using `make`, based on my changes to the Makefile)
+ARG BASE_IMAGE="memsql/cluster-in-a-box"
 FROM ${BASE_IMAGE}
 
 # install SingleStore DB packages and additional dependencies
-ARG CLIENT_VERSION
-ARG SERVER_VERSION
-ARG STUDIO_VERSION
-ARG TOOLBOX_VERSION
+# CHANGED FROM SOURCE: switch to root, add specific versions according to Makefile
+USER root
+ARG CLIENT_VERSION="1.0.7"
+ARG SERVER_PACKAGE="singlestoredb-server"
+ARG SERVER_VERSION="8.1.31-d5850b922e"
+ARG STUDIO_VERSION="4.0.16"
+ARG TOOLBOX_VERSION="1.17.6"
 RUN yum install -y \
     singlestore-client-${CLIENT_VERSION} \
-    singlestoredb-server${SERVER_VERSION} \
+    ${SERVER_PACKAGE}${SERVER_VERSION} \
     singlestoredb-studio-${STUDIO_VERSION} \
     singlestoredb-toolbox-${TOOLBOX_VERSION} \
  && yum clean all
@@ -18,7 +23,11 @@ RUN mkdir -p /home/memsql && chown memsql:memsql /home/memsql
 ADD ciab-assets/studio.hcl /var/lib/singlestoredb-studio/studio.hcl
 RUN chown memsql:memsql /var/lib/singlestoredb-studio/studio.hcl
 
-VOLUME ["/var/lib/memsql"]
+# CHANGED FROM SOURCE: switch back from root
+USER memsql
+
+# CHANGED FROM SOURCE: commented the VOLUME line to enable persisting data in our automation-db-upload job
+#VOLUME ["/var/lib/memsql"]
 
 LABEL name="SingleStore DB Cluster in a Box"
 LABEL vendor="SingleStore"
diff --git a/Dockerfile-dynamic b/Dockerfile-dynamic
index e519b47..933f941 100644
--- a/Dockerfile-dynamic
+++ b/Dockerfile-dynamic
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ FROM ${BASE_IMAGE}
 ARG CLIENT_VERSION
 RUN yum install -y \
     singlestore-client-${CLIENT_VERSION} \
+    java-11-openjdk \
  && yum clean all
 
 VOLUME ["/var/lib/memsql"]
diff --git a/Dockerfile-node b/Dockerfile-node
index 5b0dea7..2e449c6 100644
--- a/Dockerfile-node
+++ b/Dockerfile-node
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ FROM ${BASE_IMAGE}
 ARG CLIENT_VERSION
 ARG SERVER_VERSION
 ARG LOCAL_SERVER_RPM
+ARG JRE_PACKAGES
 ADD assets /assets
 
 RUN if [[ -z "${LOCAL_SERVER_RPM}" ]] ; then \
@@ -13,23 +14,12 @@ RUN if [[ -z "${LOCAL_SERVER_RPM}" ]] ; then \
     else \
       rpm -i /assets/${LOCAL_SERVER_RPM}; \
     fi \
+ && for pkg in ${JRE_PACKAGES} ; do \
+      yum install -y ${pkg}; \
+    done \
  && yum install -y singlestore-client-${CLIENT_VERSION} \
  && yum clean all
 
-RUN yum install python39 -y && update-alternatives --set python /usr/bin/python3; if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then \
-wget https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/epel-release-latest-7.noarch.rpm && \
-    wget http://mirror.centos.org/centos/7/sclo/x86_64/rh/Packages/r/rh-python36-runtime-2.0-1.el7.x86_64.rpm && \
-    wget http://mirror.centos.org/centos/7/sclo/x86_64/rh/Packages/r/rh-python36-python-pip-9.0.1-5.el7.noarch.rpm && \
-    wget http://mirror.centos.org/centos/7/sclo/x86_64/rh/Packages/r/rh-python36-python-3.6.12-1.el7.x86_64.rpm && \
-    wget http://mirror.centos.org/altarch/7/sclo/aarch64/rh/Packages/r/rh-python36-python-setuptools-36.5.0-1.el7.noarch.rpm && \
-    wget http://mirror.centos.org/centos/7/sclo/x86_64/rh/Packages/r/rh-python36-python-libs-3.6.12-1.el7.x86_64.rpm && \
-    yum install -y epel-release-latest-7.noarch.rpm rh-python36-runtime-2.0-1.el7.x86_64.rpm rh-python36-python-pip-9.0.1-5.el7.noarch.rpm rh-python36-python-3.6.12-1.el7.x86_64.rpm rh-python36-python-setuptools-36.5.0-1.el7.noarch.rpm rh-python36-python-libs-3.6.12-1.el7.x86_64.rpm;\
-    echo '/opt/rh/rh-python36/root/usr/lib64/' >> /etc/ld.so.conf && ldconfig;\
-    ln -s /opt/rh/rh-python36/root/usr/bin/python3 /usr/bin/python3;\
-    /usr/bin/python3 -m pip install --upgrade pip;\
-    /usr/bin/python3 -m pip install pymysql;\
-fi
-
 VOLUME ["/var/lib/memsql"]
 
 LABEL name="SingleStore DB Node"
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 6bc841a..3df28d4 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,14 +1,24 @@
-SERVER_VERSION=7.8.10-375bb758c4
-SERVER_VERSION_PREVIEW=7.9.4-1a8fd43c84
+# this is the latest version
+# CHANGED FROM SOURCE: enforce the specific version that we need for Skai's use-case
+SERVER_VERSION=8.1.31-d5850b922e
+SERVER_RELEASE_BRANCH=origin/qtpie-8.5
+
+# this is actually 7.9 which is cloud-only, it's named this way to distingush the fact
+# it tags the image differently and pushes to a different repo
+SERVER_VERSION_CLOUD=7.9.25-5635578da8
+SERVER_VERSION_PREVIEW=8.7.1-a4ba56b7ef
 SERVER_VERSION_6_8=6.8.24-8e110b7bed
 SERVER_VERSION_7_0=7.0.26-8999f1390b
 SERVER_VERSION_7_1=7.1.25-af0195880c
-SERVER_VERSION_7_3=7.3.26-edbc115410
-SERVER_VERSION_7_5=7.5.20-f604d8a71d
-SERVER_VERSION_7_6=7.6.18-29f3f6ac6e
-CLIENT_VERSION=1.0.5
-TOOLBOX_VERSION=1.13.9
-STUDIO_VERSION=4.0.7
+SERVER_VERSION_7_3=7.3.27-9f2e2f81f1
+SERVER_VERSION_7_5=7.5.25-3aa4489895
+SERVER_VERSION_7_6=7.6.33-c59b12bc70
+SERVER_VERSION_7_8=7.8.42-1a507bf140
+SERVER_VERSION_8_0=8.0.32-4959d03ded
+SERVER_VERSION_8_1=8.1.38-61bcb26831
+CLIENT_VERSION=1.0.7
+TOOLBOX_VERSION=1.17.6
+STUDIO_VERSION=4.0.16
 KUBE_CLIENT_VERSION=v1.11.6
 REVISION=$(shell git describe --dirty=-dirty --always --long --abbrev=40 --match='')
 
@@ -24,6 +34,7 @@ else
 	endif
 endif
 
+NODE_TAG_CLOUD=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_CLOUD}
 NODE_TAG=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION}
 NODE_TAG_PREVIEW=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_PREVIEW}-preview
 NODE_TAG_6_8=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_6_8}
@@ -32,6 +43,9 @@ NODE_TAG_7_1=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_7_1}
 NODE_TAG_7_3=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_7_3}
 NODE_TAG_7_5=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_7_5}
 NODE_TAG_7_6=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_7_6}
+NODE_TAG_7_8=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_7_8}
+NODE_TAG_8_0=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_8_0}
+NODE_TAG_8_1=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION_8_1}
 DYNAMIC_TAG=${VARIANT}-${REVISION}
 CIAB_TAG=${VARIANT}-${SERVER_VERSION}-${STUDIO_VERSION}-${TOOLBOX_VERSION}
 TOOLS_TAG=${VARIANT}-${KUBE_CLIENT_VERSION}-${TOOLBOX_VERSION}-${REVISION}
@@ -73,6 +87,20 @@ test:
 	# node-7-6
 	${MAKE} build-node-7-6
 	${MAKE} test-node-7-6
+	# node-7-8
+	${MAKE} build-node-7-8
+	${MAKE} test-node-7-8
+	# node-8-0
+	${MAKE} build-node-8-0
+	${MAKE} test-node-8-0
+	# node-8-1
+	${MAKE} build-node-8-1
+	${MAKE} test-node-8-1
+
+	# node-cloud
+	${MAKE} build-node-cloud
+	${MAKE} test-node-cloud
+
 	# dynamic node
 	${MAKE} build-dynamic-node
 	${MAKE} test-dynamic-node
@@ -84,6 +112,15 @@ test:
 build-base:
 	docker build \
 		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=${BASE_IMAGE} \
+		--build-arg RELEASE_CHANNEL=production \
+		-t s2-base:${VARIANT} \
+		-f Dockerfile-base .
+
+.PHONY: build-base-cloud
+build-base-cloud:
+	docker build \
+		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=${BASE_IMAGE} \
+		--build-arg RELEASE_CHANNEL=cloud \
 		-t s2-base:${VARIANT} \
 		-f Dockerfile-base .
 
@@ -113,12 +150,28 @@ build-node: build-base
 		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base:${VARIANT} \
 		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION} \
 		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
+		--build-arg JRE_PACKAGES="java-11-openjdk java-21-openjdk" \
 		-t singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} \
 		-f Dockerfile-node .
 	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} singlestore/node:latest
 	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} memsql/node:${NODE_TAG}
 	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} memsql/node:latest
 
+
+.PHONY: build-node-cloud
+build-node-cloud: build-base-cloud
+	docker build \
+		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base:${VARIANT} \
+		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION_CLOUD} \
+		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
+		-t singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD} \
+		-f Dockerfile-node .
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD} gcr.io/singlestore-public/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD}
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD} memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD}
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD} gcr.io/singlestore-public/memsql/node:latest
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD} memsql/node:latest
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD} singlestore/node:latest
+
 .PHONY: build-node-custom
 build-node-custom: build-base
 	docker build \
@@ -126,6 +179,7 @@ build-node-custom: build-base
 		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION_CUSTOM} \
 		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
 		--build-arg LOCAL_SERVER_RPM=${LOCAL_SERVER_RPM_CUSTOM} \
+		--build-arg JRE_PACKAGES=java-1.8.0-openjdk \
 		-t ${REGISTRY_CUSTOM}/singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CUSTOM} \
 		-t ${REGISTRY_CUSTOM}/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_CUSTOM} \
 		-f Dockerfile-node .
@@ -136,6 +190,7 @@ build-node-preview: build-base-dev
 		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base-dev:${VARIANT} \
 		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION_PREVIEW} \
 		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
+		--build-arg JRE_PACKAGES="java-11-openjdk java-21-openjdk" \
 		-t singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_PREVIEW} \
 		-f Dockerfile-node .
 	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_PREVIEW} memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_PREVIEW}
@@ -200,6 +255,37 @@ build-node-7-6: build-base
 		-f Dockerfile-node .
 	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6} memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6}
 
+.PHONY: build-node-7-8
+build-node-7-8: build-base
+	docker build \
+		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base:${VARIANT} \
+		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION_7_8} \
+		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
+		-t singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8} \
+		-f Dockerfile-node .
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8} memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8}
+
+.PHONY: build-node-8-0
+build-node-8-0: build-base
+	docker build \
+		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base:${VARIANT} \
+		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION_8_0} \
+		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
+		-t singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0} \
+		-f Dockerfile-node .
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0} memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0}
+
+.PHONY: build-node-8-1
+build-node-8-1: build-base
+	docker build \
+		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base:${VARIANT} \
+		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION_8_1} \
+		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
+		--build-arg JRE_PACKAGES=java-1.8.0-openjdk \
+		-t singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1} \
+		-f Dockerfile-node .
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1} memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1}
+
 .PHONY: test-node
 test-node: test-destroy
 	IMAGE=singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} ./test/node
@@ -232,6 +318,22 @@ test-node-7-5: test-destroy
 test-node-7-6: test-destroy
 	IMAGE=singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6} ./test/node
 
+.PHONY: test-node-7-8
+test-node-7-8: test-destroy
+	IMAGE=singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8} ./test/node
+
+.PHONY: test-node-8-0
+test-node-8-0: test-destroy
+	IMAGE=singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0} ./test/node
+
+.PHONY: test-node-8-1
+test-node-8-1: test-destroy
+	IMAGE=singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1} ./test/node
+
+.PHONY: test-node-cloud
+test-node-cloud: test-destroy
+	IMAGE=singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD} ./test/node
+
 .PHONY: test-node-ssl
 test-node-ssl: test-destroy
 	IMAGE=singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} ./test/node-ssl
@@ -247,6 +349,21 @@ publish-node:
 	docker push singlestore/node:latest
 	docker push memsql/node:latest
 
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node
+publish-gcr-node:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG}
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:latest
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:latest
+# publish the bottle-version dependency of the engine release to Helios control-plane.
+	MEMSQL_SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION} RELEASE_CHANNEL=dev RELEASE_BRANCH=${SERVER_RELEASE_BRANCH} ./assets/release-metadata/release-metadata.py
+	MEMSQL_SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION} RELEASE_CHANNEL=prod RELEASE_BRANCH=${SERVER_RELEASE_BRANCH} ./assets/release-metadata/release-metadata.py
+
+.PHONY: publish-node-cloud
+publish-node-cloud:
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_CLOUD}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/memsql/node:latest
+
 .PHONY: publish-node-custom
 publish-node-custom:
 	docker push ${REGISTRY_CUSTOM}/singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_CUSTOM}
@@ -276,66 +393,90 @@ publish-node-6-8:
 	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_6_8}
 	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_6_8}
 
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-6-8
+publish-gcr-node-6-8:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_6_8} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_6_8}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_6_8}
+
 .PHONY: publish-node-7-0
 publish-node-7-0:
 	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0}
 	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0}
 
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-7-0
+publish-gcr-node-7-0:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0}
+
 .PHONY: publish-node-7-1
 publish-node-7-1:
 	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1}
 	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1}
 
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-7-1
+publish-gcr-node-7-1:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1}
+
 .PHONY: publish-node-7-3
 publish-node-7-3:
 	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3}
 	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3}
 
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-7-3
+publish-gcr-node-7-3:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3}
+
 .PHONY: publish-node-7-5
 publish-node-7-5:
 	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5}
 	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5}
 
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-7-5
+publish-gcr-node-7-5:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5}
+
 .PHONY: publish-node-7-6
 publish-node-7-6:
 	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6}
 	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6}
 
-.PHONY: redhat-verify-node
-redhat-verify-node:
-	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG}
-	docker push scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://connect.redhat.com/project/1123901/view"
-
-.PHONY: redhat-verify-node-7-0
-redhat-verify-node-7-0:
-	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0} scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0}
-	docker push scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_0}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://connect.redhat.com/project/1123901/view"
-
-.PHONY: redhat-verify-node-7-1
-redhat-verify-node-7-1:
-	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1} scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1}
-	docker push scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_1}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://connect.redhat.com/project/1123901/view"
-
-.PHONY: redhat-verify-node-7-3
-redhat-verify-node-7-3:
-	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3} scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3}
-	docker push scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_3}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://connect.redhat.com/project/1123901/view"
-
-.PHONY: redhat-verify-node-7-5
-redhat-verify-node-7-5:
-	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5} scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5}
-	docker push scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_5}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://connect.redhat.com/project/1123901/view"
-
-.PHONY: redhat-verify-node-7-6
-redhat-verify-node-7-6:
-	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6} scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6}
-	docker push scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-faf4ba09-5344-40d5-b9c5-7c88ea143472/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://connect.redhat.com/project/1123901/view"
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-7-6
+publish-gcr-node-7-6:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_6}
+
+.PHONY: publish-node-7-8
+publish-node-7-8:
+	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8}
+	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8}
+
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-7-8
+publish-gcr-node-7-8:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_7_8}
+
+.PHONY: publish-node-8-0
+publish-node-8-0:
+	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0}
+	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0}
+
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-8-0
+publish-gcr-node-8-0:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_0}
+
+.PHONY: publish-node-8-1
+publish-node-8-1:
+	docker push singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1}
+	docker push memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1}
+
+.PHONY: publish-gcr-node-8-1
+publish-gcr-node-8-1:
+	docker tag memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1} gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/mirror/docker.io/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG_8_1}
 
 .PHONY: build-dynamic-node
 build-dynamic-node: build-base
@@ -363,6 +504,7 @@ publish-dynamic-node:
 build-ciab: build-base
 	docker build \
 		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base:${VARIANT} \
+		--build-arg SERVER_PACKAGE=singlestoredb-server \
 		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION} \
 		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
 		--build-arg STUDIO_VERSION=${STUDIO_VERSION} \
@@ -377,6 +519,7 @@ build-ciab: build-base
 build-ciab-dev: build-base-dev
 	docker build \
 		--build-arg BASE_IMAGE=s2-base-dev:${VARIANT} \
+		--build-arg SERVER_PACKAGE=memsql-server \
 		--build-arg SERVER_VERSION=${SERVER_VERSION} \
 		--build-arg CLIENT_VERSION=${CLIENT_VERSION} \
 		--build-arg STUDIO_VERSION=${STUDIO_VERSION} \
@@ -398,18 +541,12 @@ publish-ciab:
 	docker push memsql/cluster-in-a-box:${CIAB_TAG}
 	docker push memsql/cluster-in-a-box:latest
 
-.PHONY: redhat-verify-ciab
-redhat-verify-ciab:
-	docker tag singlestore/cluster-in-a-box:${CIAB_TAG} scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-6b69e5e1-d98a-4d75-a591-e300d4820ecb/cluster-in-a-box:${CIAB_TAG}
-	docker push scan.connect.redhat.com/ospid-6b69e5e1-d98a-4d75-a591-e300d4820ecb/cluster-in-a-box:${CIAB_TAG}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://connect.redhat.com/project/923891/view"
-
 # This is used to publish an UBI-based (known as redhat) node image to GCR.io.
 .PHONY: redhat-verify-ubi-gcr-internal-node
 redhat-verify-ubi-gcr-internal-node:
-	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} gcr.io/internal-freya/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG}
-	docker push gcr.io/internal-freya/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG}
-	@echo "View results + publish: https://console.cloud.google.com/gcr/images/internal-freya/global/memsql/node"
+	docker tag singlestore/node:${NODE_TAG} gcr.io/singlestore-public/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG}
+	docker push gcr.io/singlestore-public/memsql/node:${NODE_TAG}
+	@echo "View results + publish: https://console.cloud.google.com/gcr/images/singlestore-public/global/memsql/node"
 
 .PHONY: test-destroy
 test-destroy:
@@ -434,4 +571,4 @@ stage-tools:
 requires-license:
 ifndef LICENSE_KEY
 	$(error LICENSE_KEY is required)
-endif
+endif
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/ORIGINAL_README.md b/ORIGINAL_README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4b14a7f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ORIGINAL_README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,93 @@
+# deployment-docker
+
+This repository contains our official deployment Docker images for various products.
+If you are interested in contributing, please read `CONTRIBUTING.md`.
+
+| Image        | SingleStore Packages Installed                                    |
+|--------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------|
+| ciab         | singlestoredb-server, singlestoredb-studio, singlestoredb-toolbox |
+| ciab-redhat  | singlestoredb-server, singlestoredb-studio, singlestoredb-toolbox |
+| dynamic-node | (none)                                                            |
+| node         | singlestoredb-server                                              |
+| node-redhat  | singlestoredb-server                                              |
+| tools        | singlestoredb-toolbox                                             |
+
+# Running the Cluster in a Box image
+
+To initialize a new cluster in a box:
+
+```bash
+docker run -i --init \
+    --name singlestore-ciab \
+    -e LICENSE_KEY=${LICENSE_KEY} \
+    -e ROOT_PASSWORD=${ROOT_PASSWORD} \
+    -p 3306:3306 -p 8080:8080 \
+    singlestore/cluster-in-a-box
+```
+
+To manage your cluster in a box:
+
+```bash
+To start the container:
+    docker start singlestore-ciab
+
+To read logs from the container:
+    docker logs singlestore-ciab
+
+To stop the container (must be started):
+    docker stop singlestore-ciab
+
+To restart the container (must be started):
+    docker restart singlestore-ciab
+
+To remove the container (all data will be deleted):
+    docker rm singlestore-ciab
+```
+
+# Automatically run SQL when Cluster in a Box initializes
+
+If you want to automatically run SQL commands when creating a Cluster in a Box
+container, you can mount a SQL file into the Docker container like so:
+
+```bash
+docker run -i --init \
+    --name singlestore-ciab \
+    -e LICENSE_KEY=${LICENSE_KEY} \
+    -e ROOT_PASSWORD=${ROOT_PASSWORD} \
+    -v /PATH/TO/INIT.SQL:/init.sql \
+    -p 3306:3306 -p 8080:8080 \
+    singlestore/cluster-in-a-box
+```
+
+**Replace `/PATH/TO/INIT.SQL` with a valid path on your machine to the SQL file
+you want to run when initializing Cluster in a Box.**
+
+# Enable the HTTP API or External Functions
+
+The [HTTP API][httpapi] and [External Functions][extfunc] features can be enabled when you create the container via passing environment variables.
+
+**HTTP API:**
+
+Add the following flags to your `docker run` command:
+
+```bash
+    -e HTTP_API=ON -p 9000:9000
+```
+
+By default, the HTTP API runs on port 9000. If you want to use a different port you can instead run:
+
+```bash
+    -e HTTP_API=ON -e HTTP_API_PORT=$PORT -p $PORT:$PORT
+```
+
+**External Functions:**
+
+Add the following flag to your `docker run` command:
+
+```bash
+    -e EXTERNAL_FUNCTIONS=ON
+```
+
+[httpapi]: https://docs.singlestore.com/db/latest/en/reference/http-api.html
+[extfunc]: https://docs.singlestore.com/db/latest/en/reference/sql-reference/procedural-sql-reference/create--or-replace--external-function.html
+
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index d834766..ddcd94c 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1,92 +1,49 @@
-# deployment-docker
-
-This repository contains our official deployment Docker images for various products.
-If you are interested in contributing, please read `CONTRIBUTING.md`.
-
-| Image        | SingleStore Packages Installed                                    |
-|--------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------|
-| ciab         | singlestoredb-server, singlestoredb-studio, singlestoredb-toolbox |
-| ciab-redhat  | singlestoredb-server, singlestoredb-studio, singlestoredb-toolbox |
-| dynamic-node | (none)                                                            |
-| node         | singlestoredb-server                                              |
-| node-redhat  | singlestoredb-server                                              |
-| tools        | singlestoredb-toolbox                                             |
-
-# Running the Cluster in a Box image
-
-To initialize a new cluster in a box:
-
-```bash
-docker run -i --init \
-    --name singlestore-ciab \
-    -e LICENSE_KEY=${LICENSE_KEY} \
-    -e ROOT_PASSWORD=${ROOT_PASSWORD} \
-    -p 3306:3306 -p 8080:8080 \
-    singlestore/cluster-in-a-box
-```
-
-To manage your cluster in a box:
-
-```bash
-To start the container:
-    docker start singlestore-ciab
-
-To read logs from the container:
-    docker logs singlestore-ciab
-
-To stop the container (must be started):
-    docker stop singlestore-ciab
-
-To restart the container (must be started):
-    docker restart singlestore-ciab
-
-To remove the container (all data will be deleted):
-    docker rm singlestore-ciab
-```
-
-# Automatically run SQL when Cluster in a Box initializes
-
-If you want to automatically run SQL commands when creating a Cluster in a Box
-container, you can mount a SQL file into the Docker container like so:
-
-```bash
-docker run -i --init \
-    --name singlestore-ciab \
-    -e LICENSE_KEY=${LICENSE_KEY} \
-    -e ROOT_PASSWORD=${ROOT_PASSWORD} \
-    -v /PATH/TO/INIT.SQL:/init.sql \
-    -p 3306:3306 -p 8080:8080 \
-    singlestore/cluster-in-a-box
-```
-
-**Replace `/PATH/TO/INIT.SQL` with a valid path on your machine to the SQL file
-you want to run when initializing Cluster in a Box.**
-
-# Enable the HTTP API or External Functions
-
-The [HTTP API][httpapi] and [External Functions][extfunc] features can be enabled when you create the container via passing environment variables.
-
-**HTTP API:**
-
-Add the following flags to your `docker run` command:
-
-```bash
-    -e HTTP_API=ON -p 9000:9000
-```
-
-By default, the HTTP API runs on port 9000. If you want to use a different port you can instead run:
-
-```bash
-    -e HTTP_API=ON -e HTTP_API_PORT=$PORT -p $PORT:$PORT
-```
-
-**External Functions:**
-
-Add the following flag to your `docker run` command:
-
-```bash
-    -e EXTERNAL_FUNCTIONS=ON
-```
-
-[httpapi]: https://docs.singlestore.com/db/latest/en/reference/http-api.html
-[extfunc]: https://docs.singlestore.com/db/latest/en/reference/sql-reference/procedural-sql-reference/create--or-replace--external-function.html
+# Introduction & motivation 
+This repo is a fork of [memsql/deployment-docker](https://github.com/memsql/deployment-docker), customized for building the Skai KS base MemSQL image that is used for [building the automation image](https://jenkins-prod-search.internalk.com/job/automation-tests-db-upload/) for our local environments and testing environments on Jenkins. This process is comprised of (as of Dec 2022):
+1. Starting a cluster-in-a-box memsql docker image.
+2. Running several cucumbers to populate it with schemas, tables and data.
+3. Committing the docker state and upload the image to an artifactory.
+
+Then we can download the image in different automation jobs, start it and run tests that rely on the committed data.
+
+Q: Aren't the [default SingleStore scripts](https://github.com/memsql/deployment-docker) sufficient for this use case?  
+A: No, because they don't allow the retention of data after having populated the image with data and committed it.
+Additionally, with the image built by the default scripts, it's impossible to start the image twice (i.e. start the committed image), due to the usage of the `sdb-toolbox` tool in the startup script.
+
+For more information, read the [original readme](./ORIGINAL_README.md).
+
+# Differences with source repo
+The main changes made to the repo are:
+* Makefile: Explicitly specify our desired memsql version.
+* Dockerfile-ciab: 
+  * Specify the base image and other tool versions.
+  * Add permissions to run installations on the image.
+  * Skip the `VOLUME` command, presumably to allow data retention on the image once we use it in our Jenkins automations.
+* Startup: 
+  * Unregister host, as it prevents the committed image to be started again as a new docker in automation jobs.
+  * Add custom memsql variable values to reduce the final committed image size.
+
+# Building the base image
+
+Run the release job: https://jenkins-prod-microcosm.internalk.com/job/memsql-base-automation-image-builder-release.
+If you've made changes to the DSL files, you will need to run https://jenkins-prod-microcosm.internalk.com/job/memsql-base-automation-image-builder-main-dsl/ first.
+  
+# Recommendations - discovery for next version upgrade
+
+When it's time to upgrade from 7.6 to some new version, one of the steps will be to create a new base image for Skai's automation environment.
+
+I suggest trying it like this:
+1. Check what changes have been made on SingleStore's `deployment-docker` scripts repository since [the version we forked](https://github.com/memsql/deployment-docker/tree/c8cdbebe123d456940dd5fcb22f3b094563ca40b).  
+2 methods for doing that:
+    * Via Github: https://github.com/kenshoo/memsql-base-automation-image-builder/compare/master...memsql:deployment-docker:master
+    * Locally:
+      1. `git checkout` this repo.
+      1. `git remote add -f memsql_src git@github.com:memsql/deployment-docker.git`
+      1. `git remote update`
+      1. `git diff master remotes/memsql_src/master`
+      1. `git remote rm memsql_src`
+  If they seem necessary, apply them to the repo on your local machine.
+3. Try to apply the same changes that PR https://github.com/kenshoo/memsql-base-automation-image-builder/pull/1 contains (see description for summary) to the current version of the official repo. Adjust version numbers accordingly.
+4. If the repo has changed so much that this PR's changes are no longer applicable, know that the main changes were skipping the 'VOLUME' command, and running `sdb-toolbox-config unregister-host`. All the others were workarounds to issues we ran into.
+5. Good luck!
+  
diff --git a/assets/lib.sh b/assets/lib.sh
index 848c6a7..c67fc4d 100644
--- a/assets/lib.sh
+++ b/assets/lib.sh
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 INIT_FLAG=/.initialized
-CHANNELS=(production dev)
+CHANNELS=(production dev cloud)
 
 log() { (>&2 echo "${@}") }
 
@@ -38,6 +38,36 @@ installRelease() {
     return 1
 }
 
+isVersionGE()
+{
+    local arg_major=${1}
+    local arg_minor=${2}
+
+    local version=$(memsqlctl version | sed -n 's/^Version: \(.*\)$/\1/p')
+    local versionParts=($(echo ${version//./ }))
+    local major=${versionParts[0]}
+    local minor=${versionParts[1]}
+    local patch=${versionParts[2]}
+
+    if [[ "${major}" -ne ${arg_major} ]]; then
+        if [[ "${major}" -gt ${arg_major} ]]; then
+            return 0
+        else
+            return 1
+        fi
+    fi
+
+    if [[ "${minor}" -ne ${arg_minor} ]]; then
+        if [[ "${minor}" -gt ${arg_minor} ]]; then
+            return 0
+        else
+            return 1
+        fi
+    fi
+
+    return 0
+}
+
 createNode() {
     log "Initializing SingleStore DB node"
     memsqlctl -y create-node --no-start --base-install-dir /var/lib/memsql/instance
@@ -54,6 +84,24 @@ setMaximumMemory() {
     fi
 }
 
+setJava11Path() {
+    if isVersionGE 8 5; then
+        memsqlctl -y update-config --key java_pipelines_java11_path --value $(which java)
+    fi
+}
+
+setJava21Path() {
+    if isVersionGE 8 7; then
+        # Look up the installation path in the alternatives list.  If we don't
+        # find one, do nothing.
+        local java21Path=$(update-alternatives --list | grep '^jre_21\b' | cut -f 3 2>/dev/null)
+        if [ -n "${java21Path}" ] ; then
+            memsqlctl -y update-config --key fts2_java_path --value "${java21Path}/bin/java"
+            memsqlctl -y update-config --key fts2_java_home --value "${java21Path}"
+        fi
+    fi
+}
+
 checkSSL() {
     local code=0
     if [ ! -r /etc/memsql/ssl/server-cert.pem ]; then
@@ -75,14 +123,22 @@ enableSSL() {
 }
 
 waitStart() {
-    local ctl=${1}
+    local pid=${1}
     while true; do
         local CONNECTABLE=$(memsqlctl describe-node --property IsConnectable || echo false)
-        local RECOVERY=$(memsqlctl describe-node --property RecoveryState || echo Offline)
-        if [[ ${CONNECTABLE} == "true" && ${RECOVERY} == "Online" ]]; then
+        if [[ ${CONNECTABLE} == "true" ]]; then
             break
         fi
-        sleep 0.2
+
+        if kill -0 $pid; then
+            # memsqld still running, retry
+            sleep 0.2
+        else
+            # memsdl is gone
+            log "memsqld exited"
+            exit 1
+        fi
+
     done
 }
 
@@ -91,7 +147,15 @@ startSingleStore() {
     local memsqldPath=${installDir}/memsqld
     local memsqldSafePath=${installDir}/memsqld_safe
 
-    ${memsqldSafePath} \
+    # as a sanity check, make sure there isn't an existing process running memsqldSafePath
+    # use || true to not fail due to `set -e` if it does not exist
+    existing_memsql_pid=$(pgrep -f ${memsqldSafePath}) || true
+    if [[ "$existing_memsql_pid" != "" ]]; then
+        log "Error, there is an existing memsql process running '$memsqldSafePath' with PID $existing_memsql_pid"
+        exit 1
+    fi
+
+    env -u ROOT_PASSWORD ${memsqldSafePath} \
         --auto-restart disable \
         --defaults-file $(memsqlctl describe-node --property MemsqlConfig) \
         --memsqld ${memsqldPath} \
@@ -118,4 +182,4 @@ updateRootPassword() {
     if ! memsqlctl query -e "SELECT 1"; then
         memsqlctl -y change-root-password --password "${password}"
     fi
-}
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/assets/release-metadata/release-metadata.py b/assets/release-metadata/release-metadata.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..58ad9c4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/assets/release-metadata/release-metadata.py
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+#!/usr/bin/python3
+
+import boto3
+import configparser
+import json
+import logging
+import requests
+import os
+
+def _must_get_env(var, redact_log=False):
+    logging.info("Extracting environment variable {}".format(var))
+    val = os.getenv(var)
+    if val is None:
+        logging.error("Missing required environment variable {}".format(var))
+        raise Exception("Environment variable {} is required".format(var))
+    logging.info("Got {} = {}".format(var, val if not redact_log else "<redacted>"))
+    return val
+
+def download_bottle_version(ref, githubToken):
+    logging.info("Downloading BOTTLE_VERSION file from GitHub")
+    headers = {
+        'Authorization': 'token ' + githubToken.strip(),
+    }
+
+    try:
+        response = requests.get(
+            'https://raw.githubusercontent.com/memsql/memsql/%s/BOTTLE_VERSION' % ref.replace("origin/", ""),
+            headers=headers,
+        )
+        response.raise_for_status()
+        return response.text.strip()
+    except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as err:
+        logging.error('failed to download BOTTLE_VERSION file: %s' % err)
+        raise
+
+def generate_release_metadata_file(fileName, data):
+    logging.info("Generating release metadata file %s with contents (%s)" % (fileName, data))
+    with open(fileName, 'wb') as f:
+        f.write(json.dumps(data, indent=2).encode('utf-8'))
+
+def upload_release_metadata_file(bucket, region, accessKeyID, accessKeySecret, fileName, release):
+    key = "memsqlserver/%s/%s" % (release, fileName)
+    logging.info("Uploading release metadata file '%s' to S3" % key)
+    s3 = boto3.resource('s3', aws_access_key_id=accessKeyID, aws_secret_access_key=accessKeySecret, region_name=region)
+    s3.meta.client.upload_file(fileName, bucket, key)
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    try:
+        logging.basicConfig(level=os.environ.get("LOGLEVEL", "INFO"))
+        memsqlServerVersion = _must_get_env("MEMSQL_SERVER_VERSION")
+        memsqlReleaseChannel = _must_get_env("RELEASE_CHANNEL")
+        releaseBranch = _must_get_env("RELEASE_BRANCH")
+        releaseMetadataS3Bucket = _must_get_env("RELEASE_METADATA_AWS_BUCKET_NAME")
+        releaseMetadataBucketRegion = _must_get_env("RELEASE_METADATA_AWS_REGION")
+        releaseMetadataAWSAccessKeyID = _must_get_env("RELEASE_METADATA_AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID", redact_log=True)
+        releaseMetadataAWSAccessKeySecret = _must_get_env("RELEASE_METADATA_AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY", redact_log=True)
+        githubToken = _must_get_env("GITHUB_TOKEN", redact_log=True)
+        bottleVersion = download_bottle_version(releaseBranch, githubToken)
+        config = configparser.ConfigParser()
+        config.read_string('[default]\n' + bottleVersion)
+        bottleVersionMajorStr = config['default']['BOTTLE_VERSION_MAJOR']
+        bottleVersionMinorStr = config['default']['BOTTLE_VERSION_MINOR']
+        bottleVersionPatchStr = config['default']['BOTTLE_VERSION_PATCH']
+        if not bottleVersionMajorStr.isdigit() or not bottleVersionMinorStr.isdigit() or not bottleVersionPatchStr.isdigit():
+            raise Exception("BOTTLE_VERSION file contents are invalid: %s" % bottleVersion)
+        releaseMetadataContents = {
+            'bottleVersion': '%s.%s.%s' % (bottleVersionMajorStr, bottleVersionMinorStr, bottleVersionPatchStr),
+        }
+        releaseMetadataFile = "%s.json" % memsqlServerVersion
+        generate_release_metadata_file(releaseMetadataFile, releaseMetadataContents)
+        upload_release_metadata_file(releaseMetadataS3Bucket, releaseMetadataBucketRegion, releaseMetadataAWSAccessKeyID, releaseMetadataAWSAccessKeySecret, releaseMetadataFile, memsqlReleaseChannel)
+    finally:
+        if os.path.exists(releaseMetadataFile):
+            os.remove(releaseMetadataFile)
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/assets/report/memsql-report-kubectl.sh b/assets/report/memsql-report-kubectl.sh
index c6ac974..67ec40e 100755
--- a/assets/report/memsql-report-kubectl.sh
+++ b/assets/report/memsql-report-kubectl.sh
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ fi
 REPORT_DIR=$(mktemp -d)
 RESULT_DIR=$(mktemp -d)
 
-timeout -k 5 ${REPORT_TIMEOUT} sdb-report collect-kube ${COLLECTOR_FLAGS} ${OTHER_FLAGS} --cluster-name ${CLUSTER_NAME} --version v1 --disable-colors --disable-spinner -vvv -o "${RESULT_DIR}/${CLUSTER_NAME}.tar.gz" --opt memsqlTracelogs.tracelogSize=100mb
+timeout -k 5 ${REPORT_TIMEOUT} sdb-report collect-kube ${COLLECTOR_FLAGS} ${OTHER_FLAGS} --cluster-name ${CLUSTER_NAME} --version v1 --shard-queries --disable-colors --disable-spinner -vvv -o "${RESULT_DIR}/${CLUSTER_NAME}.tar.gz" --opt memsqlTracelogs.tracelogSize=100mb
 
 # copy out before checking because to support a failed check we need to see the report
 aws s3 ${ENDPOINT_FLAG} cp "${RESULT_DIR}/${CLUSTER_NAME}.tar.gz" "s3://${S3_REPORT_BUCKET}/${S3_REPORT_PATH}/report.tar.gz"
@@ -69,6 +69,6 @@ aws s3 ${ENDPOINT_FLAG} cp "${RESULT_DIR}/metadata.txt" "s3://${S3_REPORT_BUCKET
 if [[ "${REPORT_TYPE}" = "Admin" ]] || [[ "$REPORT_TYPE" = "" ]]; then
     CHECK_REPORT_FILE="${RESULT_DIR}/${CLUSTER_NAME}.txt"
     echo "Internal: Will write check report to ${CHECK_REPORT_FILE}"
-    sdb-report check -i "${RESULT_DIR}/${CLUSTER_NAME}.tar.gz" | tee "${CHECK_REPORT_FILE}" || echo "WARNING: CHECKS FAILED"
+    sdb-report check -i "${RESULT_DIR}/${CLUSTER_NAME}.tar.gz" --exclude swapEnabled,minFreeKbytes,vmSwappiness | tee "${CHECK_REPORT_FILE}" || echo "WARNING: CHECKS FAILED"
     aws s3 ${ENDPOINT_FLAG} cp "${RESULT_DIR}/${CLUSTER_NAME}.txt" "s3://${S3_REPORT_BUCKET}/${S3_REPORT_PATH}/check.txt"
 fi
diff --git a/assets/startup-node b/assets/startup-node
index db4b640..d0a7b65 100755
--- a/assets/startup-node
+++ b/assets/startup-node
@@ -24,6 +24,9 @@ fi
 # set the nodes' maximum memory if needed
 setMaximumMemory "${MAXIMUM_MEMORY}"
 
+setJava11Path
+setJava21Path
+
 # if a pre-start script is defined in the environment, and the file exists + is
 # executable, run the file before starting SingleStore DB
 if [ -n "${PRE_START_SCRIPT}" ]; then
@@ -39,7 +42,7 @@ trap 'log "Stopping singlestore ($PID)..."; kill $PID; wait $PID; exit 0' SIGTER
 
 # start SingleStore DB in the background
 startSingleStore; PID=$!
-waitStart
+waitStart $PID
 log "Started singlestore ($PID)"
 
 
diff --git a/buildScripts/jenkins/dsl/pull_request.groovy b/buildScripts/jenkins/dsl/pull_request.groovy
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..24fc706
--- /dev/null
+++ b/buildScripts/jenkins/dsl/pull_request.groovy
@@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
+def NAME = "memsql-base-automation-image-builder"
+def EMAIL = "shmulik.gutman@skai.io,shaked.nahum@skai.io"
+def JOB_NAME = "${NAME}-pull-request"
+
+job(JOB_NAME) {
+    label("microcosm-ubuntu-base")
+
+    logRotator(10,10)
+    concurrentBuild(true)
+
+    throttleConcurrentBuilds{
+        maxPerNode 1
+        maxTotal 10
+    }
+
+    scm {
+        git {
+            remote {
+                url("https://github.com/kenshoo/${NAME}.git")
+                credentials('jenkins-microcosm-github-app')
+                refspec('+refs/pull/*:refs/remotes/origin/pr/*')
+            }
+
+            configure { node ->
+                node / 'extensions' / 'hudson.plugins.git.extensions.impl.CleanBeforeCheckout' {}
+            }
+
+            branch("\${sha1}")
+        }
+    }
+
+    configure { project ->
+        def properties = project / 'properties'
+        properties<< {
+            'com.coravy.hudson.plugins.github.GithubProjectProperty'{
+                projectUrl "https://github.com/kenshoo/${NAME}/"
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    wrappers {
+        preBuildCleanup()
+        timestamps()
+        injectPasswords()
+        colorizeOutput()
+        timeout {
+            absolute(120)
+        }
+        sshAgent('kgithub-build-jenkins-microcosm-key')
+        credentialsBinding {
+            usernamePassword('MICROSERVICES_ARTIFACTORY_USER', 'MICROSERVICES_ARTIFACTORY_PASSWORD', 'jcasc_deployer-microcosm')
+        }
+    }
+
+    triggers {
+        githubPullRequest {
+            orgWhitelist('Kenshoo')
+            useGitHubHooks()
+        }
+    }
+
+    steps {
+        shell("""
+          make
+          docker build -t 668139184987.dkr.ecr.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/ks-db-memsql-cluster-in-a-box-base-guyh-8:8.1.31 -f Dockerfile-ciab . && echo "Successfully built base image"
+      """)
+    }
+
+    publishers {
+
+        extendedEmail {
+            recipientList("${EMAIL}")
+            triggers {
+                unstable {
+                    sendTo {
+                        requester()
+                        developers()
+                    }
+                }
+                failure {
+                    sendTo {
+                        requester()
+                        developers()
+                    }
+                }
+                statusChanged {
+                    sendTo {
+                        requester()
+                        developers()
+                    }
+                }
+
+                configure { node ->
+                    node / contentType << 'text/html'
+                }
+            }
+        }
+
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/buildScripts/jenkins/dsl/release.groovy b/buildScripts/jenkins/dsl/release.groovy
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b3d30a6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/buildScripts/jenkins/dsl/release.groovy
@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+def NAME = "memsql-base-automation-image-builder"
+def EMAIL = "shmulik.gutman@skai.io,shaked.nahum@skai.io"
+def JOB_NAME = "${NAME}-release"
+def BRANCH_NAME = "master"
+
+job(JOB_NAME) {
+    label("microcosm-ubuntu-base")
+
+    logRotator(10,10)
+    concurrentBuild(true)
+
+    throttleConcurrentBuilds{
+        maxPerNode 1
+        maxTotal 10
+    }
+
+    scm {
+        git {
+            remote {
+                url("https://github.com/kenshoo/${NAME}.git")
+                credentials('jenkins-microcosm-github-app')
+                refspec("+refs/heads/${BRANCH_NAME}:refs/remotes/origin/${BRANCH_NAME}")
+            }
+
+            configure { node ->
+                node / 'extensions' / 'hudson.plugins.git.extensions.impl.CleanBeforeCheckout' {}
+            }
+
+            branch(BRANCH_NAME)
+        }
+    }
+
+    configure { project ->
+        def properties = project / 'properties'
+        properties<< {
+            'com.coravy.hudson.plugins.github.GithubProjectProperty'{
+                projectUrl "https://github.com/kenshoo/${NAME}/"
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    wrappers {
+        preBuildCleanup()
+        timestamps()
+        injectPasswords()
+        colorizeOutput()
+        timeout {
+            absolute(120)
+        }
+        sshAgent('kgithub-build-jenkins-microcosm-key')
+        credentialsBinding {
+            usernamePassword('MICROSERVICES_ARTIFACTORY_USER', 'MICROSERVICES_ARTIFACTORY_PASSWORD', 'jcasc_deployer-microcosm')
+        }
+    }
+
+    steps {
+        shell("""
+          make
+          docker build -t 668139184987.dkr.ecr.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/ks-db-memsql-cluster-in-a-box-base-guyh-8:8.1.31 -f Dockerfile-ciab . && echo "Successfully built base image"
+          docker push 668139184987.dkr.ecr.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/ks-db-memsql-cluster-in-a-box-base-guyh-8:8.1.31 && echo "Successfully pushed image"
+      """)
+    }
+
+    publishers {
+
+        extendedEmail {
+            recipientList("${EMAIL}")
+            triggers {
+                unstable {
+                    sendTo {
+                        requester()
+                        developers()
+                    }
+                }
+                failure {
+                    sendTo {
+                        requester()
+                        developers()
+                    }
+                }
+                statusChanged {
+                    sendTo {
+                        requester()
+                        developers()
+                    }
+                }
+
+                configure { node ->
+                    node / contentType << 'text/html'
+                }
+            }
+        }
+
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/ciab-assets/startup b/ciab-assets/startup
index f38279b..12456ba 100644
--- a/ciab-assets/startup
+++ b/ciab-assets/startup
@@ -56,9 +56,18 @@ else #initialize the cluster
     fi
     echo Done.
 
-    echo Configuring Toolbox...
-    sdb-toolbox-config register-host -y --localhost --host 127.0.0.1
-    echo Done.
+   echo Configuring Toolbox...
+   sdb-toolbox-config register-host -y --localhost --host 127.0.0.1
+
+# CHANGED FROM SOURCE: added configurations to prevent huge docker image size.
+   memsqlctl -y update-config --all --set-global --key DEFAULT_PARTITIONS_PER_LEAF --value 2 
+   memsqlctl -y update-config --all --set-global --key SNAPSHOT_TRIGGER_SIZE --value 268435456 
+   memsqlctl -y update-config --all --set-global --key LOG_FILE_SIZE_PARTITIONS --value 268435456
+   memsqlctl -y update-config --all --set-global --key LOG_FILE_SIZE_REF_DBS --value 67108864
+
+# CHANGED FROM SOURCE: unregistered the host, because it prevents raising the docker twice. 
+   sdb-toolbox-config unregister-host -y --host 127.0.0.1
+   echo Done.
 
     if [ -f /init.sql ]; then
         echo Running /init.sql...
@@ -95,15 +104,7 @@ singlestoredb-studio --port 8080 1>/dev/null 2>/dev/null &
 studio_pid=$!
 log_files+=("/var/lib/singlestoredb-studio/studio.log")
 
-args_file="/etc/memsql/memsql_exporter_ma.args"
-if [ ! -f $args_file ]; then
-    install_path=$(dirname $(realpath "/usr/bin/memsql_exporter"))
-    args_file=$install_path"/conf/memsql_exporter_ma.args"
-fi
-explog="/var/lib/memsql/memsql_exporter.log"
-memsql_exporter @$args_file 1>$explog 2>$explog &
-exporter_pid=$!
-log_files+=($explog)
+sdb-admin configure-monitoring -y --exporter-port=9104 --exporter-password=$ROOT_PASSWORD &
 
 tail -F $(printf '%s ' "${log_files[@]}") &
 tail_pid=$!
@@ -112,7 +113,6 @@ cleanup() {
     echo Stopping Cluster...
     memsqlctl -y stop-node --all
     kill -15 $studio_pid
-    kill -15 $exporter_pid
     kill -15 $tail_pid
     echo Stopped.
 }