# Partitioning Limitations

The following limitations apply to partitioning in MariaDB:

* Each table can contain a maximum of 8192 partitions.
* Queries are never parallelized, even when they involve multiple partitions.
* A table can only be partitioned if the storage engine supports partitioning.
* All partitions must use the same storage engine. For a workaround, see [Using CONNECT - Partitioning and Sharding](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/server-usage/storage-engines/connect/using-connect/using-connect-partitioning-and-sharding).
* A partitioned table cannot contain, or be referenced by, [foreign keys](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/ha-and-performance/optimization-and-tuning/optimization-and-indexes/foreign-keys).
* The [query cache](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/ha-and-performance/optimization-and-tuning/buffers-caches-and-threads/query-cache) is not aware of partitioning and partition pruning. Modifying a partition will invalidate the entries related to the whole table.
* Updates can run more slowly when [binlog\_format=ROW](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/server-management/server-monitoring-logs/binary-log/binary-log-formats#row-based-logging) and a partitioned table is updated than an equivalent update of a non-partitioned table.
* All columns used in the partitioning expression for a partitioned table must be part of every unique key that the table may have.
* In versions prior to [MariaDB 11.3.2](https://app.gitbook.com/s/aEnK0ZXmUbJzqQrTjFyb/community-server/old-releases/11.3/11.3.2), it is not possible to create partitions on tables that contain [GEOMETRY types](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/sql-structure/geometry/geometry-types).

## See Also

* [INFORMATION\_SCHEMA.PARTITIONS](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/system-tables/information-schema/information-schema-tables/information-schema-partitions-table) contains information about existing partitions.
* [Partition Maintenance](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/server-usage/partitioning-tables/partition-maintenance) for suggestions on using partitions

<sub>*This page is licensed: CC BY-SA / Gnu FDL*</sub>

{% @marketo/form formId="4316" %}


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://mariadb.com/docs/server/server-usage/partitioning-tables/partitioning-limitations.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.