Read only secondaries

modules/ROOT/content-nav.adoc

@@ -53,10 +53,11 @@ AuraDB Start
 ** xref:auradb/importing/import-database.adoc[]
 
 * Managing instances
+** xref:auradb/managing-databases/database-actions.adoc[]
 ** xref:auradb/managing-databases/monitoring.adoc[]
-** xref:auradb/managing-databases/advanced-metrics.adoc[]
 ** xref:auradb/managing-databases/backup-restore-export.adoc[]
-** xref:auradb/managing-databases/database-actions.adoc[]
+** xref:auradb/managing-databases/advanced-metrics.adoc[]
+** xref:auradb/managing-databases/secondary-instances.adoc[]
 
 * xref:auradb/connecting-applications/overview.adoc[Connecting applications]
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modules/ROOT/pages/auradb/managing-databases/secondary-instances.adoc

@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+[[aura-secondary-instances]]
+= Secondary instances
+:description: This section describes the use of secondary instances for scaling out read workloads.
+
+label:AuraDB-Virtual-Dedicated-Cloud[]
+
+Using secondary instances makes database reading faster. 
+A secondary is a read-only copy of an instance that reduces the load on your primary instance by routing queries from your applications to the secondary. 
+In this way, you can scale out beyond the capacity constraints of a single instance for read-heavy workloads.
+
+Secondary instances are distributed across availability zones to ensure high availability, performance, and cost efficiency. 
+For workloads with heavy read operations, secondary instances prevent bottlenecks and allow batch processing.
+
+Up to 15 static secondary instances can be added per database instance, significantly increasing read capacity to handle read-heavy workloads. 
+Secondary instances can be added, managed, and removed through the Aura Console or the Aura API.
+
+* *Availability zones:* Distributed across availability zones to maintain high availability and performance.
+* *Static configuration:* Currently, secondary instances are static and do not support elastic or auto-scaling behavior.
+* *Region constraints:* Available only within the same region as their primary database instance (single region).
+* *Pause/Resume:* When an AuraDB Virtual Dedicated Cloud database is paused and resumed, the count of secondary instances is retained. 
+For example, if a database with 3 secondary instances is paused, it will resume with 3 secondary instances.
+* *The following routing policy applies when at least one secondary is available:* Route READ to secondary instances + non-leader primary instances.
+This policy extends the READ payload to the primary instances that are not currently serving in an elected leader role. 
+It allows to further balance the READ and improve scalability.
+
+== Edit secondary instances using Aura console
+
+Once the feature is enabled for your tenant, you will see the secondary instances count set to zero on an instance card. 
+To edit the number of secondary instances via the Aura console, click the three dots on an instance card.
+
+== Edit secondary instances using the Aura API
+
+You can edit the secondary count for your database with the link:https://neo4j.com/docs/aura/platform/api/specification/#/instances/patch-instance-id[`/instances/\{instanceId}`] endpoint.