diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 525a5d5d802d9..5eb908154f978 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@ update:
 	$(MAKE) jobs
 	$(MAKE) ci-operator-config
 	$(MAKE) prow-config
+	$(MAKE) registry-metadata
 
 release-controllers:
 	./hack/generators/release-controllers/generate-release-controllers.py .
diff --git a/ci-operator/config/openshift/release/openshift-release-master__ocp-4.5-ci.yaml b/ci-operator/config/openshift/release/openshift-release-master__ocp-4.5-ci.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..c374927eee857
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ci-operator/config/openshift/release/openshift-release-master__ocp-4.5-ci.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+releases:
+  initial:
+    release:
+      channel: stable
+      version: "4.4"
+  latest:
+    candidate:
+      product: ocp
+      stream: ci
+      version: "4.5"
+resources:
+  '*':
+    requests:
+      cpu: 100m
+      memory: 200Mi
+tests:
+- as: e2e-44-stable-to-45-ci
+  cron: 0 */6 * * *
+  steps:
+    cluster_profile: aws
+    workflow: openshift-upgrade-aws
+zz_generated_metadata:
+  branch: master
+  org: openshift
+  repo: release
+  variant: ocp-4.5-ci
diff --git a/ci-operator/jobs/openshift/release/openshift-release-master-periodics.yaml b/ci-operator/jobs/openshift/release/openshift-release-master-periodics.yaml
index cf0d3e9f91973..3da47bf63ebc2 100644
--- a/ci-operator/jobs/openshift/release/openshift-release-master-periodics.yaml
+++ b/ci-operator/jobs/openshift/release/openshift-release-master-periodics.yaml
@@ -293,6 +293,78 @@ periodics:
     - name: result-aggregator
       secret:
         secretName: result-aggregator
+- agent: kubernetes
+  cluster: api.ci
+  cron: 0 */6 * * *
+  decorate: true
+  decoration_config:
+    skip_cloning: true
+  extra_refs:
+  - base_ref: master
+    org: openshift
+    repo: release
+  labels:
+    ci-operator.openshift.io/prowgen-controlled: "true"
+    ci-operator.openshift.io/variant: ocp-4.5-ci
+    job-release: "4.5"
+    pj-rehearse.openshift.io/can-be-rehearsed: "true"
+  name: periodic-ci-openshift-release-master-ocp-4.5-ci-e2e-44-stable-to-45-ci
+  spec:
+    containers:
+    - args:
+      - --image-import-pull-secret=/etc/pull-secret/.dockerconfigjson
+      - --lease-server-password-file=/etc/boskos/password
+      - --report-password-file=/etc/report/password.txt
+      - --report-username=ci
+      - --secret-dir=/secrets/ci-pull-credentials
+      - --secret-dir=/usr/local/e2e-44-stable-to-45-ci-cluster-profile
+      - --target=e2e-44-stable-to-45-ci
+      - --variant=ocp-4.5-ci
+      command:
+      - ci-operator
+      image: ci-operator:latest
+      imagePullPolicy: Always
+      name: ""
+      resources:
+        requests:
+          cpu: 10m
+      volumeMounts:
+      - mountPath: /etc/boskos
+        name: boskos
+        readOnly: true
+      - mountPath: /secrets/ci-pull-credentials
+        name: ci-pull-credentials
+        readOnly: true
+      - mountPath: /usr/local/e2e-44-stable-to-45-ci-cluster-profile
+        name: cluster-profile
+      - mountPath: /etc/pull-secret
+        name: pull-secret
+        readOnly: true
+      - mountPath: /etc/report
+        name: result-aggregator
+        readOnly: true
+    serviceAccountName: ci-operator
+    volumes:
+    - name: boskos
+      secret:
+        items:
+        - key: password
+          path: password
+        secretName: boskos-credentials
+    - name: ci-pull-credentials
+      secret:
+        secretName: ci-pull-credentials
+    - name: cluster-profile
+      projected:
+        sources:
+        - secret:
+            name: cluster-secrets-aws
+    - name: pull-secret
+      secret:
+        secretName: regcred
+    - name: result-aggregator
+      secret:
+        secretName: result-aggregator
 - agent: kubernetes
   cluster: api.ci
   cron: 0 0 */2 * *
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/aws/ipi-conf-aws-ref.yaml b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/aws/ipi-conf-aws-ref.yaml
index cdf1d2e3f183c..af9c8e4d4866c 100644
--- a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/aws/ipi-conf-aws-ref.yaml
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/aws/ipi-conf-aws-ref.yaml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ref:
   as: ipi-conf-aws
-  from: base
+  from: tools
   commands: ipi-conf-aws-commands.sh
   resources:
     requests:
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/ipi-conf-ref.yaml b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/ipi-conf-ref.yaml
index 5379dac28d44f..8de876baffa9e 100644
--- a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/ipi-conf-ref.yaml
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/conf/ipi-conf-ref.yaml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ref:
   as: ipi-conf
-  from: base
+  from: tools
   commands: ipi-conf-commands.sh
   resources:
     requests:
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-commands.sh b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-commands.sh
index 7ec20a7fc0b54..6e182e922cb49 100755
--- a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-commands.sh
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-commands.sh
@@ -6,14 +6,14 @@ set -o pipefail
 
 trap 'CHILDREN=$(jobs -p); if test -n "${CHILDREN}"; then kill ${CHILDREN} && wait; fi' TERM
 
-if [[ -z "$RELEASE_IMAGE_LATEST" ]]; then
-  echo "RELEASE_IMAGE_LATEST is an empty string, exiting"
+if [[ -z "$OPENSHIFT_INSTALL_RELEASE_IMAGE_OVERRIDE" ]]; then
+  echo "OPENSHIFT_INSTALL_RELEASE_IMAGE_OVERRIDE is an empty string, exiting"
   exit 1
 fi
 
+echo "Installing from release ${OPENSHIFT_INSTALL_RELEASE_IMAGE_OVERRIDE}"
 export SSH_PRIV_KEY_PATH=${CLUSTER_PROFILE_DIR}/ssh-privatekey
 export PULL_SECRET_PATH=${CLUSTER_PROFILE_DIR}/pull-secret
-export OPENSHIFT_INSTALL_RELEASE_IMAGE_OVERRIDE=${RELEASE_IMAGE_LATEST}
 export OPENSHIFT_INSTALL_INVOKER=openshift-internal-ci/${JOB_NAME}/${BUILD_ID}
 export HOME=/tmp
 
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-ref.yaml b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-ref.yaml
index 67eebe50f90d2..2df217c667d40 100644
--- a/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-ref.yaml
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/ipi/install/install/ipi-install-install-ref.yaml
@@ -6,5 +6,10 @@ ref:
     requests:
       cpu: 1000m
       memory: 2Gi
+  dependencies:
+  - name: "release:latest"
+    env: OPENSHIFT_INSTALL_RELEASE_IMAGE_OVERRIDE
+  - name: "release:latest"
+    env: RELEASE_IMAGE_LATEST
   documentation: |-
     The IPI install step runs the OpenShift Installer in order to bring up an OpenShift cluster, using the provided cluster profile to choose a target IaaS platform. Anything that needs to be configured using manifests should generate them before this step and put them in the SHARED_DIR with the filename manifest_(manifest_name).yml so that this step can pull in the manifest in.
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/metadata.json b/ci-operator/step-registry/metadata.json
index 79e0f64785f2e..42ecc23706557 100644
--- a/ci-operator/step-registry/metadata.json
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/metadata.json
@@ -1531,6 +1531,23 @@
 				]
 			}
 		},
+		"openshift-upgrade-aws-workflow.yaml": {
+			"path": "openshift/upgrade/aws/openshift-upgrade-aws-workflow.yaml",
+			"owners": {
+				"approvers": [
+					"smarterclayton",
+					"wking",
+					"stevekuznetsov",
+					"vrutkovs",
+					"abhinavdahiya",
+					"deads2k",
+					"crawford",
+					"ewolinetz",
+					"csrwng",
+					"staebler"
+				]
+			}
+		},
 		"operatorhub-subscribe-ref.yaml": {
 			"path": "operatorhub/subscribe/operatorhub-subscribe-ref.yaml",
 			"owners": {
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/OWNERS b/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/OWNERS
new file mode 120000
index 0000000000000..2388f3a8fecc1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/OWNERS
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+./../OWNERS
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/aws/OWNERS b/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/aws/OWNERS
new file mode 120000
index 0000000000000..0fa7ad0bc6c58
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/aws/OWNERS
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+./../../OWNERS
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/aws/openshift-upgrade-aws-workflow.yaml b/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/aws/openshift-upgrade-aws-workflow.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..59f53ee8ca2a0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ci-operator/step-registry/openshift/upgrade/aws/openshift-upgrade-aws-workflow.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+workflow:
+  as: openshift-upgrade-aws
+  steps:
+    pre:
+    - chain: ipi-aws-pre
+    test:
+    - ref: openshift-e2e-test
+    post:
+    - chain: ipi-aws-post
+    dependencies:
+      OPENSHIFT_INSTALL_RELEASE_IMAGE_OVERRIDE: "release:initial"
+    env:
+      TEST_COMMAND: "run-upgrade"
+      TEST_SUITE: "all"
+  documentation: |-
+    The Openshift E2E AWS workflow executes the upgrade end-to-end test suite on AWS with a default cluster configuration, exercising an upgrade during the process.