Agent skill
postgresql
PostgreSQL administration and setup including installation, configuration, backup/recovery, replication, and high-availability. Learn production PostgreSQL operations.
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npx add-skill https://github.com/pluginagentmarketplace/custom-plugin-sql/tree/main/skills/postgresql-dba
SKILL.md
PostgreSQL Administration
Installation & Setup
# On Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)
sudo apt-get install postgresql postgresql-contrib
# On macOS
brew install postgresql@15
# Docker installation
docker run --name postgres -e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=password -p 5432:5432 -d postgres:15
# Start and enable PostgreSQL
sudo systemctl start postgresql
sudo systemctl enable postgresql
Connection Basics
# Connect to default database
psql -U postgres
# Connect to specific database
psql -U postgres -d mydb -h localhost -p 5432
# List databases
\l
# List tables in current database
\dt
# Get table info
\d table_name
# Quit psql
\q
User & Role Management
-- Create a new role
CREATE ROLE developer WITH LOGIN PASSWORD 'secure_password';
-- Create superuser role
CREATE ROLE admin WITH SUPERUSER LOGIN PASSWORD 'admin_password';
-- Grant privileges on database
GRANT CONNECT ON DATABASE mydb TO developer;
-- Grant privileges on schema
GRANT USAGE ON SCHEMA public TO developer;
-- Grant privileges on tables
GRANT SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE ON ALL TABLES IN SCHEMA public TO developer;
-- Grant privileges on specific table
GRANT SELECT ON employees TO developer;
-- Make role a database owner
ALTER DATABASE mydb OWNER TO developer;
-- Revoke privileges
REVOKE INSERT, UPDATE ON employees FROM developer;
-- Drop role
DROP ROLE developer;
Configuration & Tuning
# PostgreSQL configuration file
sudo nano /etc/postgresql/15/main/postgresql.conf
# Key configuration parameters:
# Memory
shared_buffers = 256MB # 25% of RAM for dedicated server
effective_cache_size = 1GB # 50-75% of RAM
work_mem = 64MB # RAM per operation
# Connections
max_connections = 200
superuser_reserved_connections = 3
# Write-Ahead Log
wal_level = replica
max_wal_senders = 3
wal_keep_segments = 64
# Query planning
random_page_cost = 1.1 # For SSD
log_min_duration_statement = 1000 # Log slow queries
Backup & Recovery
# Full database backup (text format)
pg_dump -U postgres -d mydb -f mydb_backup.sql
# Binary backup (faster, compressed)
pg_dump -U postgres -d mydb -Fc -f mydb_backup.dump
# Backup specific table
pg_dump -U postgres -d mydb -t employees -f employees_backup.sql
# Backup all databases
pg_dumpall -U postgres -f all_databases.sql
# Restore from backup
psql -U postgres -d mydb -f mydb_backup.sql
# Restore from binary dump
pg_restore -U postgres -d mydb mydb_backup.dump
Maintenance Operations
-- VACUUM (reclaim space)
VACUUM; -- Full vacuum
-- VACUUM ANALYZE (reclaim space & update stats)
VACUUM ANALYZE;
-- ANALYZE (update table statistics)
ANALYZE;
-- Check database integrity
REINDEX DATABASE mydb;
-- Show database size
SELECT pg_database.datname,
pg_size_pretty(pg_database_size(pg_database.datname))
FROM pg_database;
-- Show table sizes
SELECT schemaname, tablename,
pg_size_pretty(pg_total_relation_size(schemaname||'.'||tablename))
FROM pg_tables
WHERE schemaname != 'pg_catalog'
ORDER BY pg_total_relation_size(schemaname||'.'||tablename) DESC;
Monitoring
-- Active connections
SELECT * FROM pg_stat_activity WHERE state != 'idle';
-- Database statistics
SELECT * FROM pg_stat_database WHERE datname = 'mydb';
-- Table statistics
SELECT * FROM pg_stat_user_tables;
-- Index statistics
SELECT * FROM pg_stat_user_indexes;
-- Cache hit ratio
SELECT
sum(heap_blks_read) as heap_read,
sum(heap_blks_hit) as heap_hit,
sum(heap_blks_hit) / (sum(heap_blks_hit) + sum(heap_blks_read)) as ratio
FROM pg_statio_user_tables;
Performance Tuning
-- Check slow queries
SELECT query, mean_exec_time, calls
FROM pg_stat_statements
ORDER BY mean_exec_time DESC LIMIT 10;
-- Find unused indexes
SELECT schemaname, tablename, indexname
FROM pg_stat_user_indexes
WHERE idx_scan = 0;
-- Find missing indexes
SELECT * FROM pg_stat_user_tables
WHERE seq_scan > idx_scan
AND n_live_tup > 1000;
-- Analyze query plan
EXPLAIN ANALYZE
SELECT * FROM employees WHERE salary > 50000;
Replication Setup
# On primary server - enable replication in postgresql.conf
wal_level = replica
max_wal_senders = 3
wal_keep_segments = 64
# Create replication user
CREATE ROLE replicator WITH REPLICATION LOGIN PASSWORD 'rep_password';
# On standby - base backup from primary
pg_basebackup -h primary_host -D /var/lib/postgresql/15/main -U replicator -v -P -W
# Create recovery.conf on standby
standby_mode = 'on'
primary_conninfo = 'host=primary_host port=5432 user=replicator password=password'
High Availability with pgBouncer
# Install pgBouncer
sudo apt-get install pgbouncer
# Configuration - /etc/pgbouncer/pgbouncer.ini
[databases]
mydb = host=primary_host port=5432 dbname=mydb
[pgbouncer]
listen_port = 6432
max_client_conn = 1000
default_pool_size = 25
reserve_pool_size = 5
Next Steps
Learn advanced security features including row-level security and SSL/TLS configuration in the postgresql-security skill.
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