Re: Backup of live database

From: Tom Lane <tgl(at)sss(dot)pgh(dot)pa(dot)us>
To: "Joshua D(dot) Drake" <jd(at)commandprompt(dot)com>
Cc: Brian Modra <epailty(at)googlemail(dot)com>, pgsql-admin(at)postgresql(dot)org
Subject: Re: Backup of live database
Date: 2008-01-16 07:11:08
Message-ID: 19155.1200467468@sss.pgh.pa.us
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"Joshua D. Drake" <jd(at)commandprompt(dot)com> writes:
> Brian Modra wrote:
>> If tar reports that a file was modified while it was being archived,
>> does that mean that the file was archived correctly, or is it corrupted
>> in the archive?

> You can not use tar to backup postgresql if it is running.

You can use it for a PITR base backup --- WAL replay will fix any
inconsistencies. In that context it's just annoying that some tar
versions complain about this.

> http://www.postgresql.org/docs/8.2/static/backup.html

Yah. Note that sections 23.2 and 23.3.32 are talking about entirely
different scenarios. In the former case such a warning is scary,
in the latter not.

regards, tom lane

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