Re: location of the configuration files

Bruce Momjian <pgman(at)candle(dot)pha(dot)pa(dot)us> writes:
> My point is that folks with multiple postmasters may not want to use
> PGDATA, but for folks who have single postmasters, it makes things
> easier and less error-prone.

Actually, for multi postmasters too. I have little shell-environment
config files that switch my entire world view between different source
trees and installation trees, for example this one sets me up to mess
with the 7.2 branch:

STDPATH=${STDPATH:-$PATH}
STDMANPATH=${STDMANPATH:-$MANPATH}

PGSRCROOT=$HOME/REL7_2/pgsql
PGINSTROOT=$HOME/version72
PATH=$PGINSTROOT/bin:/opt/perl5.6.1/bin:$STDPATH
MANPATH=$PGINSTROOT/man:$STDMANPATH
PGLIB=$PGINSTROOT/lib
PGDATA=$PGINSTROOT/data
PMOPTIONS="-p 5472 -i -F"
PMLOGFILE=server72.log

export PGSRCROOT PGINSTROOT PATH MANPATH PGLIB PGDATA STDPATH STDMANPATH
export PMOPTIONS PMLOGFILE

After sourcing one of these, I can use pg_ctl as well as a half dozen
other convenient little scripts that do things like remake and reinstall
the backend:

#!/bin/sh

pg_ctl -w stop

cd $PGSRCROOT/src/backend

make install-bin

startpg

or this one that fires up gdb on a crashed backend:

#!/bin/sh

# Usage: gdbcore

cd $HOME

CORES=`find $PGDATA/base -name core -type f -print`

if [ x"$CORES" != x"" ]
then
ls -l $CORES
fi

if [ `echo "$CORES" | wc -w` -eq 1 ]
then
exec gdb $PGINSTROOT/bin/postgres "$CORES"
else
exec gdb $PGINSTROOT/bin/postgres
fi

This is vastly less error-prone than keeping track of the various
related elements in my head.

Now, it's certainly true that I could still make this work if I had
to explicitly say -D $PGDATA to the postmaster. But that would clutter
my ps display. I am happy with -p as the ps indicator of which
postmaster is which; I don't want more stuff in there.

regards, tom lane