PostgreSQL 18 Beta 2 Released!

The PostgreSQL Global Development Group announces that the first beta release of
PostgreSQL 18 is now [available for download](https://www.postgresql.org/download/).
This release contains previews of all features when PostgreSQL 18 is made
generally available, though some details of the release can change during the
beta period.

You can find information about all of the PostgreSQL 18 features and changes in
the [release notes](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/release-18.html):

[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/release-18.html](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/release-18.html)

In the spirit of the open source PostgreSQL community, we strongly encourage you
to test the new features of PostgreSQL 18 on your systems to help us eliminate
bugs and other issues. While we do not advise you to run PostgreSQL 18 Beta 2 in
production environments, we encourage you to find ways to run your typical
application workloads against this beta release.

Your testing and feedback helps the community ensure that PostgreSQL 18
upholds our standards of delivering a stable, reliable release of the
world's most advanced open source relational database. Please read more about
our [beta testing process](https://www.postgresql.org/developer/beta/) and how
you can contribute:

[https://www.postgresql.org/developer/beta/](https://www.postgresql.org/developer/beta/)

Upgrading to PostgreSQL 18 Beta 2
---------------------------------

To upgrade to PostgreSQL 18 Beta 2 from an earlier version of PostgreSQL,
you will need to use a strategy similar to upgrading between major versions of
PostgreSQL (e.g. `pg_upgrade` or `pg_dump` / `pg_restore`). For more
information, please visit the documentation section on
[upgrading](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/static/upgrading.html).

Changes Since Beta 1
--------------------

Fixes and changes in PostgreSQL 18 Beta 2 include:

* Add support for prepared statements in squashing lists in query jumbling.
* Fix for foreign key validation on partitioned tables.
* Remove `pg_get_process_memory_contexts()` function.
* Several fixes for injection point testing to support testing AIO.
* Fix `pg_dump` for tables with complex names.
* Fix for statement location calculation for nested statements.
* Fix for upgrades from PostgreSQL 14 when the number of rows in a table is
unknown.
* Fix stack overflow for OAuth parsers.
* Set `pg_dump` and `pg_dumpall` default behavior to use `--no-statistics`.
Leave the default for `pg_restore` and `pg_upgrade` to be `--with-statistics`.
* Ensure `LOAD $libdir/` works.
* Improvements for GIN amcheck.
* Remove `PQservice()` from `libpq`.

Please see the [release notes](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/release-18.html)
for a complete list of new and changed features:

[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/release-18.html](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/release-18.html)

Testing for Bugs & Compatibility
--------------------------------

The stability of each PostgreSQL release greatly depends on you, the community,
to test the upcoming version with your workloads and testing tools to find bugs
and regressions before the general availability of PostgreSQL 18. As this is a
Beta, minor changes to database behaviors, feature details, and APIs are still
possible. Your feedback and testing will help determine the final tweaks on the
new features, so please test in the near future. The quality of user testing
helps determine when we can make a final release.

A list of [open issues](https://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/PostgreSQL_18_Open_Items)
is publicly available in the PostgreSQL wiki. You can
[report bugs](https://www.postgresql.org/account/submitbug/) using this form on
the PostgreSQL website:

[https://www.postgresql.org/account/submitbug/](https://www.postgresql.org/account/submitbug/)

Beta Schedule
-------------

This is the second beta release of version 18. The PostgreSQL Project will
release additional betas as required for testing, followed by one or more
release candidates, until the final release around September/October 2025. For further
information please see the [Beta Testing](https://www.postgresql.org/developer/beta/)
page.

Links
-----

* [Download](https://www.postgresql.org/download/)
* [Beta Testing Information](https://www.postgresql.org/developer/beta/)
* [PostgreSQL 18 Beta Release Notes](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/18/release-18.html)
* [PostgreSQL 18 Open Issues](https://wiki.postgresql.org/wiki/PostgreSQL_18_Open_Items)
* [Submit a Bug](https://www.postgresql.org/account/submitbug/)
* [Donate](https://www.postgresql.org/about/donate/)