Re: Any hints on how to limit WAL file disk usage?

RCrowe(at)stbernard(dot)com writes:
> ... One of the issues I face is
> that the WAL files occupy a pretty significant amount of disk space.
> Anyone have any pointers?

First off, install the patch depicted at
http://www.ca.postgresql.org/mhonarc/pgsql-patches/2001-06/msg00061.html

CVS tip includes some further hacking that limits the number of WAL
segment files to 2*CHECKPOINT_SEGMENTS + WAL_FILES + 1 --- ie, 112
megabytes with default settings. If that's still in the "whoa, no way"
range for you, I think the most appropriate attack would be to reduce
the WAL segment size to something less than the normal 16Mb. See
XLogSegSize in src/include/access/xlog.h. For a low-traffic
installation I suspect you could get away with 1Mb or so. (It wasn't
entirely clear from your message whether you'd already discovered this
setting.)

regards, tom lane