Re: pg_config, pg_service.conf, postgresql.conf ....

Mark Woodward wrote:

> As a guy who administers a lot of systems, sometimes over the span of
> years, I can not understate the need for "a" place for the admin to find
> what databases are on the machine and where they are located.
>
> Your assertion that this file would "only works for one root-made
> installation on a single filesystem layout" totally misses the point. The
> point is that me, a consultant, could find where the database is, easily.
> Given a large system, say it has 3 or 4 separate databases on it. How do
> you know which is what?
>

I think you make a good point. However you probably need to include the
location of the server software too (in case you run multiple versions).
This means there really needs to be a standard location (e.g
/usr/local/etc, /etc ...???? on win32) for this "cluster registration"
file, and you need to list (at minimum):

PGHOME
DATADIR
PORT
USER

As Tom hinted, to be effective, this would need to be maintained by the
installation process, otherwise it is just another source of confusion
(like the Oracle site I went to last year where they had an incorrect
/etc/oratab - I wasted *hours* on that....)

Cheers

Mark