How to Install PostgreSQL Server on Ubuntu: A Comprehensive Guide

Introduction

Greetings, dear reader! If you are looking for a powerful, reliable, and open-source relational database management system, you have come to the right place. In this article, we will guide you through the process of installing the PostgreSQL server on Ubuntu, one of the most popular Linux distributions among developers, sysadmins, and data scientists.

But first, let’s clarify some basic concepts and benefits of PostgreSQL.

What is PostgreSQL?

PostgreSQL, also known as Postgres, is an advanced SQL-based DBMS that supports a rich set of data types, operators, and functions. It is widely used for large-scale data storage and analysis in various domains, such as e-commerce, finance, healthcare, and social networks.

What are the advantages of PostgreSQL?

There are many reasons why PostgreSQL is a great choice for your data-related projects:

By now, you might be convinced to try PostgreSQL and see how it fits your needs. But before that, you need to install it on your Ubuntu system. Let’s proceed to the next section.

How to Install PostgreSQL Server on Ubuntu

There are several ways to install PostgreSQL on Ubuntu, but we will focus on the most straightforward and recommended method, which uses the official PostgreSQL apt repository.

Step 1: Add the PostgreSQL apt repository

Open a terminal window or SSH session to your Ubuntu system and run the following commands:

sudo apt updatesudo apt install wget ca-certificateswget --quiet -O - https://www.postgresql.org/media/keys/ACCC4CF8.asc | sudo apt-key add -echo "deb http://apt.postgresql.org/pub/repos/apt/ $(lsb_release -cs)-pgdg main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/pgdg.listsudo apt update

What this does is:

• Update the apt package list and install the necessary tools (wget and ca-certificates)
• Download and import the PostgreSQL repository signing key
• Add the PostgreSQL repository to the apt sources list, based on your Ubuntu release (focal, bionic, xenial, etc.)
• Update the apt package list again, to include the PostgreSQL packages

Note that you need sudo privileges to perform these commands.

Step 2: Install PostgreSQL server and client

Now that you have added the PostgreSQL apt repository, you can install the server and client packages by running:

sudo apt install postgresql postgresql-contrib

The postgresql-contrib package includes some additional utilities and extensions for PostgreSQL, such as pgAdmin, pg_dump, pg_restore, and many more.

During the installation, you will be prompted to set a password for the default PostgreSQL administrative user, called postgres. Enter a strong and secure password, and remember it for later use.

You can also verify that the PostgreSQL service is up and running by typing:

sudo systemctl status postgresql

You should see a message like this:

● postgresql.service - PostgreSQL RDBMSLoaded: loaded (/lib/systemd/system/postgresql.service; enabled; vendor preset: enabled)Active: active (exited) since Sat 2021-10-16 23:07:09 UTC; 2s agoMain PID: 4749 (code=exited, status=0/SUCCESS)Tasks: 0 (limit: 1073)Memory: 0BCPU: 3msCGroup: /system.slice/postgresql.serviceOct 16 23:07:09 ubuntu systemd[1]: Starting PostgreSQL RDBMS...Oct 16 23:07:09 ubuntu systemd[1]: Started PostgreSQL RDBMS.

Step 3: Test the PostgreSQL server

To make sure that the PostgreSQL server is working correctly, you can connect to it and create a test database and table.

Option 1: Use the command-line interface (CLI)

Open a new terminal window or SSH session and type:

sudo -u postgres psql

This will log you in as the postgres user in the psql shell, where you can execute SQL commands.

Now, let’s create a new database called testdb:

CREATE DATABASE testdb;

You should see a message like this:

CREATE DATABASE

Next, let’s connect to the testdb and create a new table called testtable:

\c testdbCREATE TABLE testtable (id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY, name VARCHAR(50), age INT);

You should see a message like this:

CREATE TABLE

Finally, let’s insert some data into the testtable:

INSERT INTO testtable (name, age) VALUES ('John', 30), ('Jane', 25);

You should see a message like this:

INSERT 0 2

You can verify that the data is stored in the testtable by running:

SELECT * FROM testtable;

You should see a result like this:

 id | name | age----+------+-----1 | John |302 | Jane |25(2 rows)

Congratulations, you have successfully installed and tested PostgreSQL on Ubuntu! Now, let’s summarize the main advantages and disadvantages of PostgreSQL.

Advantages and Disadvantages of PostgreSQL

Advantages of PostgreSQL

As we mentioned earlier, PostgreSQL has many strengths that make it a popular choice among developers and data professionals. Let’s review them briefly.

Open-source and free

PostgreSQL is distributed under the PostgreSQL License, which is a liberal and permissive software license that allows you to use, modify, and distribute PostgreSQL without worrying about legal or financial obligations. You can also access the PostgreSQL source code and contribute to its development if you wish.

Scalability and performance

PostgreSQL is designed to handle large datasets, complex queries, and high traffic loads, thanks to its optimized storage engine, indexing, and caching mechanisms. It also supports various clustering and replication methods, such as streaming replication, logical replication, and foreign data wrappers, to distribute data across multiple nodes and reduce latency.

Reliability and integrity

PostgreSQL places a strong emphasis on data consistency, transactional safety, and crash recovery, thanks to its support for ACID properties and various backup and restore methods, such as WAL (Write-Ahead Logging) and PITR (Point-In-Time Recovery). It also provides several options for data encryption, compression, and auditing, to comply with security and compliance standards.

Flexibility and extensibility

PostgreSQL allows you to define your own data types, operators, and functions, as well as integrate with other programming languages and frameworks, such as Python, Ruby, Java, and Node.js. It also comes with many built-in features, such as GIS, full-text search, and JSON support, and many extensions, such as PostGIS, TimescaleDB, and PGRouting, to enhance its functionality.

Community and support

PostgreSQL has a vibrant and active community of users, developers, and contributors, who provide helpful documentation, forums, mailing lists, and conferences. It is also backed by many companies and organizations, such as EDB, Fujitsu, Red Hat, and the PostgreSQL Global Development Group, who offer commercial support, training, and consulting services.

Disadvantages of PostgreSQL

Of course, no software is perfect, and PostgreSQL has some drawbacks that you should be aware of before using it.

Complexity and learning curve

PostgreSQL is a very powerful and comprehensive database system that can handle almost any data-related task, but this also means that it has a steep learning curve and a lot of configuration options. If you are new to PostgreSQL or SQL in general, you might find it overwhelming at first, and need to invest some time and effort to master its features and best practices.

Memory and disk space requirements

PostgreSQL can consume a lot of system resources, especially when dealing with large datasets or complex queries. You need to make sure that your hardware and storage infrastructure can support the expected workload, and optimize the configuration parameters, such as shared_buffers, work_mem, maintenance_work_mem, and autovacuum, to avoid excessive memory usage and disk I/O.

Dependency on extensions and drivers

Although PostgreSQL comes with many built-in features and extensions, you might still need to install third-party modules or drivers to support certain data types or interfaces, such as spatial data, graph data, NoSQL data, or ODBC/JDBC connectivity. This can add some complexity and compatibility issues, and require you to maintain and update these components separately from PostgreSQL itself.

Less widespread than MySQL

Although PostgreSQL is a mature and widely used database system, its popularity and adoption rate are still behind MySQL or MongoDB, especially in certain regions and industries. This means that you might find fewer job opportunities, community resources, or pre-built applications that rely on PostgreSQL, compared to these other systems.

Now that you have a better understanding of the pros and cons of PostgreSQL, you can decide whether to use it or not, depending on your needs and constraints. If you have chosen to use PostgreSQL, we have some additional recommendations and tips for you.

PostgreSQL Best Practices and Tips

Use a consistent naming convention

When you create tables, columns, constraints, functions, or variables in PostgreSQL, make sure to use a consistent and descriptive naming convention that reflects their purpose and type. This will help you and other developers to understand the schema and queries more easily, and avoid conflicts and ambiguities.

Use transactions and savepoints properly

PostgreSQL supports transactions, which allow you to group multiple database operations into a single atomic unit, and roll back or commit them as a whole. Use transactions to ensure data consistency and integrity, and use savepoints to create nested levels of transactions that can be rolled back independently.

Use indexes wisely

PostgreSQL provides several types of indexes, such as B-tree, hash, GIN, and GiST, that can speed up query execution by reducing the number of rows that need to be scanned. However, indexes also consume disk space, memory, and update time, so use them judiciously and selectively. Create indexes on columns that are frequently used in WHERE, ORDER BY, or JOIN clauses, and avoid creating redundant or overlapping indexes.

Use foreign keys and constraints

PostgreSQL supports referential integrity constraints, which allow you to define relationships between tables and ensure that the data remains consistent and valid. Use foreign keys to link the primary key of one table with the foreign key of another table, and use constraints to specify the rules and actions that should be enforced when a constraint is violated, such as CASCADE, SET NULL, or RESTRICT.

Monitor and tune performance regularly

PostgreSQL provides various tools and techniques for monitoring and tuning the performance of your database system, such as pg_stat_statements, pg_stat_activity, EXPLAIN, and ANALYZE. Use these tools to identify and optimize slow queries, inefficient indexes, memory leaks, or disk I/O bottlenecks. Also, keep an eye on the PostgreSQL logs, alerts, and statistics, to detect potential issues or security threats.

Backup and restore your data regularly

PostgreSQL provides several methods for backing up and restoring your data, such as pg_dump, pg_dumpall, and pg_basebackup. Use these methods to create regular backups of your database, and store them in a secure and remote location, such as a cloud storage service. Also, test your backup and restore procedures regularly, to ensure that they work as expected and can recover your data in case of disasters.

Tune the kernel and system settings

PostgreSQL relies heavily on the underlying operating system and kernel parameters, such as shared memory, file descriptors, network buffers, and CPU scheduling. Therefore, you need to tune these settings according to the workload and hardware of your PostgreSQL server. Consult the PostgreSQL documentation and community forums for guidelines and best practices regarding kernel and system tuning.

Upgrade and patch your PostgreSQL version

PostgreSQL releases new versions and updates frequently, to fix bugs, add features, and improve performance and security. Therefore, you need to keep your PostgreSQL server up-to-date and apply patches and upgrades regularly, to take advantage of these improvements and avoid vulnerabilities. Consult the PostgreSQL release notes and upgrade guides before proceeding with any update or upgrade, and make sure to back up your data beforehand.

Now that you have learned some best practices and tips for PostgreSQL, you can start using it with confidence and efficiency. But before we conclude, let’s answer some frequently asked questions about PostgreSQL and Ubuntu.

FAQs about PostgreSQL and Ubuntu

Q1: Is PostgreSQL compatible with Ubuntu?

A1: Yes, PostgreSQL is fully compatible with Ubuntu, and can be installed and used on any version of Ubuntu, such as Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 18.04, or Ubuntu 16.04. Just follow the installation instructions we provided above, and you should be able to get PostgreSQL running on Ubuntu in no time.

Q2: Can I install PostgreSQL on other Linux distributions?

A2: Yes, you can install PostgreSQL on almost any Linux distribution that supports the apt package manager or a compatible package manager, such as yum, dnf, or zypper. However, the installation process might differ slightly depending on the distribution and version, so consult the PostgreSQL documentation or community forums for specific instructions.

Q3: How can I access PostgreSQL from a remote client?

A3: By default, PostgreSQL is configured to listen only on the local loopback interface (127.0.0.1) and the Unix socket file (/var/run/postgresql/.s.PGSQL.5432), for

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