Backup PostgreSQL

This guide covers archiving PostgreSQL databases to cold storage using ColdPlane.

Prerequisites

PostgreSQL 9.6 or later
A user with SELECT permission on target tables
ColdPlane CLI installed

Create the Backup

coldplane backup create \
  --db-url "postgres://readonly:password@db.example.com:5432/production" \
  --tables "users,orders,products"

Both postgres:// and pg:// connection schemes are supported.

Verify the Backup

coldplane backup list
coldplane backup describe <backup-id>

Tuning Performance

For large tables, you can adjust the chunk size and number of parallel workers:

coldplane backup create \
  --db-url "postgres://readonly:password@db.example.com:5432/production" \
  --tables "events,logs" \
  --chunk-size 5000000 \
  --workers 8

Use a read replica connection string for production databases to avoid impacting query performance.

Local Mode

You can archive PostgreSQL tables locally without a ColdPlane account. Local backups are stored as Parquet files on your machine.

coldplane backup create --local \
  --db-url "postgres://user:pass@localhost:5432/mydb" \
  --tables "users,orders"

Local backups are saved to ~/.coldplane/backups/<name>/. You can list them with:

coldplane backup list --local

Query them directly:

coldplane query run --local \
  --backup-id <backup-name> \
  --sql "SELECT count(*) FROM restore_input"

And delete when no longer needed:

coldplane backup delete --local <backup-name>

Local mode is a great way to try ColdPlane. When you are ready for encrypted cloud storage and team features, sign up and drop the --local flag.

Prerequisites

Create the Backup

Verify the Backup

Tuning Performance

Local Mode

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