PostgreSQL 12 High Availability Cookbook - Third Edition

Deciding when to use third-party tools

Managing PostgreSQL backups need not be difficult or require third-party software tooling. In many small or even medium-size environments, it may be perfectly acceptable to rely on the provided pg_basebackup utility.

Yet this assumption rapidly breaks down upon the introduction of even small amounts of complexity. Creating a one-time backup is only a tiny portion of backing up a Relational Database Management System (RDBMS). A complete backup solution will also manage WAL files to orchestrate Point-In-Time Recovery (PITR), restore a backup to a remote location, and target multiple servers if necessary. There's a lot of room for accidents, and any mistake can result in a useless backup or a lost production ...