PostgreSQL: Up and Running, 2nd Edition

Appendix A. Installing PostgreSQL

Windows, Desktop Linux

EnterpriseDB builds installers for Windows and desktop versions of Linux. For Windows users, this is the preferred installer to use.

The installers are easy to use. They come packaged with PgAdmin and a stack builder from which you can install add-ons like JDBC, .NET drivers, Ruby, PostGIS, phpPgAdmin, and pgAgent.

EnterpriseDB has two PostgreSQL offerings: the official, open source edition of PostgreSQL, dubbed the Community Edition; and its proprietary edition, called Advanced Plus. The proprietary fork offers Oracle compatibility and enhanced management features. Don’t get confused between the two when you download installers. In this book, we focused on the official PostgreSQL, not Postgres Plus Advanced Server; however, much of the material applies to Postgres Plus Advanced Server.

Tip

If you want to try out different versions of PostgreSQL on the same machine or want to run it from a USB device, EnterpriseDB also offers binaries. Read Starting PostgreSQL in Windows without Install for guidance.

CentOS, Fedora, Red Hat, Scientific Linux

Most Linux/Unix distributions offer PostgreSQL in their main repositories, though the version might be outdated. To compensate, many people use backports, which are alternative package repositories offering newer versions.

For adventurous Linux users, download the latest PostgreSQL, including the developmental versions, by going to the PostgreSQL Yum repository. Not only will you find the core ...