The Empire Strikes Back: Mastering Database Backups & Disaster Recovery

Short summary

PostgreSQL point-in-time recovery combines base backups with Write-Ahead Log archiving to enable recovery to any specific moment. Configure archive_command in postgresql.conf to stream WAL to S3/GCS with a 30-day retention policy, then take regular base backups with pg_basebackup. To restore, extract the base backup, set recovery_target_time, and replay WAL until reaching the exact recovery point.

• •Base backups + WAL archiving enable point-in-time recovery instead of overnight RPO windows
• •Configure archive_mode and archive_command in postgresql.conf to stream WAL to cloud storage with automated retention
• •Restore by extracting base backup, configuring recovery parameters with target timestamp, and replaying WAL logs

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