What Is PostgreSQL?

• PostgreSQL Definition

  PostgreSQL Definition

  PostgreSQL is an open-source relational database management system (RDBMS). It allows users to store, manage, and retrieve structured data reliably and efficiently. Unlike many other RDBMS options, PostgreSQL supports relational and non-relational querying, so it can be used with both SQL and JavaScript Object Notation (JSON).

  PostgreSQL’s origins can be traced back to the University of California, Berkeley. In 1986, Professor Michael Stonebraker began the PostgreSQL project, initially named POSTGRES, in the hopes of supporting multiple data types with the fewest number of features. A decade later, the project was renamed PostgreSQL due to its support of SQL. Today, the PostgreSQL Global Development Group makes regular changes to improve PostgreSQL, which remains free to use.

  PostgreSQL is incredibly stable, offering its users resilience, flexibility, and integrity. It’s also known for its scalability, high level of performance, and wealth of features. It’s capable of handling many advanced PostgreSQL data types and complicated queries. As a result, it’s suitable for a wide variety of use cases and applications, from small-scale projects and startups to large-scale enterprise systems, websites, and geospatial databases.
• Key Features of PostgreSQL

  Key Features of PostgreSQL

  PostgreSQL is one of the most powerful and versatile database management systems available, in part thanks to its rich set of features. Developers have continued to improve its functionality, making it more robust, scalable, secure, and easy to use.

  As a go-to solution for organizations both large and small, the key features of PostgreSQL include:

  • Support for many data types: PostgreSQL supports a wide range of advanced data types. Not only does it offer native support for JSON but it can also handle geometric data and custom PostgreSQL data types, meaning users can store and retrieve data in formats suiting their specific application needs. This makes PostgreSQL an excellent choice in situations requiring complex or non-traditional data storage, such as geospatial systems or analytics platforms.
  • Object-oriented features: PostgreSQL is particularly known for its object-oriented features compared to other relational databases. Thanks to these features and relational capabilities, programmers can communicate with database servers via objects and define parent-child relationships between tables, which are functions that work with their own data types along with complex and custom data types.
  • Advanced indexing: PostgreSQL supports many different index types, including Hash, GiST, B-trees, SP-GiST, and GIN.
  • Atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability (ACID) compliance: PostgreSQL is also ACID compliant, so it can reliably complete database transactions and is an excellent option for applications where data integrity is non-negotiable.
  • Security: PostgreSQL features several advanced security measures, including data encryption and connection security. It also enables role-based access control and granular permissions, allowing organizations to restrict user and application access to specific data and functions.
  • Extensibility: PostgreSQL is highly extensible, as it allows users to integrate additional modules and add custom functions, aggregates, and operators. PostgreSQL supports procedural languages, from Python to Perl, and is compatible with third-party extensions, such as PostGIS, for geospatial analysis.
  • Point-in-time recovery (PITR): Developers using PostgreSQL can use the PITR feature, which allows them to restore databases to a specific moment by replaying transaction logs to their chosen point. They can then recover from failures, accidental data deletion, system crashes, corruption, and other errors without losing much, if any, data.
  • Foreign data wrappers (FDWs): PostgreSQL’s FDWs allow users to integrate data from several external data sources into a single database without needing to duplicate data or physically move it. This results in improved query performance and allows users to see a unified view of their data, regardless of source, simplifying data analysis and helping prevent data silos.
  • Compatibility with many languages: PostgreSQL supports several programming languages, including JavaScript, Python, C/C++, and Ruby. Thanks to this coding language support, developers can complete their database tasks in the language they’re most comfortable with.
• PostgreSQL Functions

  PostgreSQL Functions

  PostgreSQL has several easy-to-use functions to enhance its flexibility and power, allowing users to perform advanced data manipulations, calculations, and analysis directly within the database and helping to streamline workflows, which reduces the need for external tools.

  Notable PostgreSQL functions include:

  • PostgreSQL SUBSTRING(): Users can extract a substring of characters from a string using the PostgreSQL SUBSTRING() function, which is useful when manipulating text data.
  • JSON functions: Users can quickly query and manipulate JSON data with JSONB_EXTRACT_PATH(), JSONB_AGG(), and TO_JSON(). There are many supported PostgreSQL data types and functions.
  • Geometric functions: Users can use a PostgreSQL server for handling geometric data types through functions such as DISTANCE(), BOX(), and AREA().
  • Aggregate functions: Users might use functions such as SUM(), COUNT(), or AVG() to perform calculations across several rows.
  • User-defined functions: Users can also define their own PostgreSQL functions using SQL, Procedural Language/PostgreSQL, Python, or another supported programming language.
• PostgreSQL Use Cases

  PostgreSQL Use Cases

  PostgreSQL is a popular choice among organizations—and with good reason. It’s a powerful RDBMS with many built-in functions, which improve its usability, increase its flexibility, and prepare it to handle complex queries and calculations quickly and easily.

  PostgreSQL is most often used for:

  • Data warehousing and analytics: PostgreSQL excels in data warehousing with its ability to store massive datasets, handle complex queries, and support diverse data types, which makes it equally powerful for data analysis.
  • Online transaction processing: PostgreSQL can be configured for full redundancy and automatic failover, so it’s often a go-to choice for financial institutions, startups, manufacturers, e-commerce shops, and other companies that have large-scale applications, solutions, or products available on the internet.
  • Geospatial purposes: The Open Geospatial Consortium PostGIS extension can be added to PostgreSQL if users want to store geospatial data for location-based services and geographic information systems. Not only is this great for applications, such as mapping, geolocation, and urban planning, but it can also be used by companies to improve data analysis and reduce fraud.
  • Dynamic apps and websites: PostgreSQL’s ability to efficiently handle large amounts of data and simultaneous users makes it an excellent choice for apps and websites, from content management systems to e-commerce platforms. Users can create, host, maintain, and run dynamic apps and websites using Linux, Apache, and PostgreSQL with PHP, Python, and Perl.
  • Social media platforms: PostgreSQL’s ability to manage large relational datasets and high volumes of traffic means many social media companies rely on it when managing user profiles, posts, connections, and other interactions.
  • Consolidating databases: Many companies migrate legacy databases to PostgreSQL for its support of diverse data types and open-source models, allowing them to retire old servers, reduce database sprawl, and cut license costs.

  PostgreSQL is widely used across industries due to its versatility and reliability. In e-commerce, it manages customer data, high order volumes, and numerous transactions. Financial institutions rely on it to streamline and secure transactions and customer information. Healthcare organizations use PostgreSQL to securely store and quickly retrieve patient records, medical histories, and other critical data. Government entities depend on it for managing public records, voter registration, and administrative databases. Educational institutions use it to handle student information, academic records, and class schedules with ease, while scientific research companies leverage PostgreSQL to store and analyze complex data and research findings.
• Benefits of Using PostgreSQL

  Benefits of Using PostgreSQL

  PostgreSQL offers a wealth of benefits to its users, including:

  • Compatibility with several advanced data types: PostgreSQL supports many advanced data types, including JSON/JSONB, Extensible Markup Language, and geometric data. This allows developers to handle diverse datasets efficiently, meaning they can use PostgreSQL for a wide range of applications without additional tools and plugins.
  • High performance: Many organizations needing to handle a significant amount of data or have many complex queries turn to PostgreSQL due to its exceptional performance.
  • Concurrency support: PostgreSQL uses multi-version concurrency control, unlike traditional database systems, which block multiple users from accessing data simultaneously to avoid read/write conflicts. This allows reads and writes to occur without blocking each other, ensuring smooth, efficient data access for multiple users.
  • Compliance with standards: PostgreSQL is compliant with the SQL standard. As a result, developers and analysts already familiar with SQL can easily use PostgreSQL and apply their established database practices, leading to improved data integrity and query consistency.
  • High performance and scalability: PostgreSQL delivers exceptional speed and efficiency for data authentication and read/write operations, powered by advanced performance optimizations, such as unrestricted concurrency. As applications scale and user traffic increases, PostgreSQL’s robust architecture ensures seamless handling of deep data analysis across diverse data types and excels at storing and retrieving large datasets.
  • Cost savings: PostgreSQL is an open-source software, so users don’t have to pay any licensing fees.
  • Flexibility and extensibility: PostgreSQL’s open-source license gives users more freedom when it comes to modifications. Whether adding extensions, creating custom functions, or modifying the source code itself, developers can customize the database to suit their organization’s specific needs.
  • An active community: PostgreSQL has a large, active, and dedicated community of contributors working together to detect bugs, issue fixes, boost security, and ultimately improve the RDBMS. As a result, PostgreSQL is up-to-date, reliable, and feature-rich, making it an excellent choice for developers and organizations.
• PostgreSQL Database Monitoring

  PostgreSQL Database Monitoring

  Your databases are the backbone of your business. Built with dedication and care, your databases deserve a performance solution that matches your commitment. With SolarWinds^® Database Performance Analyzer (DPA), you gain unparalleled visibility into critical PostgreSQL metrics, empowering you to monitor, diagnose, and resolve performance issues with precision. Ensure your PostgreSQL databases perform at their absolute best with data-driven insights designed to keep your business running smoothly.

  DPA is designed to monitor PostgreSQL environments across hybrid infrastructures, offering comprehensive support for on-premises, cloud, and virtualized setups, including EDB Postgres, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, Amazon RDS/Aurora for PostgreSQL, and Google Cloud SQL. With <1% overhead, its agentless architecture ensures accurate performance insights without disrupting your systems.

  Key features of SolarWinds DPA include:

  • Comprehensive metric coverage: Monitor PostgreSQL-specific metrics, such as cache eviction, checkpoints, replication, vacuum, and row operations, alongside system-level metrics, such as disk, memory, and network performance.
  • Machine learning-driven insights: Detect anomalies and query impact analysis to uncover hidden performance bottlenecks, enabling swift issue resolution and optimization.
  • Table tuning advisors: Eliminate guesswork with actionable recommendations on inefficient queries, table usage, and indexing strategies, empowering data-driven decision-making.
  • Virtualized PostgreSQL monitoring: Gain visibility into VMware virtual environments with integrated virtualization monitoring, helping you identify whether performance issues originate from the VM or the database.

  SolarWinds DPA presents data in easy-to-understand graphs and dashboards, enabling quick identification of bottlenecks, errors, and trends. For a deeper dive, users can explore granular details in a few clicks, making it easier to pinpoint root causes and implement fixes.