Restore PostgreSQL® from a backup
Aiven for PostgreSQL® databases are automatically backed up and can be restored from a backup at any point in time within the backup retention period, which varies by plan. The restore is created by forking: a new PostgreSQL instance is created and content from the original database is restored into it.
Aiven for PostgreSQL doesn't allow a service to be rolled back to a backup in-place since it creates alternative timelines for the database, adding complexity for the user.
To restore a PostgreSQL database:
- Log in to the Aiven Console.
- Select your Aiven for PostgreSQL service from the Services page.
- Select Service settings from the sidebar of your service's page.
- Go to the Service management section, and click Actions > Fork database.
- Enter a service name, and choose a project name, database version, cloud region and plan for the new instance.
- Select the Source service state defining the backup point, the
options are as follows:
- Latest transaction
- Point in time - the date selector allows to chose a precise point in time within the available backup retention period.
- With all the fork settings configured, select Create fork.
Once the new service is running, you can change your application's connection settings to point to it.
Forked services can also be very useful for testing purposes, allowing you to create a completely realistic, separate copy of the actual production database with its data.
Manual restores
Manual restoration should only be necessary when data is accidentally corrupted by the pointing applications. Aiven automatically handles outages and software failures by replacing broken nodes with new ones that resume correctly from the point of failure.
The Hobbyist service plan does not support database forking, so you have
to use an external tool, such as pg_dump, to perform a backup.
To perform a manual backup, see Create manual PostgreSQL® backups.