PostgreSQL 16 Administration Cookbook: Solve real-world Database Administration challenges with 180+ practical recipes and best practices

This book adopts the recipe format: it states a problem, provides one or more solutions, and explains them. This format is useful for finding solutions quickly. The content is of high quality. Some prior experience with databases is required to get the most out of this book.

PostgreSQL16 Administration Cookbook, written by a collective of computer scientists and database engineers, Gianni Ciolli, Boriss Mejias, Jimmy Angelakos, Vibhor Kumar, and Simon Riggs. This book is a massive collective of material spanning twelve chapters which contain thorough "recipes" or 180+ instructional notes for configuring, administering and maintaining PostgreSQL. When we think of a cookbook, we typically imagine a collection of recipes with a description of the dish, required ingredients, preparation and cook time. The authors in this same vein, provides the database administrator with frequently most used tasks that a PostgreSQL or SQL database administrator performs such as server configuration, managing security and permissions, modifying and altering database table objects, schemas and views, monitoring database performance, setting up replication and many more topics. To get the most out of this book, it is best to download the full client and server packages on your laptop, VM or server. Most of these examples are listed in command line using psql; however, pgAdmin offers a GUI tool as an alternative.If you have any knowledge of TSQL scripting using batch statements, the authors fully explain Atomicity and promote scripting over GUI.If you have experience or some knowledge of SQL monitoring then Chapter 8 presents recommendations of external monitoring tools such as Prometheus, Munin and Grafana in addition to Postgres' own pgAdmin and pgBadger which can monitor log files from the pg_stat_activity table and generate error and exception charts in html. Chapter 12 dives into replication and High Availability(HA). One of the authors, Simon Riggs, is the actual engineer who developed most of the replication features of PostgreSQL and explains it carefully although offering no guarantee that it will be a seamless configuration for all users, all the time. Riggs carefully explains streaming replication (SR) using the physical transaction logs or write-ahead logs (WAL) which if you are familiar with log shipping, writes data to a remote node. Riggs also breaks down cascading relay replication from one master node to multiple nodes where a secondary node can also cascade data to tertiary nodes and beyond. Overall, there is a large amount of material that this book covers and it is best to create a sandbox environment to get the most out of it. This is a must-have resource.

Though the title of book is specific to PostgreSQL Administration Cookbook, there are certain topics like 'Security', 'Database Administration', 'Monitoring and Diagnosis', 'Performance and Concurrency' covered best practices which can be learnt and applied in any given database. As authors described this book is very much database administrator centric. Authors clearly outlined topics in a recipe style pattern (Getting Ready, How to do it, How it works) which is good approach in engaging readers and 'try-out' right away.I consider this book as a sequel to Learn PostgreSQL book (by authors - Luca Ferrari, Enrico Pirozzi) for the individuals who want to be a well rounded data engineers.Once again very much thankful to <packt> publishers for giving me such an opportunity to review both PostgreSQL book.

If you're diving into the world of PostgreSQL or seeking to refine your skills, "PostgreSQL Mistakes and How To Avoid Them" is an absolute gem! 🌟 This comprehensive guide doesn't just scratch the surface; it delves deep into the intricacies of database administration, offering practical solutions in a problem-solution format.With the latest edition focusing on PostgreSQL 16, you'll be equipped with the most up-to-date strategies for tackling complex batch loading, enhancing security, and optimizing performance. This book covers everything from handling your first connection to mastering advanced concepts like concurrency and replication.But what truly sets it apart is its conversational tone and real-world examples. It feels like you're chatting with a seasoned expert over coffee rather than slogging through dry technical jargon. And with over 600 pages packed with insights, code snippets, and helpful tips, it's like having a personal mentor guiding you every step of the way.By the end, you'll not only have a solid grasp of PostgreSQL fundamentals but also a toolkit of best practices to navigate any real-world challenge. Whether you're a newbie or a seasoned pro, "PostgreSQL Mistakes and How To Avoid Them" is a must-have addition to your bookshelf!

Postgres is my favorite database and magnitudes cheaper than running something like SQL Server or Oracle. And if you know SQL, there are some minor Postgres-flavored SQL differences, but for the most part you can hit the ground running, except for the parts covered by this book.If you need to configure your db server, manage it, secure it, create backups, restore it, maintain it, upgrade it, or monitor and diagnose slow queries, you need a book like this. And because it uses a cookbook format, you can thumb through the table of contents and go directly to a recipe that provides you with everything you need to know without the fluff. Cookbooks are my favorite and this one will be a constant reference.