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TLDR: pg_basebackup (tldr-pages)

Take a base backup of a running PostgreSQL cluster.

  • Take a base backup from a remote PostgreSQL server
    pg_basebackup {{-h|--host}} {{host}} {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}}
  • Take a backup with progress shown
    pg_basebackup {{-h|--host}} {{host}} {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}} {{-P|--progress}}
  • Create a compressed backup (`gzip`) in tar format
    pg_basebackup {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}} {{-F|--format}} {{t|tar}} {{-z|--gzip}}
  • Create an incremental backup using a previous manifest file
    pg_basebackup {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}} {{-i|--incremental}} {{path/to/old_manifest}}
  • Write a recovery configuration for setting up a standby
    pg_basebackup {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}} {{-R|--write-recovery-conf}}
  • Relocate a tablespace during backup
    pg_basebackup {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}} {{-T|--tablespace-mapping}} {{path/to/old_tablespace}}={{path/to/new_tablespace}}
  • Limit transfer rate to reduce server load
    pg_basebackup {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}} {{-r|--max-rate}} {{100M}}
  • Stream WAL logs while taking the backup
    pg_basebackup {{-D|--pgdata}} {{path/to/backup_dir}} {{-X|--wal-method}} stream
PG_BASEBACKUP(1)                   PostgreSQL 14.23 Documentation                   PG_BASEBACKUP(1)



NAME
       pg_basebackup - take a base backup of a PostgreSQL cluster

SYNOPSIS
       pg_basebackup [option...]

DESCRIPTION
       pg_basebackup is used to take a base backup of a running PostgreSQL database cluster. The
       backup is taken without affecting other clients of the database, and can be used both for
       point-in-time recovery (see Section 26.3) and as the starting point for a log-shipping or
       streaming-replication standby server (see Section 27.2).

       pg_basebackup makes an exact copy of the database cluster's files, while making sure the
       server is put into and out of backup mode automatically. Backups are always taken of the
       entire database cluster; it is not possible to back up individual databases or database
       objects. For selective backups, another tool such as pg_dump(1) must be used.

       The backup is made over a regular PostgreSQL connection that uses the replication protocol.
       The connection must be made with a user ID that has REPLICATION permissions (see
       Section 22.2) or is a superuser, and pg_hba.conf must permit the replication connection. The
       server must also be configured with max_wal_senders set high enough to provide at least one
       walsender for the backup plus one for WAL streaming (if used).

       There can be multiple pg_basebackups running at the same time, but it is usually better from
       a performance point of view to take only one backup, and copy the result.

       pg_basebackup can make a base backup from not only a primary server but also a standby. To
       take a backup from a standby, set up the standby so that it can accept replication
       connections (that is, set max_wal_senders and hot_standby, and configure its pg_hba.conf
       appropriately). You will also need to enable full_page_writes on the primary.

       Note that there are some limitations in taking a backup from a standby:

       •   The backup history file is not created in the database cluster backed up.

       •   pg_basebackup cannot force the standby to switch to a new WAL file at the end of backup.
           When you are using -X none, if write activity on the primary is low, pg_basebackup may
           need to wait a long time for the last WAL file required for the backup to be switched and
           archived. In this case, it may be useful to run pg_switch_wal on the primary in order to
           trigger an immediate WAL file switch.

       •   If the standby is promoted to be primary during backup, the backup fails.

       •   All WAL records required for the backup must contain sufficient full-page writes, which
           requires you to enable full_page_writes on the primary and not to use a tool like
           pg_compresslog as archive_command to remove full-page writes from WAL files.

       Whenever pg_basebackup is taking a base backup, the server's pg_stat_progress_basebackup view
       will report the progress of the backup. See Section 28.4.5 for details.

OPTIONS
       The following command-line options control the location and format of the output:

       -D directory
       --pgdata=directory
           Sets the target directory to write the output to.  pg_basebackup will create this
           directory (and any missing parent directories) if it does not exist. If it already
           exists, it must be empty.

           When the backup is in tar format, the target directory may be specified as - (dash),
           causing the tar file to be written to stdout.

           This option is required.

       -F format
       --format=format
           Selects the format for the output.  format can be one of the following:

           p
           plain
               Write the output as plain files, with the same layout as the source server's data
               directory and tablespaces. When the cluster has no additional tablespaces, the whole
               database will be placed in the target directory. If the cluster contains additional
               tablespaces, the main data directory will be placed in the target directory, but all
               other tablespaces will be placed in the same absolute path as they have on the source
               server. (See --tablespace-mapping to change that.)

               This is the default format.

           t
           tar
               Write the output as tar files in the target directory. The main data directory's
               contents will be written to a file named base.tar, and each other tablespace will be
               written to a separate tar file named after that tablespace's OID.

               If the target directory is specified as - (dash), the tar contents will be written to
               standard output, suitable for piping to (for example) gzip. This is only allowed if
               the cluster has no additional tablespaces and WAL streaming is not used.

       -R
       --write-recovery-conf
           Creates a standby.signal

           file and appends connection settings to the postgresql.auto.conf file in the target
           directory (or within the base archive file when using tar format). This eases setting up
           a standby server using the results of the backup.

           The postgresql.auto.conf file will record the connection settings and, if specified, the
           replication slot that pg_basebackup is using, so that streaming replication will use the
           same settings later on.

       -T olddir=newdir
       --tablespace-mapping=olddir=newdir
           Relocates the tablespace in directory olddir to newdir during the backup. To be
           effective, olddir must exactly match the path specification of the tablespace as it is
           defined on the source server. (But it is not an error if there is no tablespace in olddir
           on the source server.) Meanwhile newdir is a directory in the receiving host's
           filesystem. As with the main target directory, newdir need not exist already, but if it
           does exist it must be empty. Both olddir and newdir must be absolute paths. If either
           path needs to contain an equal sign (=), precede that with a backslash. This option can
           be specified multiple times for multiple tablespaces.

           If a tablespace is relocated in this way, the symbolic links inside the main data
           directory are updated to point to the new location. So the new data directory is ready to
           be used for a new server instance with all tablespaces in the updated locations.

           Currently, this option only works with plain output format; it is ignored if tar format
           is selected.

       --waldir=waldir
           Sets the directory to write WAL (write-ahead log) files to. By default WAL files will be
           placed in the pg_wal subdirectory of the target directory, but this option can be used to
           place them elsewhere.  waldir must be an absolute path. As with the main target
           directory, waldir need not exist already, but if it does exist it must be empty. This
           option can only be specified when the backup is in plain format.

       -X method
       --wal-method=method
           Includes the required WAL (write-ahead log) files in the backup. This will include all
           write-ahead logs generated during the backup. Unless the method none is specified, it is
           possible to start a postmaster in the target directory without the need to consult the
           log archive, thus making the output a completely standalone backup.

           The following methods for collecting the write-ahead logs are supported:

           n
           none
               Don't include write-ahead logs in the backup.

           f
           fetch
               The write-ahead log files are collected at the end of the backup. Therefore, it is
               necessary for the source server's wal_keep_size parameter to be set high enough that
               the required log data is not removed before the end of the backup. If the required
               log data has been recycled before it's time to transfer it, the backup will fail and
               be unusable.

               When tar format is used, the write-ahead log files will be included in the base.tar
               file.

           s
           stream
               Stream write-ahead log data while the backup is being taken. This method will open a
               second connection to the server and start streaming the write-ahead log in parallel
               while running the backup. Therefore, it will require two replication connections not
               just one. As long as the client can keep up with the write-ahead log data, using this
               method requires no extra write-ahead logs to be saved on the source server.

               When tar format is used, the write-ahead log files will be written to a separate file
               named pg_wal.tar (if the server is a version earlier than 10, the file will be named
               pg_xlog.tar).

               This value is the default.

       -z
       --gzip
           Enables gzip compression of tar file output, with the default compression level.
           Compression is only available when using the tar format, and the suffix .gz will
           automatically be added to all tar filenames.

       -Z level
       --compress=level
           Enables gzip compression of tar file output, and specifies the compression level (0
           through 9, 0 being no compression and 9 being best compression). Compression is only
           available when using the tar format, and the suffix .gz will automatically be added to
           all tar filenames.

       The following command-line options control the generation of the backup and the invocation of
       the program:

       -c fast|spread
       --checkpoint=fast|spread
           Sets checkpoint mode to fast (immediate) or spread (the default) (see Section 26.3.3).

       -C
       --create-slot
           Specifies that the replication slot named by the --slot option should be created before
           starting the backup. An error is raised if the slot already exists.

       -l label
       --label=label
           Sets the label for the backup. If none is specified, a default value of “pg_basebackup
           base backup” will be used.

       -n
       --no-clean
           By default, when pg_basebackup aborts with an error, it removes any directories it might
           have created before discovering that it cannot finish the job (for example, the target
           directory and write-ahead log directory). This option inhibits tidying-up and is thus
           useful for debugging.

           Note that tablespace directories are not cleaned up either way.

       -N
       --no-sync
           By default, pg_basebackup will wait for all files to be written safely to disk. This
           option causes pg_basebackup to return without waiting, which is faster, but means that a
           subsequent operating system crash can leave the base backup corrupt. Generally, this
           option is useful for testing but should not be used when creating a production
           installation.

       -P
       --progress
           Enables progress reporting. Turning this on will deliver an approximate progress report
           during the backup. Since the database may change during the backup, this is only an
           approximation and may not end at exactly 100%. In particular, when WAL log is included in
           the backup, the total amount of data cannot be estimated in advance, and in this case the
           estimated target size will increase once it passes the total estimate without WAL.

       -r rate
       --max-rate=rate
           Sets the maximum transfer rate at which data is collected from the source server. This
           can be useful to limit the impact of pg_basebackup on the server. Values are in kilobytes
           per second. Use a suffix of M to indicate megabytes per second. A suffix of k is also
           accepted, and has no effect. Valid values are between 32 kilobytes per second and 1024
           megabytes per second.

           This option always affects transfer of the data directory. Transfer of WAL files is only
           affected if the collection method is fetch.

       -S slotname
       --slot=slotname
           This option can only be used together with -X stream. It causes WAL streaming to use the
           specified replication slot. If the base backup is intended to be used as a
           streaming-replication standby using a replication slot, the standby should then use the
           same replication slot name as primary_slot_name. This ensures that the primary server
           does not remove any necessary WAL data in the time between the end of the base backup and
           the start of streaming replication on the new standby.

           The specified replication slot has to exist unless the option -C is also used.

           If this option is not specified and the server supports temporary replication slots
           (version 10 and later), then a temporary replication slot is automatically used for WAL
           streaming.

       -v
       --verbose
           Enables verbose mode. Will output some extra steps during startup and shutdown, as well
           as show the exact file name that is currently being processed if progress reporting is
           also enabled.

       --manifest-checksums=algorithm
           Specifies the checksum algorithm that should be applied to each file included in the
           backup manifest. Currently, the available algorithms are NONE, CRC32C, SHA224, SHA256,
           SHA384, and SHA512. The default is CRC32C.

           If NONE is selected, the backup manifest will not contain any checksums. Otherwise, it
           will contain a checksum of each file in the backup using the specified algorithm. In
           addition, the manifest will always contain a SHA256 checksum of its own contents. The SHA
           algorithms are significantly more CPU-intensive than CRC32C, so selecting one of them may
           increase the time required to complete the backup.

           Using a SHA hash function provides a cryptographically secure digest of each file for
           users who wish to verify that the backup has not been tampered with, while the CRC32C
           algorithm provides a checksum that is much faster to calculate; it is good at catching
           errors due to accidental changes but is not resistant to malicious modifications. Note
           that, to be useful against an adversary who has access to the backup, the backup manifest
           would need to be stored securely elsewhere or otherwise verified not to have been
           modified since the backup was taken.

           pg_verifybackup(1) can be used to check the integrity of a backup against the backup
           manifest.

       --manifest-force-encode
           Forces all filenames in the backup manifest to be hex-encoded. If this option is not
           specified, only non-UTF8 filenames are hex-encoded. This option is mostly intended to
           test that tools which read a backup manifest file properly handle this case.

       --no-estimate-size
           Prevents the server from estimating the total amount of backup data that will be
           streamed, resulting in the backup_total column in the pg_stat_progress_basebackup view
           always being NULL.

           Without this option, the backup will start by enumerating the size of the entire
           database, and then go back and send the actual contents. This may make the backup take
           slightly longer, and in particular it will take longer before the first data is sent.
           This option is useful to avoid such estimation time if it's too long.

           This option is not allowed when using --progress.

       --no-manifest
           Disables generation of a backup manifest. If this option is not specified, the server
           will generate and send a backup manifest which can be verified using pg_verifybackup(1).
           The manifest is a list of every file present in the backup with the exception of any WAL
           files that may be included. It also stores the size, last modification time, and an
           optional checksum for each file.

       --no-slot
           Prevents the creation of a temporary replication slot for the backup.

           By default, if log streaming is selected but no slot name is given with the -S option,
           then a temporary replication slot is created (if supported by the source server).

           The main purpose of this option is to allow taking a base backup when the server has no
           free replication slots. Using a replication slot is almost always preferred, because it
           prevents needed WAL from being removed by the server during the backup.

       --no-verify-checksums
           Disables verification of checksums, if they are enabled on the server the base backup is
           taken from.

           By default, checksums are verified and checksum failures will result in a non-zero exit
           status. However, the base backup will not be removed in such a case, as if the --no-clean
           option had been used. Checksum verification failures will also be reported in the
           pg_stat_database view.

       The following command-line options control the connection to the source server:

       -d connstr
       --dbname=connstr
           Specifies parameters used to connect to the server, as a connection string; these will
           override any conflicting command line options.

           The option is called --dbname for consistency with other client applications, but because
           pg_basebackup doesn't connect to any particular database in the cluster, any database
           name in the connection string will be ignored.

       -h host
       --host=host
           Specifies the host name of the machine on which the server is running. If the value
           begins with a slash, it is used as the directory for a Unix domain socket. The default is
           taken from the PGHOST environment variable, if set, else a Unix domain socket connection
           is attempted.

       -p port
       --port=port
           Specifies the TCP port or local Unix domain socket file extension on which the server is
           listening for connections. Defaults to the PGPORT environment variable, if set, or a
           compiled-in default.

       -s interval
       --status-interval=interval
           Specifies the number of seconds between status packets sent back to the source server.
           Smaller values allow more accurate monitoring of backup progress from the server. A value
           of zero disables periodic status updates completely, although an update will still be
           sent when requested by the server, to avoid timeout-based disconnects. The default value
           is 10 seconds.

       -U username
       --username=username
           Specifies the user name to connect as.

       -w
       --no-password
           Prevents issuing a password prompt. If the server requires password authentication and a
           password is not available by other means such as a .pgpass file, the connection attempt
           will fail. This option can be useful in batch jobs and scripts where no user is present
           to enter a password.

       -W
       --password
           Forces pg_basebackup to prompt for a password before connecting to the source server.

           This option is never essential, since pg_basebackup will automatically prompt for a
           password if the server demands password authentication. However, pg_basebackup will waste
           a connection attempt finding out that the server wants a password. In some cases it is
           worth typing -W to avoid the extra connection attempt.

       Other options are also available:

       -V
       --version
           Prints the pg_basebackup version and exits.

       -?
       --help
           Shows help about pg_basebackup command line arguments, and exits.

ENVIRONMENT
       This utility, like most other PostgreSQL utilities, uses the environment variables supported
       by libpq (see Section 34.15).

       The environment variable PG_COLOR specifies whether to use color in diagnostic messages.
       Possible values are always, auto and never.

NOTES
       At the beginning of the backup, a checkpoint needs to be performed on the source server. This
       can take some time (especially if the option --checkpoint=fast is not used), during which
       pg_basebackup will appear to be idle.

       The backup will include all files in the data directory and tablespaces, including the
       configuration files and any additional files placed in the directory by third parties, except
       certain temporary files managed by PostgreSQL. But only regular files and directories are
       copied, except that symbolic links used for tablespaces are preserved. Symbolic links
       pointing to certain directories known to PostgreSQL are copied as empty directories. Other
       symbolic links and special device files are skipped. See Section 53.4 for the precise
       details.

       In plain format, tablespaces will be backed up to the same path they have on the source
       server, unless the option --tablespace-mapping is used. Without this option, running a plain
       format base backup on the same host as the server will not work if tablespaces are in use,
       because the backup would have to be written to the same directory locations as the original
       tablespaces.

       When tar format is used, it is the user's responsibility to unpack each tar file before
       starting a PostgreSQL server that uses the data. If there are additional tablespaces, the tar
       files for them need to be unpacked in the correct locations. In this case the symbolic links
       for those tablespaces will be created by the server according to the contents of the
       tablespace_map file that is included in the base.tar file.

       pg_basebackup works with servers of the same or an older major version, down to 9.1. However,
       WAL streaming mode (-X stream) only works with server version 9.3 and later, and tar format
       (--format=tar) only works with server version 9.5 and later.

       pg_basebackup will preserve group permissions for data files if group permissions are enabled
       on the source cluster.

EXAMPLES
       To create a base backup of the server at mydbserver and store it in the local directory
       /usr/local/pgsql/data:

           $ pg_basebackup -h mydbserver -D /usr/local/pgsql/data

       To create a backup of the local server with one compressed tar file for each tablespace, and
       store it in the directory backup, showing a progress report while running:

           $ pg_basebackup -D backup -Ft -z -P

       To create a backup of a single-tablespace local database and compress this with bzip2:

           $ pg_basebackup -D - -Ft -X fetch | bzip2 > backup.tar.bz2

       (This command will fail if there are multiple tablespaces in the database.)

       To create a backup of a local database where the tablespace in /opt/ts is relocated to
       ./backup/ts:

           $ pg_basebackup -D backup/data -T /opt/ts=$(pwd)/backup/ts

SEE ALSO
       pg_dump(1), Section 28.4.5



PostgreSQL 14.23                                2026                                PG_BASEBACKUP(1)
pg_basebackup(1)
NAME SYNOPSIS DESCRIPTION OPTIONS
-D directory -F format -R --write-recovery-conf -T olddir=newdir -X method -z --gzip -Z level -c fast|spread -C --create-slot -l label -n --no-clean -N --no-sync -P --progress -r rate -S slotname -v --verbose --manifest-force-encode --no-estimate-size --no-manifest --no-slot --no-verify-checksums -d connstr -h host -p port -s interval -U username -w --no-password -W --password -V --version --help
ENVIRONMENT NOTES EXAMPLES SEE ALSO

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