AW: backup and restore

> Well, that would only be part og what I'm looking for. The thing I like about
> informix is that I can make a Level 0 backup of all the data (equal to the
> pg_dumpall), and then leave the logical logs downloading continuosly, so that
> if in one moment the system breaks, I restore the Level 0 backup and then
> apply the logical logs, which are the small changes that have been done to
> the database in each transaction, administration, etc.
>
> Could this be added? I am willing to help with the coding.

This is what Version 7.1 WAL is all about.
There might be some help wanted in one of the possible backup methods:
1. a pg_dumpall restore, and a subsequent restore of logs
2. a restore of a "physical backup of db files" + subsequent restore of logs

I think Vadim has the 1st way in his works.
The 2nd way would need some work and testing, and probably some utility to
backup the files in the correct order
(Could be something that calls tar with appropriate arguments).
I am still pretty sure that a physical backup without synchronization with the
postmaster is possible with a little extra work. E.g. checking index validity
after restore and rebuild if bogus. The better way would probably be to not backup
index files at all and rebuild them after restore.

A distinct suffix for different file types would definitely help in this area (.dat, .idx, .tmp ...).
I think this would be a good idea overall.

Andreas