Re: How to back up large objects?

Chris,

> I can't seem to figure out how to back up the large ogjects I have in my
> DB.

No way to do this with pg_dump. At least AFAIK. You need something custom,
or just backup the whole DB dir at file level.

> so what is the common usage of large objects?

Well, you asked.... :) Personally I see absolutely no use for BLOBs in
99.9% of cases. As long as BLOBs can not be indexed, searching on them
makes no sense, and they remain mostly a marketing ploy. Yes, one can put a
whole 2.5 MB AVI clip in a BLOB, but who really needs that? As long as they
are stored off-page, there's always some `pumping' involved (PGSQL basic
functions to import/export BLOBs do this) So, if you can't use it until
it's converted to a file, why don't keep it as a file all the time?
This is a personal opinion and I don't claim to posess the final truth.

> My main goal is a method of backing up a database that conists of a
> table that stores the OID of the large objects, the large objects
> themselves

# tar -cf mydb.tar mydb

Works like a champ ;)

Ed

--

Well I tried to be meek
And I have tried to be mild
But I spat like a woman
And I sulked like a child
I have lived behind the walls
That have made me alone
Striven for peace
Which I never have known

Dire Straits, Brothers In Arms, The Man's Too Strong (Knopfler)