Setting up replication in PostgreSQL involves configuring a primary (master) server and one or more

standby (replica) servers. PostgreSQL supports two main types of replication: physical replication
(streaming replication) and logical replication. In this guide, we'll focus on physical replication, which is
commonly used for high availability (HA) setups.

Steps for Setting Up Streaming (Physical) Replication in PostgreSQL

1. Prepare the Primary (Master) Server

a. Edit postgresql.conf on the Primary

On the primary server, you need to adjust some configuration settings to enable replication.

1. Open the postgresql.conf file:

[postgres@localhost pg_data]$ ls -lrt postgresql.conf

-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 29686 Oct 20 13:09 postgresql.conf
[postgres@localhost pg_data]$ pwd
/postgres/pg_data
[postgres@localhost pg_data]$vi /postgres/pg_data/postgresql.conf

2. Enable WAL archiving and configure replication settings: Add or modify the following
parameters:

wal_level = replica # Required for physical replication

max_wal_senders = 5 # Number of replication connections allowed
wal_keep_size = 64 # Amount of WAL files (in MB) to retain for
replicas
archive_mode = on # Enable archiving of WAL segments (optional)
archive_command = 'cp %p /path_to_wal_archive/%f' # Command to archive WAL
(optional)
listen_addresses = '*' # Allow connections from any IP (or specify an
IP)

o wal_level = replica: This is required for streaming replication.

o max_wal_senders: This sets the number of standby servers that can connect for replication.
o wal_keep_size: This defines the amount of WAL logs to keep to prevent standby servers
from falling behind.
o listen_addresses: This allows remote connections to the primary server.

postgres=# show wal_level;

wal_level
-----------
replica
(1 row)

postgres=# show archive_mode;

archive_mode
--------------
on
(1 row)

postgres=# show max_wal_senders ;

max_wal_senders
-----------------
 10
(1 row)

postgres=# show max_replication_slots;

max_replication_slots
-----------------------
10
(1 row)

3. Reload or restart PostgreSQL to apply these changes:

systemctl restart postgresql

b. Edit pg_hba.conf on the Primary

The pg_hba.conf file controls client authentication, and you need to allow replication connections from the
standby server.

1. Open the pg_hba.conf file:

Vi /postgres/pg_data/pg_hba.conf

[postgres@localhost archivelogs]$ hostname -I

192.168.30.9 192.168.122.1
[postgres@localhost archivelogs]$

2. Add a replication entry: Add a line that allows the standby server to connect for replication.
Replace standby_ip_address with the IP address of the standby server:

host replication replication_user 192.168.30.9/32 md5

host replication all 192.168.30.9/32 md5

This allows the standby to connect using an IP address and md5 authentication.

3. Reload PostgreSQL:

systemctl reload postgresql

c. Create a Replication Role on the Primary

You need a user that has replication privileges.

1. Create the replication role:

postgres=# create user replication_user password 'postgres' replication;

CREATE ROLE
postgres=#

2. Grant the role appropriate privileges, if needed.

2. Prepare the Standby (Replica) Server

a. Base Backup from Primary

To set up replication, the standby needs a copy of the data directory from the primary server.
 1. Stop the standby server if it's running:

systemctl stop postgresql

2. Use the pg_basebackup command to copy the data from the primary to the standby server:

pg_basebackup -h primary_ip_address -D /home/PG/backup/standby -U

replication_user -P -R

[postgres@localhost rep]$ pg_basebackup -h localhost -D

/home/PG/backup/rep/ -U replication_user -P -R
Password:
38300/38300 kB (100%), 1/1 tablespace
[postgres@localhost rep]$ ls –lrt

o -h primary_ip_address: IP address of the primary server.

o -D /postgres/pg_data/standby/data_directory: Data directory of the standby server.
o -U replication_user: User created for replication.
o -P: Show progress.
o -R: Automatically creates a recovery.conf file on the standby, which is needed for replication.

[postgres@localhost rep]$ ls -lrt

total 284
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 225 Oct 20 17:39 backup_label
drwx------. 3 postgres postgres 60 Oct 20 17:39 pg_wal
drwx------. 7 postgres postgres 59 Oct 20 17:39 base
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_snapshots
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_serial
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_replslot
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_notify
drwx------. 4 postgres postgres 36 Oct 20 17:39 pg_multixact
drwx------. 4 postgres postgres 68 Oct 20 17:39 pg_logical
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_dynshmem
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_commit_ts
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 32 Oct 20 17:39 log
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 29686 Oct 20 17:39 postgresql.conf
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 465 Oct 20 17:39 postgresql.auto.conf
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 18 Oct 20 17:39 pg_xact
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 3 Oct 20 17:39 PG_VERSION
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_twophase
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_tblspc
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_subtrans
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_stat_tmp
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 6 Oct 20 17:39 pg_stat
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 2640 Oct 20 17:39 pg_ident.conf
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 5636 Oct 20 17:39 pg_hba.conf
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 30 Oct 20 17:39 current_logfiles
drwx------. 2 postgres postgres 4096 Oct 20 17:39 global
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 0 Oct 20 17:39 standby.signal
-rw-------. 1 postgres postgres 225003 Oct 20 17:39 backup_manifest
[postgres@localhost rep]$ cat postgresql.auto.conf
# Do not edit this file manually!
# It will be overwritten by the ALTER SYSTEM command.
archive_mode = 'on'
archive_command = 'cp %p /home/PG/archivelogs/%f'
primary_conninfo = 'user=replication_user password=postgres
channel_binding=prefer host=localhost port=5432 sslmode=prefer
sslcompression=0 sslcertmode=allow sslsssl_min_protocol_version=TLSv1.2
gssencmode=prefer krbsrvname=postgres gssdelegation=0
target_session_attrs=any load_balance_hosts=disable'

b. Modify the Standby's Configuration

1. Edit postgresql.conf: You need to set up replication parameters on the standby server.

Vi /home/PG/backup/rep/postgresql.conf

Add or modify the following lines:

hot_standby = on # Enable read queries on the standby

2. Edit recovery.conf: The pg_basebackup command will automatically create a recovery.conf

file in the data directory of the standby server if you used the -R option. However, you should verify
its content.
o

[postgres@localhost rep]$ cat postgresql.auto.conf

# Do not edit this file manually!
# It will be overwritten by the ALTER SYSTEM command.
archive_mode = 'on'
archive_command = 'cp %p /home/PG/archivelogs/%f'
primary_conninfo = 'user=replication_user password=postgres
channel_binding=prefer host=localhost port=5432 sslmode=prefer
sslcompression=0 sslcertmode=allow
sslsssl_min_protocol_version=TLSv1.2 gssencmode=prefer
krbsrvname=postgres gssdelegation=0 target_session_attrs=any
load_balance_hosts=disable'
[postgres@localhost rep]$ vi postgresql.conf
port=5434  port no changed to 5434

o standby_mode = 'on': Ensures the server stays in standby mode.

o primary_conninfo: Contains the connection information for the primary server.
3. Start the standby server:

systemctl start postgresql

or

[postgres@localhost rep]$ pg_ctl -D /home/PG/backup/rep/ start

waiting for server to start....2024-10-20 17:43:36.223 IST [27196] LOG:
redirecting log output to logging collector process
2024-10-20 17:43:36.223 IST [27196] HINT: Future log output will appear in
directory "log".
done
server started
[postgres@localhost rep]$ psql
psql (16.4)
Type "help" for help.

postgres=#
 [postgres@localhost archivelogs]$ psql postgres --port=5434
psql (16.4)
Type "help" for help.

postgres=# \l+

3. Verify Replication Setup

a. Check Replication Status on the Primary

On the primary server, you can check if the standby is connected using the following SQL command:

SELECT * FROM pg_stat_replication;

[postgres@localhost rep]$ psql postgres --port=5434

psql (16.4)
Type "help" for help.

postgres=# SELECT * FROM pg_stat_replication;

pid | usesysid | usename | application_name | client_addr | client_hostname |
client_port | backend_start | backend_xmin | state | sent_lsn | write_lsn | flush_l
sn | replay_lsn | write_lag | flush_lag | replay_lag | sync_priority | sync_state |
reply_time
-----+----------+---------+------------------+-------------+-----------------+---------
----+---------------+--------------+-------+----------+-----------+--------
---+------------+-----------+-----------+------------+---------------+------------+----
--------
(0 rows)

postgres=#

This should show an entry for each standby server connected.

b. Check Replication Lag (Optional)

You can monitor the replication lag using:

SELECT pg_last_wal_receive_lsn(), pg_last_wal_replay_lsn();

postgres=# SELECT pg_last_wal_receive_lsn(), pg_last_wal_replay_lsn();

pg_last_wal_receive_lsn | pg_last_wal_replay_lsn
-------------------------+------------------------
0/53EC89D0 | 0/53EC89D0
(1 row)

postgres=#

The closer these two values are, the smaller the lag between the primary and standby.

4. Optional: Enable Read-Only Queries on the Standby

By default, the standby server in streaming replication mode is read-only. You can connect to the standby
and execute read-only queries, which is useful for load balancing read operations.

Important Considerations:

 WAL Retention: Ensure the primary retains enough WAL files to allow the standby to catch up in
case it falls behind. This is controlled by wal_keep_size.
 Failover: In case of primary failure, you can promote the standby to a primary by running:
 pg_ctl promote -D /postgres/pg_data/standby/data_directory

 Monitoring: It's important to monitor the replication status, especially in production environments,
to ensure that the standby is not falling behind.

This is the basic setup for streaming replication. You can extend this with asynchronous/synchronous
replication or implement failover management tools like repmgr or Patroni for automatic failover
handling.