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PostgreSQL Glossary

Physical vs Logical Backup

Physical backups copy data files/WAL (cluster-level); logical backups export SQL or data at the database/table level. Example: Use physical backups for di…

Definition

Physical backups copy data files/WAL (cluster-level); logical backups export SQL or data at the database/table level.

What Physical vs Logical Backup Means in PostgreSQL

Physical backups copy data files/WAL (cluster-level); logical backups export SQL or data at the database/table level.

Physical vs Logical Backup appears frequently in production operations, architecture decisions, and troubleshooting workflows. Understanding this term helps teams reason about reliability, performance, and safe change management.

Why Physical vs Logical Backup Matters

Teams that understand Physical vs Logical Backup can make better decisions on database design, incident response, and release safety.

In modern PostgreSQL environments, this concept often connects directly to backup strategy, performance tuning, and operational confidence.

  • Improves decision quality for production operations
  • Reduces avoidable troubleshooting time
  • Strengthens reliability and recovery planning

Practical Example

Use physical backups for disaster recovery; use logical backups for migrating a single database between clusters.

Where To Learn More

You can explore deeper implementation patterns in the Vela articles library, review platform workflows in How Vela Works, and compare approaches in our PostgreSQL comparisons.

Related Glossary Topics

pgbench pg_dump pg_restore pg_basebackup PITR (Point-in-Time Recovery) Primary Key Partitioning ACID

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Physical vs Logical Backup in PostgreSQL?
Physical backups copy data files/WAL (cluster-level); logical backups export SQL or data at the database/table level.
Why is Physical vs Logical Backup important?
Physical vs Logical Backup matters because it directly affects how teams build, operate, and recover PostgreSQL systems in production.
Can you give a practical Physical vs Logical Backup example?
Use physical backups for disaster recovery; use logical backups for migrating a single database between clusters.
How does Physical vs Logical Backup relate to backup, recovery, or performance?
In most production deployments, Physical vs Logical Backup influences one or more of these areas: data safety, restore behavior, and performance under load.
What should teams check first when implementing Physical vs Logical Backup?
Start with clear operational goals, test in a non-production environment, and validate behavior with repeatable runbooks before relying on it in production.