Commit 4a309def authored by Tom Lane's avatar Tom Lane

Add info about using rsync to make base backups. Per report from

Jeff Frost, it may be necessary to ignore specific exit codes.
parent fc5894bf
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$PostgreSQL: pgsql/doc/src/sgml/backup.sgml,v 2.73 2005/10/22 22:09:49 tgl Exp $
$PostgreSQL: pgsql/doc/src/sgml/backup.sgml,v 2.74 2005/10/26 20:42:35 tgl Exp $
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<chapter id="backup">
<title>Backup and Restore</title>
......@@ -677,12 +677,20 @@ SELECT pg_stop_backup();
</para>
<para>
Some versions of GNU <application>tar</> consider it an error if a file
is changed while <application>tar</> is copying it. This case is normal,
and not an error, when taking a base backup of an active database.
Since ignoring all errors from <application>tar</> would be unwise,
you should either manually inspect <application>tar</>'s messages or
else use a different backup tool that does not complain about this case.
Some backup tools that you might wish to use emit warnings or errors
if the files they are trying to copy change while the copy proceeds.
This situation is normal, and not an error, when taking a base backup of
an active database; so you need to ensure that you can distinguish
complaints of this sort from real errors. For example, some versions
of <application>rsync</> return a separate exit code for <quote>vanished
source files</>, and you can write a driver script to accept this exit
code as a non-error case. Also,
some versions of GNU <application>tar</> consider it an error if a file
is changed while <application>tar</> is copying it. There does not seem
to be any very convenient way to distinguish this error from other types
of errors, other than manual inspection of <application>tar</>'s messages.
GNU <application>tar</> is therefore not the best tool for making base
backups.
</para>
<para>
......
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