Using Holland to Backup PostgreSQL

Introduction

Backups are a subject I return to semi-frequently with a passion to avoid "oh shit" scenarios. Last time I built my backup system, Bacula with a PostgreSQL database backend, I determined that I would move to a common database backup script for all of my databases. Holland fits the bill perfectly with support for PostgreSQL, SQLite , and MySQL . This allows one command to backup all of my databases on all of my servers and subsequently creates a much simpler bacula configuration (the database job is defined the same as the catalog job).

Configuring Holland for PostgreSQL

The problem I ran into with Holland backing up my PostgreSQL databases is the lack of example configuration file. It wasn't hard to craft a working default PostgreSQL configuration and the following is what I came up with (/etc/holland/backupsets/default.conf):

[holland:backup]

plugin = pgdump
backups-to-keep = 1
auto-purge-failures = yes
purge-policy = after-backup
estimated-size-factor = 1.0

[pgdump]

role = postgres

[pgauth]

username = postgres

Conclusion

Setting up Holland to backup databases is incredibly easy and flexible. By having a common backup solution for all databases, other configurations become easier and processes can be streamlined.