Removing wal_keep_segments as default configuration in PostgresNode.pm

Started by Michael Paquierabout 9 years ago3 messageshackers
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You can run a PostgreSQL built from this patch straight from Docker, with no checkout and no build:

docker run --rm -p 5432:5432 ghcr.io/hackorum-dev/postgres-patch:t37384
psql -h localhost -U postgres

Built from patchset v1 (message #1), July 27, 2026 at 10:17 PM.

Every patchset is also pushed to a branch of our PostgreSQL fork, so you can check out the same tree CI built. Without a PostgreSQL checkout:

git clone --branch t37384_1 https://github.com/hackorum-dev/postgres.git

In a checkout you already have, add the fork once:

git remote add hackorum https://github.com/hackorum-dev/postgres.git

then, for this patchset and every later one:

git fetch hackorum t37384_1 && git checkout t37384_1

Patchset v1 (message #1) is on t37384_1

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#1Michael Paquier
michael@paquier.xyz

Hi all,

Right now, PostgresNode.pm uses this set of parameters when initializing a node:
print $conf "\n# Added by PostgresNode.pm\n";
print $conf "fsync = off\n";
print $conf "restart_after_crash = off\n";
print $conf "log_line_prefix = '%m [%p] %q%a '\n";
print $conf "log_statement = all\n";
print $conf "wal_retrieve_retry_interval = '500ms'\n";
print $conf "port = $port\n";

When streaming is enabled, the following set is used:
print $conf "wal_level = replica\n"; # replace by logical here
is you need ;)
print $conf "max_wal_senders = 5\n";
print $conf "max_replication_slots = 5\n";
print $conf "max_wal_size = 128MB\n";
print $conf "shared_buffers = 1MB\n";
print $conf "wal_log_hints = on\n";
print $conf "hot_standby = on\n";
print $conf "max_connections = 10\n";

While all those settings are good defaults in my opinion, I have been
trapped by wal_keep_segments being present when designing a test. The
TAP test in question here was forcing WAL segments to be recycled with
two checkpoints and some forced segment switches to make a
disconnected standby sync back to a primary using some archives, but
then I got surprised that max_wal_size was not respected. Until I
noticed that keep_wal_segments was in play.

I tend to think that while all the other parameters make sense to
deploy instances that need few resources, wal_keep_segments may cause
up to 350MB of WAL segments to be kept in each pg_wal's instance,
while max_wal_size is set at 128MB. The only test in the code tree in
need of wal_keep_segments is actually pg_rewind, which enforces
checkpoints after the rewind to update the source's control file.

So, thoughts about the attached that reworks this portion of PostgresNode.pm?
Thanks,
--
Michael

Attachments:

t37384_1
tap-minimize-default.patchapplication/octet-stream; name=tap-minimize-default.patchDownload+5-1
#2Peter Eisentraut
peter_e@gmx.net
In reply to: Michael Paquier (#1)
Re: Removing wal_keep_segments as default configuration in PostgresNode.pm

On 9/11/17 21:55, Michael Paquier wrote:

I tend to think that while all the other parameters make sense to
deploy instances that need few resources, wal_keep_segments may cause
up to 350MB of WAL segments to be kept in each pg_wal's instance,
while max_wal_size is set at 128MB. The only test in the code tree in
need of wal_keep_segments is actually pg_rewind, which enforces
checkpoints after the rewind to update the source's control file.

So, thoughts about the attached that reworks this portion of PostgresNode.pm?

Committed.

Besides the resource usage, it would probably be bad if a
wal_keep_segments setting papered over problems with replication slots
for example.

--
Peter Eisentraut http://www.2ndQuadrant.com/
PostgreSQL Development, 24x7 Support, Remote DBA, Training & Services

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#3Michael Paquier
michael@paquier.xyz
In reply to: Peter Eisentraut (#2)
Re: Removing wal_keep_segments as default configuration in PostgresNode.pm

On Thu, Nov 2, 2017 at 4:47 PM, Peter Eisentraut
<peter.eisentraut@2ndquadrant.com> wrote:

On 9/11/17 21:55, Michael Paquier wrote:

I tend to think that while all the other parameters make sense to
deploy instances that need few resources, wal_keep_segments may cause
up to 350MB of WAL segments to be kept in each pg_wal's instance,
while max_wal_size is set at 128MB. The only test in the code tree in
need of wal_keep_segments is actually pg_rewind, which enforces
checkpoints after the rewind to update the source's control file.

So, thoughts about the attached that reworks this portion of PostgresNode.pm?

Committed.

Besides the resource usage, it would probably be bad if a
wal_keep_segments setting papered over problems with replication slots
for example.

Thanks! I almost forgot this patch.
--
Michael

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