PostgreSQL psql Skill

PostgreSQL psql (PostgreSQL interactive terminal) is the primary command-line client for interacting with PostgreSQL databases. It provides both interactive query execution and powerful scripting capabilities for database management and administration.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

• Connecting to PostgreSQL databases from the command line
• Executing SQL queries interactively
• Writing SQL scripts for automation
• Creating and managing databases and schemas
• Managing database objects (tables, views, indexes, functions)
• Backing up and restoring databases
• Configuring connections and authentication
• Formatting and exporting query results
• Managing transactions and permissions
• Debugging SQL queries
• Automating database administration tasks
• Setting up replication and high availability
• Creating stored procedures and functions

Core Concepts

REPL Model

• psql operates as an interactive REPL (Read-Eval-Print Loop)
• Accepts SQL commands and meta-commands (backslash commands)
• Maintains connection state across commands within a session
• Supports command history and editing

Command Types

• SQL Commands: Standard SQL statements (SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, etc.)
• Meta-Commands: psql-specific commands prefixed with backslash (e.g., \dt, \d)
• Backslash Commands: Control query output, session variables, and psql behavior

Connection Model

• Single database connection per session
• Can switch databases without reconnecting
• Connection state includes current database, user, and search path
• Environmental variables and .pgpass for credential management

Connection Options

Basic Connection Command

psql [OPTIONS] [DBNAME [USERNAME]]

Common Connection Options

# Connect with username and host
psql -U username -h hostname -p 5432 -d database_name

# Connect using connection string
psql postgresql://username:password@hostname:5432/database_name

# Connect with password prompt
psql -U postgres -h localhost -W

# Connect to specific database on local machine
psql -d myapp_development

# Environment variables (alternative)
export PGUSER=postgres
export PGPASSWORD=mypassword
export PGHOST=localhost
export PGPORT=5432
export PGDATABASE=mydb
psql

Connection String Formats

Standard URI format:

postgresql://[user[:password]@][netloc][:port][/dbname][?param1=value1&...]

Example:

postgresql://app_user:secretpass@db.example.com:5432/production_db?sslmode=require

Authentication Methods

Password file (.pgpass):

# ~/.pgpass (chmod 600)
hostname:port:database:username:password
localhost:5432:mydb:postgres:mypassword
*.example.com:5432:*:appuser:apppass

Connection via SSH tunnel:

ssh -L 5432:localhost:5432 user@remote-host
psql -U postgres -h localhost

SSL/TLS Connection Options

# Require SSL
psql -h hostname -sslmode require -U username database

# Verify certificate
psql -h hostname -sslmode verify-full \
  -sslcert=/path/to/client-cert.crt \
  -sslkey=/path/to/client-key.key \
  -sslrootcert=/path/to/ca-cert.crt database

# SSL modes: disable, allow, prefer (default), require, verify-ca, verify-full

Essential Meta-Commands

Database and Schema Navigation

\l or \list                    # List all databases
\l+ or \list+                  # List databases with sizes
\c or \connect DATABASE USER   # Connect to different database
\dn or \dn+                    # List schemas (namespaces)
\dt or \dt+                    # List tables in current schema
\di or \di+                    # List indexes
\dv or \dv+                    # List views
\dm or \dm+                    # List materialized views
\ds or \ds+                    # List sequences
\df or \df+                    # List functions/procedures
\da or \da+                    # List aggregates
\dT or \dT+                    # List data types
\dF or \dF+                    # List text search configurations

Object Inspection Commands

\d or \d NAME                  # Describe table, view, index, sequence, or function
\d+ or \d+ NAME                # Extended description with details
\da PATTERN                    # List aggregate functions matching pattern
\db or \db+                    # List tablespaces
\dc or \dc+                    # List character set encodings
\dC or \dC+                    # List type casts
\dd or \dd+                    # List object descriptions/comments
\dD or \dD+                    # List domains
\de or \de+                    # List foreign data wrappers
\dE or \dE+                    # List foreign servers
\dF or \dF+                    # List text search configurations
\dFd or \dFd+                  # List text search dictionaries
\dFp or \dFp+                  # List text search parsers
\dFt or \dFt+                  # List text search templates
\dg or \dg+                    # List database roles/users
\dl or \dl+                    # List large objects (same as \lo_list)
\dL or \dL+                    # List procedural languages
\dO or \dO+                    # List collations
\dp or \dp+                    # List table access privileges
\dRp or \dRp+                  # List replication origins
\dRs or \dRs+                  # List replication subscriptions
\ds or \ds+                    # List sequences
\dt or \dt+                    # List tables
\dU or \dU+                    # List user mapping
\du or \du+                    # List roles
\dv or \dv+                    # List views
\dx or \dx+                    # List extensions
\dX or \dX+                    # List extended statistics

Formatting and Output Commands

\a                             # Toggle between aligned and unaligned output
\C [STRING]                    # Set table title
\f [STRING]                    # Set field separator for unaligned output
\H                             # Toggle HTML output mode
\pset OPTION [VALUE]           # Set output option (detailed below)
\t [on|off]                    # Toggle tuple-only output (no headers/footers)
\T [STRING]                    # Set HTML table tag attributes
\x or \x [on|off|auto]         # Toggle expanded/vertical output
\g or \g [FILENAME|COMMAND]    # Execute query and send output to file/command

\pset Options

\pset border [0-2]             # Set border display (0=none, 1=ascii, 2=unicode)
\pset columns WIDTH            # Set column width limit
\pset csv                      # Set CSV output format
\pset expanded [on|off|auto]   # Toggle expanded output
\pset fieldsep STRING          # Set field separator
\pset footer [on|off]          # Toggle footer display
\pset format [aligned|unaligned|csv|tsv|html|latex|latex-longtable|troff-ms]
\pset header [on|off]          # Toggle header display
\pset linestyle [ascii|old-ascii|unicode] # Set line drawing style
\pset null STRING              # Set string to represent NULL
\pset numericlocale [on|off]   # Toggle locale-specific number formatting
\pset pager [on|off|always]    # Control pager usage
\pset recordsep STRING         # Set record separator
\pset recordsep0 [on|off]      # Use null terminator between records
\pset tableattr STRING         # Set HTML table attributes
\pset title STRING             # Set query title
\pset tuples_only [on|off]     # Toggle tuple-only mode

File and History Commands

\copy QUERY TO FILENAME [FORMAT]          # Client-side COPY (requires fewer permissions)
\copy QUERY TO STDOUT                     # Copy to standard output
\copy TABLE FROM FILENAME [FORMAT]        # Import data from file
\e or \edit                               # Edit current query buffer in editor
\e FILENAME                               # Edit file in editor
\ef [FUNCNAME]                            # Edit function definition
\ev [VIEWNAME]                            # Edit view definition
\w FILENAME or \write FILENAME            # Write current query buffer to file
\i FILENAME or \include FILENAME          # Execute SQL commands from file
\ir FILENAME or \include_relative FILE    # Execute relative path file
\s [FILENAME]                             # Show command history (or save to file)
\o FILENAME or \out FILENAME              # Send all output to file
\o                                        # Return output to terminal

Batch and Script Commands

\echo TEXT                     # Print text (useful in scripts)
\errverbose                    # Show last error in verbose form
\q or \quit                    # Quit psql
\! COMMAND or \shell COMMAND   # Execute shell command
\cd DIRECTORY                  # Change working directory
\pwd                           # Print current working directory
\set VARIABLE VALUE            # Set psql variable
\unset VARIABLE                # Unset psql variable
\setenv VARNAME VALUE          # Set environment variable
\getenv VARNAME                # Get environment variable value
\prompt [TEXT] VARIABLE        # Prompt user for input and set variable

Transaction Commands

\begin or BEGIN                # Start transaction
\commit or COMMIT              # Commit transaction
\rollback or ROLLBACK          # Rollback transaction
\savepoint NAME                # Create savepoint
\release SAVEPOINT             # Release savepoint
\rollback TO SAVEPOINT         # Rollback to savepoint

Information Commands

\d+ TABLENAME                  # Show table with extended info and storage info
\dt *.*                        # List all tables in all schemas
\dn *                          # List all schemas
\du                            # List all users/roles
\db                            # List tablespaces
\dx                            # List installed extensions
\h or \help                    # List available SQL commands
\h COMMAND or \help COMMAND    # Show help for specific SQL command
\?                             # Show psql help
\copyright                     # Show PostgreSQL copyright/license info
\version or SELECT version()   # Show PostgreSQL version

Command-Line Options

Connection Options

-h, --host=HOSTNAME           # Server host name (default: localhost)
-p, --port=PORT               # Server port (default: 5432)
-U, --username=USERNAME       # PostgreSQL user name (default: $USER)
-d, --dbname=DBNAME           # Database name to connect
-w, --no-password             # Never prompt for password
-W, --password                # Force password prompt

Output and Formatting Options

-A, --no-align                # Unaligned table output mode
-c, --command=COMMAND         # Run single command and exit
-C, --copy-only               # (deprecated, use \copy instead)
-d, --dbname=DBNAME           # Specify database
-E, --echo-hidden             # Display internal queries
-e, --echo-all                # Display each command before sending
-b, --echo-errors             # Display failed commands
-f, --file=FILENAME           # Execute commands from file
-F, --field-separator=CHAR    # Set field separator for unaligned output
-H, --html                    # HTML table output mode
-l, --list                    # List available databases and exit
-L, --log-file=FILENAME       # Log session to file
-n, --no-readline             # Disable readline (line editing)
-o, --output=FILENAME         # Write results to file
-P, --pset=VARIABLE=VALUE     # Set printing option
-q, --quiet                   # Run quietly (no banner, single-line mode)
-R, --record-separator=CHAR   # Set record separator for unaligned output
-S, --single-step             # Single-step mode (confirm each command)
-s, --single-transaction      # Execute file in single transaction
-t, --tuples-only             # Print rows only (no headers/footers)
-T, --table-attr=STRING       # Set HTML table tag attributes
-v, --set=VARIABLE=VALUE      # Set psql variable
-V, --version                 # Show version and exit
-x, --expanded                # Expanded table output mode
-X, --no-psqlrc               # Do not read ~/.psqlrc startup file
-1, --single-line             # End of line terminates SQL command

Other Options

-a, --all                     # (deprecated)
-j, --job=NUM                 # (for parallel dumps with pg_dump)
--help                        # Show help message
--version                     # Show version
--on-error-stop               # Stop on first error

Variables and Configuration

Built-in Variables

# Prompt variables
psql -v PROMPT1='%/%R%# '     # Set primary prompt
psql -v PROMPT2='%R%# '       # Set continuation prompt
psql -v PROMPT3='>> '         # Set output mode prompt

# Prompt expansion codes:
# %n = Database user name
# %m = Database server hostname (first part)
# %> = Database server hostname full
# %p = Database server port
# %d = Database name
# %/ = Current schema
# %~ = Like %/ but ~  if schema matches user name
# %# = # if superuser, > otherwise
# %? = Last query result status
# %% = Literal %
# %[..%] = Invisible characters (for terminal control sequences)

Configuration File (~/.psqlrc)

# Auto-load on psql startup
# Set default options
\set QUIET ON
\set SQLHISTSIZE 10000

# Configure output
\pset null '[NULL]'
\pset border 2
\pset linestyle unicode
\pset expanded auto
\pset pager always

# Define useful variables
\set conn_user 'SELECT current_user;'
\set dbsize 'SELECT pg_size_pretty(pg_database_size(current_database()));'
\set tables 'SELECT tablename FROM pg_tables WHERE schemaname = ''public'';'
\set functions 'SELECT proname FROM pg_proc;'

# Define shortcuts
\set uptime 'SELECT now() - pg_postmaster_start_time() AS uptime;'
\set locks 'SELECT pid, usename, pg_blocking_pids(pid) as blocked_by, query, state FROM pg_stat_activity WHERE cardinality(pg_blocking_pids(pid)) > 0;'

# Set timing
\timing ON

# Connect to default database
\c mydb

Variable Substitution

-- Using :variable syntax
\set table_name mytable
SELECT * FROM :table_name;

-- Using :'variable' for literal strings
\set schema_name public
SELECT * FROM :"schema_name".mytable;

-- Using :'variable' syntax in string context
\set username 'postgres'
SELECT * FROM pg_tables WHERE tableowner = :'username';

-- Using :' ' for identifier quoting
\set id_name "customTable"
SELECT * FROM :"id_name";

Basic SQL Operations

Query Execution

-- Simple query with immediate execution
SELECT * FROM users;

-- Multi-line query (continues until semicolon)
SELECT id, name, email
FROM users
WHERE active = true;

-- Query with results to file
SELECT * FROM large_table \g output.txt

-- Query with pipe to command
SELECT * FROM users \g | wc -l

-- Execute previous command
\g

-- Execute as only tuples (no headers/footers)
SELECT * FROM users;

Creating Objects

-- Create database
CREATE DATABASE myapp_db;

-- Create schema
CREATE SCHEMA app_schema;

-- Create table
CREATE TABLE app_schema.users (
    id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
    name VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    email VARCHAR(255) UNIQUE,
    created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

-- Create index
CREATE INDEX idx_users_email ON app_schema.users(email);

-- Create view
CREATE VIEW app_schema.active_users AS
SELECT id, name, email FROM app_schema.users WHERE active = true;

-- Create function
CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION app_schema.get_user_count()
RETURNS INTEGER AS $$
BEGIN
  RETURN (SELECT COUNT(*) FROM app_schema.users);
END;
$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;

Data Manipulation

-- Insert single row
INSERT INTO users (name, email) VALUES ('John Doe', 'john@example.com');

-- Insert multiple rows
INSERT INTO users (name, email) VALUES
  ('Jane Smith', 'jane@example.com'),
  ('Bob Johnson', 'bob@example.com');

-- Insert from query
INSERT INTO users_backup SELECT * FROM users;

-- Update data
UPDATE users SET active = false WHERE last_login < now() - interval '30 days';

-- Delete data
DELETE FROM users WHERE id = 999;

-- RETURNING clause (see what was changed)
UPDATE users SET status = 'active' 
WHERE id = 1 
RETURNING id, name, status;

Transaction Management

Transaction Control

-- Begin transaction
BEGIN;
-- or
START TRANSACTION;

-- Commit changes
COMMIT;
-- or
END;

-- Rollback changes
ROLLBACK;

-- Create savepoint
SAVEPOINT sp1;
-- ... execute statements ...
ROLLBACK TO sp1;  -- Rollback to savepoint
RELEASE sp1;      -- Release savepoint

-- Multi-statement transaction
BEGIN;
  INSERT INTO accounts (name, balance) VALUES ('Alice', 1000);
  INSERT INTO accounts (name, balance) VALUES ('Bob', 1000);
  UPDATE accounts SET balance = balance - 100 WHERE name = 'Alice';
  UPDATE accounts SET balance = balance + 100 WHERE name = 'Bob';
COMMIT;

Transaction Isolation Levels

-- Set transaction isolation level
BEGIN TRANSACTION ISOLATION LEVEL READ UNCOMMITTED;
BEGIN TRANSACTION ISOLATION LEVEL READ COMMITTED;  -- PostgreSQL default
BEGIN TRANSACTION ISOLATION LEVEL REPEATABLE READ;
BEGIN TRANSACTION ISOLATION LEVEL SERIALIZABLE;

-- Show current transaction status
SHOW transaction_isolation;

Advanced Features

Full-Text Search

-- Create full-text search vector
ALTER TABLE documents ADD COLUMN search_vector tsvector;

UPDATE documents SET search_vector = 
  to_tsvector('english', coalesce(title, '') || ' ' || coalesce(content, ''));

-- Create index for fast search
CREATE INDEX idx_documents_search ON documents USING GIN(search_vector);

-- Search documents
SELECT * FROM documents 
WHERE search_vector @@ to_tsquery('english', 'database & tutorial');

-- Ranking results by relevance
SELECT id, title, ts_rank(search_vector, query) AS rank
FROM documents, to_tsquery('english', 'database') AS query
WHERE search_vector @@ query
ORDER BY rank DESC;

Window Functions

-- Row number
SELECT id, name, salary,
  ROW_NUMBER() OVER (ORDER BY salary DESC) AS rank
FROM employees;

-- Running sum
SELECT id, amount, date,
  SUM(amount) OVER (ORDER BY date) AS running_total
FROM transactions;

-- Partition results
SELECT id, department, salary,
  ROW_NUMBER() OVER (PARTITION BY department ORDER BY salary DESC) AS dept_rank
FROM employees;

-- LEAD/LAG (next/previous row)
SELECT id, date, amount,
  LAG(amount) OVER (ORDER BY date) AS prev_amount,
  LEAD(amount) OVER (ORDER BY date) AS next_amount
FROM transactions;

JSON Operations

-- Store JSON
INSERT INTO documents VALUES (1, '{"name": "Alice", "age": 30}');

-- Access JSON fields
SELECT data -> 'name' AS name FROM documents;

-- Access with default
SELECT data ->> 'name' AS name_text FROM documents;  -- Returns text

-- Check if key exists
SELECT * FROM documents WHERE data ? 'name';

-- JSON array operations
SELECT json_array_length(data) FROM documents;

-- JSON aggregation
SELECT json_agg(name) FROM users;

-- JSONB (binary JSON) is preferred for performance
CREATE TABLE config (id INT, settings JSONB);
INSERT INTO config VALUES (1, '{"theme": "dark", "lang": "en"}');

-- JSONB operators are more efficient
SELECT settings @> '{"theme": "dark"}' FROM config;

Common Table Expressions (CTEs)

-- Simple CTE
WITH active_users AS (
  SELECT id, name, email FROM users WHERE active = true
)
SELECT * FROM active_users WHERE created_at > '2024-01-01';

-- Recursive CTE (tree traversal)
WITH RECURSIVE category_hierarchy AS (
  SELECT id, name, parent_id, 0 AS level
  FROM categories
  WHERE parent_id IS NULL
  
  UNION ALL
  
  SELECT c.id, c.name, c.parent_id, h.level + 1
  FROM categories c
  JOIN category_hierarchy h ON c.parent_id = h.id
)
SELECT * FROM category_hierarchy;

-- Multiple CTEs
WITH orders_2024 AS (
  SELECT * FROM orders WHERE EXTRACT(YEAR FROM order_date) = 2024
),
customer_totals AS (
  SELECT customer_id, SUM(total_amount) AS total
  FROM orders_2024
  GROUP BY customer_id
)
SELECT c.name, ct.total
FROM customers c
JOIN customer_totals ct ON c.id = ct.customer_id
ORDER BY ct.total DESC;

Scripting with psql

Running SQL Files

# Execute file
psql -d mydb -f script.sql

# Execute with output to file
psql -d mydb -f script.sql -o results.txt

# Execute with error stopping
psql -d mydb -f script.sql --on-error-stop

# Execute in single transaction
psql -d mydb -f script.sql -s

# Multiple files (executed in order)
psql -d mydb -f init.sql -f seed.sql -f verify.sql

SQL Script Best Practices

-- sample_script.sql

-- Set execution mode
\set ON_ERROR_STOP ON
\set QUIET OFF

-- Drop existing objects if needed
DROP TABLE IF EXISTS temp_table;

-- Create table
CREATE TABLE temp_table (
  id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
  name TEXT NOT NULL
);

-- Insert data
INSERT INTO temp_table (name) VALUES
  ('Record 1'),
  ('Record 2'),
  ('Record 3');

-- Verify results
SELECT * FROM temp_table;

-- Cleanup
DROP TABLE temp_table;

-- Report
\echo 'Script completed successfully!'

Dynamic SQL Scripts

#!/bin/bash

# Bash script with psql variables
DATABASE="myapp_db"
TABLE_NAME="users"
SCHEMA_NAME="public"

# Execute with variable substitution
psql -d $DATABASE -v table_name=$TABLE_NAME \
  -v schema_name=$SCHEMA_NAME -c "
  SELECT COUNT(*) FROM :schema_name.:table_name;
"

# Loop through databases
for db in $(psql -l | awk '{print $1}'); do
  if [[ ! "$db" =~ "template" ]]; then
    echo "Backing up $db..."
    pg_dump $db > /backups/$db.sql
  fi
done

Import and Export

COPY Commands

-- Server-side COPY (requires superuser for file operations)
COPY users (id, name, email) 
TO '/tmp/users.csv' 
WITH (FORMAT CSV, HEADER TRUE, QUOTE '"', ESCAPE '\\');

-- Import CSV
COPY users (id, name, email)
FROM '/tmp/users.csv'
WITH (FORMAT CSV, HEADER TRUE, QUOTE '"', ESCAPE '\\');

-- Tab-separated values
COPY users TO '/tmp/users.tsv' WITH (FORMAT TEXT, DELIMITER E'\t');

-- With NULL handling
COPY users TO '/tmp/users.csv' 
WITH (FORMAT CSV, NULL 'N/A', QUOTE '"');

Client-side COPY (\copy)

# Export to CSV (from psql)
\copy users TO '/home/user/users.csv' WITH (FORMAT CSV, HEADER)

# Export with query results
\copy (SELECT id, name, email FROM users WHERE active = true) \
  TO '/tmp/active_users.csv' WITH (FORMAT CSV, HEADER)

# Import CSV
\copy users (id, name, email) FROM '/tmp/users.csv' WITH (FORMAT CSV, HEADER)

# Export to stdout (pipe to file)
\copy users TO STDOUT WITH (FORMAT CSV, HEADER) > users.csv

# Import from stdin
cat users.csv | \copy users FROM STDIN WITH (FORMAT CSV, HEADER)

Using pg_dump and pg_restore

# Dump entire database
pg_dump -d mydb -U postgres > mydb_backup.sql

# Dump with custom format (compressed)
pg_dump -d mydb -Fc > mydb_backup.dump

# Dump specific table
pg_dump -d mydb -t users > users_backup.sql

# Dump with data only
pg_dump -d mydb -a > mydb_data.sql

# Dump schema only
pg_dump -d mydb -s > mydb_schema.sql

# Restore from SQL file
psql -d mydb_restored -f mydb_backup.sql

# Restore from custom format
pg_restore -d mydb_restored mydb_backup.dump

# List contents of dump
pg_restore -l mydb_backup.dump

Performance and Debugging

Query Analysis

-- Show query execution plan
EXPLAIN SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = 1;

-- Detailed analysis with actual execution
EXPLAIN ANALYZE SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = 1;

-- Show more details
EXPLAIN (ANALYZE, BUFFERS, VERBOSE) 
  SELECT * FROM users WHERE active = true;

-- JSON output for programmatic parsing
EXPLAIN (FORMAT JSON, ANALYZE)
  SELECT COUNT(*) FROM users;

Viewing Query Performance

-- Current queries
SELECT pid, usename, state, query FROM pg_stat_activity;

-- Long-running queries
SELECT pid, usename, now() - query_start AS duration, query
FROM pg_stat_activity
WHERE state != 'idle'
ORDER BY query_start;

-- Blocking queries
SELECT blocked_pid, blocking_pid, blocked_statement, blocking_statement
FROM pg_stat_statements;

-- Table sizes
SELECT schemaname, tablename, pg_size_pretty(pg_total_relation_size(schemaname||'.'||tablename)) AS size
FROM pg_tables
ORDER BY pg_total_relation_size(schemaname||'.'||tablename) DESC;

-- Database size
SELECT pg_size_pretty(pg_database_size('mydb'));

Setting Timing

# Enable query timing
\timing ON

# Disable query timing
\timing OFF

# In batch mode
psql -d mydb -c "\timing ON" -f script.sql

Query Logging

# Log all queries to file
psql -d mydb -L query.log -f script.sql

# Show internal queries (system queries)
psql -d mydb -E

User and Permission Management

Creating and Managing Users

-- Create user (role)
CREATE USER appuser WITH PASSWORD 'secure_password';

-- Create role without login privilege
CREATE ROLE admin_role;

-- Alter user
ALTER USER appuser WITH PASSWORD 'new_password';

-- Create superuser
CREATE USER superuser_name WITH PASSWORD 'password' SUPERUSER;

-- List users
\du

-- Drop user
DROP USER appuser;

Grant Permissions

-- Grant database usage
GRANT USAGE ON SCHEMA public TO appuser;

-- Grant table permissions
GRANT SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE ON users TO appuser;

-- Grant all permissions
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON users TO appuser;

-- Grant sequence permissions (for auto-increment)
GRANT USAGE, SELECT ON SEQUENCE users_id_seq TO appuser;

-- Grant to all tables
GRANT SELECT ON ALL TABLES IN SCHEMA public TO appuser;

-- Make privileges default for future tables
ALTER DEFAULT PRIVILEGES IN SCHEMA public GRANT SELECT ON TABLES TO appuser;

-- View permissions
\dp users
\dp+ users

Row Level Security (RLS)

-- Enable RLS on table
ALTER TABLE users ENABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;

-- Create policy
CREATE POLICY user_policy ON users
  USING (id = current_user_id());  -- This would need to be implemented

-- View policies
\d+ users

Advanced psql Features

Meta-command Tricks

# Show last error in detail
\errverbose

# Execution timing
\timing

# Echo all commands sent to server
\set ECHO all

# List all variables
\set

# View specific variable
\echo :DBNAME

# Dynamic query execution
\set query 'SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = ' :user_id
:query;

Prompt Customization

# Set custom prompts
psql -v PROMPT1='user@db> '
psql -v PROMPT1='%/%R%# '   # database/role# 

# In .psqlrc
\set PROMPT1 '%n@%m:%>/%/ %R%# '
\set PROMPT2 '> '
\set PROMPT3 '>> '

Function and Procedure Management

-- List functions
\df

-- Show function source
\df+ function_name

-- Create function
CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION get_user(user_id INT)
RETURNS TABLE(id INT, name TEXT, email TEXT) AS $$
BEGIN
  RETURN QUERY
  SELECT u.id, u.name, u.email FROM users u WHERE u.id = user_id;
END;
$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;

-- Execute function
SELECT * FROM get_user(1);

-- Stored procedure (no return value)
CREATE OR REPLACE PROCEDURE archive_old_records()
AS $$
BEGIN
  INSERT INTO archived_users
  SELECT * FROM users WHERE created_at < now() - interval '1 year';
  DELETE FROM users WHERE created_at < now() - interval '1 year';
  COMMIT;
END;
$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;

-- Call procedure
CALL archive_old_records();

Triggers and Events

-- Create trigger function
CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION update_user_timestamp()
RETURNS TRIGGER AS $$
BEGIN
  NEW.updated_at = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP;
  RETURN NEW;
END;
$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;

-- Create trigger
CREATE TRIGGER user_update_timestamp
BEFORE UPDATE ON users
FOR EACH ROW
EXECUTE FUNCTION update_user_timestamp();

-- View triggers
\d+ users

-- Drop trigger
DROP TRIGGER user_update_timestamp ON users;

Backup and Recovery

Database Backup Strategies

# Full database backup (custom format)
pg_dump -d production_db -Fc -j 4 > backup.dump

# Backup with compression
pg_dump -d production_db -Fc -Z 9 > backup.dump

# Parallel backup (faster for large databases)
pg_dump -d production_db -Fd -j 4 -f backup_dir

# Backup specific schemas
pg_dump -d production_db -n public -n app > schemas.sql

# Backup with custom format (allows selective restore)
pg_dump -d production_db -Fc > backup.dump

# View backup contents
pg_restore -l backup.dump | less

# Restore specific table
pg_restore -d restored_db -t users backup.dump

# List available backups
pg_dump -U postgres -l -w postgres

Point-in-Time Recovery

# Full backup
pg_dump -d mydb > base_backup.sql

# Enable WAL archiving (in postgresql.conf)
wal_level = replica
archive_mode = on
archive_command = 'cp %p /archive/%f'

# Restore to point in time
pg_restore -d recovered_db base_backup.sql
# Then apply WAL files up to target time

Common Patterns and Examples

Connection Pooling Script

#!/bin/bash
# Simple connection pool using psql

MAX_CONNECTIONS=10
CONNECTION_POOL=()

for i in {1..$MAX_CONNECTIONS}; do
  (
    while true; do
      psql -d mydb -c "SELECT 1"
      sleep 60
    done
  ) &
  CONNECTION_POOL+=($!)
done

# Keep script running
wait

Database Health Check

-- health_check.sql
SELECT 
  'PostgreSQL Version' AS check_type,
  version() AS result
UNION ALL
SELECT 
  'Database Size',
  pg_size_pretty(pg_database_size(current_database()))
UNION ALL
SELECT 
  'Active Connections',
  count(*)::text
FROM pg_stat_activity
UNION ALL
SELECT 
  'Cache Hit Ratio',
  ROUND(sum(heap_blks_hit)::numeric / (sum(heap_blks_hit) + sum(heap_blks_read)), 4)::text
FROM pg_statio_user_tables;

Automated Maintenance

#!/bin/bash
# Weekly maintenance script

DATABASES=$(psql -t -c "SELECT datname FROM pg_database WHERE datistemplate = false AND datname != 'postgres';")

for db in $DATABASES; do
  echo "Analyzing $db..."
  psql -d "$db" -c "ANALYZE;"
  
  echo "Vacuuming $db..."
  psql -d "$db" -c "VACUUM;"
  
  echo "Reindexing $db..."
  psql -d "$db" -c "REINDEX DATABASE \"$db\";"
done

Best Practices

1. Use connection pooling - For applications, not necessary for interactive psql
2. Enable SSL/TLS - Always use encrypted connections in production
3. Use .pgpass - Avoid hardcoding passwords in scripts
4. Set ON_ERROR_STOP - In scripts to prevent continuing after errors
5. Use transactions - Wrap related operations in explicit transactions
6. Index strategically - Analyze query plans and create indexes on frequent filter/join columns
7. Monitor performance - Regularly check slow queries and table sizes
8. Backup regularly - Use pg_dump with custom format for flexibility
9. Use schemas - Organize database objects logically
10. Document permissions - Keep clear records of user roles and permissions
11. Test recovery - Regularly practice restoring from backups
12. Use parameterized queries - In applications to prevent SQL injection
13. Monitor locks - Check for blocking queries in pg_stat_activity
14. Maintain statistics - Run ANALYZE regularly for query optimizer

Tips and Tricks

Quick Navigation

# Connect and execute in one line
psql -d mydb -c "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM users;"

# Execute file and exit
psql -d mydb -f script.sql

# Quiet mode (minimal output)
psql -q -d mydb -c "SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 1;"

# Pipe output to other commands
psql -d mydb -t -c "SELECT name FROM users;" | sort | uniq

# Verify connection without executing commands
psql -d mydb -c ""

Useful .psqlrc Shortcuts

# Add to ~/.psqlrc for convenient shortcuts
\set dbsize 'SELECT pg_size_pretty(pg_database_size(current_database()))'
\set uptime 'SELECT now() - pg_postmaster_start_time() AS uptime'
\set psql_version 'SELECT version()'
\set table_sizes 'SELECT schemaname, tablename, pg_size_pretty(pg_total_relation_size(schemaname||'\''.\'\'||tablename)) FROM pg_tables ORDER BY pg_total_relation_size(schemaname||'\''.\'\'||tablename) DESC'

# Usage in psql:
# :dbsize
# :table_sizes

Working with Large Result Sets

# Set pager for large results
\pset pager always

# Use LIMIT for testing
SELECT * FROM huge_table LIMIT 10;

# Use OFFSET for pagination
SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 10 OFFSET 0;
SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 10 OFFSET 10;

# Fetch into file instead of terminal
\copy (SELECT * FROM huge_table) TO huge_export.csv;

Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

# Verbose connection diagnostics
psql -d mydb -v verbose=on --echo-queries

# Check connection settings
psql --version
psql -d postgres -c "SHOW password_encryption;"

# TCP/IP connectivity test
psql -h hostname -d postgres -U postgres -c "SELECT 1;"

Common Error Messages

FATAL: password authentication failed
  → Check password, user exists, .pgpass has correct permissions (600)

FATAL: no pg_hba.conf entry for host
  → Database server's pg_hba.conf needs connection rule

FATAL: database "name" does not exist
  → Create database or check database name spelling

ERROR: permission denied for schema
  → Grant USAGE on schema to user

ERROR: syntax error
  → Check SQL syntax, use \h for help on commands

Performance Issues

-- Find slow queries
SELECT * FROM pg_stat_statements 
ORDER BY total_time DESC 
LIMIT 10;

-- Check for missing indexes
SELECT schemaname, tablename, attname 
FROM pg_stat_user_tables, pg_attribute 
WHERE pg_stat_user_tables.relid = pg_attribute.attrelid
AND seq_scan > 0;

-- Check cache efficiency
SELECT 
  sum(heap_blks_read) as heap_read,
  sum(heap_blks_hit)  as heap_hit,
  sum(heap_blks_hit) / (sum(heap_blks_hit) + sum(heap_blks_read)) AS ratio
FROM pg_statio_user_tables;

Advanced Configuration

Performance Tuning Parameters

# In ~/.psqlrc
\set HISTSIZE 10000
\pset pager always
\pset null '[NULL]'
\pset linestyle unicode

# Environment variables for defaults
export PGHOST=localhost
export PGPORT=5432
export PGUSER=postgres
export PGDATABASE=mydb
export PGPASSFILE=$HOME/.pgpass

Output Formats Comparison

-- Aligned (default)
\pset format aligned

-- CSV
\pset format csv
\copy (SELECT * FROM users) TO STDOUT WITH (FORMAT CSV);

-- HTML
\pset format html
SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 5;

-- LaTeX
\pset format latex
SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 5;

-- Expanded (vertical)
\x
SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 1;

Resources and Documentation

• Official PostgreSQL Documentation: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/
• psql Manual: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/app-psql.html
• PostgreSQL Wiki: https://wiki.postgresql.org/
• pgAdmin (GUI tool): https://www.pgadmin.org/
• DBA Best Practices: https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/sql-syntax.html

Summary

psql is a powerful, flexible command-line tool for PostgreSQL database administration and development. Key strengths:

• Interactive REPL for immediate query feedback
• Powerful meta-commands for object inspection and management
• Scripting capabilities for automation
• Extensive formatting options for different output needs
• Built-in help and documentation
• Variable substitution for dynamic queries
• Connection management and SSL/TLS support
• Performance analysis and query optimization tools

Master psql to unlock efficient PostgreSQL workflows, from simple queries to complex database administration tasks.