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GitLab supports only the PostgreSQL database management system.
Thus you have two options for database servers to use with Omnibus GitLab:
- Use the packaged PostgreSQL server included with Omnibus GitLab (no
configuration required, recommended).
- Use an [external PostgreSQL server](#using-a-non-packaged-postgresql-database-management-server).
## Using the PostgreSQL Database Service shipped with Omnibus GitLab
### Reconfigure and PostgreSQL restarts
Omnibus normally restarts any service on reconfigure if config settings for that service were
changed in the `gitlab.rb` file. PostgreSQL is unique in that some of its settings will take effect
with a reload (HUP), while others require PostgreSQL to be restarted. Because administrators
frequently want more control over exactly when PostgreSQL is restarted, Omnibus has been configured
to do a reload of PostgreSQL on reconfigure, and not a restart. This means that if you modify any
PostgreSQL setting that requires a restart, you will need to restart PostgreSQL manually after you
reconfigure.
The [GitLab config template](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/omnibus-gitlab/blob/master/files/gitlab-config-template/gitlab.rb.template)
identifies which PostgreSQL settings require a restart and which require only a reload. You can also
run a query against your database to determine if any individual setting requires a restart. Start a
database console with `sudo gitlab-psql`, then replace `<setting name>` in the following query
with the setting you are changing:
```sql
SELECT name,setting FROM pg_settings WHERE context = 'postmaster' AND name = '<setting name>';
```
If changing the setting will require a restart, the query will return the name of the setting and the current value
of that setting in the running PostgreSQL instance.
#### Automatic restart when the PostgreSQL version changes
By default, Omnibus automatically restarts PostgreSQL when the underlying
version changes, as suggested by the [upstream documentation](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/13/upgrading.html).
This behavior can be controlled using the `auto_restart_on_version_change` setting
available for `postgresql` and `geo-postgresql`.
To disable automatic restarts when the PostgreSQL version changes:
1. Edit `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb` and add the following line:
```ruby
# For PostgreSQL/Patroni
postgresql['auto_restart_on_version_change'] = false
# For Geo PostgreSQL
geo_postgresql['auto_restart_on_version_change'] = false
```
1. Reconfigure GitLab:
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure
```
NOTE:
It is highly recommended to restart PostgreSQL when the underlying version changes,
to avoid errors like the [one related to loading necessary libraries](#could-not-load-library-plpgsqlso).
Omnibus automatically enables SSL on the PostgreSQL server, but it will accept
both encrypted and unencrypted connections by default. Enforcing SSL requires
using the `hostssl` configuration in `pg_hba.conf`. For more details, see the
[`pg_hba.conf` documentation](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/13/auth-pg-hba-conf.html).
- The public SSL certificate for the database (`server.crt`).
- The corresponding private key for the SSL certificate (`server.key`).
- A root certificate bundle that validates the server's certificate (`root.crt`).
By default, Omnibus GitLab uses the embedded certificate bundle in
`/opt/gitlab/embedded/ssl/certs/cacert.pem`. This isn't required for
self-signed certificates.
A 10-year self-signed certificate and private key will be generated by Omnibus GitLab for use. If you'd
prefer to use a CA-signed certificate or replace this with your own self-signed certificate, use the following steps.
Note that the location of these files can be configurable, but the private key
_must_ be readable by the `gitlab-psql` user. Omnibus manages the permissions of
the files for you, but if the paths are customized, you *must* ensure that the
`gitlab-psql` can access the directory in the files are placed in.
For more details, see the [PostgreSQL documentation](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/11/ssl-tcp.html).
Note that `server.crt` and `server.key` may be different from the default SSL
certificates used to access GitLab. For example, suppose the external hostname
of your database is `database.example.com`, and your external GitLab hostname
is `gitlab.example.com`. You will either need a wildcard certificate for
`*.example.com` or two different SSL certificates.
1. Edit `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
postgresql['ssl_cert_file'] = '/custom/path/to/server.crt'
postgresql['ssl_key_file'] = '/custom/path/to/server.key'
postgresql['ssl_ca_file'] = '/custom/path/to/bundle.pem'
postgresql['internal_certificate'] = "-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
...base64-encoded certificate...
-----END CERTIFICATE-----
"
postgresql['internal_key'] = "-----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
...base64-encoded private key...
-----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
"
```
Relative paths will be rooted in the PostgreSQL data directory
(`/var/opt/gitlab/postgresql/data` by default).
1. [Reconfigure GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/restart_gitlab.html#omnibus-gitlab-reconfigure) to apply the configuration changes.
1. Restart PostgreSQL for the changes to take effect:
gitlab-ctl restart postgresql
```
If PostgreSQL fails to start, check the logs (for example,
`/var/log/gitlab/postgresql/current`) for more details.
#### Require SSL
1. Add the following to `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
1. [Reconfigure GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/restart_gitlab.html#omnibus-gitlab-reconfigure) to apply the configuration changes.
1. Restart PostgreSQL for the changes to take effect:
gitlab-ctl restart postgresql
```
If PostgreSQL fails to start, check the logs (for example,
`/var/log/gitlab/postgresql/current`) for more details.
1. Add the following to `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
postgresql['ssl'] = 'off'
```
1. [Reconfigure GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/restart_gitlab.html#omnibus-gitlab-reconfigure) to apply the configuration changes.
1. Restart PostgreSQL for the changes to take effect:
gitlab-ctl restart postgresql
```
If PostgreSQL fails to start, check the logs (for example,
`/var/log/gitlab/postgresql/current`) for more details.
#### Verifying that SSL is being used
To determine whether SSL is being used by clients, you can run:
In [GitLab 14.2 and later](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/341210):
sudo gitlab-rails dbconsole --database main
```
In GitLab 14.1 and earlier:
```shell
sudo gitlab-rails dbconsole
```
At startup, you should see a banner as the following:
psql (9.6.5)
SSL connection (protocol: TLSv1.2, cipher: ECDHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384, bits: 256, compression: on)
Type "help" for help.
```
To determine if clients are using SSL, issue this SQL query:
```sql
SELECT * FROM pg_stat_ssl;
```
For example:
gitlabhq_production=> select * from pg_stat_ssl;
pid | ssl | version | cipher | bits | compression | clientdn
------+-----+---------+------------------------+------+-------------+------------
384 | f | | | | |
386 | f | | | | |
998 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
933 | f | | | | |
1003 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
1016 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
1022 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
1211 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
1214 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
1213 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
1215 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
1252 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f |
1280 | t | TLSv1.3 | TLS_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | 256 | f | /CN=gitlab
382 | f | | | | |
381 | f | | | | |
383 | f | | | | |
(16 rows)
1. Rows that have `t` listed under the `ssl` column are enabled.
1. Rows that have a value in the `clientdn` are using the `cert` authentication method
#### Configure SSL client authentication
Client SSL certificates can be used to authenticate to the database server. Creating the certificates
is beyond the scope of `omnibus-gitlab`. But users who have an existing SSL certificate management solution
can use this.
##### Configure the database server
1. Create a certificate and key for the server, the common name should equal the DNS name of the server
1. Copy the server certificate, key, and CA file to the PostgreSQL server, and ensure the permissions are correct
1. The certificate should be owned by the database user (default: `gitlab-psql`)
1. The key file should be owned by the database user, and its permissions should be `0400`
1. The CA file should be owned by the database user, and its permissions should be `0400`
Don't use the filenames `server.crt` or `server.key` for these files. These
filenames are reserved for the internal use of `omnibus-gitlab`.
1. Ensure the following is set in `gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
postgresql['ssl_cert_file'] = 'PATH_TO_CERTIFICATE'
postgresql['ssl_key_file'] = 'PATH_TO_KEY_FILE'
postgresql['ssl_ca_file'] = 'PATH_TO_CA_FILE'
postgresql['listen_address'] = 'IP_ADDRESS'
postgresql['cert_auth_addresses'] = {
'IP_ADDRESS' => {
'database' => 'gitlabhq_production',
'user' => 'gitlab'
}
```
Set `listen_address` as the IP address of the server that the clients will use
to connect to the database.
Ensure `cert_auth_addresses` contains a list of IP addresses and the
databases and users that are allowed to connect to the database. You can use
CIDR notation when specifying the key for `cert_auth_addresses` to
incorporate an IP address range.
1. Run `gitlab-ctl reconfigure`, and then `gitlab-ctl restart postgresql` for
the new settings to take effect.
#### Configure the Rails client
For the rails client to connect to the server, you will need a certificate and key with the `commonName` set to `gitlab`, which is signed by a certificate authority trusted in the CA file specified in `ssl_ca_file` on the database server.
1. Configure `gitlab.rb`
```ruby
gitlab_rails['db_host'] = 'IP_ADDRESS_OR_HOSTNAME_OF_DATABASE_SERVER'
gitlab_rails['db_sslcert'] = 'PATH_TO_CERTIFICATE_FILE'
gitlab_rails['db_sslkey'] = 'PATH_TO_KEY_FILE'
gitlab_rails['db_rootcert'] = 'PATH_TO_CA_FILE'
```
1. Run `gitlab-ctl reconfigure` for the rails client to use the new settings
1. Follow the steps in [Verifying that SSL is being used](#verifying-that-ssl-is-being-used) to ensure the authentication is working.
### Configure packaged PostgreSQL server to listen on TCP/IP
The packaged PostgreSQL server can be configured to listen for TCP/IP connections,
with the caveat that some non-critical scripts expect UNIX sockets and may misbehave.
To configure the use of TCP/IP for the database service, make changes to both
the `postgresql` and `gitlab_rails` sections of `gitlab.rb`.
#### Configure PostgreSQL block
The following settings are affected in the `postgresql` block:
- `listen_address`: Controls the address on which PostgreSQL will listen.
- `port`: Controls the port on which PostgreSQL will listen, and _must be set_
if `listen_address` is.
- `md5_auth_cidr_addresses`: A list of CIDR address blocks that are allowed to
connect to the server, after authentication with a password.
- `trust_auth_cidr_addresses`: A list of CIDR address blocks that are allowed
to connect to the server, without authentication of any kind. _Be very careful
with this setting._ It's suggested that this be limited to the loopback
address of `127.0.0.1/24` or even `127.0.0.1/32`.
- `sql_user`: Controls the expected username for MD5 authentication. This
defaults to `gitlab`, and isn't a required setting.
- `sql_user_password`: Sets the password that PostgreSQL will accept for MD5
authentication. Replace `securesqlpassword` in the following example with an
acceptable password.
1. Edit `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
postgresql['listen_address'] = '0.0.0.0'
postgresql['port'] = 5432
postgresql['md5_auth_cidr_addresses'] = %w()
postgresql['trust_auth_cidr_addresses'] = %w(127.0.0.1/24)
postgresql['sql_user'] = "gitlab"
##! SQL_USER_PASSWORD_HASH can be generated using the command `gitlab-ctl pg-password-md5 gitlab`,
##! where `gitlab` is the name of the SQL user that connects to GitLab.
postgresql['sql_user_password'] = "SQL_USER_PASSWORD_HASH"
# force ssl on all connections defined in trust_auth_cidr_addresses and md5_auth_cidr_addresses
postgresql['hostssl'] = true
```
1. Reconfigure GitLab and restart PostrgreSQL:
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure
sudo gitlab-ctl restart postgresql
```
Any client or GitLab service which will connect over the network will need to
provide the values of `sql_user` for the username, and password provided to the
configuration when connecting to the PostgreSQL server. They must also be in the
network block provided to `md5_auth_cidr_addresses`
#### Configure GitLab Rails block
To configure the `gitlab-rails` application to connect to the PostgreSQL database
over the network, several settings must be configured:
- `db_host`: Needs to be set to the IP address of the database server. If this is
on the same instance as the PostgreSQL service, this can be `127.0.0.1` and _will
not require_ password authentication.
- `db_port`: Sets the port on the PostgreSQL server to connect to, and _must be set_
- `db_username`: Configures the username with which to connect to PostgreSQL. This
- `db_password`: Must be provided if connecting to PostgreSQL over TCP/IP, and from
an instance in the `postgresql['md5_auth_cidr_addresses']` block from settings
above. This is not required if you are connecting to `127.0.0.1` and have configured
`postgresql['trust_auth_cidr_addresses']` to include it.
1. Edit `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
gitlab_rails['db_host'] = '127.0.0.1'
gitlab_rails['db_port'] = 5432
gitlab_rails['db_username'] = "gitlab"
gitlab_rails['db_password'] = "securesqlpassword"
```
1. Reconfigure GitLab and restart PostrgreSQL:
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure
sudo gitlab-ctl restart postgresql
```
#### Apply and restart services
After making the previous changes, an administrator should run `gitlab-ctl reconfigure`.
If you experience any issues in regards to the service not listening on TCP, try
directly restarting the service with `gitlab-ctl restart postgresql`.
Some included scripts of the Omnibus package (such as `gitlab-psql`) expect the
connections to PostgreSQL to be handled over the UNIX socket, and may not function
properly. You can enable TCP/IP without disabling UNIX sockets.
### Enabling PostgreSQL WAL (Write Ahead Log) Archiving
By default, WAL archiving of the packaged PostgreSQL isn't enabled. Consider the
following when seeking to enable WAL archiving:
- The WAL level needs to be 'replica' or higher (9.6+ options are `minimal`,
`replica`, or `logical`)
- Increasing the WAL level will increase the amount of storage consumed in
regular operations
To enable WAL Archiving:
1. Edit `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
# Replication settings
postgresql['sql_replication_user'] = "gitlab_replicator"
postgresql['wal_level'] = "replica"
...
...
# Backup/Archive settings
postgresql['archive_mode'] = "on"
postgresql['archive_command'] = "/your/wal/archiver/here"
postgresql['archive_timeout'] = "60"
```
1. [Reconfigure GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/restart_gitlab.html#omnibus-gitlab-reconfigure) for the changes to take effect. This will result in a database restart.
### Store PostgreSQL data in a different directory
By default, everything is stored under `/var/opt/gitlab/postgresql`, controlled
by the `postgresql['dir']` attribute.
- The database socket will be `/var/opt/gitlab/postgresql/.s.PGSQL.5432`. This
is controlled by `postgresql['unix_socket_directory']`.
- The `gitlab-psql` system user will have its `HOME` directory set to this. This
is controlled by `postgresql['home']`.
- The actual data will be stored in `/var/opt/gitlab/postgresql/data`.
To change the location of the PostgreSQL data
If you have an existing database, you need to move the data to the new location
first.
This is an intrusive operation. It cannot be done without downtime on an
existing installation
1. If this is an existing installation, stop GitLab: `gitlab-ctl stop`.
1. Update `postgresql['dir']` to the desired location.
1. Run `gitlab-ctl reconfigure`.
1. Start GitLab `gitlab-ctl start`.
### Upgrade packaged PostgreSQL server
Omnibus GitLab provides the `gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade` command to update the
packaged PostgreSQL server to a later version (if one is included in the
package). This updates PostgreSQL to the [default shipped version](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/package_information/postgresql_versions.html)
during package upgrades, unless specifically [opted out](#opt-out-of-automatic-postgresql-upgrades).
WARNING:
Before upgrading, it's important that you fully read this section before running any commands. For
single-node installations, this upgrade needs downtime, as the database must be
down while the upgrade is being performed. The length of time depends on the
size of your database. To avoid downtime, it's possible to upgrade to a new
database [using Slony](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/update/upgrading_postgresql_using_slony.html).
If you encounter any problems during the upgrade, raise an issue with a full
description at the [Omnibus GitLab issue tracker](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/omnibus-gitlab).
To upgrade the PostgreSQL version, be sure that:
- You're running the latest version of GitLab that supports your current version of PostgreSQL.
- If you recently upgraded, you ran `sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure` successfully
before you proceed.
- You have sufficient disk space for two copies of your database. _Do not attempt
to upgrade unless you have enough free space available._
- Check your database size using `sudo du -sh /var/opt/gitlab/postgresql/data`
(or update your database path).
- Check the space available using `sudo df -h`. If the partition where the
database resides doesn't have enough space, pass the argument `--tmp-dir $DIR`
to the command. GitLab 13.3 and above include an available disk space check and aborts
After you confirm that the above checklist is satisfied, you can proceed with
the upgrade:
sudo gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade
```
`pg-upgrade` can take arguments; for example, you can set the timeout for the
execution of the underlying commands (`--timeout=1d2h3m4s5ms`). Run `gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade -h`
to see the full list.
`gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade` performs the following steps:
1. Checks to ensure the database is in a known good state.
1. Checks if there's enough free disk space and abort otherwise. You can skip this by appending the `--skip-disk-check` flag.
1. Shuts down the existing database and any unnecessary services, and enables GitLab to deploy page.
1. Changes the symlinks in `/opt/gitlab/embedded/bin/` for PostgreSQL to point to the newer version of the database.
1. Creates a new directory containing a new, empty database with a locale matching the existing database.
1. Uses the `pg_upgrade` tool to copy the data from the old database to the new database.
1. Moves the old database out of the way.
1. Moves the new database to the expected location.
1. Calls `sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure` to do the required configuration changes and starts the new database server.
1. Runs `ANALYZE` to generate database statistics.
1. Starts the remaining services and removes the deploy page.
1. If any errors are detected during this process, it reverts to the old version of the database.
After the upgrade is complete, verify that everything is working as expected.
If there was an error in the output while running the `ANALYZE` step, your upgrade
will still be working but will have poor database performance until the
database statistics are generated. Use `gitlab-psql` to determine whether `ANALYZE` should be run manually:
```shell
sudo gitlab-psql -c "SELECT relname, last_analyze, last_autoanalyze FROM pg_stat_user_tables WHERE last_analyze IS NULL AND last_autoanalyze IS NULL;"
```
You can run `ANALYZE` manually if the query above returned any rows:
```shell
sudo gitlab-psql -c 'SET statement_timeout = 0; ANALYZE VERBOSE;'
```
_After you have verified that your GitLab instance is running correctly_, you
can clean up the old database files:
sudo rm -rf /var/opt/gitlab/postgresql/data.<old_version>
sudo rm -f /var/opt/gitlab/postgresql-version.old
```
You can find details of PostgreSQL versions shipped with various GitLab versions
in [PostgreSQL versions shipped with Omnibus GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/package_information/postgresql_versions.html).
#### Opt out of automatic PostgreSQL upgrades
To opt out of automatic PostgreSQL upgrades during GitLab package upgrades, run:
```shell
sudo touch /etc/gitlab/disable-postgresql-upgrade
```
#### GitLab 15.0 and later
As of GitLab 15.0, new installations will default to PostgreSQL 13.
Existing single database node instances can update manually via:
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade -V 13
```
Until PostgreSQL 12 is removed, administrators may
[pin the PostgreSQL version](#pin-the-packaged-postgresql-version-fresh-installs-only)
if needed for compatibility or test environment reasons.
[Fault tolerant and Geo installations require additional steps and planning](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/postgresql/replication_and_failover.html#upgrading-postgresql-major-version-in-a-patroni-cluster).
PostgreSQL version 11 is no longer supported and the binaries have been
removed. To proceed, administrators must:
1. Ensure the installation is using [PostgreSQL 12](../settings/database.md#upgrade-packaged-postgresql-server)
1. If using repmgr, [convert to using patroni](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/postgresql/replication_and_failover.html#switching-from-repmgr-to-patroni)
#### GitLab 13.8 and later
The default PostgreSQL version is set to 12.x, and an upgrade of the database is
done automatically on package upgrades for installs that are not using repmgr or Geo.
The upgrade is skipped in any of the following cases:
- You're running the database in high availability using repmgr or patroni.
- Your database nodes are part of GitLab Geo configuration.
- You have specifically [opted out](#opt-out-of-automatic-postgresql-upgrades).
Fault-tolerant and Geo installations support manual upgrades to PostgreSQL 12, see [Packaged PostgreSQL deployed in an HA/Geo Cluster](#packaged-postgresql-deployed-in-an-hageo-cluster).
As of GitLab 13.7, new installations will default to PostgreSQL 12.
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade -V 12
```
Instances with fault-tolerant PostgreSQL 11 deployments will need to [upgrade to Patroni](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/postgresql/replication_and_failover.html#switching-from-repmgr-to-patroni) first, before upgrading to PostgreSQL 12.
Geo installations support manual upgrades to PostgreSQL 12, see [Packaged PostgreSQL deployed in a Geo Cluster](#upgrading-a-geo-instance).
As of GitLab 13.3, PostgreSQL 11.7 and 12.3 are both shipped with Omnibus.
During a package upgrade, the database isn't upgraded to PostgreSQL 12. If you
want to upgrade to PostgreSQL 12, you must do it manually:
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade -V 12
```
PostgreSQL 12 isn't supported on Geo deployments and is [planned](https://gitlab.com/groups/gitlab-org/-/epics/2374)
for future releases. The [fault-tolerant PostgreSQL 12 deployment](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/postgresql/replication_and_failover.html)
is possible only by using Patroni. Repmgr is no longer supported for
PostgreSQL 12.
#### GitLab 12.10 and later
The default PostgreSQL version is set to 11.x, and an upgrade of the database is
done on package upgrades for installs that are not using repmgr or Geo.
The upgrade is skipped in any of the following cases:
- You're running the database in high availability using repmgr.
- Your database nodes are part of GitLab Geo configuration.
- You have specifically [opted out](#opt-out-of-automatic-postgresql-upgrades).
To upgrade PostgreSQL on installs with HA or Geo, see [Packaged PostgreSQL deployed in an HA/Geo Cluster](#packaged-postgresql-deployed-in-an-hageo-cluster).
#### GitLab 12.8 and later
**As of GitLab 12.8, PostgreSQL 9.6.17, 10.12, and 11.7 are shipped with
Omnibus GitLab.**
During package upgrades (unless opted out) and when the user manually runs
`gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade`, `omnibus-gitlab` will still be attempting to upgrade
the database only to 10.x, while 11.x will be available for users to manually
upgrade to. To manually update PostgreSQL to version 11.x , the `pg-upgrade`
the command has to be passed with a version argument (`-V` or `--target-version`):
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl pg-upgrade -V 11
#### GitLab 12.0 and later
**As of GitLab 12.0, PostgreSQL 9.6.11 and 10.7 are shipped with Omnibus
GitLab.**
On upgrades, we will be upgrading the database to 10.7 unless specifically opted
out, as previously described.
#### GitLab 11.11 and later
**As of GitLab 11.11, PostgreSQL 9.6.X and 10.7 are shipped with Omnibus
GitLab.**
Fresh installs will be getting PostgreSQL 10.7 while GitLab package upgrades
will retain the existing version of PostgreSQL. Users can manually upgrade to
10.7 using the `pg-upgrade` command as previously mentioned.
### Revert packaged PostgreSQL server to the previous version
This operation will revert your current database, _including its data_, to its state
before your last upgrade. Be sure to create a backup before attempting to downgrade
your packaged PostgreSQL database.
On GitLab versions which ship multiple PostgreSQL versions, users can downgrade
an already upgraded PostgreSQL version to the earlier version using the `gitlab-ctl
revert-pg-upgrade` command. This command also supports the `-V` flag to specify
a target version for scenarios where more than two PostgreSQL versions are shipped in
the package (for example: GitLab 12.8 where PostgreSQL 9.6.x, 10.x, and 11.x are
shipped).
Brie Carranza
committed
To specify a target PostgreSQL version of 12:
```shell
gitlab-ctl revert-pg-upgrade -V 12
```
If the target version is not specified, it will use the version in `/var/opt/gitlab/postgresql-version.old`
if available. Otherwise, it falls back to the default version shipped with GitLab.
On other GitLab versions that ship only one PostgreSQL version, you can't
downgrade your PostgreSQL version. You must downgrade GitLab to an older version for
this.
### Connecting to the bundled PostgreSQL database
If you need to connect to the bundled PostgreSQL database and are using the
default Omnibus GitLab database configuration, you can connect as the
application user:
In [GitLab 14.2 and later](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/341210):
```shell
sudo gitlab-rails dbconsole --database main
```
In GitLab 14.1 and earlier:
sudo gitlab-rails dbconsole
```
sudo gitlab-psql -d gitlabhq_production
```
## Using a non-packaged PostgreSQL database management server
By default, GitLab is configured to use the PostgreSQL server that's included
in Omnibus GitLab. You can also reconfigure it to use an external instance of
PostgreSQL.
If you are using a non-packaged PostgreSQL server, you need to make
sure that PostgreSQL is set up according to the [database requirements document](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/install/requirements.html#database).
```ruby
# Disable the built-in Postgres
postgresql['enable'] = false
# Fill in the connection details for database.yml
gitlab_rails['db_adapter'] = 'postgresql'
gitlab_rails['db_encoding'] = 'utf8'
gitlab_rails['db_host'] = '127.0.0.1'
gitlab_rails['db_port'] = 5432
gitlab_rails['db_username'] = 'USERNAME'
gitlab_rails['db_password'] = 'PASSWORD'
```
Don't forget to remove the `#` comment characters at the beginning of these
lines.
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- `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb` should have file permissions `0600` because it contains
plain-text passwords.
- PostgreSQL allows listening on [multiple addresses](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/11/runtime-config-connection.html)
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If you use multiple addresses in `gitlab_rails['db_host']`, comma-separated, the first address in the list will be used for the connection.
1. [Reconfigure GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/restart_gitlab.html#omnibus-gitlab-reconfigure) for the changes to take effect.
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1. [Seed the database](#seed-the-database-fresh-installs-only).
### UNIX socket configuration for non-packaged PostgreSQL
If you want to use your system's PostgreSQL server (installed on the same system
as GitLab) instead of the one bundled with GitLab, you can do so by using a UNIX
socket:
1. Edit `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
# Disable the built-in Postgres
postgresql['enable'] = false
# Fill in the connection details for database.yml
gitlab_rails['db_adapter'] = 'postgresql'
gitlab_rails['db_encoding'] = 'utf8'
# The path where the socket lives
gitlab_rails['db_host'] = '/var/run/postgresql/'
```
1. Reconfigure GitLab for the changes to take effect:
```ruby
sudo gitlab-ctl-reconfigure
```
### Configuring SSL
#### Require SSL
1. Add the following to `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
1. [Reconfigure GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/restart_gitlab.html#omnibus-gitlab-reconfigure) to apply the configuration changes.
1. Restart PostgreSQL for the changes to take effect:
gitlab-ctl restart postgresql
```
If PostgreSQL fails to start, check the logs (for example,
`/var/log/gitlab/postgresql/current`) for more details.
#### Require SSL and verify server certificate against CA bundle
PostgreSQL can be configured to require SSL and verify the server certificate
against a CA bundle to prevent spoofing.
The CA bundle that's specified in `gitlab_rails['db_sslrootcert']` must contain
both the root and intermediate certificates.
1. Add the following to `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`:
```ruby
gitlab_rails['db_sslmode'] = "verify-full"
gitlab_rails['db_sslrootcert'] = "your-full-ca-bundle.pem"
```
If you are using Amazon RDS for your PostgreSQL server, ensure you
download and use the [combined CA bundle](https://s3.amazonaws.com/rds-downloads/rds-combined-ca-bundle.pem)
for `gitlab_rails['db_sslrootcert']`. More information on this can be found
in the [using SSL/TLS to Encrypt a Connection to a DB Instance](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/UsingWithRDS.SSL.html)
article on AWS.
1. [Reconfigure GitLab](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/restart_gitlab.html#omnibus-gitlab-reconfigure) to apply the configuration changes.
1. Restart PostgreSQL for the changes to take effect:
gitlab-ctl restart postgresql
```
If PostgreSQL fails to start, check the logs (for example,
`/var/log/gitlab/postgresql/current`) for more details.
### Backup and restore a non-packaged PostgreSQL database
When using the [Rake backup create and restore task](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#create-a-backup-of-the-gitlab-system), GitLab will
attempt to use the packaged `pg_dump` command to create a database backup file
and the packaged `psql` command to restore a backup. This will only work if
they are the correct versions. Check the versions of the packaged `pg_dump` and
`psql`:
/opt/gitlab/embedded/bin/pg_dump --version
/opt/gitlab/embedded/bin/psql --version
If these versions are different from your non-packaged external PostgreSQL, you may encounter the following error output when attempting to run a [Rake backup create task](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#create-a-backup-of-the-gitlab-system):
```plaintext
Dumping PostgreSQL database gitlabhq_production ... pg_dump: error: server version: 13.3; pg_dump version: 12.6
pg_dump: error: aborting because of server version mismatch
```
In this example, the error occurs on GitLab 14.1 when using PostgreSQL version 13.3, instead of the [default shipped PostgreSQL version](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/package_information/postgresql_versions.html) of 12.6.
In this case, you will need to install tools that match your database version and then follow the
steps below. There are multiple ways to install PostgreSQL client tools. See
<https://www.postgresql.org/download/> for options.
Once the correct `psql` and `pg_dump` tools are available on your system, follow
these steps, using the correct path to the location you installed the new tools:
1. Add symbolic links to the non-packaged versions:
ln -s /path/to/new/pg_dump /path/to/new/psql /opt/gitlab/bin/
```
/opt/gitlab/bin/pg_dump --version
/opt/gitlab/bin/psql --version
```
They should now be the same as your non-packaged external PostgreSQL.
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After this is done, ensure that the backup and restore tasks are using the
correct executables by running both the [backup](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#create-a-backup-of-the-gitlab-system) and
[restore](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#restore-a-previously-created-backup) tasks.
### Upgrade a non-packaged PostgreSQL database
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You can upgrade the external database as suggested by the provider after stopping all the processes that are connected to the database (Puma, Sidekiq):
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl stop puma
sudo gitlab-ctl stop sidekiq
```
Before proceeding with the upgrade, note the following:
- Before upgrading, review the [GitLab and PostgreSQL version compatibility table](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/package_information/postgresql_versions.html)
to determine your upgrade path. When using GitLab backup or restore, you
_must_ keep the same version of GitLab; first, upgrade PostgreSQL, and then GitLab.
- The [backup and restore Rake task](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#create-a-backup-of-the-gitlab-system)
can be used to back up and restore the database to a later version of PostgreSQL.
- If configuring a version number whose binaries are unavailable on the file
system, GitLab/Rails uses the default database's version binaries (default as
per [GitLab and PostgreSQL version compatibility table](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/package_information/postgresql_versions.html)).
- If you're using Amazon RDS and are seeing extremely high (near 100%) CPU
utilization following a major version upgrade (for example, from `10.x` to
`11.x`), running an `ANALYZE VERBOSE;` query may be necessary to recreate query
plans and reduce CPU utilization on the database server(s).
[Amazon recommends this](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_UpgradeDBInstance.PostgreSQL.html)
as part of a major version upgrade.
The following example demonstrates upgrading from a database host running PostgreSQL 11 to another database host running PostgreSQL 12 and incurs downtime:
1. Spin up a new PostgreSQL 12 database server that's set up according to the [database requirements](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/install/requirements.html#database).
1. Ensure that the compatible versions of `pg_dump` and `pg_restore` are being
used on the GitLab Rails instance. To amend GitLab configuration, edit
`/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb` and specify the value of `postgresql['version']`:
```ruby
```
1. Reconfigure GitLab:
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure
```
1. Stop GitLab (note that this step causes downtime):
sudo gitlab-ctl stop
```
The backup command requires [additional parameters](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#backup-and-restore-for-installations-using-pgbouncer)
when your installation is using PgBouncer.
1. Run the backup Rake task using the SKIP options to back up only the database.
Make a note of the backup file name; you'll use it later to restore.
```shell
sudo gitlab-backup create SKIP=repositories,uploads,builds,artifacts,lfs,pages,registry
```
1. Shutdown the PostgreSQL 11 database host.
1. Edit `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb` and update the `gitlab_rails['db_host']` setting
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to point to the PostgreSQL database 12 host.
1. Reconfigure GitLab:
```shell
sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure
```
WARNING:
The backup command requires [additional parameters](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#backup-and-restore-for-installations-using-pgbouncer)
when your installation is using PgBouncer.
1. Restore the database using the database backup file created earlier, and be
sure to answer **no** when asked "This task will now rebuild the authorized_keys file":
# Use the backup timestamp https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/raketasks/backup_restore.html#backup-timestamp
sudo gitlab-backup restore BACKUP=<backup-timestamp>
```
1. Start GitLab:
sudo gitlab-ctl start
```
### Seed the database (fresh installs only)
This is a destructive command; do not run it on an existing database.
Omnibus GitLab will not seed your external database. Run the following command
to import the schema and create the first administration user:
# Remove 'sudo' if you are the 'git' user
sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:setup
```
If you want to specify a password for the default `root` user, specify the
`initial_root_password` setting in `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb` before running the
`gitlab:setup` command above:
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If you want to specify the initial registration token for shared GitLab Runners,
specify the `initial_shared_runners_registration_token` setting in `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`
before running the `gitlab:setup` command:
```ruby
gitlab_rails['initial_shared_runners_registration_token'] = 'token'
```
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### Pin the packaged PostgreSQL version (fresh installs only)
GitLab 14.1 and onward shipped with both Postgres 12 and Postgres 13.
GitLab 14.0 only ships with PostgreSQL 12. GitLab 13.3 and onward shipped both Postgres 11 and Postgres 12.
GitLab 13.0 through 13.2 only shipped with PostgreSQL 11.
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Omnibus GitLab will initialize PostgreSQL with the [default version](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/package_information/postgresql_versions.html).
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To initialize PostgreSQL with a non-default version, you can set `postgresql['version']` to the major version one of
the [packaged PostgreSQL versions](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/administration/package_information/postgresql_versions.html) prior to the initial reconfigure.
For example, in GitLab 15.0 you can use `postgresql['version'] = 12` to use PostgreSQL 12 instead of the default of PostgreSQL 13.
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Setting `postgresql['version']` while using the Omnibus packaged PostgreSQL after the initial reconfigure will
throw errors about the data directory being initialized on a different version of PostgreSQL. If this is encountered,