Databases Beginner

What is Database Backup?

The process of creating copies of database data to protect against data loss from failures, corruption, or human error.

Backup strategies include logical backups (pg_dump — SQL statements to recreate data), physical backups (file-level copies of data directory), and continuous archiving (WAL shipping for point-in-time recovery).

The 3-2-1 rule: 3 copies of data, on 2 different media types, with 1 offsite copy. Test restores regularly — an untested backup is not a backup. Automate backups with cron and monitor for failures. Cloud providers offer managed backup solutions.

Learn More About This Topic

Database Design & Modeling Fundamentals

Related reading

PostgreSQL Database Setup: The Complete Guide

Related reading

PostgreSQL Backup, Replication & High Availability

Related reading

Related Terms

MVCC (Multi-Version Concurrency Control)

A technique where the database maintains multiple versions of data to allow concurrent reads and writes without locking.

A column or set of columns that uniquely identifies each row in a database table.

Database Index Types

Different index structures (B-tree, Hash, GIN, GiST, BRIN) optimized for various query patterns and data types.

A pattern where records are marked as deleted with a flag or timestamp rather than being physically removed from the database.

A database object that automatically executes a specified function when certain events (INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE) occur on a table.

ORM (Object-Relational Mapping)

A technique that lets you interact with a database using object-oriented code instead of writing raw SQL queries.

View All Databases Terms →