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PostgreSQL 17 Is Released

PostgreSQL 17 arrived on 26 September 2024. The changes that matter to operators.

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  • PostgreSQL 17.0
  • pg_basebackup
  • pg_upgrade

PostgreSQL 17 was released on 26 September 2024. Highlights for people who run databases:

Feature Why it matters
Incremental backups in pg_basebackup Smaller, faster backups of large databases
pg_combinebackup Merges a full and incremental backups into a restorable copy
New vacuum memory structure Lower memory use and fewer index scans during vacuum
JSON_TABLE and more SQL/JSON functions Query JSON as rows
pg_createsubscriber Turns a physical standby into a logical replica
Logical replication slots survive pg_upgrade Simpler major upgrades

Try incremental backups:

# in postgresql.conf: summarize_wal = on
pg_basebackup -D /backup/full
pg_basebackup -D /backup/incr1 --incremental=/backup/full/backup_manifest
pg_combinebackup /backup/full /backup/incr1 -o /restore

Plan an upgrade with pg_upgrade --link after testing on a copy and reviewing the release notes. Wait for the first minor release (17.1, due in November) before moving important systems. Version 16 is supported until 2028.