Data Migration
About Migration
PostgreSQL minor releases never change the internal storage format and are always compatible with earlier and later minor releases of the same major version number. For example, v9.5.2 is compatible with v9.5, v9.5.1, and v9.5.6. Upgrades between minor versions of PostgreSQL allow for in-place upgrades because of this compatibility.
However, for major releases of PostgreSQL, the internal data storage format is subject to change, thus complicating upgrades. The traditional method for moving data to a new major version is to dump and reload the database.
New major versions also typically introduce some user-visible incompatibilities, so application programming changes may be required. Cautious users test their client applications on the new version before switching over fully. Therefore, Crunchy Data recommends setting up concurrent installations of old and new versions.
Basic Migration Guidelines
To dump data from one major version of PostgreSQL and reload it in
another, you must use pg_dump. File system level backup methods will
not work. There are checks in place that prevent you from using a data
directory with an incompatible version of PostgreSQL, so no great harm
can be done by trying to start the wrong server version on a data
directory.
You can see the least downtime by installing the newer release on a different instance, running both the old and new in parallel.
If there is network-peering and communication between the two, Crunchy
Data recommends you use the pg_dump and pg_dumpall programs from the
newer version of PostgreSQL to take advantage of enhancements that might
have been made in these programs.
Alternately, you can dump to an intermediate file from the old service,
and restore on the new service. You should ensure that the old database
is not updated after you begin to run pg_dump or pg_dumpall, or you
will lose those updates.
For more information, see the Official PostgreSQL documentation.
CF Apps-Based Tools
Crunchy Data offers CF apps that can assist with this type of migration, such as: