Configuration

The PostgreSQL Configuration page lets you edit low-level postgresql.conf settings for your database service, without needing terminal access.

How to Change Configuration​

1. Open OpenPanel and navigate to PostgreSQL > Configuration.
2. Modify the values you want to change.
3. Click Save Changes to apply changes.

Settings are written to a configuration override for your account, and the PostgreSQL container is restarted to apply them.

Optimize Database​

When the Configuration page opens, OpenPanel checks your PostgreSQL service in the background and suggests settings that fit how it's actually used. While it checks you'll see Checking your database for possible optimizations....

If it finds something to improve, an Optimize Database banner shows at the top of the page and an optimize icon (⚡) shows next to each setting that has a suggestion.

1. Click the optimize icon next to a setting, or Review all in the banner.
2. The Confirm Changes dialog shows the previous value, the new value and why it's suggested for each setting.
3. Click Save Changes to apply them and restart the service, or Cancel to close the dialog without changing anything.

The banner also shows what the suggestions are based on: the PostgreSQL version, the memory limit and current memory use of the service, the number of databases, their total size and the uptime.

Suggestions are based on:

• Memory and CPU limits of your PostgreSQL service, and whether it was ever stopped for running out of memory. Used for shared_buffers, effective_cache_size, work_mem, maintenance_work_mem, max_connections and the number of parallel workers.
• Your data: the total size of your databases, so shared_buffers is only raised as far as your data needs.
• Usage statistics since the service started: how many reads came from memory, temporary files written to disk by sorts, and forced checkpoints. These are only used after the service has been running for at least an hour.
• Connections: how many of the allowed connections are in use, and connections left idle in a transaction.
• Settings that cost performance: logging every statement, wal_level = logical without replication slots, and autovacuum turned off.
• Log: recent too many clients and checkpoints are occurring too frequently messages.

Only settings that are listed on the page and exist on your PostgreSQL version are suggested.

Available Options​

The list of configurable keys is determined by the system administrator. By default, the following are available:

• max_connections
• shared_buffers
• work_mem
• maintenance_work_mem
• effective_cache_size
• max_worker_processes
• max_parallel_workers
• wal_level
• synchronous_commit
• checkpoint_timeout
• checkpoint_completion_target
• logging_collector
• log_directory
• log_filename
• log_min_duration_statement
• log_statement
• autovacuum
• autovacuum_max_workers
• autovacuum_naptime
• autovacuum_vacuum_scale_factor

Customizing Available Options

Administrators can change which keys are exposed here by editing /etc/openpanel/postgres/keys.txt (one key per line). If that file doesn't exist, the default list above is used.