When running a PostgreSQL database in a High Availability (HA) cluster, it’s easy to assume that having multiple nodes means your data is safe. But HA is not a replacement for backups. If someone accidentally deletes important data or runs a wrong update query, that change will quickly spread to all nodes in the cluster. Without proper safeguards, that data is gone everywhere. In these cases, only a backup can help you restore what was lost. The case mentioned above isn’t the only reason backups are important. In fact, many industries have strict compliance requirements that make regular backups mandatory. This makes backups essential not just for recovering lost data, but also for meeting regulatory standards. Barman is a popular tool in the PostgreSQL ecosystem for managing backups, especially in High Availability (HA) environments. It's known for being easy to set up and for offering multiple types and modes of backups. However, this flexibility can also be a bit overwhelming at first. That’s why I’m writing this blog to break down each backup option in a simple and clear way, so you can choose the one that best fits your business needs.

When designing a highly available PostgreSQL cluster, two popular tools often come into the conversation: Pgpool-II and Patroni. Both are widely used in production environments, offer solid performance, and aim to improve resilience and reduce downtime; however, they take different approaches to achieving this goal. We often get questions during webinars/talks and customer calls about which tool is better suited for production deployments. So, we decided to put together this blog to help you understand the differences and guide you in choosing the right solution based on your specific use case. Before we dive into comparing these two great tools for achieving high availability, let's first take a quick look at some of the key components involved in building a highly available and resilient setup.