The pg_zlog extension provides logical table replication for PostgreSQL. Replication is implemented by logging table mutations to a consistent shared-log called ZLog that runs on the Ceph distributed storage system. Strong consistency is provided by rolling the log forward on any PostgreSQL node before executing a query on a replicated table.

This extension is based on pg_paxos that uses PL/pgSQL to implement a Paxos-based shared-log for recording table mutations. The primary difference between pg_zlog and pg_paxos is that pg_zlog decouples the log implementation from PostgreSQL, allowing it to support the high-performance ZLog log implementation, removing the overheads associated with maintaining a quorum of PostgreSQL nodes, and supporting flexible storage options like replication and erasure-coding that are provided by Ceph.

Register a Ceph cluster with pg_zlog using the pgzlog_add_cluster function by specifying a name (of your choosing) and a path to a Ceph configuration file. Use null for the configuration file parameter to search default paths.

SELECT pgzlog_add_cluster('ceph', '/etc/ceph/ceph.conf');
/* OR */
SELECT pgzlog_add_cluster('ceph', null);

The set of registered clusters is stored in pgzlog_metadata.cluster:

postgres=# SELECT * from pgzlog_metadata.cluster;
 name  |                 fsid                 |     conf_path
-------+--------------------------------------+---------------------
 ceph  | b91e2af8-3d94-4fef-a314-1209cde6ea68 | /etc/ceph/ceph.conf

The fsid value is a unique cluster identifier that is used as a safety mechanism to verify that connections are made to the correct cluster. It is retrieved when pgzlog_add_cluster is called by establishing an initial connection to the cluster. If a connection were made by pg_zlog to an unexpected cluster than an error would be thrown, and manual intervention would be required (e.g. verify and update the fsid, or the configuration path).

Register a storage pool with pg_zlog using the pgzlog_add_pool function by specifying the name of the pool in the Ceph cluster. Use the name of a cluster already registered with pgzlog_add_cluster.

SELECT pgzlog_add_pool('ceph', 'pg_pool');

The set of registered storage pools is stored in pgzlog_metadata.pool:

postgres=# SELECT * from pgzlog_metadata.pool;
   name  | id | cluster 
---------+----+---------
 pg_pool |  0 | ceph

Like fsid above, the id field is a unique identifer for the pool that is filled in automatically and checked each time a new connection is established.

Register a distributed log with pgzlog_add_log by specifying the name of the log and pool it should be stored it. The hostname and port of the sequencer service can be specified, and using null will use the the default sequencer connection. If the log does not exist it will be created.

SELECT pgzlog_add_log('pg_pool', 'pg_log', 'seq-host', 5678);
/* OR */
SELECT pgzlog_add_log('pg_pool', 'pg_log', null, null);

The set of registered logs is stored in pgzlog_metadata.log:

postgres=# SELECT * from pgzlog_metadata.log;
  name  |   pool  | host | port | last_applied_pos 
--------+---------+------+------+------------------
 pg_log | pg_pool |      |      |               -1
(1 row)

Register a table to be replicated on a log using pgzlog_replicate_table:

CREATE TABLE coordinates (x int, y int);
SELECT pgzlog_replicate_table('pg_log', 'coordinates');

After the table is registered for replication any modification statement is save to the log so that it may be replayed by all nodes that want to access the replicated table.