✓ Small-team database recovery planning
✓ Native versus managed backup decisions
✓ Isolated rehearsal and operating-cost records
— Live incident command execution
— Guaranteed failover or recovery
— Security or compliance certification
— Laptop-only backup shopping
A point is not a continuous history
A logical dump captures an export suitable for its documented restore process. Point-in-time recovery uses a different recovery design with a base backup and the required log history. A series of frequent exports does not become continuous recovery simply because the interval is short.
Match the failure you fear
If the main task is portability or recovering a periodic application state, logical exports may fit. If you must recover to just before an accidental change between exports, evaluate a supported point-in-time design. Confirm what happens when part of the required history is missing.
Keep separate evidence
Record which method produced each artifact and which restoration instructions apply. Test the chosen target, not only the latest available copy. Log-chain coverage, engine compatibility and access to the required keys belong in the rehearsal evidence; a successful archive download is not enough.
Do not improvise in an incident
Prepare the documented procedure while the service is healthy. If the architecture cannot meet the agreed objective, escalate before changing production settings. This is a buyer and planning guide, not a substitute for an experienced database operator during live recovery.
Use a timeline to choose the method
Fictional sequence: an export completes at midnight, an unwanted change happens at 10:10, and the problem is noticed at 10:20. Restoring the midnight export cannot, by itself, retain legitimate changes made in the morning. A supported point-in-time design may address that requirement, but only with the necessary base backup, log history and tested procedure. Ask whether the team needs the earlier complete state or a more precise recovery point. Do not infer either result from a dashboard showing that the latest scheduled job succeeded.
What this comparison can—and cannot—settle
This guide draws on PostgreSQL: logical SQL dump, PostgreSQL: continuous archiving. Merchant-controlled records describe the provider’s own capabilities, terms or standards; they do not independently validate those claims. These records do not establish independent confirmation of the product claims.
Verify any current price, plan limit, label direction, compatibility rule, or commercial term that would materially change the decision. The dated source ledger shows the underlying records so this conclusion can be checked and updated.
Sources used for this page
These records support the facts and comparisons above. Merchant-controlled records are labelled so you can separate product claims from independent evidence.
- PostgreSQL: logical SQL dump — Platform documentation · postgresql.org · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-10-01
- PostgreSQL: continuous archiving — Platform documentation · postgresql.org · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-10-01