Re: Start postgresql for the first time

[Bob Parnes <rparnes@megalink.net>]

On Sun, Aug 01, 2004 at 10:12:16PM +0100, Oliver Elphick wrote:
> On Sun, 2004-08-01 at 18:00, Stephen Patterson wrote:
> > On Sun, 01 Aug 2004 17:40:06 +0200, Bob Parnes wrote:
> > > After using mysql for several years, I decided to try the testing 
> > > version of postgresql, but I cannot get started. I cannot log in to 
> > > create users, and I cannot create a database.
> > >

[...]

> > The defualt setup (see /etc/postgresql/pg_hba.conf) is to only allow users
> > to access postgresql databases if their postgres username matches
> > their linux username. 
> 
> This is the policy for the Debian package.  It represents (in my
> opinion) the best compromise between initial security and convenience. 
> The upstream default has traditionally been full open access with no
> security check.  In either case, the access policy needs to be reviewed
> by the local administrator.
> 
> > To create database user accounts, log in as root, su to postgres and
> > run createuser. As postgres, you can run createdb to create empty databases.
> 
> To expand on that, use "su - postgres" to get the full environment. 
> Simply using "su postgres" would not do that.
> 
> When PostgreSQL is installed for the first time, there are two
> databases: template0 and template1.  template1 is the template for the
> real databases that you will create; any changes you make to it will be
> propagated into any new databases created thereafter (for instance, you
> might choose to delete the public schema from template1).  template0 is
> a pristine copy of the database as created by initdb and is not normally
> accessible.  It can be named specifically as a template for creating a
> database.  When accessing PostgreSQL for the first time you would
> specify template1 as the database:
> 
>   psql [-d] template1
> 
> The Linux commands createdb and createuser are programs that connect to
> the template1 database and wrap the SQL commands CREATE DATABASE and
> CREATE USER, which you can use from inside psql.
> 
> If, when you create a user, you give him the right to create new users,
> he is by definition an administrator or superuser in respect to
> PostgreSQL, just as the user postgres is in the default installation. 
> In my own set-up I give myself that privilege and therefore very rarely
> need to use the postgres login to access the database.

[...]

Thanks so much. The process is more complex than with mysql, but the
rationale is reasonable.

-- 
Bob Parnes
rparnes@megalink.net