This topic describes how to create an ApsaraDB RDS for PostgreSQL instance in the ApsaraDB RDS console. You can also create an ApsaraDB RDS for PostgreSQL instance by calling an API operation.

Billing

For more information, see Pricing, billable items, and billing methods.

Prerequisites

You have an Alibaba Cloud account. For more information, see Sign up with Alibaba Cloud.

Procedure

  1. Log on to the ApsaraDB RDS console.
  2. Configure the following parameters.
    Parameter Description
    Billing Method
    • Subscription: A subscription instance is an instance that you can subscribe to for a specified period and pay for up front. For long-term use, the subscription billing method is more cost-effective than the pay-as-you-go billing method. You can receive larger discounts for longer subscription periods.
    • Pay-As-You-Go: A pay-as-you-go instance is charged per hour based on your actual resource usage. The pay-as-you-go billing method is suitable for short-term use. If you no longer need your pay-as-you-go instance, you can release it to reduce costs.
    Note A maximum of 30 pay-as-you-go RDS instances are allowed per Alibaba Cloud account. To increase this quota, you must click here to submit a ticket.
    Region The region to which the RDS instance belongs.
    • After you confirm the purchase order, you cannot change the selected region.
    • We recommend that you select a region that is in close proximity to the geographic location where your users reside. This allows you to increase the access speeds of your users.
    • The RDS instance must reside in the same region as the ECS instance that you want to connect. If the RDS and ECS instances reside in different regions, these instances cannot communicate over an internal network. In this case, these instances must communicate over the Internet and therefore cannot deliver optimal performance.
    Database Engine The database engine and engine version that the RDS instance is running. Select PostgreSQL. Supported PostgreSQL versions are 9.4, 10, 11, 12, and 13.
    Note The available database engines and versions vary based on the selected region.
    Edition
    • Basic: The database system consists of only one RDS instance. Computing is separated from storage to increase cost-effectiveness.
    • High-availability: The database system adopts the classic high-availability architecture that consists of one primary instance and one secondary instance.
    Note The available RDS editions vary based on the selected region and database engine version. For more information, see Overview of ApsaraDB RDS editions.
    Storage Type
    • Local SSD: A local SSD resides on the same server as the database engine. You can store data on local SSDs to reduce I/O latency.
    • Enhanced SSD: An enhanced SSD is an ultra-high performance disk that is developed by Alibaba Cloud based on the next-generation distributed block storage architecture. It integrates 25 Gigabit Ethernet and remote direct memory access (RDMA) technologies. This type of storage media reduces one-way latency and delivers up to 1 million random input/output operations per second (IOPS). Three enhanced SSD options are provided in the ApsaraDB RDS console. Each option represents a specific performance level (PL).
      • Enhanced SSD: This option represents an enhanced SSD of PL1.
      • ESSD PL2: An enhanced SSD of PL2 delivers IOPS and throughput that are twice higher than those delivered by an enhanced SSD of PL1.
      • ESSD PL3: An enhanced SSD of PL3 delivers IOPS that is 20 times higher than the IOPS delivered by an enhanced SSD of PL1. It also delivers throughput that is 11 times higher than the throughput delivered by an enhanced SSD of PL1. Enhanced SSDs of PL3 are suitable for workloads that require high I/O performance to process concurrent requests. Enhanced SSDs of PL3 are also suitable for workloads that require stable read/write latency.
    • Standard SSD: A standard SSD is an elastic block storage device that is designed based on the distributed storage architecture. You can store data on standard SSDs to separate computing from storage.

    For more information, see Storage types.

    Note If you select the standard SSD or enhanced SSD storage type, you can enable Disk Encryption. This allows you to maximize protection for your data. For more information, see Configure disk encryption for an ApsaraDB RDS for PostgreSQL instance.
    Zone

    A zone is an independent physical location within a region. The Zone of Primary Node parameter specifies the zone to which the primary RDS instance belongs. The Zone of Secondary Node parameter specifies the zone to which the secondary RDS instance belongs.

    You can select the Single-zone Deployment or Multi-zone Development method.

    • Single-zone Deployment: If you select this deployment method, the Zone of Primary Node and the Zone of Secondary Node are the same.
    • Multi-zone Development: This is the recommended deployment method. If you select this deployment method, the Zone of Primary Node and the Zone of Secondary Node are different. This allows you to provide zone-level disaster recovery. You must manually specify the Zone of Primary Node and the Zone of Secondary Node.
    Note
    • After the RDS instance is created, you can view information about the RDS instance and its secondary RDS instance on the Service Availability page.
    • If you select the RDS Basic Edition, the database system consists of only one primary RDS instance and supports only the single-zone deployment method.
    Instance Type
    • Entry-level: belongs to the general-purpose instance family. A general-purpose instance exclusively occupies the allocated memory and I/O resources. However, it shares CPU and storage resources with the other general-purpose instances that are deployed on the same server.
    • Dedicated Instance (Enterprise-level): belongs to the dedicated instance family or the dedicated host instance family. A dedicated instance exclusively occupies the allocated CPU, memory, storage, and I/O resources. The top configuration of the dedicated instance family is the dedicated host instance family. A dedicated host instance exclusively occupies all of the CPU, memory, storage, and I/O resources on the server where it is deployed.
    • Dedicated: A dedicated cluster exclusively occupies all the resources on a VM or physical host. The permissions to manage hosts in a dedicated cluster can be authorized to you. This allows you to create multiple database instances on a host. For more information, see Add hosts.
    Note Each instance type supports a specific number of CPU cores, memory capacity, maximum number of connections, and maximum IOPS. For more information, see Primary instance types.
    Capacity The storage capacity that the read-only RDS instance has available to store data files, system files, binary log files, and transaction files. The storage capacity increases in increments of 5 GB.
    Note The dedicated instance family supports exclusive allocations of resources. Therefore, the storage capacity of each instance type with local SSDs in this family is fixed. For more information, see Primary instance types.
  3. Click Next: Instance Configuration.
  4. Configure the following parameters.
    Parameter Description
    Network Type
    • Classic Network: the traditional type of network.
    • VPC: the recommended type of network. A virtual private cloud (VPC) is an isolated virtual network that provides higher security and better performance than the classic network. If you select the VPC network type, you must also specify the VPC parameter and the vSwitch of Primary Node parameter. If you select the Multi-zone Deployment method in the Basic Configurations step, you must specify both the VSwitch of Primary Node and VSwitch of Secondary Node parameters.
    Note The RDS instance must have the same network type as the ECS instance that you want to connect. If the RDS and ECS instances both have the VPC network type, these instances must also reside in the same VPC. Otherwise, these instances cannot communicate over an internal network.
  5. Click Next: Confirm Order.
  6. Confirm the settings in the Parameters section, specify the Purchase Plan parameter and the Duration parameter, read and select Terms of Service, and then click Pay Now to complete the payment. You must specify the Duration parameter only when the RDS instance uses the subscription billing method.
    Note When you create a subscription RDS instance, we recommend that you select Auto-Renew Enabled. This relieves the need to manually renew the RDS instance on a regular basis. This also allows you to avoid interruptions to your workloads due to overdue payments.

On the ApsaraDB RDS homepage, click Instances in the left-side navigation pane, select the region where the RDS instance resides in the top navigation bar, and then find the RDS instance based on the Creation Time.

What to do next

After the RDS instance is created, you must specify whitelist settings and create accounts on the RDS instance. If you want to connect to the RDS instance over the Internet, you must also apply for a public endpoint. After you connect to the RDS instance, you can migrate data to the RDS instance. For more information, see the following topics:

FAQ

  • After I create an RDS instance, why does the ApsaraDB RDS console not respond and why am I unable to find the created RDS instance?

    This issue may occur due to the following reasons:

    • The RDS instance does not reside in the selected region.

      In the top navigation bar, select the region where the RDS instance resides. Then, you can find the RDS instance.

    • The selected zone cannot provide the required number of resources.

      Resources in zones are dynamically allocated. After you submit the purchase order, the selected zone may be unable to provide the required number of resources. As a result, the RDS instance cannot be created. In this case, we recommend that you select another zone and try again. If the RDS instance cannot be created, you can go to the Orders page in the Billing Management console to view the refunded fee.

  • How do I authorize a RAM user to manage my RDS instance?

    For more information, see Use RAM to manage ApsaraDB for RDS permissions.

Related operations

Operation Description
Create instance Creates an ApsaraDB RDS instance.