On Mon, 4 Dec 2000, Rob Yelle wrote:

> I have default installed the redhat62 system with everything loaded. It
> loaded postgres as a default.
> I have installed coldfusion on it and noticed that postgres was one of
> the odbc drivers offered.
> I wanted to use postgres but found it a bit tough to get started.
> I created a postgres user and tried to start the postmaster but it kept
> failing.

You need to start postmaster from the root commandline
(/etc/rc.d/init.d/postgresql start).  You can start it from the
postgres account, but you need to be certain all the variables are set
on the commandline (data path, port, etc).  I didn't have any trouble
with it on my RH 6.1 system, and when I just ran the init.d/postgresql
script on my RH6.2 system, it created all the right things.  

However, to let the regular user have access, you need to administer
the system.  Postgres uses several commandline commands (run as user
postgres) to do this, do an "apropos postgres" to find them.  The key
ones:
createuser - use this to add a new Postgres user.  If you give them
the same name as a system user, they will have a database with their
name and a Postgres account # that matches their UID (which allows
automatic login from their command line, vs having to use
passwords,etc).
destroyuser - opposite of createuser.
createdb - use to create a new database - if you want a new, different
database besides the users name.  It asks questions about setup, such
as who can have access, etc.
destroydb - opposite of createdb
initlocation, initdb - create new Postgres location / db.  Use if you
don't want the default location for a user.  This can be useful if you
want the database someplace besides /var (say you want the web db's in
a unique location).
 psql - command line client for Postgres.  What I
normally use to interact with it.
pgaccess - listed as a graphical interactive client -first time I've
seen this, must be new in RH6.2.  Hm.  Have to try it out (thanks for
asking the question - I just learned something).

Do a man on each of these for info.  

> the online postgresql doc defined things a bit off from what redhat
> installed .
> Also what is the best place to set env variables ...... under the
> .profile of each user or in some central place.
> I the end I would like to build a database named data with 4 or 5
> tables.

I've never thrown any variables anyplace.  As long as you use the
default port for Postgres, the user doesn't need any.  If you hvae a
different port, then they need to connect to that, and it probably
would be in the .profile.  Aside from connection info, though,
postmaster maintains all the info itself (under the postgres account).

Be aware that postmaster assumes it runs under the postgres account,
and so is the only postgres DB running.  You can do some config
hacking to get more than one running (changing user, port, dblocation,
etc), so you have to decide it that's required.


> I have learned alot in the last day or so but am ready for some sage
> advice from someone who has beaten this already.
> 
> Rob
> 

Won't say that I've beaten it.  I've never had a major problem with
Postgres, & like the fact that it is a transactional DB, unlike MySQL
(but is slower than MySQL for that reason - depends on what you
want/need).

jeff

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jeffry Smith      Technical Sales Consultant     Mission Critical Linux
[EMAIL PROTECTED]   phone:603.930.9739 fax:978.446.9470
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thought for today:  offline adv. 

 Not now or not here.  "Let's take this
   discussion offline."  Specifically used on Usenet to suggest
   that a discussion be moved off a public newsgroup to email.




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