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Overview

Rivestack HA clusters include automated daily backups stored in S3-compatible object storage. Backups use pgBackRest, the industry-standard backup tool for PostgreSQL, with support for full backups and point-in-time recovery (PITR).
Automated backups are available on HA clusters only. Free tier databases do not include backups.

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How backups work

  • Backup tool: pgBackRest
  • Storage: S3-compatible object storage (off-site, separate from your database nodes)
  • Backup type: Full backups
  • WAL archiving: Continuous WAL (Write-Ahead Log) archiving for point-in-time recovery
  • Encryption: Backups are encrypted at rest in S3
Every backup captures a consistent snapshot of your entire PostgreSQL cluster, including all databases, users, and extensions.

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Automated schedule

By default, backups run daily at 3:00 AM UTC. You can customize the schedule from the dashboard.

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View backup schedule

  1. Navigate to your HA cluster in the dashboard.
  2. Open the Backup tab.
  3. The current schedule is shown at the top.

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Change backup schedule

  1. Open the Backup tab of your cluster.
  2. Click on the backup schedule configuration.
  3. Set your preferred cron schedule.
  4. Save changes.

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Retention

SettingDefault
Full backup retention14 days
Backups older than the retention period are automatically deleted.

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Manual backups

You can trigger a backup at any time:
  1. Navigate to your cluster’s Backup tab.
  2. Click Create Backup.
  3. The backup starts immediately. You can monitor progress in real time.
Each backup record shows:
  • Backup name and type
  • Size (in MB)
  • Status (running, success, failed)
  • Timestamp

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Restore

Rivestack supports three restore methods:

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Restore from latest backup

Restores your cluster to the most recent successful backup.
  1. Open the Backup tab.
  2. Click the restore icon on the desired backup.
  3. Select Latest as the restore type.
  4. Type “I confirm” to proceed.
  5. Click Restore.

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Point-in-time recovery (PITR)

Restore your cluster to any specific moment within your backup retention window. This is useful for recovering from accidental data deletion or corruption.
  1. Open the Backup tab.
  2. Click the restore icon.
  3. Select PITR as the restore type.
  4. Choose the target date and time (UTC).
  5. Type “I confirm” to proceed.
  6. Click Restore.
PITR requires continuous WAL archiving. The target timestamp must fall within the retention window of your backups.

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Restore from a specific backup

Choose a specific backup from your history to restore from.
  1. Open the Backup tab.
  2. Click the restore icon.
  3. Select Specific backup as the restore type.
  4. Choose the backup from the dropdown.
  5. Type “I confirm” to proceed.
  6. Click Restore.

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What to expect during a restore

  • The restore runs as a background job. You can monitor progress in real time on the dashboard.
  • Your cluster will show a Restoring status during the operation.
  • Existing data on the cluster will be replaced with the restored data.
  • Connections may be briefly interrupted during the restore.
  • You’ll receive an email notification when the restore completes.

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Restore history

View all past restore operations in the Backup tab. Each record shows:
  • Source backup
  • Restore type (latest, PITR, specific)
  • Status (success, failed, running)
  • Start and finish timestamps
  • Error details (if failed)