Scale compute in Azure Database for PostgreSQL flexible server

This article provides step-by-step instructions for scaling the compute resources of an Azure Database for PostgreSQL flexible server.

You can change your compute tier between the burstable, general purpose, and memory optimized tiers. Within each tier, you can choose the number of virtual cores (vCores) that best fits your application. For more information about the different compute tiers available in Azure Virtual Machines and the use cases they're best suited for, see size for virtual machines in Azure.

When you request a scaling operation for the compute resources used by your Azure Database for PostgreSQL flexible server, the server restarts. This restart makes your server unavailable for some time. For more information about how the process works and the expected duration of the downtime, see near-zero downtime scaling.

Steps to scale compute

Portal

Use the Azure portal:

1. Select your Azure Database for PostgreSQL flexible server.

2. In the resource menu, select Compute + storage.

   

3. To choose a different tier, in the Compute tier group, select the option that best fits your needs.

   

4. If the region of your server supports Intel and AMD processors, use the Compute processor option to filter the options listed in the Compute size drop-down to only hardware produced by the manufacturer you select.

   

5. To select a different machine size, expand the Compute size drop-down and select the size that best suits your needs.

   

6. When you choose your desired configuration, select Save.

   

7. If the changes you request require a server restart and its associated service disruption, confirm or cancel your decision to apply the configuration change.

   

8. A notification shows that a deployment is in progress.

   

9. When the scale process completes, a notification shows that the deployment succeeded.

   

CLI

Use the az postgres flexible-server update command to scale your compute.

az postgres flexible-server update \
  --resource-group <resource_group> \
  --name <server> \
  --tier <tier> \
  --sku-name <sku_name>

Note

You might need to include other parameters with the previous command. The presence and values of these parameters depend on how you want to configure other features of the existing server.

The list of allowed values for the --sku-name parameter depends on the value you pass to the --tier parameter and the region where you're trying to deploy your server.

If you pass an incorrect value to --sku-name, you get the following error with the list of supported SKU names:

Invalid value for --sku-name. The SKU name is not available in the <tier> tier. Provide a valid SKU name for this tier, or specify --tier with the correct tier. Allowed values: ['<sku_name_1>', '<sku_name_2>', ..., '<sku_name_n>']

If the changes you're requesting require a server restart and its associated service disruption, and you didn't provide the --yes parameter, you receive the following prompt:

You are trying to update the compute or storage size assigned to your server in a way that requires a server restart. During the restart, you'll experience some downtime of the server. Do you want to proceed? (y/n): 

Related content

• Compute options.
• Limits in Azure Database for PostgreSQL flexible server.
• Near-zero downtime scaling.