2ndQuadrant enlisted by internationally recognized polar and marine research institute

Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) engages 2ndQuadrant to develop structured architecture for global PostgreSQL database

Oxford, United Kingdom, November 29, 2017

2ndQuadrant, world renowned PostgreSQL experts, today announced that the  Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), an institute internationally recognized for their expertise in polar and marine research, chose 2ndQuadrant to develop a more structured architecture for their global PostgreSQL databases.

For their research, AWI operates on a variety of research stations including ships, aircrafts, buoys, and so on, which are all constantly collecting a large amount of data. This data is then analyzed to evaluate the consequences of climate change and the pollution of the oceans as well as early detection and warnings for seaquakes (tsunamis).

Over the years, AWI has invested in various PostgreSQL versions for their applications; choosing the most current version available at the time. After some time, AWI was left with a complex database infrastructure where a mixture of different PostgreSQL and OS versions were rarely working in sync due to the absence of a centralized maintenance system.

One of the most persistent obstacles for AWI was the difficulty in maintaining consistency between versions, troubleshooting, and streamlining the processes of sporadic updates. 2ndQuadrant was engaged to examine the processes, identify loopholes, and propose a plan of action to implement an up-to-date and robust database infrastructure for their  PostgreSQL database.

2ndQuadrant consultants worked closely with the DBAs at AWI to upgrade the existing PostgreSQL databases as well as their host operating system. Prior to the upgrade service, system and application requirements were thoroughly assessed – allowing 2ndQuadrant consultants to develop a customized migration plan.

As a part of the customized plan, 2ndQuadrant helped install and configure a central PostgreSQL backup system using Barman (Backup & Recovery Manager for PostgreSQL) to enable point in time recovery (PITR). The Barman server/backup host was installed to host multiple PostgreSQL servers.

To close the loop on sustainability, 2ndQuadrant consultants trained the AWI staff on installation, configuration and migration of the systems to carry out future updates and maintain smooth workflow processes.

“Within only one week, [our consultant] helped us migrate our four historically grown PostgreSQL servers, differing in respect to Linux platforms, PostgreSQL installation sources, and extensions, to a new, consolidated server landscape, and set up a centralised backup scheme based on Barman.” said Christian Schäfer-Neth, Deputy Head of IT infrastructure at AWI. “He acted very flexibly according to the ever-changing daily work in our scientific computing department, and had competent answers to any questions that would arise.”

View or download the PDF version of the case study here.

About 2ndQuadrant

2ndQuadrant is the Gold Standard for PostgreSQL Products & Services and consistently contributes enterprise features to enhance performance, scalability, security, and stability in PostgreSQL. Spanning 22 countries and five continents, 2ndQuadrant is the largest single collective organization of PostgreSQL experts. They have adopted the open source business model and are Platinum sponsors for the PostgreSQL project. Their focus on service quality is reflected in the consistent best-in-class NPS of over 75 for more than 2 years.