What is BigAnimal in PostgreSQL

Welcome to the first part of the BigAnimal in PostgreSQL series.

Let’s go deep into BigAnimal for PostgreSQL.

BigAnimal is EnterpriseDB’s fully managed PostgreSQL Database-as-a-Service (DBaaS), designed to run in the public cloud (AWS, Azure, and soon GCP).
Think it as PostgreSQL + EDB Enterprise features + Cloud-native integration, all managed for you.

Provides:

• Fully managed PostgreSQL clusters (deployment, scaling, patching, failover handled by EDB).
• Choice of vanilla PostgreSQL or EDB Postgres Advanced Server (EPAS) (Postgres with Oracle compatibility features).
• Multi-cloud & hybrid-cloud flexibility (you can run on AWS or Azure, in your account or EDB’s).
• High availability and disaster recovery out-of-the-box.
• Monitoring, backup, scaling, and security built-in.

When it is useful:

• Want PostgreSQL in the cloud but don’t want to manage installation, patching, HA setup, or monitoring manually.
• Want enterprise support and features (e.g., Oracle migration, advanced replication, global failover).
• You need compliance and security controls (SOC2, GDPR, HIPAA, etc.).

How BigAnimal is Used

BigAnimal acts like a cloud-native PostgreSQL service, so usage is straightforward:

• You log into the BigAnimal console (or use API/CLI).

• Choose:
  Cloud provider (AWS or Azure).
  Database type (PostgreSQL or EPAS).

  Deployment model:
  1. EDB-owned account (EDB manages the infra).
  2. Customer-owned account (runs inside your AWS/Azure subscription).

Connecting to the Database

• BigAnimal provides a connection string (DSN) like a normal PostgreSQL.
• You can use psql, PgAdmin, DBeaver, or applications with JDBC/ODBC.
• SSL/TLS enforced by default for secure connections.

Operations

• Scaling: You can scale vertically (bigger nodes) or horizontally (read replicas).
• High availability: Standby nodes + automatic failover included.
• Monitoring: Built-in dashboards, alerts, integration with Prometheus/Grafana.
• Backups: Automated backups with PITR (Point-In-Time Recovery).
• Upgrades: Click-button minor version upgrades; assisted major upgrades.
• Security: Role-based access, VPC peering, IP allowlists, encryption at rest/in transit.

BigAnimal provides a connection string like:

psql "host=localhost port=5432 dbname=mydb user=appuser password=***** sslmode=require"