Tutorial: PostgreSQL

This tutorial walks you through connecting a PostgreSQL database to Faucet and querying it via the REST API.

Prerequisites

• Faucet installed and running (faucet serve) — see Getting Started
• An admin account created (faucet admin create)
• A PostgreSQL server (12+) with a database and at least one table

Step 1: Connect PostgreSQL to Faucet

The DSN format for PostgreSQL:

postgres://username:password@host:port/database?sslmode=disable

Via CLI

faucet db add \
  --name mydb \
  --driver postgres \
  --dsn "postgres://user:pass@localhost:5432/mydb?sslmode=disable"

Via API

TOKEN=$(curl -s http://localhost:8080/api/v1/system/admin/session \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email":"[email protected]","password":"changeme123"}' \
  | jq -r '.session_token')

curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/v1/system/service \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "mydb",
    "driver": "postgres",
    "dsn": "postgres://user:pass@localhost:5432/mydb?sslmode=disable"
  }'

Via Admin UI

1. Open http://localhost:8080/admin
2. Navigate to Services
3. Click Add Service
4. Select driver: PostgreSQL
5. Enter the service name and DSN
6. Click Save

Step 2: Verify the Connection

faucet db test mydb

Or list tables via the API:

curl http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Expected response:

{
  "resource": [
    {"name": "customers"},
    {"name": "orders"},
    {"name": "products"}
  ]
}

Step 3: Query Your Data

List all records

curl "http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/customers?limit=10" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Filter records

curl "http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/orders?filter=status%20%3D%20'shipped'" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Select specific fields

curl "http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/customers?fields=name,email" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Paginate

curl "http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/orders?limit=10&offset=0&order=created_at%20DESC" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Count records

curl "http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/orders?include_count=true" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Step 4: Insert, Update, and Delete

Insert a record

curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/customers \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"resource": [{"name": "Acme Corp", "email": "[email protected]"}]}'

PostgreSQL supports RETURNING, so the response includes server-generated values:

{
  "resource": [
    {"id": 42, "name": "Acme Corp", "email": "[email protected]", "created_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z"}
  ]
}

Update a record

curl -X PATCH "http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/customers?ids=42" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Acme Corporation"}'

Delete a record

curl -X DELETE "http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_table/customers?ids=42" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

PostgreSQL-Specific Notes

RETURNING clause

PostgreSQL fully supports RETURNING. INSERT and UPDATE responses include the actual row data with server-generated values (serial IDs, defaults, triggers).

Schema selection

PostgreSQL organizes tables into schemas. The default is public. To use a different schema:

faucet db add \
  --name mydb \
  --driver postgres \
  --dsn "postgres://user:pass@localhost/mydb?sslmode=disable&search_path=myschema" \
  --schema myschema

Stored procedures

Faucet can execute PostgreSQL stored procedures and functions:

curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/v1/mydb/_proc/get_active_users \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"params": {"min_age": 18}}'

Supported features

Feature	Supported
Schema introspection	Yes
RETURNING clause	Yes
Upsert (ON CONFLICT)	Yes
Stored procedures	Yes
Views	Yes
Parameter style	$1, $2, $3
Default schema	public

Troubleshooting

"password authentication failed"

Check your username and password. PostgreSQL uses pg_hba.conf to control authentication methods per host.

"no pg_hba.conf entry for host"

Your client IP is not allowed in pg_hba.conf. Add an entry for your IP or use sslmode=require.

"SSL is not enabled on the server"

Add ?sslmode=disable to the DSN for local development, or enable SSL on your PostgreSQL server for production.

"relation does not exist"

The table doesn't exist in the specified schema. Check your search_path or --schema setting, and verify the table exists:

\dt myschema.*

What's Next

• Filter Syntax -- query filtering operators
• RBAC -- restrict access per role
• API Reference -- full REST API documentation
• Database Connectors -- all connector DSN formats