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Postgres Patterns

PostgreSQL database patterns for query optimization, schema design, indexing, and security. Based on Supabase best practices. Use when designing PostgreSQL schemas, indexes, or RLS policies, or when a query is too slow.

affaan-m on GitHub

Curated by PromptsEdge from a public repo · MIT license. All credit goes to the author.

What is this skill?

Quick reference for PostgreSQL best practices. For detailed guidance, use the database-reviewer agent.

When to use

  • Writing SQL queries or migrations
  • Designing database schemas
  • Troubleshooting slow queries
  • Implementing Row Level Security
  • Setting up connection pooling

What’s inside

  1. Quick Reference
  2. Related

Quick Reference

Index Cheat Sheet

Query PatternIndex TypeExample
WHERE col = valueB-tree (default)CREATE INDEX idx ON t (col)
WHERE col > valueB-treeCREATE INDEX idx ON t (col)
WHERE a = x AND b > yCompositeCREATE INDEX idx ON t (a, b)
WHERE jsonb @> '{}'GINCREATE INDEX idx ON t USING gin (col)
WHERE tsv @@ queryGINCREATE INDEX idx ON t USING gin (col)
Time-series rangesBRINCREATE INDEX idx ON t USING brin (col)

Data Type Quick Reference

Use CaseCorrect TypeAvoid
IDsbigintint, random UUID
Stringstextvarchar(255)
Timestampstimestamptztimestamp
Moneynumeric(10,2)float
Flagsbooleanvarchar, int

Common Patterns

Composite Index Order:

sql
-- Equality columns first, then range columns
CREATE INDEX idx ON orders (status, created_at);
-- Works for: WHERE status = 'pending' AND created_at > '2024-01-01'

Covering Index:

sql
CREATE INDEX idx ON users (email) INCLUDE (name, created_at);
-- Avoids table lookup for SELECT email, name, created_at

Partial Index:

sql
CREATE INDEX idx ON users (email) WHERE deleted_at IS NULL;
-- Smaller index, only includes active users

RLS Policy (Optimized):

sql
CREATE POLICY policy ON orders
  USING ((SELECT auth.uid()) = user_id);  -- Wrap in SELECT!

UPSERT:

sql
INSERT INTO settings (user_id, key, value)
VALUES (123, 'theme', 'dark')
ON CONFLICT (user_id, key)
DO UPDATE SET value = EXCLUDED.value;

Cursor Pagination:

sql
SELECT * FROM products WHERE id > $last_id ORDER BY id LIMIT 20;
-- O(1) vs OFFSET which is O(n)

Queue Processing:

sql
UPDATE jobs SET status = 'processing'
WHERE id = (
  SELECT id FROM jobs WHERE status = 'pending'
  ORDER BY created_at LIMIT 1
  FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED
) RETURNING *;

Anti-Pattern Detection

sql
-- Find unindexed foreign keys
SELECT conrelid::regclass, a.attname
FROM pg_constraint c
JOIN pg_attribute a ON a.attrelid = c.conrelid AND a.attnum = ANY(c.conkey)
WHERE c.contype = 'f'
  AND NOT EXISTS (
    SELECT 1 FROM pg_index i
    WHERE i.indrelid = c.conrelid AND a.attnum = ANY(i.indkey)
  );

-- Find slow queries
SELECT query, mean_exec_time, calls
FROM pg_stat_statements
WHERE mean_exec_time > 100
ORDER BY mean_exec_time DESC;

-- Check table bloat
SELECT relname, n_dead_tup, last_vacuum
FROM pg_stat_user_tables
WHERE n_dead_tup > 1000
ORDER BY n_dead_tup DESC;

Configuration Template

sql
-- Connection limits (adjust for RAM)
ALTER SYSTEM SET max_connections = 100;
ALTER SYSTEM SET work_mem = '8MB';

-- Timeouts
ALTER SYSTEM SET idle_in_transaction_session_timeout = '30s';
ALTER SYSTEM SET statement_timeout = '30s';

-- Monitoring
CREATE EXTENSION IF NOT EXISTS pg_stat_statements;

-- Security defaults
REVOKE ALL ON SCHEMA public FROM public;

SELECT pg_reload_conf();

Related

  • Agent: database-reviewer - Full database review workflow
  • Skill: clickhouse-io - ClickHouse analytics patterns
  • Skill: backend-patterns - API and backend patterns

Based on Supabase Agent Skills (credit: Supabase team) (MIT License)

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