PostgreSQL self-managed connector tutorial
editPostgreSQL self-managed connector tutorial
editThis tutorial walks you through the process of creating a self-managed connector for a PostgreSQL data source. You’ll be using the self-managed connector workflow in the Kibana UI. This means you’ll be deploying the connector on your own infrastructure. Refer to the Elastic PostgreSQL connector reference for more information about this connector.
You’ll use the connector framework to create the connector. In this exercise, you’ll be working in both the terminal (or your IDE) and the Kibana UI.
If you want to deploy a self-managed connector for another data source, use this tutorial as a blueprint. Refer to the list of available self-managed connectors.
Want to get started quickly testing a self-managed connector using Docker Compose?
Refer to this README in the elastic/connectors
repo for more information.
Prerequisites
editElastic prerequisites
editFirst, ensure you satisfy the prerequisites for self-managed connectors.
PostgreSQL prerequisites
editYou need:
- PostgreSQL version 11+.
- Tables must be owned by a PostgreSQL user.
-
Database
superuser
privileges are required to index all database tables.
You should enable recording of the commit time of PostgreSQL transactions.
Otherwise, all data will be indexed in every sync.
By default, track_commit_timestamp
is off
.
Enable this by running the following command on the PosgreSQL server command line:
ALTER SYSTEM SET track_commit_timestamp = on;
Then restart the PostgreSQL server.
Steps
editTo complete this tutorial, you’ll need to complete the following steps:
Create an Elasticsearch index
editElastic connectors enable you to create searchable, read-only replicas of your data sources in Elasticsearch. The first step in setting up your self-managed connector is to create an index.
In the Kibana UI go to Search > Content > Elasticsearch indices.
Create a new connector index:
- Under Select an ingestion method choose Connector.
- Choose PostgreSQL from the list of connectors.
-
Name your index and optionally change the language analyzer to match the human language of your data source.
(The index name you provide is automatically prefixed with
search-
.) - Save your changes.
The index is created and ready to configure.
Set up the connector
editOnce you’ve created an index, you can set up the connector. You will be guided through this process in the UI.
- Edit the name and description for the connector. This will help your team identify the connector.
-
Clone and edit the connector service code. For this example, we’ll use the Python framework. Follow these steps:
-
Clone or fork that repository locally with the following command:
git clone https://github.com/elastic/connectors
. -
Open the
config.yml
configuration file in your editor of choice. -
Replace the values for
host
,api_key
, andconnector_id
with the values you gathered earlier. Use theservice_type
valuepostgresql
for this connector.Expand to see an example
config.yml
fileReplace the values for
host
,api_key
, andconnector_id
with your own values. Use theservice_type
valuepostgresql
for this connector.elasticsearch: host: <https://<my-elastic-deployment.es.us-west2.gcp.elastic-cloud.com>> # Your Elasticsearch endpoint api_key: '<YOUR-API-KEY>' # Your top-level Elasticsearch API key ... connectors: - connector_id: "<YOUR-CONNECTOR-ID>" api_key: "'<YOUR-API-KEY>" # Your scoped connector index API key (optional). If not provided, the top-level API key is used. service_type: "postgresql" # Self-managed connector settings connector_id: '<YOUR-CONNECTOR-ID>' # Your connector ID service_type: 'postgresql' # The service type for your connector sources: # mongodb: connectors.sources.mongo:MongoDataSource # s3: connectors.sources.s3:S3DataSource # dir: connectors.sources.directory:DirectoryDataSource # mysql: connectors.sources.mysql:MySqlDataSource # network_drive: connectors.sources.network_drive:NASDataSource # google_cloud_storage: connectors.sources.google_cloud_storage:GoogleCloudStorageDataSource # azure_blob_storage: connectors.sources.azure_blob_storage:AzureBlobStorageDataSource postgresql: connectors.sources.postgresql:PostgreSQLDataSource # oracle: connectors.sources.oracle:OracleDataSource # sharepoint: connectors.sources.sharepoint:SharepointDataSource # mssql: connectors.sources.mssql:MSSQLDataSource # jira: connectors.sources.jira:JiraDataSource
-
Clone or fork that repository locally with the following command:
Run the connector service
editNow that you’ve configured the connector code, you can run the connector service.
In your terminal or IDE:
-
cd
into the root of yourconnectors
clone/fork. -
Run the following command:
make run
.
The connector service should now be running. The UI will let you know that the connector has successfully connected to Elasticsearch.
Here we’re working locally. In production setups, you’ll deploy the connector service to your own infrastructure. If you prefer to use Docker, refer to the repo docs for instructions.
Sync your PostgreSQL data source
editEnter your PostgreSQL data source details
editOnce you’ve configured the connector, you can use it to index your data source.
You can now enter your PostgreSQL instance details in the Kibana UI.
Enter the following information:
- Host. Server host address for your PostgreSQL instance.
- Port. Port number for your PostgreSQL instance.
- Username. Username of the PostgreSQL account.
- Password. Password for that user.
- Database. Name of the PostgreSQL database.
-
Comma-separated list of tables.
*
will fetch data from all tables in the configured database.
Once you’ve entered all these details, select Save configuration.
Launch a sync
editIf you navigate to the Overview tab in the Kibana UI, you can see the connector’s ingestion status. This should now have changed to Configured.
It’s time to launch a sync by selecting the Sync button.
If you navigate to the terminal window where you’re running the connector service, you should see output like the following:
[FMWK][13:22:26][INFO] Fetcher <create: 499 update: 0 |delete: 0> [FMWK][13:22:26][INF0] Fetcher <create: 599 update: 0 |delete: 0> [FMWK][13:22:26][INFO] Fetcher <create: 699 update: 0 |delete: 0> ... [FMWK][23:22:28][INF0] [oRXQwYYBLhXTs-qYpJ9i] Sync done: 3864 indexed, 0 deleted. (27 seconds)
This confirms the connector has fetched records from your PostgreSQL table(s) and transformed them into documents in your Elasticsearch index.
Verify your Elasticsearch documents in the Documents tab in the Kibana UI.
If you’re happy with the results, set a recurring sync schedule in the Scheduling tab. This will ensure your searchable data in Elasticsearch is always up to date with changes to your PostgreSQL data source.