# ident_file

> ident_file — Sets the server's "ident" configuration file. Observed in PG9.0–19 Beta 3; its last measured boot default is not set in PG19 Beta 3, with postmaster context. This is a beta-snapshot fact and can change before PostgreSQL 19 GA.
---

> [!NOTE]
> **Fact — official short description:** “Sets the server's "ident" configuration file.”

## Identity {#identity}

| Field | Value | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Type | `string` | Upstream pg_settings type |
| Context | `postmaster` | Requires a server restart |
| Unit | — | Raw unit |
| Range | — | Raw limits in the last observed version |
| Enum values | — | — for non-enum types |
| Category | File Locations | Upstream classification |
| Latest boot value | — | not set |
{.fields meta="-"}

## Lifecycle {#lifecycle}

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| First observed | PG9.0 (research boundary) |
| Present in | PG9.0–19 Beta 3 |
| Removed in | No |
| Introduction commit | Not asserted: predates the PG9.0 research boundary |
| Commit date | — |
| Discussion | — |

## Default history {#default-history}

| Versions | Raw `boot_val` | Unit | Human value |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PG9.0–19 Beta 3 | — | — | not set |
{.full-width caption="Measured PG9.0–19 Beta 3 boot defaults"}

## How it works {#mechanism}

Sets the server's "ident" configuration file. The value is fixed when the server starts, so changing it requires a restart.

This path selects pg_ident.conf, whose maps translate authenticated operating-system or certificate names to database roles. The path is fixed at startup; contents are re-read on reload and only matter to authentication methods that name a map.

Monitor and change ident_file together with allow_alter_system, config_file, data_directory. Validate on the relevant server role and real workload, then use its postmaster context to choose session change, reload, or restart; a historical boot default is not the current effective value.

## Tuning advice {#tuning-advice}

> [!TIP]
> **Advice.** These are workload-specific starting points and must be validated with measurements.

| Workload | Guidance |
| --- | --- |
| OLTP | ident_file is deployment topology, not workload tuning. Use an absolute path, least privilege, and atomic configuration rollout; verify access as the postgres service account before restart/reload. |
| OLAP | Follow the OLTP rule, and for separate mounts also verify boot ordering, backup coverage, and path consistency on failover nodes. |
| Small nodes | The default co-located layout is simplest. Split paths only for a concrete backup, packaging, or permission-isolation benefit. |
{.full-width}

## Pigsty {#pigsty}

Values use the fixed 8-vCPU, 32-GiB, 100-GiB SSD fixture and render the current Pigsty templates for PG19 Beta 3; this does not assert current Pigsty support for that historical or beta release.

| Template | Effective value | Versus upstream boot | Source expression |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| OLTP | Unmodified | — | — |
| OLAP | Unmodified | — | — |
| CRIT | Unmodified | — | — |
| TINY | Unmodified | — | — |
{.full-width}

> [!CAUTION]
> **Advice — pending human review.** Fact from the current Pigsty template projection: OLTP: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified; OLAP: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified; CRIT: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified; TINY: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified. No Pigsty-specific rationale is inferred from an absent override.

## Common pitfalls {#common-pitfalls}

- Missing directory traversal, read, or write permission for the service account.
- Confusing restart requirements for a path with reload behavior of the selected file contents.
- Omitting the path on a failover node or from backup inventory.
- Using a relative path that depends on an unstable working directory.

## Related parameters {#related-parameters}

[`allow_alter_system`](/parameters/allow-alter-system/) · [`config_file`](/parameters/config-file/) · [`data_directory`](/parameters/data-directory/) · [`hba_file`](/parameters/hba-file/) · [`external_pid_file`](/parameters/external-pid-file/) · [`extension_destdir`](/parameters/extension-destdir/)

## References {#references}

- [PostgreSQL 19 Beta 3 — ident_file](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/19/runtime-config-file-locations.html#GUC-IDENT-FILE)
- [PostgreSQL 19 release notes](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/19/release-19.html)
- [Machine-readable GUC export](/data/guc.jsonl)