# ignore_invalid_pages

> ignore_invalid_pages — Continues recovery after an invalid pages failure. Observed in PG13–19 Beta 3; its last measured boot default is off 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:** “Continues recovery after an invalid pages failure.”

## Identity {#identity}

| Field | Value | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Type | `bool` | 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 | Developer Options | Upstream classification |
| Latest boot value | `off` | off |
{.fields meta="-"}

## Lifecycle {#lifecycle}

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| First observed | PG13 |
| Present in | PG13–19 Beta 3 |
| Removed in | No |
| Introduction commit | [`41c184bc642b`](https://git.postgresql.org/gitweb/?p=postgresql.git;a=commit;h=41c184bc642b25f67fb1d8ee290f28805fa5a0b4) — Add GUC ignore_invalid_pages. |
| Commit date | 2020-01-22 |
| Discussion | [thread 1](https://www.postgresql.org/message-id/CAHGQGwHCK6f77yeZD4MHOnN+PaTf6XiJfEB+Ce7SksSHjeAWtg@mail.gmail.com) |

## Default history {#default-history}

| Versions | Raw `boot_val` | Unit | Human value |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PG13–19 Beta 3 | `off` | — | off |
{.full-width caption="Measured PG9.0–19 Beta 3 boot defaults"}

## How it works {#mechanism}

During recovery, WAL references to invalid pages normally cause PANIC and stop recovery. ignore_invalid_pages logs a warning and continues past those references.

The startup-only setting has effect only in recovery or standby mode. Skipping redo can lose data, propagate corruption, and leave structures internally inconsistent even if the server reaches a running state.

It is an emergency salvage mechanism after preserving evidence and exhausting correct restore paths. A server that starts under it must not be considered healthy or promoted into normal service. Its postmaster context fixes the value at server start; changing it requires a restart.

## Tuning advice {#tuning-advice}

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

| Workload | Guidance |
| --- | --- |
| OLTP | Never use ignore_invalid_pages as tuning or a steady-state availability setting. Stop writes, preserve immutable copies, exhaust backup/storage repair, document expected data loss, salvage narrowly, rebuild, and validate before any return to service. |
| OLAP | Read-only analytics does not make ignore_invalid_pages safe: corrupted pages can still poison results or structures. Use only on a disposable salvage copy with explicit acceptance of lost data. |
| Small nodes | Do not enable ignore_invalid_pages merely because no replica exists. Preserve the original first and seek a clean backup; this switch can convert visible corruption into silent loss. |
{.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: PG13–19 Beta 3 unmodified; OLAP: PG13–19 Beta 3 unmodified; CRIT: PG13–19 Beta 3 unmodified; TINY: PG13–19 Beta 3 unmodified. No Pigsty-specific rationale is inferred from an absent override.

## Common pitfalls {#common-pitfalls}

- Leaving ignore_invalid_pages enabled after the bounded diagnostic or recovery task.
- Running the experiment on the only copy of production data.
- Underestimating log, core-file, temporary-file, WAL, CPU, or connection-slot amplification.
- Treating a server that merely starts or completes a query as proof that data and behavior are correct.

## Related parameters {#related-parameters}

[`ignore_checksum_failure`](/parameters/ignore-checksum-failure/) · [`zero_damaged_pages`](/parameters/zero-damaged-pages/) · [`restore_command`](/parameters/restore-command/) · [`wal_consistency_checking`](/parameters/wal-consistency-checking/)

## References {#references}

- [PostgreSQL 19 Beta 3 — ignore_invalid_pages](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/19/runtime-config-developer.html#GUC-IGNORE-INVALID-PAGES)
- [PostgreSQL 19 release notes](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/19/release-19.html)
- [Machine-readable GUC export](/data/guc.jsonl)