syslog_ident

syslog_ident is the PostgreSQL setting that defines the program name used to identify PostgreSQL messages in syslog.

Note

Fact — official short description: “Sets the program name used to identify PostgreSQL messages in syslog.”

Identity

Type , Valuestring: Upstream pg_settings type
Context , Valuesighup: Takes effect after configuration reload
Unit , Value—: Raw unit
Range , Value—: Raw limits in the last observed version
Enum values , Value—: — for non-enum types
Category , ValueReporting and Logging / Where to Log: Upstream classification
Latest boot value , Valuepostgres: postgres

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

Measured PG9.0–19 Beta 3 boot defaults
Versions	Raw `boot_val`	Unit	Human value
PG9.0–19 Beta 3	`postgres`	—	postgres

How it works

syslog_ident sets the program name used to identify PostgreSQL messages in syslog. The ident labels PostgreSQL records in syslog and can distinguish clusters when combined with facility or host metadata.

syslog_ident is a SIGHUP-context setting: a configuration reload activates the new server value without a restart; subsequent operations that consult it use the refreshed value.

It is active only when syslog appears in log_destination, after which the facility, ident, sequence, splitting, host daemon, and remote receiver jointly define record delivery.

Tuning advice

Tip

Advice. These are workload-specific starting points and must be validated with measurements.

Workload	Guidance
OLTP	Set syslog_ident to match the receiving syslog daemon’s routing, framing, deduplication, and message-size contract; validate failover and backpressure with the real collector.
OLAP	Test syslog_ident under bursty analytical messages and multiline plans so splitting or receiver limits do not destroy record boundaries.
Small nodes	Prefer the host’s established syslog convention for syslog_ident; avoid parallel local-file retention unless it has an explicit purpose and size limit.

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	—	—

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

Editing syslog_ident without reloading configuration and verifying the effective value and subsequent behavior.
Changing PostgreSQL framing or identifiers without testing the host daemon and remote receiver as one pipeline.
Assuming syslog preserves unlimited message size, multiline boundaries, ordering, or repeated records by default.
Changing syslog_ident globally without a rollback plan and a client or operational compatibility test.

log_destination · syslog_facility · syslog_sequence_numbers · syslog_split_messages · logging_collector