How to install PostgreSQL extension into embedded pgsql?

How to Use GitLab Self-managed
1

Hello,

I am currently running Gitlab CE on a Ubuntu 24.0.4.2 LTS release installed with Omnibus.

I use the bundled/embedded PostgreSQL of Gitlab for other applications as well and I would like to understand how I can install a PostgreSQL extension that is not bundled with Gitlab’s PostgreSQL.

I am currently running Gitlab 17.10 with PostgreSQL 16 and try to install pgvector extension.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

2

Nobody ?

3

I have no idea, but I’ll say that what you’re doing sounds like a bad idea. You do get easier upgrades, but it comes at the expense of having very little control over the database for those other applications. That might both be the configuration if they require something different to GitLab (one may argue that you’re in that situation right now), and in terms of major upgrades. It will be known when GitLab does (possibly quite forcefully) an upgrade, but it might be an inconvenient time for the other applications, and the upgrade scripts might not properly handle the setup you’ve made.

I would set up an external (to GitLab) PostgreSQL server and make GitLab use that - there’s plenty of documentation out there on how to do that.

3 Likes
4

Thanks for the advice :slight_smile:

I will probably migrate my databases to a standalone pgsql install like suggested, this is true that it will be more flexible setup.