Storage, backup and recovery

What to back up

At minimum protect PostgreSQL and all persistent operational file storage. If Redis contains only reconstructable cache/queue state, recovery requirements differ from the database; document that explicitly.

Backup pattern

• Take regular PostgreSQL backups in a restorable format.
• Replicate backups off the application host.
• Back up or replicate object/file storage according to retention needs.
• Encrypt backup locations and restrict access.
• Test restoration on a schedule.

Before risky changes

Create and validate a fresh backup before schema migrations, host migration, volume changes, or major version upgrades.

Application keys

Preserve encryption and blind-index keys when restoring existing encrypted data. Replacing those keys can make stored values unreadable or make exact-match lookups stop matching existing records.