How to Install PostgreSQL Using the Source Code

1. Obtain the source code from PostgreSQL website [1].
2. Unpack the source code package. Use the following bash/console command:

gunzip postgresql-8.3.3.tar.gz
tar xf postgresql-8.3.3.tar

* postgresql-8.3.3 is the name of the current version. Future versions might differ in the 8.3.3 part.
* A directory named postgresql-8.3.3 will be created under the current directory (the one you executed the above script from).
3. Change the current directory to the newly created one (postgresql-8.3.3)
4. Configure the source tree for your system and choose the installation options you want:
* Default Configuration: run the command
./configure
on your bash/console
* Custom Configuration (this is for advanced users only): you can set a lot of custom configuration options using command line options listed in the PostgreSql documentation [2]
5. Start the build process by executing the command line
gmake
in your console/bash. This might take a few minutes depending on your hardware. The last line displayed should be:
All of PostgreSQL is successfully made. Ready to install.
6. Install PostgreSql files by executing the bash/console command:
gmake install
which will install the files to /usr/local/pgsql unless you used the --prefix=PREFIX command line option, in which case the files will be installed to the path specified by PREFIX
7. Create a super-user account for PostgreSQL by executing the following command in the bash console:
adduser postgres
8. Create a directory to hold PostgreSQL data tree by executing the following commands in the bash console:
mkdir /p01/pgsql/data
chown postgres /p01/pgsql/data
9. Create PostgreSQL cluster by executing:
su - postgres
/usr/local/pgsql/bin/initdb -D /p01/pgsql/data
10. Start up the PostgreSQL server (postmaster process) by executing:
/usr/local/pgsql/bin/postmaster -D /p01/pgsql/data >logfile 2>&1 &
11. Create a PostgreSQL database in the cluster by executing:
/usr/local/pgsql/bin/createdb test
12. Log-in to the database using the psql command:
/usr/local/pgsql/bin/psql test