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We recommend reading the Connections overview documentation before going through this quickstart. It contains important information such as when and how to use PgBouncer over direct connections.

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Creating a password

After creating a Postgres database, you will need to create a new role to connect.
1
From your PlanetScale organization, select the desired database
2
From the database dashboard, click the “Connect” button in the top-right corner
3
Select the desired database branch from the “Branch” dropdown
4
On this page, you can create either a default role (with near-superuser privileges) or a user-defined role. The default role has the most privileged access and should be reserved for administrative tasks. Do not connect to your database from application servers using the default role. A user-defined role lets you pick from the standard Postgres permission set to grant only what is needed, which should be used in most cases.
5
If the database has pg_strict enabled, the Connect modal also surfaces pg_strict options for user-defined roles. Enable these if you want to impose stricter rules on your connections for additional safety.
6
Click “Create role”
7
This generates the unique username and password pair for your user that you can use to access the designated branch of your database.
Make sure you copy the credentials, as we will not display them once you leave the page. If you need to access your default credentials after leaving the page, you have to reset the default password.
You’ll be provided with the following: 
DATABASE_HOST=**********-<REGION>.horizon.psdb.cloud
DATABASE_NAME=<DATABASE_NAME>
DATABASE_USERNAME=postgres.<BRANCH_ID>
DATABASE_PASSWORD=pscale_pw_**************************
Here is an example of the connection string that connects directly (without PgBouncer) you can use to connect to the Postgres CLI: 
psql 'host=xxxxxxxxxx-useast1-1.horizon.psdb.cloud \
      port=5432 \
      user=postgres.xxxxxxxxxx \
      password=pscale_pw_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx \
      dbname=my_database \
      sslnegotiation=direct \
      sslmode=verify-full \
      sslrootcert=system'

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Connection parameters

ParameterDescription
hostYour database hostname in the format {id+region}.horizon.psdb.cloud
portConnection port (5432 for direct, 6432 for PgBouncer)
userYour role username in the format {role}.{branch_id}
passwordYour role password (begins with pscale_pw_)
dbnameYour database name
sslmodeSet to verify-full for secure connections (required)
sslrootcertSet to system. See the Secure connections documentation if that produces an error.
sslnegotiationSet to direct for improved performance (optional)

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Secure connections

All PlanetScale Postgres connections require SSL/TLS encryption. The following parameters are used to enforce this:
ParameterRequiredDescription
sslmode=verify-fullRequiredVerifies both encryption and server identity
sslrootcert=systemRequiredUses system certificate store by default. If this method doesn’t work, you can enter the path to your root certificate instead. The exact locations of root certificates differ by SSL implementation and platform.
sslnegotiation=directOptionalEnables direct SSL negotiation for better performance.

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Additional roles

You should not connect to your database from application servers with the default role, as you will need to take some downtime if you ever have to rotate your password. Instead, you can create additional roles with fine-grained permission settings for this purpose. Check out our roles documentation for more information.

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Resetting the default password

If you need to reset the password for the default postgres role:
1
From the PlanetScale organization dashboard, select the desired database
2
Navigate to the Roles page in Settings
3
Find the role labeled default for the branch in question
4
Open the three dot menu for the role and select Reset credentials
5
Update the credentials any place that they are in use
Resetting the default password will disconnect any existing connections using the previous credentials.

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Default postgres role

The default postgres role is similar to the Postgres superuser, but with fewer permissions. It is defined by the following statement: 
CREATE ROLE $POSTGRES_USERNAME
  NOSUPERUSER CREATEDB CREATEROLE INHERIT LOGIN REPLICATION BYPASSRLS PASSWORD '$PASSWORD';
It also inherits the following permissions: 
GRANT pg_read_all_data,
  pg_write_all_data,
  pg_read_all_settings,
  pg_read_all_stats,
  pg_stat_scan_tables,
  pg_monitor,
  pg_signal_backend,
  pg_checkpoint,
  pg_maintain,
  pg_use_reserved_connections,
  pg_create_subscription
TO $ALMOST_SUPERUSER_ROLENAME WITH ADMIN OPTION;
You should not connect to your database from your applications using the default role, as you will need to take some downtime if you ever have to rotate your password. Instead, you should create additional roles as needed.

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Connection types: Direct vs PgBouncer

PlanetScale offers two connection methods for PostgreSQL databases: direct (port 5432) and via PgBouncer (port 6432).
PlanetScale’s use of PgBouncer (port 6432) does not support replica routing. All connections through PgBouncer are automatically routed to the primary database, regardless of the username specification. Use direct connections (port 5432) for replica access.

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Direct connection (Port 5432)

Using port 5432 bypasses PgBouncer and connects directly to Postgres. This is the recommended way to connect for any operations that require long-running queries or persistent connections. PgBouncer operates in transaction pooling mode, where connections are returned to the pool after each transaction completes. This means that session-level features and long-running operations are interrupted between transactions. Direct connections are recommended for:
  • Schema changes and DDL
  • OLAP, analytics, reporting, or batch processing
  • Session-specific features: Custom session variables, temporary tables
  • ETL processes and data streaming
  • Long-running transactions or queries that span multiple transactions
Additionally, if you’re connecting to a replica, you must connect directly. PgBouncer is not supported for replica connections.

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PgBouncer connection (Port 6432)

PgBouncer enables high availability for a Postgres database by efficiently pooling connections and buffering queries during failovers. PgBouncer is generally recommended for OLTP workloads. For example, we’d recommend routing your application connections through PgBouncer. You can connect through PgBouncer by updating your connection string to use port 6432. PgBouncer connections operate in transaction mode, which means each connection is only held for the duration of a single transaction. This provides excellent performance for OLTP workloads but limits certain PostgreSQL features that require persistent connections. For use cases that require long-running operations, we recommend a direct connection on port 5432.

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Routing to replicas

PlanetScale Postgres supports routing connections to replicas for improved read performance and load distribution. To connect to a replica, append |replica to your credential username. For example: 
# Connect to replica
user=postgres.xxxxxxxxx|replica # where postgres.xxxxxxxxx is your username
You can append |replica to any role you create on your Postgres database.
PlanetScale’s use of PgBouncer (port 6432) does not support replica routing. All connections through PgBouncer are automatically routed to the primary database, regardless of the username specification. Use direct connections (port 5432) for replica access.

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Authentication

PlanetScale Postgres uses SCRAM-SHA-256 authentication, which provides enhanced security over traditional password authentication methods.

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Username format

All usernames follow the format {role}.{branch_id}:
ComponentDescriptionExamples
roleThe role namepostgres, app_user
branch_idThe unique identifier for your database branchcnlmx96ec5kw
Full usernameComplete format: {role}.{branch_id}postgres.cnlmx96ec5kw, app_user.cnlmx96ec5kw
The branch ID in the username tells PlanetScale’s routing layer (Exosphere) which specific database branch to connect to.

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Password format

All PlanetScale Postgres passwords begin with pscale_pw_ followed by a unique string: 
pscale_pw_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

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Strong security model

PlanetScale roles are created for use with a single database branch. This strong security model allows you to generate roles that are tied to a branch, and cannot access data/schema from another branch.

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Need help?

Get help from the PlanetScale Support team, or join our GitHub discussion board to see how others are using PlanetScale.