How to revive dropped Azure PostgreSQL flexible server with databases and data?

Question

How to revive dropped Azure PostgreSQL flexible server with databases and data?

nico 20

Testing some backup/recovery scenarios for my deployment.

One of them would be accidentally destroying an environment via terraform destroy, including a flexible server for PostgreSQL with relevant data running in there.

Now, according to Azure's documentation you can do that via the API up to five days after the deletion, and you can specify a point in time there (for which you are supposed to take the timepoints of the destruction event, plus 5 or 10 minutes, doc is inconsistent there).

Then there is the CLI documentation with revive-dropped where you can not specify a point in time - my assumption would be it just restores to the latest known state before deletion.

Both methods work, the deleted server reappears. But: no databases or data is present from before the deletion. I have tried multiple times, with/without UTC conversion, via the API (with 0/5/10 minutes added to deletion events, or using a time in point before the deletion), with the CLI. Every time, the server reappears 'empty', i.e. only with the system databases.

How do I restore the databases before the deletion event? Am I missing something?

Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-12T07:19:43.4166667+00:00
Hi nico

Greetings!

We understand that you are inquiring about reviving a dropped Azure PostgreSQL flexible server along with its databases and data.

You have followed the documented steps correctly, but the databases and data are not being restored.

Here are some possible reasons and solutions:

Backup Availability: Azure retains backups for five days after deletion, but if the backup was removed or corrupted, restoration might not work. Ensure the backup still exists.

Point-in-Time Recovery (PITR) Timing: The documentation suggests adding 5 or 10 minutes to the deletion timestamp when specifying the pointInTimeUTC. If the backup was taken after the deletion, it might not contain the data. Try restoring from a timestamp before the deletion event.

API Version: The correct API version for restoring a dropped PostgreSQL flexible server is 2024-08-01. Using an incorrect version might cause unexpected behavior.

CLI vs API Behavior: The CLI revive-dropped command does not allow specifying a point in time, meaning it restores the latest available backup. If that backup was taken after the deletion, it might not contain the databases. The API method allows specifying a point in time, which should be used for precise recovery.

Alternative Recovery Methods: If the automated restore isn't working, you might need to manually restore from a backup. If you have a logical backup (pg_dump), you can restore it using psql. Check if the deleted server's backups are listed under "Deleted databases" in the Azure portal. https://sqlkitty.com/dump-and-restore-azure-postgresql-databases/

If the issue still persists, could you please share the requested details via private message as it will help us conduct a more thorough investigation.

I hope this information helps. Please do let us know if you have any further queries.
nico 20 Reputation points

2025-06-12T11:05:39.6366667+00:00

How can I view deleted databases?
Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-13T01:57:26.01+00:00
Hi nico

To view deleted databases in Azure PostgreSQL, follow these steps:

Check the Azure Portal Activity Log:

Go to the Azure portal.

Navigate to Monitor > Activity Log.

Filter for Delete PostgreSQL Server events.

Select the relevant deletion event and check the JSON details for resourceId and submissionTimestamp.

Use the Azure CLI to list server logs if auditing was enabled:

az postgres server-logs list -g <resource_group> -s <server_name> --query "[].[name,url]"

Then download specific logs:

az postgres server-logs download -n <log_file_name> -g <resource_group> -s <server_name>

Restore a dropped server if it was deleted within the last five days:

Use the Azure API to revive the server.

Specify a pointInTimeUTC before the deletion event.

Check Azure Backup Vault if PITR isn't working:

Go to Azure Backup in the portal.

Look for available PostgreSQL backups.

If your databases are still missing after restoring the server, they might not have been included in the last backup. You may need to restore from a manual backup (e.g., pg_dump).

I hope this information helps. Please let us know if you have any further queries.
Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-16T01:00:31.74+00:00

Hi nico

We haven’t heard from you on the last response and wanted to follow up to check if your issue has been resolved.

If you have found a solution, we would appreciate it if you could share it with the community, as it may be helpful to others. Otherwise, please provide more details, and we will do our best to assist you further.
nico 20 Reputation points

2025-06-16T09:06:28.49+00:00

Apparently, it only works to restore the last FULL backup (which runs - not possible to configure that - every 24hrs).

It seems like the CLI just restores the last backup. I haven't tested (as it would take multiple days) if the API with point in time restore works then by just selecting a certain backup (if before or after the time specified - no idea).

Anyways, if you 'wait' 24hrs for the next backup (as the first one is done right after server creation, so you will likely not have the (full) data in there), it is possible to restore the server incl. databases/data.

Just seems that documentation is incoherent/incomplete or the feature not working as specified.

1 answer

Your answer

Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-12T07:19:43.4166667+00:00

Hi nico

Greetings!

We understand that you are inquiring about reviving a dropped Azure PostgreSQL flexible server along with its databases and data.

You have followed the documented steps correctly, but the databases and data are not being restored.

Here are some possible reasons and solutions:

Backup Availability: Azure retains backups for five days after deletion, but if the backup was removed or corrupted, restoration might not work. Ensure the backup still exists.

Point-in-Time Recovery (PITR) Timing: The documentation suggests adding 5 or 10 minutes to the deletion timestamp when specifying the pointInTimeUTC. If the backup was taken after the deletion, it might not contain the data. Try restoring from a timestamp before the deletion event.

API Version: The correct API version for restoring a dropped PostgreSQL flexible server is 2024-08-01. Using an incorrect version might cause unexpected behavior.

CLI vs API Behavior: The CLI revive-dropped command does not allow specifying a point in time, meaning it restores the latest available backup. If that backup was taken after the deletion, it might not contain the databases. The API method allows specifying a point in time, which should be used for precise recovery.

Alternative Recovery Methods: If the automated restore isn't working, you might need to manually restore from a backup. If you have a logical backup (pg_dump), you can restore it using psql. Check if the deleted server's backups are listed under "Deleted databases" in the Azure portal. https://sqlkitty.com/dump-and-restore-azure-postgresql-databases/

If the issue still persists, could you please share the requested details via private message as it will help us conduct a more thorough investigation.

I hope this information helps. Please do let us know if you have any further queries.
nico 20 Reputation points

2025-06-12T11:05:39.6366667+00:00

How can I view deleted databases?
Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-13T01:57:26.01+00:00

Hi nico

To view deleted databases in Azure PostgreSQL, follow these steps:

Check the Azure Portal Activity Log:

Go to the Azure portal.

Navigate to Monitor > Activity Log.

Filter for Delete PostgreSQL Server events.

Select the relevant deletion event and check the JSON details for resourceId and submissionTimestamp.

Use the Azure CLI to list server logs if auditing was enabled:

az postgres server-logs list -g <resource_group> -s <server_name> --query "[].[name,url]"

Then download specific logs:

az postgres server-logs download -n <log_file_name> -g <resource_group> -s <server_name>

Restore a dropped server if it was deleted within the last five days:

Use the Azure API to revive the server.

Specify a pointInTimeUTC before the deletion event.

Check Azure Backup Vault if PITR isn't working:

Go to Azure Backup in the portal.

Look for available PostgreSQL backups.

If your databases are still missing after restoring the server, they might not have been included in the last backup. You may need to restore from a manual backup (e.g., pg_dump).

I hope this information helps. Please let us know if you have any further queries.
Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-16T01:00:31.74+00:00

Hi nico

We haven’t heard from you on the last response and wanted to follow up to check if your issue has been resolved.

If you have found a solution, we would appreciate it if you could share it with the community, as it may be helpful to others. Otherwise, please provide more details, and we will do our best to assist you further.
nico 20 Reputation points

2025-06-16T09:06:28.49+00:00

Apparently, it only works to restore the last FULL backup (which runs - not possible to configure that - every 24hrs).

It seems like the CLI just restores the last backup. I haven't tested (as it would take multiple days) if the API with point in time restore works then by just selecting a certain backup (if before or after the time specified - no idea).

Anyways, if you 'wait' 24hrs for the next backup (as the first one is done right after server creation, so you will likely not have the (full) data in there), it is possible to restore the server incl. databases/data.

Just seems that documentation is incoherent/incomplete or the feature not working as specified.

Answer 1

Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi nico

Thanks for your post.

As a feature, you can directly submit this as an edit on the document page itself. This will be in the form of a GitHub changer and the team will review.

You can also use the feedback link at the bottom of the document to post this as well.

Engineers actively take a look and would be able to address this.
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Your feedback is important so please take a moment to submit feedback to Microsoft by clicking the “Provide Product Feedback” link at the bottom of the document page. They often act on well-documented issues like this. If you still have questions, please let us know what is needed in the comments so the question can be answered. Thank you for helping to improve Microsoft Q&A!If this answers your query, do click Accept Answer and Upvote for was this answer helpful.

Vijayalaxmi Kattimani 3,065 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-17T06:36:26.8066667+00:00

Hi nico

We would like to thank you for your feedback provided on survey. We found your recent engagement on this question was rated low. However, we were able to share some additional information that could helped in the later comment. Would you please re-evaluate your feedback.

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How to revive dropped Azure PostgreSQL flexible server with databases and data?

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