Postgres Not Slow, Your Storage System Slow

There is a common misconception about the slowness of the database. Most developers keep Postgres responsible, but the actual problem is often hidden in the depths of the infrastructure. ClickHouse’s analysis and experiments reveal this critical difference.

The main reasons behind the speed issues of Postgres are:

• Disk I/O performance: Reading-write speed of your storage device directly affects the response time of queries
• Disc type is wrong from preference: Performance difference between HDD and SSD is dramatic
• Indexization strategy: Optimization of data access paths is ignored
• System configuration: Do not adapt operating system and database settings
• Storage limitations: The old or insufficient equipment cannot meet the needs of the old structure

In reality Postgres works very quickly when it comes with the right storage infrastructure. The problem is to measure the first step drive performance to diagnose. Access to SSD, storage-oriented improvements such as IOPS and hybrid optimization can be more effective than any optimization on the software side.

The findings shared in the Posette conference highlight how critical the infrastructure design, rather than in the database selection. Focusing on hardware and storage strategy reveals the real potential of postgres-based applications.