POWER STUDIO

Database Backup

Back up the Power Studio database regularly. The database contains track metadata, playlists, formats, users, settings and scheduling information. Audio files must be backed up separately.

What To Back Up

At minimum, back up:

  • The PostgreSQL database used by Power Studio.
  • The complete audio file storage.
  • Local plugin settings when a plugin stores settings locally.
  • License files and installation notes.

Automated Database Backup

Power Studio uses PostgreSQL, so database backups can be automated with pg_dump.

Create a batch file similar to this, adjusted for the station database name, PostgreSQL path and backup destination:

@echo off
set PGPASSWORD=your-postgres-password
set BACKUPDIR=D:\PowerStudioBackups
set DBNAME=PowerStudio_YourStation
set PGDUMP=C:\Program Files\PostgreSQL\16\bin\pg_dump.exe

if not exist "%BACKUPDIR%" mkdir "%BACKUPDIR%"
"%PGDUMP%" --host localhost --port 5432 --username postgres --format custom --file "%BACKUPDIR%\%DBNAME%_%DATE:~-4%%DATE:~3,2%%DATE:~0,2%.backup" "%DBNAME%"

Schedule the script with Windows Task Scheduler.

If the backup runs on a computer that does not have a full PostgreSQL installation, copy the PostgreSQL command-line tools and required runtime DLLs from the PostgreSQL bin folder. At minimum, the backup computer needs pg_dump.exe and the matching PostgreSQL libraries from the same PostgreSQL version.

Use the PostgreSQL custom backup format. It is suitable for full database restores and is the format expected by the common pgAdmin restore workflow.

The existing support article Power Studio Automated Database Backup contains a ready-to-adapt batch script and notes about scheduling it.

Security

The example uses PGPASSWORD, which means the database password is stored in plain text. Protect the script and backup folder with Windows permissions. Prefer a dedicated backup user and a secure password handling method when possible.

Restore Checks

A backup is only useful when it can be restored. Periodically test restoring a backup to a separate database or test machine.

Do not test restores directly against the production database.

When testing a restore, also start Power Studio against the restored database on a test workstation. Confirm that playlists, formats, users and track metadata are present, and that audio paths still point to the expected storage.