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From: Radoulov, Dimitre <cichomitiko@gmail.com>
To: pgsql-docs@lists.postgresql.org
Subject: Documentation clarification request: pg_dumpall and Large Objects
Date: Thu, 4 Dec 2025 13:12:50 +0100
Message-ID: <CAGJBphSX2oMPPu=VM4U8NP4+qffFH_483tFQCJ_s-mOcN3DLDw@mail.gmail.com> (raw)

Hello,

I would like to request a clarification in the pg_dumpall
documentation regarding Large Objects (LOBs). The current
documentation does not explicitly state whether pg_dumpall includes
Large Objects in its output.

In the source code (pg_dumpall.c), there is a comment indicating
that pg_dumpall forces all pg_dump output to plain text. Since Large
Objects are only included by pg_dump when using -b or non-text
archive formats (custom/tar), pg_dumpall cannot include LOBs in its
output.

This behavior is clear from the implementation, but not from the
documentation.

I propose adding an explicit note such as:

  "pg_dumpall does not include Large Objects (BLOBs). To back up
   Large Objects, use pg_dump -b per database."

This clarification would help prevent user confusion during
cluster-wide backup procedures.

Thank you.

Best regards,
Dimitre Radoulov

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