CMD: pig build

Build PostgreSQL extensions from source with pig build subcommand

The pig build command is a powerful tool that simplifies the entire workflow of building PostgreSQL extensions from source. It provides a complete build infrastructure setup, dependency management, and compilation environment for both standard and custom PostgreSQL extensions across different operating systems.

Subcommands

Command	Description	Notes
`build spec`	Initialize building spec repo
`build repo`	Initialize required repos	Requires sudo or root
`build tool`	Initialize build tools	Requires sudo or root
`build rust`	Install Rust toolchain	Requires sudo or root
`build pgrx`	Install and initialize pgrx	Requires sudo or root
`build pkg`	Complete build pipeline	Requires sudo or root
`build get`	Download source code tarball
`build dep`	Install extension build dependencies	Requires sudo or root
`build ext`	Build extension package	Requires sudo or root

Quick Start

# Setup build environment
pig build spec                   # Initialize build specs
pig build repo                   # Setup repositories
pig build tool                   # Install build tools

# Install Rust (for Rust extensions)
pig build rust -y                # Install Rust
pig build pgrx                   # Install PGRX framework

# Build extensions
pig build pkg citus              # Complete build pipeline

build spec

Initialize build specification files.

pig build spec                   # Create default spec files
pig build spec -f                # Force overwrite existing files

build repo

Setup repositories required for building.

pig build repo                   # Setup repositories

build tool

Install build toolchain (gcc, make, cmake, etc.).

pig build tool                   # Install build tools
pig build tool -y                # Auto-confirm

build rust

Install Rust toolchain (for building Rust extensions).

pig build rust                   # Install Rust
pig build rust -y                # Auto-confirm

build pgrx

Install PGRX framework (for building PGRX extensions).

pig build pgrx                   # Install PGRX
pig build pgrx -v 17             # Install for PG 17

build pkg

Complete build pipeline: download source, install dependencies, build extension.

pig build pkg citus              # Build citus
pig build pkg citus -v 17        # Build for PG 17
pig build pkg citus -y           # Auto-confirm

build get

Download extension source code.

pig build get citus              # Download citus source

build dep

Install extension build dependencies.

pig build dep citus              # Install citus dependencies
pig build dep citus -y           # Auto-confirm

build ext

Build extension package from source.

pig build ext citus              # Build citus
pig build ext citus -v 17        # Build for PG 17

Build Infrastructure

Build Specifications

The build system uses specification files that define how each extension should be built. These specs include:

Source code location and version
Build dependencies
Compilation flags
PostgreSQL version compatibility
Platform-specific build instructions

Directory Structure

~/ext/                           # Default build spec directory
├── Makefile                     # Master build makefile
├── <extension>/                 # Per-extension directory
│   ├── Makefile                # Extension-specific makefile
│   ├── <extension>.spec        # RPM spec file (EL)
│   └── debian/                 # Debian packaging files
│       ├── control
│       ├── rules
│       └── ...

Build output locations:

EL Systems: ~/rpmbuild/RPMS/<arch>/
Debian Systems: ~/ (deb files)

Common Workflows

Workflow 1: Building Standard Extension

# 1. Setup build environment (once)
pig build spec
pig build repo
pig build tool

# 2. Build extension
pig build pkg pg_partman

# 3. Install built package
sudo rpm -ivh ~/rpmbuild/RPMS/x86_64/pg_partman*.rpm  # EL
sudo dpkg -i ~/pg_partman*.deb                         # Debian

Workflow 2: Building Rust Extension

# 1. Setup Rust environment
pig build spec
pig build tool
pig build rust -y
pig build pgrx

# 2. Build Rust extension
pig build pkg pgmq

# 3. Install
sudo pig ext add pgmq

Workflow 3: Building Multiple Versions

# Build extension for multiple PostgreSQL versions
pig build pkg citus --pg 15,16,17

# Results in packages for each version:
# citus_15-*.rpm
# citus_16-*.rpm
# citus_17-*.rpm

Troubleshooting

Build Tools Not Found

# Install build tools
pig build tool

# For specific compiler
sudo dnf groupinstall "Development Tools"  # EL
sudo apt install build-essential          # Debian

Missing Dependencies

# Install extension dependencies
pig build dep <extension>

# Check error messages for specific packages
# Install manually if needed
sudo dnf install <package>  # EL
sudo apt install <package>  # Debian

PostgreSQL Headers Not Found

# Install PostgreSQL development package
sudo pig ext install pg17-devel

# Or specify pg_config path
export PG_CONFIG=/usr/pgsql-17/bin/pg_config

Rust/PGRX Issues

# Reinstall Rust
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh

# Update PGRX
cargo install cargo-pgrx --force

# Reinitialize PGRX
cargo pgrx init

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Last modified 2026-01-06: batch update (cc9e058)