Async I/O and More in Postgres 18
Postgres 18 landed with a bunch of goodies—UUIDv7, an overhauled EXPLAIN module, composite index skip scans, and the big one: built-in asynchronous I/O via worker threads and Linux’s io_uring. This Backend Engineering Show episode breaks down sync vs async calls, recaps Postgres 17’s I/O model, and walks through the hurdles and wins of adding async I/O in v18, complete with a hands-on look at the io_method settings (worker, io_uring, and sync).
Future improvements like backend writer support and direct I/O are already in the works, so there’s always more to come. With clear timestamps—from a 6:30 async I/O primer to a 23:00 deep dive into io_uring—you’ll get up to speed in under 40 minutes and be ready to turbocharge your database performance.
Watch on YouTube
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