Senior Postgresql Dba

Senior PostgreSQL DBA
Location: West Los Angeles, CA Local
Work Model: Hybrid 3 days onsite per week

Job Overview

We are seeking an experienced Senior PostgreSQL DBA to own the architecture, availability, performance, security, and administration of its production PostgreSQL environment hosted on Microsoft Azure.

This is a hands-on senior engineering position requiring strong expertise in Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server, high availability, disaster recovery, active-active replication, database performance tuning, and production operations.

The ideal candidate must have experience managing PostgreSQL in both Azure-managed environments and self-managed Azure virtual machines running Linux and Windows.

Key Responsibilities

1. High Availability & Disaster Recovery

• Design, implement, and maintain production PostgreSQL HA and DR architectures.
• Manage active-passive replication, automatic failover, and cross-region disaster recovery.
• Design and operate active-active or bi-directional replication using pglogical or native logical replication.
• Manage replication slots, streaming replication, logical replication, and failover procedures.
• Define replication conflict-resolution strategies and monitor replication lag.
• Conduct regular failover and recovery testing with documented RPO/RTO targets.

2. Azure Database Administration

• Administer Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server and self-managed PostgreSQL on Azure VMs.
• Configure HA modes, read replicas, backups, point-in-time recovery, and geo-restore.
• Manage Azure networking, VNet integration, private endpoints, private DNS, and firewall rules.
• Implement Microsoft Entra ID authentication, managed identities, and database security.
• Configure and manage PgBouncer, server parameters, extensions, and maintenance windows.
• Perform PostgreSQL upgrades, migrations, and Azure platform administration.

3. Linux & Windows Administration

• Install, configure, patch, and maintain PostgreSQL on RHEL 8/9, CentOS, and Windows Server 2019/2022.
• Manage Linux services, systemd, SELinux, firewalld, storage, and package management.
• Manage Windows PostgreSQL services, permissions, firewall, and maintenance tasks.
• Implement backup and recovery using pgBackRest, Barman, pg_basebackup, and WAL archiving.

4. Performance Optimization

• Analyze and optimize complex SQL queries using EXPLAIN ANALYZE and pg_stat_statements.
• Perform indexing, partitioning, query tuning, and database performance troubleshooting.
• Manage autovacuum, database bloat, memory configuration, checkpoints, and WAL.
• Monitor database health, replication performance, and resource utilization.

5. Security & Monitoring

• Implement database security, role-based access, TLS, encryption, and least-privilege access.
• Support compliance requirements such as SOC 2, HIPAA, and PCI DSS.
• Build monitoring dashboards and alerts using Azure Monitor and Log Analytics.
• Use Prometheus, Grafana, or Datadog where applicable.
• Lead critical database incidents, root-cause analysis, and post-incident reviews.

6. Migration, Automation & Documentation

• Execute PostgreSQL migrations from on-premises or other cloud environments into Azure.
• Perform major PostgreSQL version upgrades with rollback and testing plans.
• Automate infrastructure and database operations using Terraform, Bicep, Ansible, PowerShell, and Azure CLI.
• Maintain operational runbooks, architecture documentation, and recovery procedures.

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of hands-on PostgreSQL database administration experience.
• 3+ years of experience administering PostgreSQL 14 or later.
• 3+ years of Microsoft Azure database hosting and administration experience.
• Minimum 2 years of hands-on experience with Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server.
• Proven experience designing and managing production active-passive HA clusters, including at least one real production failover.
• Experience designing or operating production active-active / bi-directional replication with a clear understanding of conflict resolution.
• Strong knowledge of PostgreSQL streaming replication, logical replication, replication slots, and pglogical.
• Experience with Patroni, etcd/Consul, HAProxy, or equivalent clustering technologies.
• Production PostgreSQL administration experience on both Linux (RHEL/CentOS) and Windows Server.
• Strong knowledge of Azure read replicas, backup and recovery, PITR, and geo-disaster recovery.
• Expertise in database performance tuning, indexing, partitioning, autovacuum, and query optimization.
• Experience with pgBackRest or Barman and WAL archiving.
• Knowledge of Azure networking, Microsoft Entra ID, managed identities, and database security.
• Experience with Terraform or Bicep, Azure CLI, PowerShell, and automation.
• Experience handling critical production database incidents and participating in 24x7 on-call support.

Technical Skills

• Database: PostgreSQL 14+, PostgreSQL 17/18
• Azure: Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server, Azure VMs, Azure Monitor, Log Analytics
• Replication & HA: Patroni, etcd, HAProxy, pglogical, Streaming Replication, Logical Replication
• Backup & Recovery: pgBackRest, Barman, WAL Archiving, PITR, Geo-DR
• Operating Systems: RHEL, CentOS, Windows Server
• Automation: Terraform, Bicep, Ansible, PowerShell, Bash
• Performance: EXPLAIN ANALYZE, pg_stat_statements, Indexing, Partitioning, Autovacuum

Preferred Qualifications

• Microsoft Azure Database Administrator Associate (DP-300) or Azure Solutions Architect certification.
• Red Hat certification or equivalent Linux administration experience.
• Experience with Azure Database Migration Service.
• Experience with Citus, PostgreSQL elastic clusters, or Kubernetes-hosted PostgreSQL.
• Familiarity with PostgreSQL 18 features and upcoming PostgreSQL 19 changes.
• Experience with EDB Postgres Distributed, pgEdge, or other multi-master technologies.
• Experience supporting SOC 2, HIPAA, PCI DSS, or similar compliance requirements.

Mandatory Submission Requirements

• Location: Candidate must currently reside in West Los Angeles, CA.
• Work Arrangement: Must be available to work onsite 3 days per week.
• Sponsorship: No sponsorship available.
• Interview: Face-to-face interview required.
• Identity Verification: Mandatory for candidates selected for interview.

Important: Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server experience is non-negotiable. Candidates with only on-premises PostgreSQL or experience on AWS/GCP without Azure Flexible Server experience will not be considered.

Only candidates with demonstrable production experience in Azure PostgreSQL, HA/DR, active-active replication, and both Linux and Windows environments should be submitted.