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SPECIFICTION
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PgDoorman

ozontech.github.io

Free plan macOSLinuxSelf-hosted
Visit ozontech.github.io
Spec score 7.5 #18 of 31 in Database Proxy Software

What it is

PgDoorman is a free, open-source, self-hosted PostgreSQL connection pooler written in Rust. It is described as a drop-in replacement for PgBouncer and Odyssey, and supports PostgreSQL 10 and newer on Linux or macOS. Listed capabilities include connection pooling, load balancing, and automatic failover; query routing is not supported. The pool coordinator enforces per-database connection caps and can reclaim idle capacity from pools with spare connections. Patroni-assisted fallback can direct new connections to another live cluster member during a switchover. Monitoring includes a Prometheus endpoint and an optional local diagnostic console for pool, latency, error, query, log, CPU, and memory information. Authentication includes MD5 or SCRAM passthrough, auth_query, PAM, JWT, Talos JWT, and pg_hba.conf rules. TLS is supported for client and backend connections. It can be built from source, installed from packages, or downloaded as a binary.

Spec sheet

What it does
PgDoorman is a multithreaded PostgreSQL connection pooler written in Rust and described as a drop-in replacement for PgBouncer and Odyssey.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Platforms
The installation guide lists Linux and macOS as supported operating systems and recommends Linux for production.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Deployment
PgDoorman can be built from source, installed from distribution packages, or downloaded as a prebuilt binary; Docker is intended for development, CI, and demos rather than production.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Authentication
Documented authentication methods include MD5 or SCRAM passthrough, auth_query, PAM, JWT, Talos JWT, and pg_hba.conf access rules.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Credential handling
In passthrough mode, the client’s MD5 hash or SCRAM ClientKey is reused for PostgreSQL authentication, so plaintext passwords are not needed in the configuration.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
High availability
Patroni-assisted fallback can direct new backend connections to another live cluster member when the local PostgreSQL server disappears during a switchover.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Monitoring
PgDoorman includes a Prometheus metrics endpoint and an optional local web diagnostic console for pool, latency, error, query, log, CPU, and memory information.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Pool coordination
Its pool coordinator enforces a per-database connection cap and can redistribute capacity by closing idle connections from pools with spare capacity.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Prepared statements
PgDoorman caches anonymous Parse messages so clients in a pool can reuse prepared backend state without application changes.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Production use
The project says it has been in production at Ozon for three years with Go, .NET, Python, and Node.js workloads.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Requirements
The installation guide requires PostgreSQL 10 or newer and Rust 1.87 or newer when building from source.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
Security limits
LDAP, Kerberos GSSAPI, certificate-based authentication, and SCRAM channel binding are listed as unsupported.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io
TLS
TLS can be configured for client and backend connections, while seamless migration of TLS sessions during binary upgrades requires a Linux build with the tls-migration feature.Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io

Plans and prices

PgDoorman Free No paid plans or usage limits stated Read 8 Oct 2026 · ozontech.github.io

Every PgDoorman plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Free and open source
  • Supports PostgreSQL 10 and newer
  • Connection pooling and load balancing
  • Automatic failover with Patroni assistance
  • Prometheus monitoring endpoint

Limits

  • Query routing is unsupported
  • Linux or macOS only
  • Self-hosted deployment required
  • Several authentication methods unsupported

Who it suits

It suits teams running PostgreSQL 10+ that want self-managed pooling, load balancing, and failover on Linux or macOS. Rust-capable teams can also build it from source.

Verdict

PgDoorman is a focused, no-cost pooler for self-hosted PostgreSQL deployments, with pooling, balancing, failover, and monitoring. Its platform limits and unsupported authentication features matter when matching it to an existing environment.

Where Specifiction places it

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