Log-based Recovery vs PITR — Short Summary

Iris Li

What they are (brief):

Log-based recovery: replay transaction logs (WAL/binlog) to advance a baseline.
PITR: restore to a specific time/transaction—usually done by restoring a baseline and replaying logs up to that point.

When to use:

Use logs + PITR for mission-critical systems needing seconds/minutes RPO.
Snapshots or periodic backups are fine when hours/days of data loss are acceptable.

Pros / Cons (one-liners):

Logs: very low RPO and storage-efficient, but operationally complex and adds continuous IO.
PITR: precise time-point recovery, but multi-step and can increase RTO if many logs must be replayed.

Quick checklist (3 items):

Define RPO/RTO per service.
Keep regular baselines + archived logs (retention window).
Automate and test PITR regularly.

Sylas Beaumont

So does Vinchin support point-in-time recovery?

Marcus Westwood

Sylas Beaumont As far as I know, their CDP function seems to mention PITR, so it should be supported.

Lawrence

Great breakdown! This makes it clear when to use log-based recovery and PITR versus snapshots. Love the concise pros/cons and the quick checklist—especially emphasizing automation and regular testing to ensure mission-critical systems can meet their RPO/RTO.