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Azure PostgreSQL for TypeScript (node-postgres)

Connect to Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server using the pg (node-postgres) package with support for password and Microsoft Entra ID (passwordless) authentication.

Installation

npm install pg @azure/identity
npm install -D @types/pg

Environment Variables

# Required
AZURE_POSTGRESQL_HOST=<server>.postgres.database.azure.com
AZURE_POSTGRESQL_DATABASE=<database>
AZURE_POSTGRESQL_PORT=5432

# For password authentication
AZURE_POSTGRESQL_USER=<username>
AZURE_POSTGRESQL_PASSWORD=<password>

# For Entra ID authentication
AZURE_POSTGRESQL_USER=<entra-user>@<server>   # e.g., [email protected]
AZURE_POSTGRESQL_CLIENTID=<managed-identity-client-id>  # For user-assigned identity

Authentication

Option 1: Password Authentication

import { Client, Pool } from "pg";

const client = new Client({
  host: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_HOST,
  database: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_DATABASE,
  user: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_USER,
  password: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_PASSWORD,
  port: Number(process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_PORT) || 5432,
  ssl: { rejectUnauthorized: true }  // Required for Azure
});

await client.connect();

Option 2: Microsoft Entra ID (Passwordless) - Recommended

import { Client, Pool } from "pg";
import { DefaultAzureCredential } from "@azure/identity";

// For system-assigned managed identity
const credential = new DefaultAzureCredential();

// For user-assigned managed identity
// const credential = new DefaultAzureCredential({
//   managedIdentityClientId: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_CLIENTID
// });

// Acquire access token for Azure PostgreSQL
const tokenResponse = await credential.getToken(
  "https://ossrdbms-aad.database.windows.net/.default"
);

const client = new Client({
  host: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_HOST,
  database: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_DATABASE,
  user: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_USER,  // Entra ID user
  password: tokenResponse.token,             // Token as password
  port: Number(process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_PORT) || 5432,
  ssl: { rejectUnauthorized: true }
});

await client.connect();

Examples are separate sketches requiring imports/schema and an authorized non-production database. Parameter binding protects values, not identifiers or tenant authorization. TypeScript query generics are compile-time assertions, not runtime result validation. On rollback failure, destroy the client instead of returning it to the pool; preserve the original error.

Core Workflows

1. Single Client Connection

import { Client } from "pg";

const client = new Client({
  host: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_HOST,
  database: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_DATABASE,
  user: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_USER,
  password: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_PASSWORD,
  port: 5432,
  ssl: { rejectUnauthorized: true }
});

try {
  await client.connect();
  
  const result = await client.query("SELECT NOW() as current_time");
  console.log(result.rows[0].current_time);
} finally {
  await client.end();  // Always close connection
}

2. Connection Pool (Recommended for Production)

import { Pool } from "pg";

const pool = new Pool({
  host: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_HOST,
  database: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_DATABASE,
  user: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_USER,
  password: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_PASSWORD,
  port: 5432,
  ssl: { rejectUnauthorized: true },
  
  // Pool configuration
  max: 20,                    // Maximum connections in pool
  idleTimeoutMillis: 30000,   // Close idle connections after 30s
  connectionTimeoutMillis: 10000  // Timeout for new connections
});

// Query using pool (automatically acquires and releases connection)
const result = await pool.query("SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = $1", [userId]);

// Explicit checkout for multiple queries
const client = await pool.connect();
try {
  const res1 = await client.query("SELECT * FROM users");
  const res2 = await client.query("SELECT * FROM orders");
} finally {
  client.release();  // Return connection to pool
}

// Cleanup on shutdown
await pool.end();

3. Parameterized Queries (Prevent SQL Injection)

// ALWAYS use parameterized queries - never concatenate user input
const userId = 123;
const email = "[email protected]";

// Single parameter
const result = await pool.query(
  "SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = $1",
  [userId]
);

// Multiple parameters
const result = await pool.query(
  "INSERT INTO users (email, name, created_at) VALUES ($1, $2, NOW()) RETURNING *",
  [email, "John Doe"]
);

// Array parameter
const ids = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
const result = await pool.query(
  "SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = ANY($1::int[])",
  [ids]
);

4. Transactions

const client = await pool.connect();

try {
  await client.query("BEGIN");
  
  const userResult = await client.query(
    "INSERT INTO users (email) VALUES ($1) RETURNING id",
    ["[email protected]"]
  );
  const userId = userResult.rows[0].id;
  
  await client.query(
    "INSERT INTO orders (user_id, total) VALUES ($1, $2)",
    [userId, 99.99]
  );
  
  await client.query("COMMIT");
} catch (error) {
  await client.query("ROLLBACK");
  throw error;
} finally {
  client.release();
}

5. Transaction Helper Function

async function withTransaction<T>(
  pool: Pool,
  fn: (client: PoolClient) => Promise<T>
): Promise<T> {
  const client = await pool.connect();
  try {
    await client.query("BEGIN");
    const result = await fn(client);
    await client.query("COMMIT");
    return result;
  } catch (error) {
    await client.query("ROLLBACK");
    throw error;
  } finally {
    client.release();
  }
}

// Usage
const order = await withTransaction(pool, async (client) => {
  const user = await client.query(
    "INSERT INTO users (email) VALUES ($1) RETURNING *",
    ["[email protected]"]
  );
  const order = await client.query(
    "INSERT INTO orders (user_id, total) VALUES ($1, $2) RETURNING *",
    [user.rows[0].id, 99.99]
  );
  return order.rows[0];
});

6. Typed Queries with TypeScript

import { Pool, QueryResult } from "pg";

interface User {
  id: number;
  email: string;
  name: string;
  created_at: Date;
}

// Type the query result
const result: QueryResult<User> = await pool.query<User>(
  "SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = $1",
  [userId]
);

const user: User | undefined = result.rows[0];

// Type-safe insert
async function createUser(
  pool: Pool,
  email: string,
  name: string
): Promise<User> {
  const result = await pool.query<User>(
    "INSERT INTO users (email, name) VALUES ($1, $2) RETURNING *",
    [email, name]
  );
  return result.rows[0];
}

Pool with Entra ID Token Refresh

Use the installed node-postgres version's supported dynamic password callback so new connections obtain a current token. Do not tear down and recreate a shared pool on every token expiry: concurrent callers can race with shutdown.

import { Pool } from "pg";
import { DefaultAzureCredential } from "@azure/identity";

const credential = new DefaultAzureCredential();
const azurePool = new Pool({
  host: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_HOST,
  database: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_DATABASE,
  user: process.env.AZURE_POSTGRESQL_USER,
  ssl: { rejectUnauthorized: true },
  password: async () => {
    const token = await credential.getToken("https://ossrdbms-aad.database.windows.net/.default");
    if (!token) throw new Error("Token acquisition failed");
    return token.token;
  },
});

Verify Entra principal mapping and server authentication settings first. Tokens are secrets; never log them. Token expiration is supplied by the issuer, not a guaranteed one-hour lifetime.

Error Handling

import { DatabaseError } from "pg";

try {
  await pool.query("INSERT INTO users (email) VALUES ($1)", [email]);
} catch (error) {
  if (error instanceof DatabaseError) {
    switch (error.code) {
      case "23505":  // unique_violation
        console.error("Duplicate entry (details redacted)");
        break;
      case "23503":  // foreign_key_violation
        console.error("Foreign key constraint failed (details redacted)");
        break;
      case "42P01":  // undefined_table
        console.error("Table does not exist:", error.message);
        break;
      case "28P01":  // invalid_password
        console.error("Authentication failed");
        break;
      case "57P03":  // cannot_connect_now (server starting)
        console.error("Server unavailable, retry later");
        break;
      default:
        console.error(`PostgreSQL error ${error.code}: ${error.message}`);
    }
  }
  throw error;
}

Connection String Format

// Alternative: Use connection string
const pool = new Pool({
  connectionString: `postgres://${encodeURIComponent(user)}:${encodeURIComponent(password)}@${host}:${

… (full content is in the download package)