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Prerequisites

  • Heroku Postgres add-on
  • Heroku CLI installed
  • Xata account and project setup
  • Network access to your Heroku database

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Install and Configure the Xata CLI

Install the Xata CLI: 
curl -fsSL https://xata.io/install.sh | bash
Authenticate with your Xata account: 
xata auth login

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Get Connection String

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Find Your Connection Details

  1. Using Heroku CLI: 
    heroku config:get DATABASE_URL --app your-app-name
  2. Using Heroku Dashboard:
    • Go to Heroku Dashboard
    • Select your app
    • Go to “Resources” → “Heroku Postgres”
    • Click “Settings” → “View Credentials”

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Connection String Format

Heroku connection strings typically look like this: 
postgresql://your_username:your_password@your-heroku-host:5432/your_database?sslmode=require

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Network Configuration

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Public Access

Heroku Postgres databases are typically accessible from the internet:
  1. No additional configuration needed for public access
  2. SSL is required by default
  3. Connection limits may apply based on your plan

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Private Access (Premium Plans)

If you’re on a Premium plan with private access:
  1. Use Heroku Private Spaces
  2. Configure VPC peering if needed
  3. Run migration from within Heroku environment

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Initialize Xata Project

Set up your Xata project configuration: 
xata init

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Configure the Migration

Set up your clone configuration with optional anonymization: 
# Set your source URL
export XATA_CLI_SOURCE_POSTGRES_URL="postgresql://your_username:your_password@your-heroku-host:5432/your_database?sslmode=require"

# Configure anonymization rules
xata clone config --source-url $XATA_CLI_SOURCE_POSTGRES_URL --mode prompt

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Start the Migration

Begin the data transfer: 
# Start the migration
xata clone start --source-url $XATA_CLI_SOURCE_POSTGRES_URL

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Monitor Progress

Check the migration status: 
xata clone status

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Verification

After migration, verify your data:
  1. Connect to Xata Branch: 
    psql `xata branch url`
  2. Check Data Integrity: 
    -- Compare row counts
SELECT COUNT(*) FROM your_table;

-- Check sample data
SELECT * FROM your_table LIMIT 10;
  3. Test Relationships: Verify foreign key relationships work correctly

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Next Steps