Set up TimescaleDB on Arm64

Set up the TimescaleDB environment

In this section, you prepare an Arm64-based SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) virtual machine and install TimescaleDB by building it from source. Building from source ensures the database extension is fully optimized for Arm64, which is especially important for high-ingest and time-series workloads.

Architecture overview

    

        
        
Linux Arm64 VM (SUSE)
        |
        v
PostgreSQL 15
        |
        v
TimescaleDB 2.25.0 Extension

    

TimescaleDB provides time-series optimizations on top of PostgreSQL, making it ideal for high-ingest sensor workloads.

Install build dependencies

TimescaleDB must be compiled against PostgreSQL, so development headers and build tools are required.

    

        
        
sudo zypper refresh

    

    

        
        
sudo zypper install \
  cmake \
  gcc gcc-c++ make \
  git \
  libopenssl-devel \
  postgresql15 \
  postgresql15-server \
  postgresql15-server-devel \
  postgresql15-devel

    

Initialize PostgreSQL

Before using PostgreSQL, its data directory must be initialized. The following command runs as the postgres system user to create the data directory, initialize system tables, and set default configurations:

    

        
        
sudo -u postgres initdb -D /var/lib/pgsql/data

    

Enable and start PostgreSQL:

    

        
        
sudo systemctl enable postgresql
sudo systemctl start postgresql

    

Verify PostgreSQL is running:

    

        
        
psql --version

    

The output is similar to:

    

        
        psql (PostgreSQL) 15.10

        
    

Build TimescaleDB from source

Building TimescaleDB from source ensures native Arm64 compilation and optimal performance.

Clone the repository

Download the official TimescaleDB source code and check out version 2.25.0 to ensure version consistency throughout this Learning Path:

    

        
        
git clone https://github.com/timescale/timescaledb.git
cd timescaledb
git checkout 2.25.0

    

Bootstrap the configuration

    

        
        
./bootstrap

    

Invoke the build

    

        
        
cd build
make -j$(nproc)
sudo make install

    

This compiles TimescaleDB natively for Arm64.

Enable TimescaleDB in PostgreSQL

TimescaleDB must be preloaded when PostgreSQL starts.

Edit PostgreSQL configuration and add the timescaledb library

Using a suitable editor and sudo, edit /var/lib/pgsql/data/postgresql.conf and add the following line:

    

        
        
shared_preload_libraries = 'timescaledb'

    

This update:

• Ensures TimescaleDB is loaded when PostgreSQL starts.
• Required for advanced TimescaleDB features like background workers and compression.

Restart PostgreSQL

    

        
        
sudo systemctl restart postgresql

    

Create a database and enable the extension

Enable TimescaleDB at the database level by creating the sensors database and loading the extension:

    

        
        
sudo -u postgres psql

    

    

        
        
CREATE DATABASE sensors;
\c sensors
CREATE EXTENSION IF NOT EXISTS timescaledb;

    

Verify the installed version:

    

        
        
SELECT extversion FROM pg_extension WHERE extname='timescaledb';

    

The output is similar to:

    

        
        sensors=# SELECT extversion FROM pg_extension WHERE extname='timescaledb';
 extversion
------------
 2.25.0
(1 row)

        
    

Press Ctrl+D to exit.

This confirms that TimescaleDB is installed correctly and the expected version is active.

What you’ve accomplished and what’s next

You’ve successfully:

• Installed PostgreSQL 15 on SUSE Arm64
• Built TimescaleDB 2.25.0 from source for optimal Arm64 performance
• Enabled TimescaleDB at the database level and verified the installation

Next, you’ll create a real-time sensor data ingestion pipeline using Python to continuously insert time-series data into TimescaleDB.