This documentation uses <PXF_INSTALL_DIR> to refer to the VMware Tanzu Greenplum platform extension framework (PXF) installation directory. Its value depends on how you have installed PXF:

• If you installed PXF as part of Greenplum Database, its value is $GPHOME/pxf.
• If you installed the PXF rpm package, its value is /usr/local/pxf-gp<greenplum-major-version>, or the directory of your choosing (RHEL only).

<PXF_INSTALL_DIR> includes both the PXF executables and the PXF runtime configuration files and directories. In PXF 7.x, in order to enable the PXF C extension to identify the PXF runtime configuration directory, a Greenplum Database configuration parameter pxf.pxf_base is set with $PXF_BASE during PXF initialization via the pxf [cluster] register command. The default $PXF_BASE is <PXF_INSTALL_DIR>. A nested cluster runtime configuration directory $PXF_BASE/clusters/default is used by the default PXF cluster.

If you want to store your configuration and runtime files in a different location, see Relocating $PXF_BASE.

This documentation uses <PXF_INSTALL_DIR> to reference the PXF installation directory. This documentation uses the $PXF_BASE environment variable to reference the PXF runtime configuration directory. PXF uses the variable internally. It only needs to be set in your shell environment if you explicitly relocate the directory.

PXF Installation Directories

The following PXF files and directories are installed to <PXF_INSTALL_DIR> when you install the PXF 7.x rpm package:

PXF Configuration Directories

After you prepare the PXF cluster by running the pxf [cluster] prepare, the following directories are installed into $PXF_BASE for the PXF deployment:

The pxf [cluster] prepare command also installs the following PXF directories into $PXF_BASE/clusters/default for the default PXF cluster:

The pxf [cluster] prepare command also installs the following PXF directories into $PXF_BASE/clusters/default/groups/default for the default PXF service group in the default PXF cluster:

Refer to Configuring PXF and Starting PXF for detailed information about the PXF configuration and startup commands and procedures.

Relocating $PXF_BASE

If you require that $PXF_BASE reside in a directory distinct from <PXF_INSTALL_DIR>, you can change it from the default location to a location of your choosing after you install PXF 7.x.

PXF provides the pxf [cluster] prepare command to prepare a new $PXF_BASE location. The command copies the runtime and configuration directories identified above to the file system location that you specify in a PXF_BASE environment variable.

For example, to relocate $PXF_BASE to the /path/to/dir directory on all Greenplum hosts and PXF hosts, run the following commands:

1. Set up $PXF_BASE in the /path/to/dir directory on Greenplum coordinator host with the prepare command:

   gpadmin@coordinator$ PXF_BASE=/path/to/dir pxf cluster prepare
   

2. Sync the /path/to/dir directory to the Greenplum standby coordinator host, segment hosts and any PXF hosts with the sync command:

   gpadmin@coordinator$ pxf cluster sync
   

3. Register the new $PXF_BASE location with the Greenplum Database:

   gpadmin@coordinator$ PXF_BASE=/path/to/dir pxf cluster register
   

4. Start the PXF cluster with the new $PXF_BASE location. When your $PXF_BASE is different from <PXF_INSTALL_DIR>, inform PXF by setting the PXF_BASE environment variable when you run a pxf command:

   gpadmin@coordinator$ PXF_BASE=/path/to/dir pxf cluster start
   

5. Set the environment variable in the .bashrc shell initialization script for the PXF installation owner (typically the gpadmin user) as follows:

   export PXF_BASE=/path/to/dir