Cloud SQL Basics

Cloud SQL is a fully managed relational database service for MySQL, PostgreSQL,

and SQL Server. It automates time-consuming tasks like patches, updates,

backups, and replicas, while providing high performance and availability for

your applications.

Prerequisites

Ensure you have the necessary IAM permissions to create and manage Cloud SQL

instances. The

Cloud SQL Admin

(

roles/cloudsql.admin

) role provides full

access to Cloud SQL resources.

Quick Start (PostgreSQL)

Enable the API:

gcloud services

enable

sqladmin.googleapis.com

Create an Instance:

gcloud sql instances create INSTANCE_NAME

\

--database-version

=

POSTGRES_18

\

--cpu

=

2

\

--memory

=

7680MiB

\

--region

=

REGION

Set a password for the default user:

Because this is a Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL instance, the default admin user

is

postgres

:

gcloud sql

users

set-password postgres

\

--instance

=

INSTANCE_NAME

--password

=

PASSWORD

Create a database:

gcloud sql databases create DATABASE_NAME

\

--instance

=

INSTANCE_NAME

Get the instance connection name:

You need the instance connection name (which is formatted as

PROJECT_ID:REGION:INSTANCE_NAME

) to connect using the Cloud SQL Auth

Proxy. Retrieve it with the following command:

gcloud sql instances describe INSTANCE_NAME

\

--format

=

"value(connectionName)"

Connect to the instance:

The Cloud SQL Auth Proxy must be running to be able to connect to the

instance. In a separate terminal, start the proxy using the connection name:

./cloud-sql-proxy INSTANCE_CONNECTION_NAME

With the proxy running, connect using

psql

in another terminal:

psql

"host=127.0.0.1 port=5432 user=postgres dbname=DATABASE_NAME password=PASSWORD sslmode=disable"

Reference Directory

Core Concepts

Instance architecture, high

availability (HA), and supported database engines.

CLI Usage

Essential

gcloud sql

commands for

instance, database, and user management.

Client Libraries & Connectors

:

Connecting to Cloud SQL using Python, Java, Node.js, and Go.

MCP Usage

Using the Cloud SQL remote MCP

server and Gemini CLI extension.

Infrastructure as Code

Terraform

configuration for instances, databases, and users.

IAM & Security

Predefined roles, SSL/TLS certificates, and Auth Proxy configuration. If you need product information not found in these references, use the Developer Knowledge MCP server search_documents tool.