# Full load PostgreSQL database migration
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The full load migration phase populates the target database with a copy of the source data. This chapter describes the following native methods to help you choose the one that best matches your migration scenario.
+ pg\_dump and pg\_restore
+ Publisher and Subscriber
+ pglogical

We recommend that you begin by reviewing the following table to understand the tools suitable for your use case.


| Method | Supported versions | Support of metadata migration | Suitable database sizes | Performance | 
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 
| pg\_dump and pg\_restore | All versions of PostgreSQL | Yes | 100 GB or less | Medium | 
| Publisher and Subscriber | PostgreSQL 10.0 and higher | No | Any size | High | 
| pglogical | PostgreSQL 9.4 and higher | Yes | Any size | High | 

The suitable database sizes provided in the preceding table are the AWS DMS recommendations. These recommendations are based on customer migration experiences and aren’t the limitation of the native tools.

**Topics**
+ [Preparing for Ongoing Replication](chap-manageddatabases.postgresql-rds-postgresql-full-load-preparing.md)
+ [PostgreSQL pg\_dump and pg\_restore utility](chap-manageddatabases.postgresql-rds-postgresql-full-load-pd_dump.md)
+ [PostgreSQL publisher and subscriber model](chap-manageddatabases.postgresql-rds-postgresql-full-load-publisher.md)
+ [PostgreSQL pglogical extension](chap-manageddatabases.postgresql-rds-postgresql-full-load-pglogical.md)