Description
sslnegotiation
This option controls how SSL encryption is negotiated with the server, if SSL is used. In the default postgres mode, the client first asks the server if SSL is supported. In direct mode, the client starts the standard SSL handshake directly after establishing the TCP/IP connection. Traditional PostgreSQL protocol negotiation is the most flexible with different server configurations. If the server is known to support direct SSL connections then the latter requires one fewer round trip reducing connection latency and also allows the use of protocol agnostic SSL network tools. The direct SSL option was introduced in PostgreSQL version 17.
postgres
perform PostgreSQL protocol negotiation. This is the default if the option is not provided.
direct
start SSL handshake directly after establishing the TCP/IP connection. This is only allowed with sslmode=require or higher, because the weaker settings could lead to unintended fallback to plaintext authentication when the server does not support direct SSL handshake.