Bug Report: Incorrect Connection String Format in Dashboard UI

[Juan-Cruz-Mezzopeva]

Bug Report: Incorrect Connection String Format in Dashboard UI

Description

The Supabase Dashboard shows an outdated/non-functional connection string format in the "Connection String" tab under Settings → Database → Connection String → Direct connection. The hostname format shown (db.[project-ref].supabase.co) does not resolve via DNS and causes connection failures.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Create a new Supabase project in the South America (São Paulo) region
2. Navigate to Settings → Database
3. Click on "Connection String" tab
4. Select Type: URI, Source: Primary Database
5. Click on "Direct connection"
6. Observe the connection string format shown

Expected Behavior

The connection string should use the modern pooler format:

postgresql://postgres.[project-ref]:[password]@aws-[X]-[region].pooler.supabase.com:5432/postgres

Example (expected):

postgresql://postgres.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu:[password]@aws-1-sa-east-1.pooler.supabase.com:5432/postgres

Actual Behavior

The UI displays an outdated hostname format that doesn't resolve:

postgresql://postgres:[password]@db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co:5432/postgres

Problems with this format:

1. Invalid hostname: db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co doesn't resolve via DNS

   $ ping db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co
   ping: cannot resolve db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co: Unknown host

2. Incomplete username: Shows postgres instead of postgres.[project-ref]

3. Missing pooler reference: Doesn't include the AWS pooler hostname

Error Message When Using Incorrect URL

When attempting to connect using the provided connection string:

Error: getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co
    errno: -3008,
    code: 'ENOTFOUND',
    syscall: 'getaddrinfo',
    hostname: 'db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co'

Workaround

The correct connection string can be obtained by:

1. Clicking "Pooler settings" button in the connection string section
2. Or manually constructing the URL using the modern format:

   postgresql://postgres.[project-ref]:[password]@aws-[X]-[region].pooler.supabase.com:5432/postgres
   

Impact

• Developer Experience: New users and developers migrating databases waste significant time debugging connection issues
• Documentation Mismatch: The UI shows a format that conflicts with the actual infrastructure
• Trust Issues: Users may think their project is broken or misconfigured

Environment

• Project Region: South America (São Paulo) - sa-east-1
• Project Reference: obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu
• Observed Date: January 2025
• Browser: Multiple browsers confirmed
• Account Type: Free tier

Screenshots

Incorrect format shown in UI:

UI shows:

host: db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co  ❌
user: postgres                              ❌
port: 5432
database: postgres

Parameters breakdown showing incorrect host:

When clicking "View parameters", the expanded view shows:

• host: db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co (non-existent)
• user: postgres (should be postgres.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu)

Suggested Fix

Update the "Direct connection" display in Settings → Database → Connection String to show the correct pooler-based format:

Before (current - broken):

postgresql://postgres:[YOUR-PASSWORD]@db.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu.supabase.co:5432/postgres

After (proposed - working):

postgresql://postgres.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu:[YOUR-PASSWORD]@aws-1-sa-east-1.pooler.supabase.com:5432/postgres

Additional Context

• The "Transaction pooler" and "Session pooler" options show correct URLs with the aws-[X]-[region].pooler.supabase.com format
• Only the "Direct connection" option shows the outdated format
• This appears to be a UI issue rather than an infrastructure issue
• The db.[project-ref].supabase.co format seems to be deprecated but still displayed

Related Issues

This may be related to the infrastructure migration from the old db.*.supabase.co format to the new AWS pooler-based format.

Test Case to Validate Fix

// This should work after the fix
const { Sequelize } = require('sequelize');

const connectionString = 'postgresql://postgres.obzjfpufkztopkslfyyu:[PASSWORD]@aws-1-sa-east-1.pooler.supabase.com:5432/postgres';

const sequelize = new Sequelize(connectionString, {
  dialect: 'postgres',
  dialectOptions: {
    ssl: {
      require: true,
      rejectUnauthorized: false
    }
  }
});

async function test() {
  try {
    await sequelize.authenticate();
    console.log('✅ Connection successful');
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('❌ Connection failed:', error.message);
  }
}

test();

Priority

High - This affects every new user trying to connect to their Supabase PostgreSQL database from external applications.

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**Thank you for your attention to this issue. Happy to provide additional information or testing if needed.

[GaryAustin1]

Not sure what your issue is.
There are two ways of connecting directly to the DB.
The first IF you have IPv6 capable computer/router/network is the direct connection with .co path. That only works for IPv6.
The second method is the session pooler method which works with IPv4. That is the .com path.