This is really only a demonstration of virtual IP functionality. In the case of a server reboot, network assignments created through ifconfig will disappear. For our purposes, this is actually the desired result. If a PostgreSQL server tried claiming a virtual IP address upon reboot and we had already assigned it to a different system, traffic could go to either system and result in severe consequences. Would either database handle the requests? Would the misrouted network packets cause invalid data or some other result? We don't know; network routing can affect any level of the communication process. The end result is that the database is unusable in this state.
That said, the process of maintaining virtual IP addresses is ...
