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Subject: BUG #19689: MERGE INSERT accepts a set-returning function during
 PREPARE but fails at EXECUTE
To: pgsql-bugs@lists.postgresql.org
From: PG Bug reporting form <noreply@postgresql.org>
Cc: imchifan@163.com
Reply-To: imchifan@163.com, pgsql-bugs@lists.postgresql.org
Date: Tue, 15 Sep 2026 06:46:58 +0000
Message-ID: <19689-0a1b106035cd8a5b@postgresql.org>
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The following bug has been logged on the website:

Bug reference:      19689
Logged by:          Qifan Liu
Email address:      imchifan@163.com
PostgreSQL version: 18.6
Operating system:   Linux x86-64
Description:       =20

Description
-----------
A set-returning function can be placed in the VALUES expression of a MERGE
WHEN NOT MATCHED INSERT action. PREPARE accepts the statement, but EXECUTE
fails with "set-valued function called in context that cannot accept a set"
and inserts no rows. This violates the analysis/execution contract: an
expression that the MERGE action cannot execute should be rejected while the
statement is analyzed, rather than being accepted into a prepared plan that
deterministically fails only when executed.

Impact: Applications can successfully prepare an unusable MERGE statement
and encounter a localized execution failure later. The statement inserts no
rows. This was reproduced consistently on all tested versions.


Steps to reproduce
------------------
```sql
CREATE TABLE merge_target (id integer);
CREATE TABLE merge_source (id integer);
INSERT INTO merge_source VALUES (1);

PREPARE merge_srf AS
MERGE INTO merge_target AS t
USING merge_source AS s
ON false
WHEN NOT MATCHED THEN
  INSERT VALUES (generate_series(1, 2));

EXECUTE merge_srf;

SELECT count(*) AS rows_after_execution
FROM merge_target;
```

Actual result
-------------
```text
ERROR:  set-valued function called in context that cannot accept a set

 rows_after_execution
----------------------
                    0
(1 row)
```

Expected result
---------------
PREPARE should reject the set-returning function because a MERGE INSERT
action cannot execute that expression in this context. It should not create
a prepared statement that is accepted successfully and then
deterministically fails during EXECUTE.


Additional information
----------------------
The issue was reproduced on PostgreSQL 20devel, PostgreSQL 18.6, and
PostgreSQL 17.11. Inference: the MERGE INSERT action's specialized
expression handling does not propagate or enforce the restriction on
set-returning functions during analysis, leaving the executor to detect the
unsupported context.