Date: Wed, 7 Jun 2023 18:45:07 -0700
From: Noah Misch <noah@leadboat.com>
To: Andres Freund <andres@anarazel.de>
Cc: pgsql-hackers@postgresql.org
Subject: Re: win32ver data in meson-built postgres.exe
Message-ID: <20230608014507.GD1334487@rfd.leadboat.com>
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On Wed, Jun 07, 2023 at 04:47:26PM -0700, Andres Freund wrote:
> On 2023-06-07 16:14:07 -0700, Noah Misch wrote:
> > A postgres.exe built with meson, ninja, and MSVC lacks the version metadata
> > that postgres.exe gets under non-meson build systems.  Patch attached.
> 
> I dimly recall that we discussed that and basically decided that it doesn't
> really make sense to attach this information to postgres.exe.

I looked for a discussion behind that, but I didn't find it.  A key
user-visible consequence is whether the task manager "Name" column shows (1)
"PostgreSQL Server" (version data present) vs. (2) "postgres.exe" (no version
data).  While (2) is not terrible, (1) is more typical on Windows.  I don't
see cause to migrate to (2) after N years of sending (1).  Certainly this part
of the user experience should not depend on one's choice of build system.

> >     This preserves two quirks of the older build systems.  First,
> >     postgres.exe is icon-free.
> 
> We could also just change that.

I would be +1 for that (only if done for all build systems).  Showing the
elephant in task manager feels better than showing the generic-exe icon.

> >     Second, the resources object is not an input
> >     to postgres.def.
> 
> I don't see what negative effects that could have:

Agreed.  I wrote that sentence for archaeologists of the future who might
wonder why this change didn't use generated_backend_sources.