Message-ID: <BAY137-W2686DC13731DE2A6BF98FAD64B0@phx.gbl>
From: Dennis Wang <dennis_02_2002@hotmail.com>
To: <pgsql-interfaces@postgresql.org>
Subject: URGENET: ALTER statement exectuation hangs when it is executed
	multiple time on a table
Date: Fri, 11 Jan 2008 10:55:13 +1030
Importance: Normal
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I am using a shell script to copy some table records into PostgreSQL databa=
se. The logic steps are:

  1. set default value for table id
  2. load some large records into the table
  3. drop the id definition

  The actual PostgreSQL commands are:
     ALTER TABLE warngrid ALTER COLUMN id SET DEFAULT (nextval('warngrid_se=
q')* 10)+1;
     COPY warngrid FROM 'warngrid.csv' CSV HEADER;=20
     ALTER TABLE warngrid ALTER COLUMN id DROP DEFAULT;

For the first time, these operation execute fine.  Then I do these steps:
  4. delete all the records in the table
  5. rerun the shell script to copy records.

Then, the ALTER statement in step 1 hanging there. I did check the lock sta=
te of the warngrid table, it says the process created by the ALTER statemen=
t hold an "AccessExclusiveLock" on the table.=20

I wonder if PostgreSQL got some internal mechanism which prevent a table id=
 field being altered many times when there are some pre-existed records in =
the table? or something in PostgreSQL that I am not aware of cause the prob=
lem.=20

Thanks for the help!

Dennis


=20


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