Re: Substring function incorrect when searching for '@.' - Mailing list pgsql-bugs

From Tom Lane
Subject Re: Substring function incorrect when searching for '@.'
Date
Msg-id 8170.1097622016@sss.pgh.pa.us
Whole thread Raw
In response to Substring function incorrect when searching for '@.'  ("Mike G." <mike@thegodshalls.com>)
List pgsql-bugs
"Mike G." <mike@thegodshalls.com> writes:
> create a table with  a data type of varchar (50) and name it email

> insert into this table the following values:
> test1@anyemail.com

> Execute the following statement:
> SELECT CASE WHEN count(substring(email FROM '@.')) > 0 THEN count(substring(email FROM '@.')) ELSE 0 END, email FROM
your_schema.your_tableGROUP BY email; 

> Result with be equal to 1 / True.  It should be 0 / False.

This is not a bug; it's a POSIX regular expression match, and it's
behaving exactly as it should ('.' matches any character).

The particular syntax substring(char-expression FROM char-expression)
is not defined by SQL99 --- their regular-expression construct requires
a third parameter (ESCAPE something).  We have chosen to interpret it
as a POSIX regular-expression match.  See
http://www.postgresql.org/docs/7.3/static/functions-matching.html

            regards, tom lane

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