PostgresSQL drop table -> drop serial - Mailing list pgsql-general

From Jason Hihn
Subject PostgresSQL drop table -> drop serial
Date
Msg-id Pine.SGI.4.21L.01.0008141454350.2650817-100000@irix1.gl.umbc.edu
Whole thread Raw
Responses Re: PostgresSQL drop table -> drop serial  ("Ross J. Reedstrom" <reedstrm@rice.edu>)
List pgsql-general
/* please forgive me if you've seen this before. I've tried sending this
several times, but I have not seen it show up on the list yet. I was
having some subscribing trouble */

Hello. I was reading through the postgre docs, and saw that it was
listed to 'fix' the non-autodrop of serials. If that is correct, then I'd
like to pursuade you to not do that, or at least be able to disable it.

See, I have a database schema such that 2 (or more) tables use the same
serial. I won't get into what I was smoking when I did that, but it
extremely useful. I am concerned that if auto-dropping was enabled, then
if I ever had to drop a table for whatever reason, that I would lose my
serial in another table. And even if both tables were dropped, I'd still
like to have that serial there incase those tables are brought back.

I know it is the complaint of many MySQL users that serials should be
dropped automatically, but hey, these people are using mysql in the first
place which calls the value of their opinions into question =) Any real DB
person would not mind such a 'quirk' of a DBMS - and I am exploiting that
feature (I don't know which is worse =) . So, if it is to be implemented
please leave it as an easily configurable option.

And please forgive me if this opion has already been rasied. (New to the
list)

Thank you for your time and wonderful DBMS.

PS. The serial is being used between one table and another table which is
a weak entity set of the 'master.' When there is a tuple having a weak
entity id == master id, then that record is considered a special tuple,
and is handled accordingly. I still won't say what I was smoking when I
came up with that though =). (I realize this limits the number of weak
entities+ masters to 2^31, which is fine for me.)






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