autovacuum_max_workers docs

The current docs for autovacuum_max_workers suggest it should be modifiable
with a reload, unless I'm reading in awfully silly ways this morning (which
isn't entirely out of the question). Anyway, in the 8.3.7 and 8.5devel
instances I've tried, autovacuum_max_workers can only be set at server start.
I propose this:

diff --git a/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml b/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
index 7c82835..26a8ddf 100644
--- a/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
+++ b/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
@@ -3589,8 +3589,7 @@ COPY postgres_log FROM '/full/path/to/logfile.csv' WITH csv;
<para>
Specifies the maximum number of autovacuum processes (other than the
autovacuum launcher) which may be running at any one time. The default
- is three. This parameter can only be set in
- the <filename>postgresql.conf</> file or on the server command line.
+ is three. This parameter can only be set at server start.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>

--
Joshua Tolley / eggyknap
End Point Corporation
http://www.endpoint.com

On fre, 2009-09-11 at 07:39 -0600, Joshua Tolley wrote:
> The current docs for autovacuum_max_workers suggest it should be modifiable
> with a reload, unless I'm reading in awfully silly ways this morning (which
> isn't entirely out of the question). Anyway, in the 8.3.7 and 8.5devel
> instances I've tried, autovacuum_max_workers can only be set at server start.
> I propose this:
>
> diff --git a/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml b/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
> index 7c82835..26a8ddf 100644
> --- a/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
> +++ b/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
> @@ -3589,8 +3589,7 @@ COPY postgres_log FROM '/full/path/to/logfile.csv' WITH csv;
> <para>
> Specifies the maximum number of autovacuum processes (other than the
> autovacuum launcher) which may be running at any one time. The default
> - is three. This parameter can only be set in
> - the <filename>postgresql.conf</> file or on the server command line.
> + is three. This parameter can only be set at server start.
> </para>
> </listitem>
> </varlistentry>

While your discovery is accurate and the change makes it consistent with
other similar parameters, note that the previous wording is also
completely correct. This while way of phrasing things is suboptimal.

I've committed it anyway for now.

On Sun, Sep 13, 2009 at 10:54:21PM +0300, Peter Eisentraut wrote:
> On fre, 2009-09-11 at 07:39 -0600, Joshua Tolley wrote:
> While your discovery is accurate and the change makes it consistent with
> other similar parameters, note that the previous wording is also
> completely correct. This while way of phrasing things is suboptimal.
>
> I've committed it anyway for now.

Although I understand we also need a way to demonstrate which options can be
set interactively, and which can't, I'd love to see "changing this option
requires a restart" or "... a reload", if only because I'm always interpreting
the docs wrong in that respect. That said, if I ever come up with woeding I'm
especially proud of, I'll submit a less-trivial patch.

--
Joshua Tolley / eggyknap
End Point Corporation
http://www.endpoint.com