psql --single-transaction does not work as expected

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Hello

I want to report that psql --single-transaction does not work as one
can expect after reading the help information for psql.

psql --help says:

- -1 ("one"), --single-transaction: execute command file as a single
transaction

If you run "psql -1 < sql_file.sql" insteed of "psql -1 -f
sql_file.sql" the single-transaction parameter will not work.

Test case:
==========

CREATE DATABASE test;
\c test
CREATE TABLE check_psql(id int, code text);
\q

# cat check_psql.sql

INSERT INTO check_psql (id,code) VALUES (1,'code1');
INSERT INTO check_psql (id,code) VALUES (2,code2);

# psql -1 test -f check_psql.sql

INSERT 0 1
psql:check_psql.sql:2: ERROR: column "code2" does not exist
LINE 1: INSERT INTO check_psql (id,code) VALUES (2,code2);
^
# psql -1 test -c "SELECT * FROM check_psql"
id | code
- ----+------
(0 rows)

# psql -1 test < /tmp/check_psql.sql

INSERT 0 1
ERROR: column "code2" does not exist
LINE 1: INSERT INTO check_psql (id,code) VALUES (2,code2);
^
#psql -1 test -c "SELECT * FROM check_psql"
id | code
- ----+-------
1 | code1
(1 row)

The docs for psql at
http://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/static/app-psql.html
have the right information, ".... -1 --single-transaction
When psql executes a script with the -f option ...."

I think we should either update the psql --help information for
- --single-transaction and say that this parameter only works together
with -f or update the psql code so psql -1 < file.sql also works.

regards,
- --
Rafael Martinez Guerrero
Center for Information Technology
University of Oslo, Norway

PGP Public Key: http://folk.uio.no/rafael/
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On Tue, Aug 13, 2013 at 04:04:50PM +0200, Rafael Martinez wrote:
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> Hash: SHA1
>
> Hello
>
> I want to report that psql --single-transaction does not work as one
> can expect after reading the help information for psql.
>
> psql --help says:
>
> - -1 ("one"), --single-transaction: execute command file as a single
> transaction
>
> If you run "psql -1 < sql_file.sql" insteed of "psql -1 -f
> sql_file.sql" the single-transaction parameter will not work.

This will be fixed in PG 9.3; from the release notes:

Allow the psql --single-transaction mode to work when
reading from standard input (Fabien Coelho, Robert Haas)

Previously this option only worked when reading from a file.

--
Bruce Momjian <bruce(at)momjian(dot)us> http://momjian.us
EnterpriseDB http://enterprisedb.com

+ It's impossible for everything to be true. +