BUG #4908: escaping and dollar quotes: "ERROR: unterminated string"
The following bug has been logged online:
Bug reference: 4908
Logged by: Jack Douglas
Email address: jackpdouglas@gmail.com
PostgreSQL version: 8.3.7
Operating system: Debian Lenny
Description: escaping and dollar quotes: "ERROR: unterminated
string"
Details:
Am I missing something obvious here - I understand from the documentation no
escapes are counted in dollar quoted strings?
postgres=> create or replace function temp() returns text language plpgsql
AS $$
postgres$> begin
postgres$> return '\';
postgres$> end; $$;
ERROR: unterminated string
CONTEXT: compile of PL/pgSQL function "temp" near line 2
I use the following as a workaround:
postgres=> create or replace function temp() returns text language plpgsql
AS $$
postgres$> begin
postgres$> return rtrim('\ ');
postgres$> end; $$;
CREATE FUNCTION
obviously this is a contrived test case to demonstrate the problem, not my
real function :-)
"Jack Douglas" <jackpdouglas@gmail.com> writes:
Am I missing something obvious here - I understand from the documentation no
escapes are counted in dollar quoted strings?
Yes, and yes.
postgres=> create or replace function temp() returns text language plpgsql
AS $$
postgres$> begin
postgres$> return '\';
postgres$> end; $$;
ERROR: unterminated string
CONTEXT: compile of PL/pgSQL function "temp" near line 2
The function body contains
return '\';
and that string literal causes a syntax error when we come to parse the
RETURN statement. You could do
return '\\';
or
return $q$\$q$;
or
return $$\$$;
but the last requires using other $-delimiters around the function body.
Or you could turn on standard_conforming_strings if you'd prefer not to
deal with escapes.
regards, tom lane
Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote:
Or you could turn on standard_conforming_strings if you'd prefer not
to deal with escapes.
That doesn't help with this, because of the separate pgpgsql parser:
ccdev=> select version();
version
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PostgreSQL 8.3.7 on x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu, compiled by GCC gcc
(GCC) 4.1.2 20070115 (SUSE Linux)
(1 row)
ccdev=> show standard_conforming_strings ;
standard_conforming_strings
-----------------------------
on
(1 row)
ccdev=> create or replace function temp() returns text language
plpgsql
AS $$
begin
return '\';
end; $$;
ERROR: unterminated string
CONTEXT: compile of PL/pgSQL function "temp" near line 2
-Kevin
"Kevin Grittner" <Kevin.Grittner@wicourts.gov> writes:
Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote:
Or you could turn on standard_conforming_strings if you'd prefer not
to deal with escapes.
That doesn't help with this, because of the separate pgpgsql parser:
Ah, sorry, it does work in 8.4 but not before.
regards, tom lane