Pg(3) User Contributed Perl Documentation Pg(3)NAMEDBD::Pg - PostgreSQL database driver for the DBI module
VERSION
This documents version 1.49 of the DBD::Pg module
SYNOPSIS
use DBI;
$dbh = DBI->connect("dbi:Pg:dbname=$dbname", "", "", {AutoCommit => 0});
# For some advanced uses you may need PostgreSQL type values:
use DBD::Pg qw(:pg_types);
# See the DBI module documentation for full details
DESCRIPTIONDBD::Pg is a Perl module that works with the DBI module to provide
access to PostgreSQL databases.
MODULE DOCUMENTATION
This documentation describes driver specific behavior and restrictions.
It is not supposed to be used as the only reference for the user. In
any case consult the DBI documentation first!
THE DBI CLASS
DBI Class Methods
connect
To connect to a database with a minimum of parameters, use the fol-
lowing syntax:
$dbh = DBI->connect("dbi:Pg:dbname=$dbname", "", "");
This connects to the database $dbname on the default port (usually
5432) without any user authentication.
The following connect statement shows almost all possible parame-
ters:
$dbh = DBI->connect("dbi:Pg:dbname=$dbname;host=$host;port=$port;" .
"options=$options", "$username", "$password",
{AutoCommit => 0});
If a parameter is not given, the PostgreSQL server will first look
for specific environment variables, and then use hard-coded
defaults:
parameter environment variable hard coded default
--------------------------------------------------
host PGHOST local domain socket
hostaddr* PGHOSTADDR local domain socket
port PGPORT 5432
dbname** PGDATABASE current userid
username PGUSER current userid
password PGPASSWORD (none)
options PGOPTIONS (none)
service* PGSERVICE (none)
sslmode* PGSSLMODE (none)
* Only for servers running version 7.4 or greater
** Can also use "db" or "database"
The options parameter specifies runtime options for the Postgres
backend. Common usage is to increase the number of buffers with the
"-B" option. Also important is the "-F" option, which disables
automatic fsync() call after each transaction. For further details
please refer to the PostgreSQL documentation at <http://www.post-
gresql.org/docs/>.
For authentication with username and password, appropriate entries
have to be made in pg_hba.conf. Please refer to the comments in the
pg_hba.conf and the pg_passwd files for the different types of
authentication. Note that for these two parameters DBI distin-
guishes between empty and undefined. If these parameters are unde-
fined DBI substitutes the values of the environment variables
"DBI_USER" and "DBI_PASS" if present.
You can also conenct by using a service connection file, which is
named "pg_service.conf." The location of this file can be con-
trolled by setting the "PGSYSCONFDIR" environment variable. To use
one of the named services within the file, set the name by using
either the "service" parameter or the environment variable "PGSER-
VICE". Note that when connecting this way, only the minimum parame-
ters should be used. For example, to connect to a service named
"zephyr", you could use:
$dbh = DBI->connect("dbi:Pg:service=zephyr", "", "");
You could also set $ENV{PGSERVICE} to "zephyr" and connect like
this:
$dbh = DBI->connect("dbi:Pg:", "", "");
The format of the pg_service.conf file is simply a bracketed ser-
vice name, followed by one parameter per line in the format
name=value. For example:
[zephyr]
dbname=winds
user=wisp
password=W$2Hc00YSgP
port=6543
There are four valid arguments to the "sslmode" parameter, which
controls whether to use SSL to connect to the database:
disable - SSL connections are never used =item allow - try non-SSL,
then SSL =item prefer - try SSL, then non-SSL =item require - con-
nect only with SSL
connect_cached
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
installed_drivers
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
installed_versions
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
available_drivers
@driver_names = DBI->available_drivers;
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
data_sources
@data_sources = DBI->data_sources('Pg');
This driver supports this method. Note that the necessary database
connection to the database "template1" will be made on the local-
host without any user authentication. Other preferences can only be
set with the environment variables "PGHOST", "PGPORT", "DBI_USER",
"DBI_PASS", and "PGSERVICE".
METHODS COMMON TO ALL HANDLES
err
$rv = $h->err;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. For the connect method
it returns "PQstatus". In all other cases it returns "PQresultSta-
tus" of the current handle.
errstr
$str = $h->errstr;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. It returns the "PQer-
rorMessage" related to the current handle.
state
$str = $h->state;
Supported by this driver. Returns a five-character "SQLSTATE" code.
Success is indicated by a "00000" code, which gets mapped to an
empty string by DBI. A code of S8006 indicates a connection fail-
ure, usually because the connection to the PostgreSQL server has
been lost.
Note that state can be called as either $sth->state or $dbh->state.
PostgreSQL servers version less than 7.4 will return a small subset
of the available codes, and should not be relied upon.
The list of codes used by PostgreSQL can be found at:
<http://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/static/errcodes-appen-
dix.html>
trace
$h->trace($trace_level);
$h->trace($trace_level, $trace_filename);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
trace_msg
$h->trace_msg($message_text);
$h->trace_msg($message_text, $min_level);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
func
This driver supports a variety of driver specific functions acces-
sible via the "func" method. Note that the name of the function
comes last, after the arguments.
table_attributes
$attrs = $dbh->func($table, 'table_attributes');
The "table_attributes" function is no longer recommended.
Instead, you can use the more portable "column_info" and "pri-
mary_key" methods to access the same information.
The "table_attributes" method returns, for the given table
argument, a reference to an array of hashes, each of which con-
tains the following keys:
NAME attribute name
TYPE attribute type
SIZE attribute size (-1 for variable size)
NULLABLE flag nullable
DEFAULT default value
CONSTRAINT constraint
PRIMARY_KEY flag is_primary_key
REMARKS attribute description
The REMARKS field will be returned as "NULL" for Postgres ver-
sions 7.1.x and older.
lo_creat
$lobjId = $dbh->func($mode, 'lo_creat');
Creates a new large object and returns the object-id. $mode is
a bitmask describing different attributes of the new object.
Use the following constants:
$dbh->{pg_INV_WRITE}
$dbh->{pg_INV_READ}
Upon failure it returns "undef".
lo_open
$lobj_fd = $dbh->func($lobjId, $mode, 'lo_open');
Opens an existing large object and returns an object-descriptor
for use in subsequent "lo_*" calls. For the mode bits see
"lo_creat". Returns "undef" upon failure. Note that 0 is a per-
fectly correct object descriptor!
lo_write
$nbytes = $dbh->func($lobj_fd, $buf, $len, 'lo_write');
Writes $len bytes of $buf into the large object $lobj_fd.
Returns the number of bytes written and "undef" upon failure.
lo_read
$nbytes = $dbh->func($lobj_fd, $buf, $len, 'lo_read');
Reads $len bytes into $buf from large object $lobj_fd. Returns
the number of bytes read and "undef" upon failure.
lo_lseek
$loc = $dbh->func($lobj_fd, $offset, $whence, 'lo_lseek');
Changes the current read or write location on the large object
$obj_id. Currently $whence can only be 0 ("L_SET"). Returns the
current location and "undef" upon failure.
lo_tell
$loc = $dbh->func($lobj_fd, 'lo_tell');
Returns the current read or write location on the large object
$lobj_fd and "undef" upon failure.
lo_close
$lobj_fd = $dbh->func($lobj_fd, 'lo_close');
Closes an existing large object. Returns true upon success and
false upon failure.
lo_unlink
$ret = $dbh->func($lobjId, 'lo_unlink');
Deletes an existing large object. Returns true upon success and
false upon failure.
lo_import
$lobjId = $dbh->func($filename, 'lo_import');
Imports a Unix file as large object and returns the object id
of the new object or "undef" upon failure.
lo_export
$ret = $dbh->func($lobjId, $filename, 'lo_export');
Exports a large object into a Unix file. Returns false upon
failure, true otherwise.
pg_notifies
$ret = $dbh->func('pg_notifies');
Returns either "undef" or a reference to two-element array [
$table, $backend_pid ] of asynchronous notifications received.
getfd
$fd = $dbh->func('getfd');
Returns fd of the actual connection to server. Can be used with
select() and func('pg_notifies'). Deprecated in favor of
"$dbh->{pg_socket}".
ATTRIBUTES COMMON TO ALL HANDLES
Warn (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
Active (boolean, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. A database handle is
active while it is connected and statement handle is active until
it is finished.
Executed (boolean, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact. Requires DBI 1.41 or
greater.
Kids (integer, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
ActiveKids (integer, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
CachedKids (hash ref)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
Type (scalar)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
ChildHandles (array ref)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
CompatMode (boolean, inherited)
Not used by this driver.
InactiveDestroy (boolean)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact. If set to true, then
the disconnect() method will not be automatically called when the
database handle goes out of scope (e.g. when exiting after a fork).
PrintWarn (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
PrintError (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
RaiseError (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
HandleError (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
HandleSetErr (code ref, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
ErrCount (unsigned integer)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
ShowErrorStatement (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
TraceLevel (integer, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
FetchHashKeyName (string, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
ChopBlanks (boolean, inherited)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. This method is similar
to the SQL function "RTRIM".
LongReadLen (integer, inherited)
Not used by this driver.
LongTruncOk (boolean, inherited)
Not used by this driver.
Taint (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
TaintIn (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
TaintOut (boolean, inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
Profile (inherited)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
DBI DATABASE HANDLE OBJECTS
Database Handle Methods
selectrow_array
@row_ary = $dbh->selectrow_array($statement, \%attr, @bind_values);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
selectrow_arrayref
$ary_ref = $dbh->selectrow_arrayref($statement, \%attr, @bind_values);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
selectrow_hashref
$hash_ref = $dbh->selectrow_hashref($statement, \%attr, @bind_values);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
selectall_arrayref
$ary_ref = $dbh->selectall_arrayref($statement, \%attr, @bind_values);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
selectall_hashref
$hash_ref = $dbh->selectall_hashref($statement, $key_field);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
selectcol_arrayref
$ary_ref = $dbh->selectcol_arrayref($statement, \%attr, @bind_values);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
prepare
$sth = $dbh->prepare($statement, \%attr);
WARNING: DBD::Pg now uses true prepared statements by sending them
to the backend to be prepared by the PostgreSQL server. Statements
that were legal before may no longer work. See below for details.
Prepares a statement for later execution. PostgreSQL supports pre-
pared statements, which enables DBD::Pg to only send the query
once, and simply send the arguments for every subsequent call to
execute(). DBD::Pg can use these server-side prepared statements,
or it can just send the entire query to the server each time. The
best way is automatically chosen for each query. This will be suf-
ficient for most users: keep reading for a more detailed explana-
tion and some optional flags.
Statements that do not begin with the word "SELECT", "INSERT",
"UPDATE", or "DELETE" will not be sent to be server-side prepared.
Deciding whether or not to use prepared statements depends on many
factors, but you can force them to be used or not used by passing
the "pg_server_prepare" attribute to prepare(). A "0" means to
never use prepared statements. This is the default when connected
to servers earlier than version 7.4, which is when prepared state-
ments were introduced. Setting "pg_server_prepare" to "1" means
that prepared statements should be used whenever possible. This is
the default for servers version 8.0 or higher. Servers that are
version 7.4 get a special default value of "2", because server-side
statements were only partially supported in that version. In this
case, it only uses server-side prepares if all parameters are
specifically bound.
The pg_server_prepare attribute can also be set at connection time
like so:
$dbh = DBI->connect($DBNAME, $DBUSER, $DBPASS,
{ AutoCommit => 0,
RaiseError => 1,
pg_server_prepare => 0 });
or you may set it after your database handle is created:
$dbh->{pg_server_prepare} = 1;
To enable it for just one particular statement:
$sth = $dbh->prepare("SELECT id FROM mytable WHERE val = ?",
{ pg_server_prepare => 1 });
You can even toggle between the two as you go:
$sth->{pg_server_prepare} = 1;
$sth->execute(22);
$sth->{pg_server_prepare} = 0;
$sth->execute(44);
$sth->{pg_server_prepare} = 1;
$sth->execute(66);
In the above example, the first execute will use the previously
prepared statement. The second execute will not, but will build
the query into a single string and send it to the server. The third
one will act like the first and only send the arguments. Even if
you toggle back and forth, a statement is only prepared once.
Using prepared statements is in theory quite a bit faster: not only
does the PostgreSQL backend only have to prepare the query only
once, but DBD::Pg no longer has to worry about quoting each value
before sending it to the server.
However, there are some drawbacks. The server cannot always choose
the ideal parse plan because it will not know the arguments before
hand. But for most situations in which you will be executing simi-
lar data many times, the default plan will probably work out well.
Further discussion on this subject is beyond the scope of this doc-
umentation: please consult the pgsql-performance mailing list,
<http://archives.postgresql.org/pgsql-performance/>
Only certain commands will be sent to a server-side prepare: cur-
rently these include "SELECT", "INSERT", "UPDATE", and "DELETE".
DBD::Pg uses a simple naming scheme for the prepared statements:
"dbdpg_#", where "#" starts at 1 and increases. This number is
tracked at the database handle level, so multiple statement handles
will not collide. If you use your own prepare statements, do not
name them "dbdpg_"!
You cannot send more than one command at a time in the same prepare
command, by separating them with semi-colons, when using server-
side prepares.
The actual "PREPARE" is not performed until the first execute is
called, due to the fact that information on the data types (pro-
vided by "bind_param") may be given after the prepare but before
the execute.
A server-side prepare can also happen before the first execute. If
the server can handle the server-side prepare and the statement has
no placeholders, it will be prepared right away. It will also be
prepared if the "pg_prepare_now" attribute is passed. Similarly,
the <pg_prepare_now> attribute can be set to 0 to ensure that the
statement is not prepared immediately, although cases in which you
would want this may be rare. Finally, you can set the default
behavior of all prepare statements by setting the "pg_prepare_now"
attribute on the database handle:
$dbh->{pg_prepare_now} = 1;
The following two examples will be prepared right away:
$sth->prepare("SELECT 123"); ## no placeholders
$sth->prepare("SELECT 123, ?", {pg_prepare_now => 1});
The following two examples will NOT be prepared right away:
$sth->prepare("SELECT 123, ?"); ## has a placeholder
$sth->prepare("SELECT 123", {pg_prepare_now => 0});
There are times when you may want to prepare a statement yourself.
To do this, simply send the "PREPARE" statement directly to the
server (e.g. with "do"). Create a statement handle and set the pre-
pared name via "pg_prepare_name" attribute. The statement handle
can be created with a dummy statement, as it will not be executed.
However, it should have the same number of placeholders as your
prepared statement. Example:
$dbh->do("PREPARE mystat AS SELECT COUNT(*) FROM pg_class WHERE reltuples < ?");
$sth = $dbh->prepare("SELECT ?");
$sth->bind_param(1, 1, SQL_INTEGER);
$sth->{pg_prepare_name} = "mystat";
$sth->execute(123);
The above will run this query:
SELECT COUNT(*) FROM pg_class WHERE reltuples < 123;
Note: DBD::Pg will not escape your custom prepared statement name,
so don't use a name that needs escaping! DBD::Pg uses the prepare
names "dbdpg_#" internally, so please do not use those either.
You can force DBD::Pg to send your query directly to the server by
adding the "pg_direct" attribute to your prepare call. This is not
recommended, but is added just in case you need it.
Placeholders
There are three types of placeholders that can be used in DBD::Pg.
The first is the question mark method, in which each placeholder is
represented by a single question mark. This is the method recom-
mended by the DBI specs and is the most portable. Each question
mark is replaced by a "dollar sign number" in the order in which
they appear in the query (important when using "bind_param").
The second method is to use "dollar sign numbers" directly. This is
the method that PostgreSQL uses internally and is overall probably
the best method to use if you do not need compatibility with other
database systems. DBD::Pg, like PostgreSQL, allows the same number
to be used more than once in the query. Numbers must start with
"1" and increment by one value. If the same number appears more
than once in a query, it is treated as a single parameter and all
instances are replaced at once. Examples:
Not legal:
$SQL = "SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relpages > $2";
$SQL = "SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relpages BETWEEN $1 AND $3";
Legal:
$SQL = "SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relpages > $1";
$SQL = "SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relpages BETWEEN $1 AND $2";
$SQL = "SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relpages BETWEEN $1 AND $2 AND reltuples > $1";
$SQL = "SELECT count(*) FROM pg_class WHERE relpages > $1 AND reltuples > $1";
In the final statement above, DBI thinks there is only one place-
holder, so this statement will replace both placeholders:
$sth->bind_param(1, 2045);
While execute requires only a single argument as well:
$sth->execute(2045);
The final placeholder method is the named parameters in the format
":foo". While this syntax is supported by DBD::Pg, its use is
highly discouraged.
The different types of placeholders cannot be mixed within a state-
ment, but you may use different ones for each statement handle you
have. Again, this is not encouraged.
prepare_cached
$sth = $dbh->prepare_cached($statement, \%attr);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact. This method is most
useful when using a server that supports server-side prepares, and
you have asked the prepare to happen immediately via the "pg_pre-
pare_now" attribute.
do
$rv = $dbh->do($statement, \%attr, @bind_values);
Prepare and execute a single statement. Note that an empty state-
ment (string with no length) will not be passed to the server; if
you want a simple test, use "SELECT 123" or the ping() function. If
neither attr nor bind_values is given, the query will be sent
directly to the server without the overhead of creating a statement
handle and running prepare and execute.
last_insert_id
$rv = $dbh->last_insert_id($catalog, $schema, $table, $field);
$rv = $dbh->last_insert_id($catalog, $schema, $table, $field, \%attr);
Attempts to return the id of the last value to be inserted into a
table. You can either provide a sequence name (preferred) or pro-
vide a table name with optional schema. The $catalog and $field
arguments are always ignored. The current value of the sequence is
returned by a call to the "CURRVAL()" PostgreSQL function. This
will fail if the sequence has not yet been used in the current
database connection.
If you do not know the name of the sequence, you can provide a ta-
ble name and DBD::Pg will attempt to return the correct value. To
do this, there must be at least one column in the table with a "NOT
NULL" constraint, that has a unique constraint, and which uses a
sequence as a default value. If more than one column meets these
conditions, the primary key will be used. This involves some look-
ing up of things in the system table, so DBD::Pg will cache the
sequence name for susequent calls. If you need to disable this
caching for some reason, you can control it via the "pg_cache"
attribute.
Please keep in mind that this method is far from foolproof, so make
your script use it properly. Specifically, make sure that it is
called immediately after the insert, and that the insert does not
add a value to the column that is using the sequence as a default
value.
Some examples:
$dbh->do("CREATE SEQUENCE lii_seq START 1");
$dbh->do("CREATE TABLE lii (
foobar INTEGER NOT NULL UNIQUE DEFAULT nextval('lii_seq'),
baz VARCHAR)");
$SQL = "INSERT INTO lii(baz) VALUES (?)";
$sth = $dbh->prepare($SQL);
for (qw(uno dos tres cuatro)) {
$sth->execute($_);
my $newid = $dbh->last_insert_id(C<undef>,undef,undef,undef,{sequence=>'lii_seq'});
print "Last insert id was $newid\n";
}
If you did not want to worry about the sequence name:
$dbh->do("CREATE TABLE lii2 (
foobar SERIAL UNIQUE,
baz VARCHAR)");
$SQL = "INSERT INTO lii2(baz) VALUES (?)";
$sth = $dbh->prepare($SQL);
for (qw(uno dos tres cuatro)) {
$sth->execute($_);
my $newid = $dbh->last_insert_id(undef,undef,"lii2",undef);
print "Last insert id was $newid\n";
}
commit
$rc = $dbh->commit;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. See also the notes
about Transactions elsewhere in this document.
rollback
$rc = $dbh->rollback;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. See also the notes
about Transactions elsewhere in this document.
begin_work
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. Note that this will
not issue a "begin" until immediately before the next given com-
mand.
disconnect
$rc = $dbh->disconnect;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
ping
$rc = $dbh->ping;
This driver supports the "ping" method, which can be used to check
the validity of a database handle. The value returned is either 0,
indicating that the connection is no longer valid, or a positive
integer, indicating the following:
Value Meaning
--------------------------------------------------
1 Database is idle (not in a transaction)
2 Database is active, there is a command in progress (usually seen after a COPY command)
3 Database is idle within a transaction
4 Database is idle, within a failed transaction
Additional information on why a handle is not valid can be obtained
by using the "pg_ping" method.
pg_ping
$rc = $dbh->pg_ping;
This is a DBD::Pg-specific extension to the "ping" command. This
will check the validity of a database handle in exactly the same
way as "ping", but instead of returning a 0 for an invalid connec-
tion, it will return a negative number. So in addition to returning
the positive numbers documented for "ping", it may also return the
following:
Value Meaning
--------------------------------------------------
-1 There is no connection to the database at all (e.g. after C<disconnect>)
-2 An unknown transaction status was returned (e.g. after forking)
-3 The handle exists, but no data was returned from a test query.
In practice, you should only ever see -1 and -2.
get_info
$value = $dbh->get_info($info_type);
Supports a very large set (> 250) of the information types, includ-
ing the minimum recommended by DBI.
table_info
$sth = $dbh->table_info( $catalog, $schema, $table, $type );
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. This method returns
all tables and views visible to the current user. The $catalog
argument is currently unused. The schema and table arguments will
do a "LIKE" search if a percent sign ("%") or an underscore ("_")
is detected in the argument. The $type argument accepts a value of
either "TABLE" or "VIEW" (using both is the default action).
The TABLE_CAT field will always return NULL ("undef"). The TA-
BLE_SCHEM field returns NULL ("undef") if the server is older than
version 7.4.
If your database supports tablespaces (version 8.0 or greater), two
additional columns are returned, "pg_tablespace_name" and
"pg_tablespace_location", that contain the name and location of the
tablespace associated with this table. Tables that have not been
assigned to a particular tablespace will return NULL ("undef") for
both of these columns.
column_info
$sth = $dbh->column_info( $catalog, $schema, $table, $column );
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI with the follow excep-
tions. These fields are currently always returned with NULL
("undef") values:
TABLE_CAT
BUFFER_LENGTH
DECIMAL_DIGITS
NUM_PREC_RADIX
SQL_DATA_TYPE
SQL_DATETIME_SUB
CHAR_OCTET_LENGTH
Also, two additional non-standard fields are returned:
pg_type - data type with additional info i.e. "character varying(20)"
pg_constraint - holds column constraint definition
The REMARKS field will be returned as NULL ("undef" for PostgreSQL
versions older than 7.2. The TABLE_SCHEM field will be returned as
NULL ("undef") for versions older than 7.4.
primary_key_info
$sth = $dbh->primary_key_info( $catalog, $schema, $table, \%attr );
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. The $catalog argument
is currently unused, and the $schema argument has no effect against
servers running version 7.2 or older. There are no search patterns
allowed, but leaving the $schema argument blank will cause the
first table found in the schema search path to be used. An addi-
tional field, "DATA_TYPE", is returned and shows the data type for
each of the arguments in the "COLUMN_NAME" field.
This method will also return tablespace information for servers
that support tablespaces. See the "table_info" entry for more
information.
In addition to the standard format of returning one row for each
column found for the primary key, you can pass the "pg_onerow"
attribute to force a single row to be used. If the primary key has
multiple columns, the "KEY_SEQ", "COLUMN_NAME", and "DATA_TYPE"
fields will return a comma-delimited string. If the "pg_onerow"
attribute is set to "2", the fields will be returned as an
arrayref, which can be useful when multiple columns are involved:
$sth = $dbh->primary_key_info('', '', 'dbd_pg_test', {pg_onerow => 2});
if (defined $sth) {
my $pk = $sth->fetchall_arrayref()->[0];
print "Table $pk->[2] has a primary key on these columns:\n";
for (my $x=0; defined $pk->[3][$x]; $x++) {
print "Column: $pk->[3][$x] (data type: $pk->[6][$x])\n";
}
}
primary_key
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
foreign_key_info
$sth = $dbh->foreign_key_info( $pk_catalog, $pk_schema, $pk_table,
$fk_catalog, $fk_schema, $fk_table );
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI, using the SQL/CLI
variant. This function returns "undef" for PostgreSQL servers ear-
lier than version 7.3. There are no search patterns allowed, but
leaving the $schema argument blank will cause the first table found
in the schema search path to be used. Two additional fields,
"UK_DATA_TYPE" and "FK_DATA_TYPE", are returned to show the data
type for the unique and foreign key columns. Foreign keys that have
no named constraint (where the referenced column only has an unique
index) will return "undef" for the "UK_NAME" field.
tables
@names = $dbh->tables( $catalog, $schema, $table, $type, \%attr );
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. This method returns
all tables and/or views which are visible to the current user: see
"table_info()" for more information about the arguments. If the
database is version 7.3 or later, the name of the schema appears
before the table or view name. This can be turned off by adding in
the "pg_noprefix" attribute:
my @tables = $dbh->tables( '', '', 'dbd_pg_test', '', {pg_noprefix => 1} );
type_info_all
$type_info_all = $dbh->type_info_all;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. Information is only
provided for SQL datatypes and for frequently used datatypes. The
mapping between the PostgreSQL typename and the SQL92 datatype (if
possible) has been done according to the following table:
+---------------+------------------------------------+
| typname | SQL92 |
|---------------+------------------------------------|
| bool | BOOL |
| text | / |
| bpchar | CHAR(n) |
| varchar | VARCHAR(n) |
| int2 | SMALLINT |
| int4 | INT |
| int8 | / |
| money | / |
| float4 | FLOAT(p) p<7=float4, p<16=float8 |
| float8 | REAL |
| abstime | / |
| reltime | / |
| tinterval | / |
| date | / |
| time | / |
| datetime | / |
| timespan | TINTERVAL |
| timestamp | TIMESTAMP |
+---------------+------------------------------------+
For further details concerning the PostgreSQL specific datatypes
please read pgbuiltin.
type_info
@type_info = $dbh->type_info($data_type);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
quote
$sql = $dbh->quote($value, $data_type);
This module implements its own "quote" method. In addition to the
DBI method it also doubles the backslash, because PostgreSQL treats
a backslash as an escape character.
NOTE: The undocumented (and invalid) support for the "SQL_BINARY"
data type is officially deprecated. Use "PG_BYTEA" with
"bind_param()" instead:
$rv = $sth->bind_param($param_num, $bind_value,
{ pg_type => DBD::Pg::PG_BYTEA });
quote_identifier
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
pg_server_trace
$dbh->pg_server_trace($filehandle);
Writes debugging information from the PostgreSQL backend to a file.
This is not the same as the trace() method and you should not use
this method unless you know what you are doing. If you do enable
this, be aware that the file will grow very large, very quick. To
stop logging to the file, use the "pg_server_untrace" function. The
first argument must be a file handle, not a filename. Example:
my $pid = $dbh->{pg_pid};
my $file = "pgbackend.$pid.debug.log";
open(my $fh, ">$file") or die qq{Could not open "$file": $!\n};
$dbh->pg_server_trace($fh);
## Run code you want to trace here
$dbh->pg_server_untrace;
close($fh);
pg_server_untrace
$dbh->pg_server_untrace
Stop server logging to a previously opened file.
Database Handle Attributes
AutoCommit (boolean)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. According to the clas-
sification of DBI, PostgreSQL is a database in which a transaction
must be explicitly started. Without starting a transaction, every
change to the database becomes immediately permanent. The default
of AutoCommit is on, but this may change in the future, so it is
highly recommended that you explicitly set it when calling "con-
nect()". For details see the notes about Transactions elsewhere in
this document.
pg_bool_tf (boolean)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. If true, boolean values will be
returned as the characters 't' and 'f' instead of '1' and '0'.
Driver (handle)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
Name (string, read-only)
The default DBI method is overridden by a driver specific method
that returns only the database name. Anything else from the connec-
tion string is stripped off. Note that, in contrast to the DBI
specs, the DBD::Pg implementation fo this method is read-only.
RowCacheSize (integer)
Implemented by DBI, not used by this driver.
Username (string, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
pg_auto_escape (boolean)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. If true, then quotes and backslashes
in all parameters will be escaped in the following way:
escape quote with a quote (SQL)
escape backslash with a backslash
The default is on. Note that PostgreSQL also accepts quotes that
are escaped by a backslash. Any other ASCII character can be used
directly in a string constant.
pg_enable_utf8 (boolean)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. If true, then the "utf8" flag will
be turned for returned character data (if the data is valid UTF-8).
For details about the "utf8" flag, see Encode. This attribute is
only relevant under perl 5.8 and later.
NB: This attribute is experimental and may be subject to change.
pg_INV_READ (integer, read-only)
Constant to be used for the mode in "lo_creat" and "lo_open".
pg_INV_WRITE (integer, read-only)
Constant to be used for the mode in "lo_creat" and "lo_open".
pg_errorlevel (integer)
PostgreSQL specific attribute, only works for servers version 7.4
and above. Sets the amount of information returned by the server's
error messages. Valid entries are 0, 1, and 2. Any other number
will be forced to the default value of 1.
A value of 0 ("TERSE") will show severity, primary text, and posi-
tion only and will usually fit on a single line. A value of 1
("DEFAULT") will also show any detail, hint, or context fields. A
value of 2 ("VERBOSE") will show all available information.
pg_protocol (integer, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the version of the Post-
greSQL server. If DBD::Pg is unable to figure out the version
(e.g. it was compiled against pre 7.4 libraries), it will return a
"0". Otherwise, servers below version 7.4 return a "2", and (cur-
rently) 7.4 and above return a "3".
pg_lib_version (integer, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Indicates which version of Post-
greSQL that DBD::Pg was compiled against. In other words, which
libraries were used. Returns a number with major, minor, and revi-
sion together; version 7.4.2 would be returned as 70402.
pg_server_version (integer, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Indicates which version of Post-
greSQL that the current database handle is connected to. Returns a
number with major, minor, and revision together; version 8.0.1
would be 80001.
pg_db (string, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the name of the current
database.
pg_user (string, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the name of the user that
connected to the server.
pg_pass (string, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the password used to connect
to the server.
pg_host (string, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the host of the current
server connection. Locally connected hosts will return an empty
string.
pg_port (integer, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the port of the connection
to the server.
pg_default_port (integer, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the default port used if
none is specifically givem.
pg_options (string, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the command-line options
passed to the server. May be an empty string.
pg_socket (number, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the file description number
of the connection socket to the server.
pg_pid (number, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. Returns the process id (PID) of the
backend server process handling the connection.
DBI STATEMENT HANDLE OBJECTS
Statement Handle Methods
bind_param
$rv = $sth->bind_param($param_num, $bind_value, \%attr);
Allows the user to bind a value and/or a data type to a place-
holder. This is especially important when using the new server-side
prepare system with PostgreSQL 7.4. See the "prepare()" method for
more information.
The value of $param_num is a number if using the '?' or '$1' style
placeholders. If using ":foo" style placeholders, the complete name
(e.g. ":foo") must be given. For numeric values, you can either use
a number or use a literal '$1'. See the examples below.
The $bind_value argument is fairly self-explanatory. A value of
"undef" will bind a "NULL" to the placeholder. Using "undef" is
useful when you want to change just the type and will be overwrit-
ing the value later. (Any value is actually usable, but "undef" is
easy and efficient).
The %attr hash is used to indicate the data type of the place-
holder. The default value is "varchar". If you need something
else, you must use one of the values provided by DBI or by DBD::Pg.
To use a SQL value, modify your "use DBI" statement at the top of
your script as follows:
use DBI qw(:sql_types);
This will import some constants into your script. You can plug
those directly into the "bind_param" call. Some common ones that
you will encounter are:
SQL_INTEGER
To use PostgreSQL data types, import the list of values like this:
use DBD::Pg qw(:pg_types);
You can then set the data types by setting the value of the
"pg_type" key in the hash passed to "bind_param".
Data types are "sticky," in that once a data type is set to a cer-
tain placeholder, it will remain for that placeholder, unless it is
explicitly set to something else afterwards. If the statement has
already been prepared, and you switch the data type to something
else, DBD::Pg will re-prepare the statement for you before doing
the next execute.
Examples:
use DBI qw(:sql_types);
use DBD::Pg qw(:pg_types);
$SQL = "SELECT id FROM ptable WHERE size > ? AND title = ?";
$sth = $dbh->prepare($SQL);
## Both arguments below are bound to placeholders as "varchar"
$sth->execute(123, "Merk");
## Reset the datatype for the first placeholder to an integer
$sth->bind_param(1, undef, SQL_INTEGER);
## The "undef" bound above is not used, since we supply params to execute
$sth->execute(123, "Merk");
## Set the first placeholder's value and data type
$sth->bind_param(1, 234, { pg_type => PG_TIMESTAMP });
## Set the second placeholder's value and data type.
## We don't send a third argument, so the default "varchar" is used
$sth->bind_param("$2", "Zool");
## We realize that the wrong data type was set above, so we change it:
$sth->bind_param("$1", 234, { pg_type => PG_INTEGER });
## We also got the wrong value, so we change that as well.
## Because the data type is sticky, we don't need to change it
$sth->bind_param(1, 567);
## This executes the statement with 567 (integer) and "Zool" (varchar)
$sth->execute();
bind_param_inout
Currently not supported by this driver.
bind_param_array
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
execute
$rv = $sth->execute(@bind_values);
Executes a previously prepared statement. In addition to "UPDATE",
"DELETE", "INSERT" statements, for which it returns always the num-
ber of affected rows, the "execute" method can also be used for
"SELECT ... INTO table" statements.
The "prepare/bind/execute" process has changed significantly for
PostgreSQL servers 7.4 and later: please see the "prepare()" and
"bind_param()" entries for much more information.
Setting one of the bind_values to "undef" is the equivalent of set-
ting the value to NULL in the database. Setting the bind_value to
$DBDPG_DEFAULT is equivalent to sending the literal string
'DEFAULT' to the backend. Note that using this option will force
server-side prepares off until such time as PostgreSQL supports
using DEFAULT in prepared statements.
execute_array
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
execute_for_fetch
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
fetchrow_arrayref
$ary_ref = $sth->fetchrow_arrayref;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
fetchrow_array
@ary = $sth->fetchrow_array;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
fetchrow_hashref
$hash_ref = $sth->fetchrow_hashref;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
fetchall_arrayref
$tbl_ary_ref = $sth->fetchall_arrayref;
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
finish
$rc = $sth->finish;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
rows
$rv = $sth->rows;
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. In contrast to many
other drivers the number of rows is available immediately after
executing the statement.
bind_col
$rc = $sth->bind_col($column_number, \$var_to_bind, \%attr);
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
bind_columns
$rc = $sth->bind_columns(\%attr, @list_of_refs_to_vars_to_bind);
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
dump_results
$rows = $sth->dump_results($maxlen, $lsep, $fsep, $fh);
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
blob_read
$blob = $sth->blob_read($id, $offset, $len);
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. Implemented by DBI but
not documented, so this method might change.
This method seems to be heavily influenced by the current implemen-
tation of blobs in Oracle. Nevertheless we try to be as compatible
as possible. Whereas Oracle suffers from the limitation that blobs
are related to tables and every table can have only one blob
(datatype LONG), PostgreSQL handles its blobs independent of any
table by using so-called object identifiers. This explains why the
"blob_read" method is blessed into the STATEMENT package and not
part of the DATABASE package. Here the field parameter has been
used to handle this object identifier. The offset and len parame-
ters may be set to zero, in which case the driver fetches the whole
blob at once.
Starting with PostgreSQL 6.5, every access to a blob has to be put
into a transaction. This holds even for a read-only access.
See also the PostgreSQL-specific functions concerning blobs, which
are available via the "func" interface.
For further information and examples about blobs, please read the
chapter about Large Objects in the PostgreSQL Programmer's Guide at
<http://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/static/largeobjects.html>.
Statement Handle Attributes
NUM_OF_FIELDS (integer, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
NUM_OF_PARAMS (integer, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
NAME (array-ref, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
NAME_lc (array-ref, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
NAME_uc (array-ref, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
NAME_hash (hash-ref, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
NAME_lc_hash (hash-ref, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
NAME_uc_hash (hash-ref, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
TYPE (array-ref, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI
PRECISION (array-ref, read-only)
Supported by this driver. "NUMERIC" types will return the preci-
sion. Types of "CHAR" and "VARCHAR" will return their size (number
of characters). Other types will return the number of bytes.
SCALE (array-ref, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. The only type that
will return a value currently is "NUMERIC".
NULLABLE (array-ref, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. This is only available
for servers version 7.3 and later. Others will return "2" for all
columns.
CursorName (string, read-only)
Not supported by this driver. See the note about Cursors elsewhere
in this document.
"Database" (dbh, read-only)
Implemented by DBI, no driver-specific impact.
"ParamValues" (hash ref, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI. If called before "exe-
cute", the literal values passed in are returned. If called after
"execute", then the quoted versions of the values are shown.
"ParamTypes" (hash ref, read-only)
Returns a hash of all current placeholders. The keys are the names
of the placeholders, and the values are the types that have been
bound to each one. Placeholders that have not yet been bound will
return undef as the value.
Statement (string, read-only)
Supported by this driver as proposed by DBI.
RowCache (integer, read-only)
Not supported by this driver.
pg_size (array-ref, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. It returns a reference to an array
of integer values for each column. The integer shows the size of
the column in bytes. Variable length columns are indicated by -1.
pg_type (array-ref, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. It returns a reference to an array
of strings for each column. The string shows the name of the
data_type.
pg_oid_status (integer, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. It returns the OID of the last
INSERT command.
pg_cmd_status (integer, read-only)
PostgreSQL specific attribute. It returns the type of the last com-
mand. Possible types are: "INSERT", "DELETE", "UPDATE", "SELECT".
FURTHER INFORMATION
Transactions
Transaction behavior is controlled via the "AutoCommit" attribute. For
a complete definition of "AutoCommit" please refer to the DBI documen-
tation.
According to the DBI specification the default for "AutoCommit" is a
true value. In this mode, any change to the database becomes valid
immediately. Any "BEGIN", "COMMIT" or "ROLLBACK" statements will be
rejected. DBD::Pg implements "AutoCommit" by issuing a "BEGIN" state-
ment immediately before executing a statement, and a "COMMIT" after-
wards.
Savepoints
PostgreSQL version 8.0 introduced the concept of savepoints, which
allows transactions to be rolled back to a certain point without
affecting the rest of the transaction. DBD::Pg encourages using the
following methods to control savepoints:
pg_savepoint
Creates a savepoint. This will fail unless you are inside of a
transaction. The only argument is the name of the savepoint. Note
that PostgreSQL DOES allow multiple savepoints with the same name
to exist.
$dbh->pg_savepoint("mysavepoint");
pg_rollback_to
Rolls the database back to a named savepoint, discarding any work
performed after that point. If more than one savepoint with that
name exists, rolls back to the most recently created one.
$dbh->pg_rollback_to("mysavepoint");
pg_release
Releases (or removes) a named savepoint. If more than one savepoint
with that name exists, it will only destroy the most recently cre-
ated one. Note that all savepoints created after the one being
released are also destroyed.
$dbh->pg_release("mysavepoint");
COPY support
DBD::Pg supports the COPY command through three functions: pg_putline,
pg_getline, and pg_endcopy. The COPY command allows data to be quickly
loaded or read from a table. The basic process is to issue a COPY com-
mand via $dbh->do(), do either $dbh->pg_putline or $dbh->pg_getline,
and then issue a $dbh->pg_endcopy (for pg_putline only).
The first step is to put the server into "COPY" mode. This is done by
sending a complete COPY command to the server, by using the do()
method. For example:
$dbh->do("COPY foobar FROM STDIN");
This would tell the server to enter a COPY IN state. It is now ready to
receive information via the pg_putline method. The complete syntax of
the COPY command is more complex and not documented here: the canonical
PostgreSQL documentation for COPY be found at:
http://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/static/sql-copy.html
Note that 7.2 servers can only accept a small subset of later features
in the COPY command: most notably they do not accept column specifica-
tions.
Once the COPY command has been issued, no other SQL commands are
allowed until after pg_endcopy has been successfully called. If in a
COPY IN state, you cannot use pg_getline, and if in COPY OUT state, you
cannot use pg_putline.
pg_putline
Used to put data into a table after the server has been put into
COPY IN mode by calling "COPY tablename FROM STDIN". The only argu-
ment is the data you want inserted. The default delimiter is a tab
character, but this can be changed in the COPY statement. Returns a
1 on sucessful input. Examples:
$dbh->do("COPY mytable FROM STDIN");
$dbh->pg_putline("123\tPepperoni\t3\n");
$dbh->pg_putline("314\tMushroom\t8\n");
$dbh->pg_putline("6\tAnchovies\t100\n");
$dbh->pg_endcopy;
## This example uses explicit columns and a custom delimiter
$dbh->do("COPY mytable(flavor, slices) FROM STDIN WITH DELIMITER '~'");
$dbh->pg_putline("Pepperoni~123\n");
$dbh->pg_putline("Mushroom~314\n");
$dbh->pg_putline("Anchovies~6\n");
$dbh->pg_endcopy;
pg_getline
Used to retrieve data from a table after the server has been put
into COPY OUT mode by calling "COPY tablename TO STDOUT". The first
argument to pg_getline is the variable into which the data will be
stored. The second argument is the size of the variable: this
should be greater than the expected size of the row. Returns a 1 on
success, and an empty string when the last row has been fetched.
Example:
$dbh->do("COPY mytable TO STDOUT");
my @data;
my $x=0;
1 while($dbh->pg_getline($data[$x++], 100));
pop @data; ## Remove final "\\.\n" line
If DBD::Pg is compiled with pre-7.4 libraries, this function will
not work: you will have to use the old $dbh->func($data, 100, 'get-
line') command, and call pg_getline manually. Users are highly
encouraged to upgrade to a newer version of PostgreSQL if this is
the case.
pg_endcopy
When done with pg_putline, call pg_endcopy to put the server back
in a normal state. Returns a 1 on success. This method will fail if
called when not in a COPY IN or COPY OUT state. Note that you no
longer need to send "\\.\n" when in COPY IN mode: pg_endcopy will
do this for you automatically as needed. pg_endcopy is only needed
after getline if you are using the old-style method,
$dbh->func($data, 100, 'getline').
Large Objects
This driver supports all largeobject functions provided by libpq via
the "func" method. Please note that, starting with PostgreSQL 6.5, any
access to a large object -- even read-only large objects -- must be put
into a transaction!
Cursors
Although PostgreSQL has a cursor concept, it has not been used in the
current implementation. Cursors in PostgreSQL can only be used inside a
transaction block. Because only one transaction block at a time is
allowed, this would have implied the restriction not to use any nested
"SELECT" statements. Hence the "execute" method fetches all data at
once into data structures located in the front-end application. This
approach must to be considered when selecting large amounts of data!
Datatype bool
The current implementation of PostgreSQL returns 't' for true and 'f'
for false. From the Perl point of view, this is a rather unfortunate
choice. DBD::Pg therefore translates the result for the "BOOL" data
type in a Perlish manner: 'f' -> '0' and 't' -> '1'. This way the
application does not have to check the database-specific returned val-
ues for the data-type "BOOL" because Perl treats '0' as false and '1'
as true. You may set the "pg_bool_tf" attribute to a true value to
change the values back to 't' and 'f' if you wish.
Boolean values can be passed to PostgreSQL as TRUE, 't', 'true', 'y',
'yes' or '1' for true and FALSE, 'f', 'false', 'n', 'no' or '0' for
false.
Schema support
PostgreSQL version 7.3 introduced schema support. Note that the Post-
greSQL schema concept may differ from those of other databases. In a
nutshell, a schema is a named collection of objects within a single
database. Please refer to the PostgreSQL documentation for more
details.
Currently, DBD::Pg does not provide explicit support for PostgreSQL
schemas. However, schema functionality may be used without any
restrictions by explicitly addressing schema objects, e.g.
my $res = $dbh->selectall_arrayref("SELECT * FROM my_schema.my_table");
or by manipulating the schema search path with "SET search_path", e.g.
$dbh->do("SET search_path TO my_schema, public");
SEE ALSO
DBI
AUTHORS
DBI and DBD-Oracle by Tim Bunce (Tim.Bunce@ig.co.uk)
DBD-Pg by Edmund Mergl (E.Mergl@bawue.de) and Jeffrey W. Baker
(jwbaker@acm.org). By David Wheeler <david@justatheory.com>, Jason
Stewart <jason@openinformatics.com>, Bruce Momjian <pgman@can-
dle.pha.pa.us>, Greg Sabino Mullane <greg@turnstep.com>, and others
after v1.13.
Parts of this package have been copied from DBI and DBD-Oracle.
Mailing List
The current maintainers may be reached through the 'dbdpg-general'
mailing list: <http://gborg.postgresql.org/mailman/listinfo/dbdpg-gen-
eral/>.
This list is available through Gmane (<http://www.gmane.org/>) as a
newsgroup with the name: "gmane.comp.db.postgresql.dbdpg"
Bug Reports
If you feel certain you have found a bug, you can report it by sending
an email to <bug-dbd-pg@rt.cpan.org>.
COPYRIGHT
The DBD::Pg module is free software. You may distribute under the terms
of either the GNU General Public License or the Artistic License, as
specified in the Perl README file.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
See also DBI/ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.
perl v5.8.8 2006-05-05 Pg(3)