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Improve error message for missing extension.
- 6f6943fc94ad 15.0 landed
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improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T19:54:56Z
Hi hackers, Currently, if you attempt to use CREATE EXTENSION for an extension that is not installed, you'll see something like the following: postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; ERROR: could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory I suspect this ERROR message is confusing for novice users, so perhaps we should add a HINT. With the attached patch, you'd see the following: postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; ERROR: could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory HINT: This typically indicates that the specified extension is not installed on the system. Thoughts? Nathan -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Daniel Gustafsson <daniel@yesql.se> — 2021-11-29T20:32:20Z
> On 29 Nov 2021, at 20:54, Bossart, Nathan <bossartn@amazon.com> wrote: > > Hi hackers, > > Currently, if you attempt to use CREATE EXTENSION for an extension > that is not installed, you'll see something like the following: > > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory > > I suspect this ERROR message is confusing for novice users, so perhaps > we should add a HINT. With the attached patch, you'd see the > following: > > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory > HINT: This typically indicates that the specified extension is not installed on the system. > > Thoughts? I haven't given the suggested wording too much thought, but in general that sounds like a good idea. -- Daniel Gustafsson https://vmware.com/
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> — 2021-11-29T21:02:27Z
"Bossart, Nathan" <bossartn@amazon.com> writes: > Currently, if you attempt to use CREATE EXTENSION for an extension > that is not installed, you'll see something like the following: > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory > I suspect this ERROR message is confusing for novice users, so perhaps > we should add a HINT. If we issue the hint only for errno == ENOENT, I think we could be less wishy-washy (and if it's not ENOENT, the hint is likely inappropriate anyway). I'm thinking something more like HINT: This means the extension is not installed on the system. I'm not quite satisfied with the "on the system" wording, but I'm not sure of what would be better. I agree that we can't just say "is not installed", because people will confuse that with whether it is installed within the database. regards, tom lane
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T21:27:46Z
On 11/29/21, 12:33 PM, "Daniel Gustafsson" <daniel@yesql.se> wrote: > I haven't given the suggested wording too much thought, but in general that > sounds like a good idea. Thanks. I'm flexible with the wording. Nathan
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Daniel Gustafsson <daniel@yesql.se> — 2021-11-29T21:31:13Z
> On 29 Nov 2021, at 22:02, Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote: > > "Bossart, Nathan" <bossartn@amazon.com> writes: >> Currently, if you attempt to use CREATE EXTENSION for an extension >> that is not installed, you'll see something like the following: > >> postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; >> ERROR: could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory > >> I suspect this ERROR message is confusing for novice users, so perhaps >> we should add a HINT. > > If we issue the hint only for errno == ENOENT, I think we could be > less wishy-washy (and if it's not ENOENT, the hint is likely > inappropriate anyway). I'm thinking something more like > > HINT: This means the extension is not installed on the system. > > I'm not quite satisfied with the "on the system" wording, but I'm > not sure of what would be better. I agree that we can't just say > "is not installed", because people will confuse that with whether > it is installed within the database. That's a good point, the hint is targeting users who might not even know that an extension needs to be physically and separately installed on the machine before it can be installed in their database; so maybe using "installed" here isn't entirely helpful at all. That being said I'm at a loss for a more suitable word, "available" perhaps? -- Daniel Gustafsson https://vmware.com/
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T21:33:21Z
On 11/29/21, 1:03 PM, "Tom Lane" <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote: > If we issue the hint only for errno == ENOENT, I think we could be > less wishy-washy (and if it's not ENOENT, the hint is likely > inappropriate anyway). I'm thinking something more like > > HINT: This means the extension is not installed on the system. Good idea. > I'm not quite satisfied with the "on the system" wording, but I'm > not sure of what would be better. I agree that we can't just say > "is not installed", because people will confuse that with whether > it is installed within the database. Right. The only other idea I have at the moment is to say something like This means the extension is not available[ on the system]. I don't know whether that is actually any less confusing, though. Nathan -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Chapman Flack <chap@anastigmatix.net> — 2021-11-29T21:37:30Z
On 11/29/21 16:31, Daniel Gustafsson wrote: > That's a good point, the hint is targeting users who might not even know that > an extension needs to be physically and separately installed on the machine > before it can be installed in their database; so maybe using "installed" here > isn't entirely helpful at all. That being said I'm at a loss for a more > suitable word, "available" perhaps? Maybe a larger break with the "This means the extension something something" formulation, and more on the lines of HINT: an extension must first be present (for example, installed with a package manager) on the system where PostgreSQL is running. Regards, -Chap
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T21:39:14Z
On 11/29/21, 1:32 PM, "Daniel Gustafsson" <daniel@yesql.se> wrote: >> On 29 Nov 2021, at 22:02, Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote: >> I'm not quite satisfied with the "on the system" wording, but I'm >> not sure of what would be better. I agree that we can't just say >> "is not installed", because people will confuse that with whether >> it is installed within the database. > > That's a good point, the hint is targeting users who might not even know that > an extension needs to be physically and separately installed on the machine > before it can be installed in their database; so maybe using "installed" here > isn't entirely helpful at all. That being said I'm at a loss for a more > suitable word, "available" perhaps? I was just thinking the same thing. I used "available" in v2, which is attached. Nathan
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T21:47:09Z
On 11/29/21, 1:38 PM, "Chapman Flack" <chap@anastigmatix.net> wrote: > On 11/29/21 16:31, Daniel Gustafsson wrote: >> That's a good point, the hint is targeting users who might not even know that >> an extension needs to be physically and separately installed on the machine >> before it can be installed in their database; so maybe using "installed" here >> isn't entirely helpful at all. That being said I'm at a loss for a more >> suitable word, "available" perhaps? > > Maybe a larger break with the "This means the extension something something" > formulation, and more on the lines of > > HINT: an extension must first be present (for example, installed with a > package manager) on the system where PostgreSQL is running. I like this idea. I can do it this way in the next revision if others agree. Nathan
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Daniel Gustafsson <daniel@yesql.se> — 2021-11-29T21:49:16Z
> On 29 Nov 2021, at 22:47, Bossart, Nathan <bossartn@amazon.com> wrote: > > On 11/29/21, 1:38 PM, "Chapman Flack" <chap@anastigmatix.net> wrote: >> On 11/29/21 16:31, Daniel Gustafsson wrote: >>> That's a good point, the hint is targeting users who might not even know that >>> an extension needs to be physically and separately installed on the machine >>> before it can be installed in their database; so maybe using "installed" here >>> isn't entirely helpful at all. That being said I'm at a loss for a more >>> suitable word, "available" perhaps? >> >> Maybe a larger break with the "This means the extension something something" >> formulation, and more on the lines of >> >> HINT: an extension must first be present (for example, installed with a >> package manager) on the system where PostgreSQL is running. > > I like this idea. I can do it this way in the next revision if others > agree. I think taking it in this direction has merits. -- Daniel Gustafsson https://vmware.com/
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> — 2021-11-29T22:03:22Z
Daniel Gustafsson <daniel@yesql.se> writes: >> On 29 Nov 2021, at 22:47, Bossart, Nathan <bossartn@amazon.com> wrote: >> On 11/29/21, 1:38 PM, "Chapman Flack" <chap@anastigmatix.net> wrote: >>> Maybe a larger break with the "This means the extension something something" >>> formulation, and more on the lines of >>> HINT: an extension must first be present (for example, installed with a >>> package manager) on the system where PostgreSQL is running. >> I like this idea. I can do it this way in the next revision if others >> agree. > I think taking it in this direction has merits. I think "The extension must ..." would read better, otherwise +1. I don't especially like intertwining the hint choice with the existing special case for per-version files. Our usual style for conditional hints can be found in places like sysv_shmem.c, and following that would lead to a patch roughly like if ((file = AllocateFile(filename, "r")) == NULL) { + int ext_errno = errno; + if (version && errno == ENOENT) { /* no auxiliary file for this version */ pfree(filename); return; } ereport(ERROR, (errcode_for_file_access(), errmsg("could not open extension control file \"%s\": %m", - filename))); + filename), + (ext_errno == ENOENT) ? errhint("...") : 0)); } regards, tom lane -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T22:13:02Z
On 11/29/21, 2:04 PM, "Tom Lane" <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote: > I think "The extension must ..." would read better, otherwise +1. > > I don't especially like intertwining the hint choice with the existing > special case for per-version files. Our usual style for conditional > hints can be found in places like sysv_shmem.c, and following that > would lead to a patch roughly like Alright, here's v3. In this version, I actually removed the message about the control file entirely, so now the error message looks like this: postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available DETAIL: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. HINT: The pg_available_extensions view lists the extensions that are available for installation. I can add the control file part back if we think it's necessary. Nathan -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T22:18:48Z
On 11/29/21, 2:13 PM, "Bossart, Nathan" <bossartn@amazon.com> wrote: > Alright, here's v3. In this version, I actually removed the message > about the control file entirely, so now the error message looks like > this: > > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available > DETAIL: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. > HINT: The pg_available_extensions view lists the extensions that are available for installation. > > I can add the control file part back if we think it's necessary. Hm. I should probably adjust the hint to avoid confusion from "installed on the system" and "available for installation." Maybe something like The pg_available_extensions view lists the available extensions. Nathan -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Chapman Flack <chap@anastigmatix.net> — 2021-11-29T22:24:12Z
On 11/29/21 17:03, Tom Lane wrote: > I think "The extension must ..." would read better, otherwise +1. I'm not strongly invested either way, but I'll see if I can get at why I used 'an' ... Hints are hinty. We can give them, and they're helpful, because there are certain situations that we know are very likely to be what's behind certain errors. ENOENT on the control file? Yeah, probably means the extension needs to be installed. In somebody's specific case, though, it could mean most of the extension is there but the other sysadmin overnight fat-fingered an rm command and has been spending the morning idly wondering why the file he /meant/ to remove is still there. Or a bit flipped in an inode and a directory became a file. (That happened to me on a production system once; the directory was /usr. That'll mess stuff up.) So, in my view, a hint doesn't need to sound omniscient, or as if it somehow knows precisely what happened in your case. It's enough (maybe better, even?) if a hint reads like a hint, a general statement that you may ponder for a moment and then think "yeah, that sounds like it's probably what I needed to know." Regards, -Chap
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Chapman Flack <chap@anastigmatix.net> — 2021-11-29T22:31:04Z
On 11/29/21 17:13, Bossart, Nathan wrote: > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available > DETAIL: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. > HINT: The pg_available_extensions view lists the extensions that are available for installation. Messages crossed ... If it were me, I would combine that DETAIL and HINT as one larger HINT, and use DETAIL for specific details about what actually happened (such as the exact filename sought and the %m). The need for those details doesn't go away; they're still what you need when what went wrong is some other freak occurrence the hint doesn't explain. Regards, -Chap
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> — 2021-11-29T22:42:03Z
"Bossart, Nathan" <bossartn@amazon.com> writes: > Alright, here's v3. In this version, I actually removed the message > about the control file entirely, so now the error message looks like > this: > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available > DETAIL: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. > HINT: The pg_available_extensions view lists the extensions that are available for installation. I don't think that HINT is useful at all, and I agree with Chapman that we should still show the filename we tried to look up, just in case there's a path problem or the like. regards, tom lane
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T22:43:00Z
On 11/29/21, 2:32 PM, "Chapman Flack" <chap@anastigmatix.net> wrote: > If it were me, I would combine that DETAIL and HINT as one larger HINT, > and use DETAIL for specific details about what actually happened (such > as the exact filename sought and the %m). > > The need for those details doesn't go away; they're still what you need > when what went wrong is some other freak occurrence the hint doesn't > explain. How's this? postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available DETAIL: Extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control" does not exist. HINT: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. The pg_available_extensions view lists the available extensions. Nathan -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-29T22:54:50Z
On 11/29/21, 2:43 PM, "Tom Lane" <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote: > "Bossart, Nathan" <bossartn@amazon.com> writes: >> postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; >> ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available >> DETAIL: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. >> HINT: The pg_available_extensions view lists the extensions that are available for installation. > > I don't think that HINT is useful at all, and I agree with Chapman > that we should still show the filename we tried to look up, > just in case there's a path problem or the like. Okay, I removed the part about pg_available_extensions and now the message looks like this: postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available DETAIL: Extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control" does not exist. HINT: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. Nathan -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Chapman Flack <chap@anastigmatix.net> — 2021-11-29T23:46:09Z
On 11/29/21 17:54, Bossart, Nathan wrote: > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available > DETAIL: Extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control" does not exist. > HINT: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. That looks like the direction I would have gone with it. I wonder, though, is it better to write "does not exist." in the message, or to use %m and get the exact message from the OS (which presumably would be "No such file or directory" on Unix, and whatever Windows says for such things on Windows). My leaning is generally to use %m and therefore the exact OS message in the detail, but I don't claim to speak for the project style on that. Regards, -Chap
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2021-11-30T00:12:31Z
On 11/29/21, 3:47 PM, "Chapman Flack" <chap@anastigmatix.net> wrote: > My leaning is generally to use %m and therefore the exact OS message > in the detail, but I don't claim to speak for the project style on that. Okay, the message looks like this in v5: postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available DETAIL: Could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory. HINT: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. Nathan -
Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> — 2022-01-11T19:22:38Z
"Bossart, Nathan" <bossartn@amazon.com> writes: > Okay, the message looks like this in v5: > postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; > ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available > DETAIL: Could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory. > HINT: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. Nobody complained about that wording, so pushed. regards, tom lane
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Re: improve CREATE EXTENSION error message
Nathan Bossart <bossartn@amazon.com> — 2022-01-11T19:28:42Z
On 1/11/22, 11:23 AM, "Tom Lane" <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote: > "Bossart, Nathan" <bossartn@amazon.com> writes: >> Okay, the message looks like this in v5: > >> postgres=# CREATE EXTENSION does_not_exist; >> ERROR: extension "does_not_exist" is not available >> DETAIL: Could not open extension control file "/usr/local/pgsql/share/extension/does_not_exist.control": No such file or directory. >> HINT: The extension must first be installed on the system where PostgreSQL is running. > > Nobody complained about that wording, so pushed. Thanks! Nathan