The view pg_settings provides access to run-time parameters of the server. It is essentially an alternative interface to the SHOW and SET commands. It also provides access to some facts about each parameter that are not directly available from SHOW, such as minimum and maximum values.
Table 43-34. pg_settings Columns
Name
Type
References
Description
name
text
run-time configuration parameter name
setting
text
current value of the parameter
context
text
context required to set the parameter's value
vartype
text
parameter type (bool, integer, real, or string)
source
text
source of the current parameter value
min_val
text
minimum allowed value of the parameter (NULL for nonnumeric values)
max_val
text
maximum allowed value of the parameter (NULL for nonnumeric values)
The pg_settings view cannot be inserted into or deleted from, but it can be updated. An UPDATE applied to a row of pg_settings is equivalent to executing the SET command on that named parameter. The change only affects the value used by the current session. If an UPDATE is issued within a transaction that is later aborted, the effects of the UPDATE command disappear when the transaction is rolled back. Once the surrounding transaction is committed, the effects will persist until the end of the session, unless overridden by another UPDATE or SET.
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