Patrick,

> I tried recently (pgsql 7.1.2) to establish the oid of one table as
> foreign key
> in another. 
> To no avail : there was no uniqueness constraint on that column
> Naturally, it seems impossible to add a uniqueness constraint to such
> a system
> column.
> As far as i know, the oid is by nature unique, excepting for the case
> of
> wrapping of their sequence.
> Is there any workaround ?

Yes. Don't use the OID as your key.

While it would be entirely possible for you add a unique constraint to
the OID column, you do not want to use it as your key for a number of
reasons previously discussed on this list (OID wraparound, problems with
backup and restore, etc.).

Instead, re-create the table with a new ID column of type SERIAL with a
PRIMARY KEY constraint. This will automatically create an
auto-incrementing sequence of unique values perfect for attaching
foriegn keys.

-Josh

______AGLIO DATABASE SOLUTIONS___________________________
                                       Josh Berkus
  Complete information technology      [EMAIL PROTECTED]
   and data management solutions       (415) 565-7293
  for law firms, small businesses        fax 621-2533
    and non-profit organizations.      San Francisco

---------------------------(end of broadcast)---------------------------
TIP 4: Don't 'kill -9' the postmaster

Reply via email to