Re: pg_service.conf file with unknown parameters

On Fri, Sep 11, 2020 at 02:39:51PM +0200, Magnus Hagander wrote:
> Right now, pg_service.conf returns "syntax error" if it encounters a parameter
> it doesn't know about.
>
> This seems user-unfriendly, both in the error message (because it really isn't
> a syntax error) and in the behaviour itself (because it doesn't work when
> sometimes it should).
>
> For example, if I have a service file with gssencmode=disable set, that service
> file cannot be used by a psql client linked against libpq from version 10. Even
> if the behavior would be identical (since v10 doesn't have gssencmode).
>
> Is there a particular reason we (1) refuse unknown parameters in the file, and
> (2) call it a "syntax error"?
>
> The documentation just says it's "INI format" file -- though in my experience
> most other INI file parsers just ignore extra parameters included..

My guess is that because the file can contain passwords, we want to
report as little as possible on error.

--
Bruce Momjian <bruce(at)momjian(dot)us> https://momjian.us
EnterpriseDB https://enterprisedb.com

The usefulness of a cup is in its emptiness, Bruce Lee