[PATCH] Use ssup_datum_*_cmp for int2, oid, and oid8 sort support

From: Baji Shaik <baji(dot)pgdev(at)gmail(dot)com>
To: pgsql-hackers(at)lists(dot)postgresql(dot)org
Cc: john(dot)naylor(at)postgresql(dot)org, michael(at)paquier(dot)xyz
Subject: [PATCH] Use ssup_datum_*_cmp for int2, oid, and oid8 sort support
Date: 2026-06-03 23:37:09
Message-ID: CA+fm-RMyLC94NfrxCh273+dKs44U0ZJjRczznvzvgw=KtpPNVw@mail.gmail.com
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Hi,

While auditing nbtcompare.c, I noticed that int2, oid, and oid8
sortsupport functions use custom local fastcmp helpers that are
functionally equivalent to the existing ssup_datum_int32_cmp (for
int2) and ssup_datum_unsigned_cmp (for oid, oid8).

This prevents these types from hitting the radix sort fast path
added in commit ef3c3cf6d02 [1], which dispatches based on the
comparator function pointer.

The original 2021-2022 thread that introduced the ssup_datum_*_cmp
helpers (commit 6974924347c, Apr 2022) [2] covered int4, int8,
timestamp, date, and the abbreviated-key types (text, uuid, macaddr,
inet, bytea). int2 and oid weren't called out in that discussion,
and oid8 didn't exist at the time, it was added in Jan 2026 [3]
and inherited the custom fastcmp pattern from oid, about a month
before radix sort landed. This patch fills those gaps.

Switching to the existing helpers makes these types eligible for
radix sort. Benchmark (10M-row single-key sort):

Type Before After Speedup
---- ------ ----- -------
int2 2440 ms 1778 ms ~27%
oid 2875 ms 2073 ms ~28%
oid8 2837 ms 2042 ms ~28%
int4 -- 1765 ms (baseline)
int8 -- 2031 ms (baseline)

The patch just replaces the comparator assignment and removes the
now-unused local fastcmp functions. No behavioral change and the
helpers produce identical results.

int2 uses ssup_datum_int32_cmp because there is no int16-specific
helper, every int16 fits losslessly in int32, and int32_cmp is more
efficient than signed_cmp (4-byte radix passes instead of 8).

Other custom fastcmp users in core (float4/float8, varlena types)
cannot be trivially switched due to NaN handling or locale-dependent
comparison, so they are left as-is.

Tested with make check (245/245 pass) and make isolation/check
(128/128 pass).

[1]
https://git.postgresql.org/gitweb/?p=postgresql.git;a=commit;h=ef3c3cf6d02
[2]
https://www.postgresql.org/message-id/flat/CA%2BhUKGJ2-eaDqAum5bxhpMNhvuJmRDZxB_Tow0n-gse%2BHG0Yig%40mail.gmail.com
[3] https://git.postgresql.org/gitweb/?p=postgresql.git;a=commit;h=b139bd3b6

Thanks,
Baji Shaik

Attachment Content-Type Size
0001-Use-ssup_datum_-_cmp-for-int2-oid-and-oid8-sort-supp.patch application/octet-stream 2.6 KB

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