Re: Document target_role param of ALTER DEFAULT PRIVILEGES

On Wed, Nov 1, 2023 at 09:31:52PM +0100, Laurenz Albe wrote:
> On Wed, 2023-11-01 at 13:09 -0400, Bruce Momjian wrote:
> > On Thu, Feb 18, 2021 at 08:16:13AM +0100, Laurenz Albe wrote:
> > > On Wed, 2021-02-17 at 15:08 -0500, Jordi Gutiérrez Hermoso wrote:
> > > > I just had a confusing moment trying to figure out why my roles
> > > > weren't creating tables the way I was expecting them to. I didn't
> > > > understand what the `target_role` parameter did. No matter how I try
> > > > to read this page, I can't see an explanation for that parameter:
> > > >
> > > > https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/sql-alterdefaultprivileges.html
> > > >
> > > > I propose an explanation like the following be added to the
> > > > `target_role` parameter:
> > > >
> > > > This is the role that will create objects with altered default
> > > > privileges. Note that changes in default privileges aren't
> > > > inherited, so altering the default privileges of created objects
> > > > for a parent role will not change the default privileges of
> > > > objects created by inherited roles.
> > >
> > > +1. I cannot count the number of times I have seen people confused by that.
> > >
> > > Suggested patch attached.
> >
> > I see how people can be confused. I wrote this patch, which I think is
> > simpler than the previously posted one.
>
> Oh, I had forgotten about this patch. I like your version better.
>
> There is another patch in the current commitfest that addresses a similar
> problem, triggered by another complaint:
> https://commitfest.postgresql.org/45/4633/
>
> That patch does not cover role membership. Perhaps you could adopt that
> patch and merge the information from your patch into it.

Agreed. I found this doc report from 2020 with the same confusion about
what target_role means:

https://www.postgresql.org/message-id/flat/160003085417.31338.6391977653235501273%40wrigleys.postgresql.org

I will apply my patch tomorrow/Friday and then work on the commitfest
one.

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

Only you can decide what is important to you.