Reset statement_timeout between queries of a multi-query string.

Historically, we started the timer (if StatementTimeout > 0) at the
beginning of a simple-Query message and usually let it run until the
end, so that the timeout limit applied to the entire query string,
and intra-string changes of the statement_timeout GUC had no effect.
But, confusingly, a COMMIT within the string would reset the state
and allow a fresh timeout cycle to start with the current setting.

Commit f8e5f156b changed the behavior of statement_timeout for extended
query protocol, and as an apparently-unintended side effect, a change in
the statement_timeout GUC during a multi-statement simple-Query message
might have an effect immediately --- but only if it was going from
"disabled" to "enabled".

This is all pretty confusing, not to mention completely undocumented.
Let's change things so that the timeout is always reset between queries
of a multi-query string, whether they're transaction control commands
or not.  Thus the active timeout setting is applied to each query in
the string, separately.  This costs a few more cycles if statement_timeout
is active, but it provides much more intuitive behavior, especially if one
changes statement_timeout in one of the queries of the string.

Also, add something to the documentation to explain all this.

Per bug #16035 from Raj Mohite.  Although this is a bug fix, I'm hesitant
to back-patch it; conceivably somebody has worked out the old behavior
and is depending on it.  (But note that this change should make the
behavior less restrictive in most cases, since the timeout will now
be applied to shorter segments of code.)

Discussion: https://postgr.es/m/16035-456e6e69ebfd4374@postgresql.org

diff --git a/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml b/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
index 886632ff439e5f3f73be717465dd3f32b0780b3b..c1da75fbab4b1b13cf2aec319d5df3a4d6c92065 100644 (file)
--- a/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
+++ b/doc/src/sgml/config.sgml
@@ -7592,11 +7592,24 @@ COPY postgres_log FROM '/full/path/to/logfile.csv' WITH csv;
       </term>
       <listitem>
        <para>
-        Abort any statement that takes more than the specified duration
-        (defaults to milliseconds), starting from the time the command arrives at the server
-        from the client.  If <varname>log_min_error_statement</varname> is set to
-        <literal>ERROR</literal> or lower, the statement that timed out will also be
-        logged.  A value of zero (the default) turns this off.
+        Abort any statement that takes more than the specified duration.
+        If <varname>log_min_error_statement</varname> is set
+        to <literal>ERROR</literal> or lower, the statement that timed out
+        will also be logged.
+        If the value is specified without units, it is taken as milliseconds.
+        A value of zero (the default) disables the timeout.
+       </para>
+
+       <para>
+        The timeout is measured from the time a command arrives at the
+        server until it is completed by the server.  If multiple SQL
+        statements appear in a single simple-Query message, the timeout
+        is applied to each statement separately.
+        (<productname>PostgreSQL</productname> versions before 13 usually
+        treated the timeout as applying to the whole query string.)
+        In extended query protocol, the timeout starts running when any
+        query-related message (Parse, Bind, Execute, Describe) arrives, and
+        it is cancelled by completion of an Execute or Sync message.
        </para>
 
        <para>

diff --git a/src/backend/tcop/postgres.c b/src/backend/tcop/postgres.c
index e8d8e6f828516a6307f405538008f889059e03aa..1ecaba0d5749f36b2459ed4605a166bb7286052d 100644 (file)
--- a/src/backend/tcop/postgres.c
+++ b/src/backend/tcop/postgres.c
@@ -1270,6 +1270,13 @@ exec_simple_query(const char *query_string)
                         * those that start or end a transaction block.
                         */
                        CommandCounterIncrement();
+
+                       /*
+                        * Disable statement timeout between queries of a multi-query
+                        * string, so that the timeout applies separately to each query.
+                        * (Our next loop iteration will start a fresh timeout.)
+                        */
+                       disable_statement_timeout();
                }
 
                /*
@@ -2135,7 +2142,10 @@ exec_execute_message(const char *portal_name, long max_rows)
                         */
                        CommandCounterIncrement();
 
-                       /* full command has been executed, reset timeout */
+                       /*
+                        * Disable statement timeout whenever we complete an Execute
+                        * message.  The next protocol message will start a fresh timeout.
+                        */
                        disable_statement_timeout();
                }