Question 1

How to handle bulk imports with lib/pq?

Accepted Answer

Use a COPY FROM STDIN statement within a transaction: prepare the statement, execute it repeatedly with data, and call Exec() with no arguments to flush. The README provides detailed documentation and an example for efficient bulk loading.

Question 2

lib/pq vs pgx: which one should I use?

Accepted Answer

lib/pq is a stable, standards-compliant driver focusing on PostgreSQL compatibility and native behavior, while pgx offers more features like connection pooling and a richer API. Choose lib/pq for strict compatibility, pgx if you need advanced performance or additional features.

Question 3

How to use LISTEN/NOTIFY in Go with lib/pq?

Accepted Answer

Use pq.NewListener to create a listener, call Listen on a channel name, and receive notifications on the Notify channel. The README includes a complete example for setting up and handling real-time notifications from PostgreSQL.

Question 4

lib/pq timestamp timezone issues

Accepted Answer

For timestamptz, lib/pq uses the server's timezone, adjustable via the timestamp parameter in the connection string. For timestamp without timezone, it uses time.FixedZone("", 0), which is not UTC, so you may need to handle conversions manually based on your application's needs.

Question 5

How to set up lib/pq for testing?

Accepted Answer

Tests require a PostgreSQL instance; the README recommends using Docker compose with provided configurations. You need to set up /etc/hosts entries and use PG* environment variables, and Docker compose supports different PostgreSQL versions and proxies like pgbouncer.

Question 6

lib/pq error handling examples

Accepted Answer

Errors are returned as pq.Error; use pq.As to check for specific error codes like UniqueViolation. The Error() string includes the message and code, and ErrorWithDetail() adds DETAIL and CONTEXT fields, useful for debugging duplicates or syntax errors.

pq

What is pq?

Overview

Use Cases

Best For

Related Projects

Found a gem we're missing?

Not Ideal For

Pros & Cons

Pros

Cons

Frequently Asked Questions