doc/src/sgml/ecpg.sgml - master - githubmirror/postgres

doc/src/sgml/ecpg.sgml
10 092 строки325 KB
Fujii Masao
ecpg: Reject multiple header items in GET/SET DESCRIPTOR
08 июн 2026, 11:09
08 июн 2026, 11:094484165
<!-- doc/src/sgml/ecpg.sgml -->

<chapter id="ecpg">
 <title><application>ECPG</application> &mdash; Embedded <acronym>SQL</acronym> in C</title>

 <indexterm zone="ecpg"><primary>embedded SQL</primary><secondary>in C</secondary></indexterm>
 <indexterm zone="ecpg"><primary>C</primary></indexterm>
 <indexterm zone="ecpg"><primary>ECPG</primary></indexterm>

 <para>
  This chapter describes the embedded <acronym>SQL</acronym> package
  for <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>. It was written by
  Linus Tolke (<email>linus@epact.se</email>) and Michael Meskes
  (<email>meskes@postgresql.org</email>). Originally it was written to work with
  <acronym>C</acronym>. It also works with <acronym>C++</acronym>, but
  it does not recognize all <acronym>C++</acronym> constructs yet.
 </para>

 <para>
  This documentation is quite incomplete.  But since this
  interface is standardized, additional information can be found in
  many resources about SQL.
 </para>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-concept">
  <title>The Concept</title>

  <para>
   An embedded SQL program consists of code written in an ordinary
   programming language, in this case C, mixed with SQL commands in
   specially marked sections.  To build the program, the source code (<filename>*.pgc</filename>)
   is first passed through the embedded SQL preprocessor, which converts it
   to an ordinary C program (<filename>*.c</filename>), and afterwards it can be processed by a C
   compiler.  (For details about the compiling and linking see <xref linkend="ecpg-process"/>.)
   Converted ECPG applications call functions in the libpq library
   through the embedded SQL library (ecpglib), and communicate with
   the PostgreSQL server using the normal frontend-backend protocol.
  </para>

  <para>
   Embedded <acronym>SQL</acronym> has advantages over other methods
   for handling <acronym>SQL</acronym> commands from C code. First, it
   takes care of the tedious passing of information to and from
   variables in your <acronym>C</acronym> program.  Second, the SQL
   code in the program is checked at build time for syntactical
   correctness.  Third, embedded <acronym>SQL</acronym> in C is
   specified in the <acronym>SQL</acronym> standard and supported by
   many other <acronym>SQL</acronym> database systems.  The
   <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> implementation is designed to match this
   standard as much as possible, and it is usually possible to port
   embedded <acronym>SQL</acronym> programs written for other SQL
   databases to <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> with relative
   ease.
  </para>

  <para>
   As already stated, programs written for the embedded
   <acronym>SQL</acronym> interface are normal C programs with special
   code inserted to perform database-related actions.  This special
   code always has the form:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL ...;
</programlisting>
   These statements syntactically take the place of a C statement.
   Depending on the particular statement, they can appear at the
   global level or within a function.
  </para>

  <para>
   Embedded
   <acronym>SQL</acronym> statements follow the case-sensitivity rules of
   normal <acronym>SQL</acronym> code, and not those of C. Also they allow nested
   C-style comments as per the SQL standard. The C part of the
   program, however, follows the C standard of not accepting nested comments.
   Embedded <acronym>SQL</acronym> statements likewise use SQL rules, not
   C rules, for parsing quoted strings and identifiers.
   (See <xref linkend="sql-syntax-strings"/> and
   <xref linkend="sql-syntax-identifiers"/> respectively.)
   Of course, the C part of the program follows C quoting rules.
  </para>

  <para>
   The following sections explain all the embedded SQL statements.
  </para>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-connect">
  <title>Managing Database Connections</title>

  <para>
   This section describes how to open, close, and switch database
   connections.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-connecting">
   <title>Connecting to the Database Server</title>

  <para>
   One connects to a database using the following statement:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO <replaceable>target</replaceable> <optional>AS <replaceable>connection-name</replaceable></optional> <optional>USER <replaceable>user-name</replaceable></optional>;
</programlisting>
   The <replaceable>target</replaceable> can be specified in the
   following ways:

   <itemizedlist>
    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal><replaceable>dbname</replaceable><optional>@<replaceable>hostname</replaceable></optional><optional>:<replaceable>port</replaceable></optional></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal>tcp:postgresql://<replaceable>hostname</replaceable><optional>:<replaceable>port</replaceable></optional><optional>/<replaceable>dbname</replaceable></optional><optional>?<replaceable>options</replaceable></optional></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal>unix:postgresql://localhost<optional>:<replaceable>port</replaceable></optional><optional>/<replaceable>dbname</replaceable></optional><optional>?<replaceable>options</replaceable></optional></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      an SQL string literal containing one of the above forms
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      a reference to a character variable containing one of the above forms (see examples)
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal>DEFAULT</literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>
   </itemizedlist>

   The connection target <literal>DEFAULT</literal> initiates a connection
   to the default database under the default user name.  No separate
   user name or connection name can be specified in that case.
  </para>

  <para>
   If you specify the connection target directly (that is, not as a string
   literal or variable reference), then the components of the target are
   passed through normal SQL parsing; this means that, for example,
   the <replaceable>hostname</replaceable> must look like one or more SQL
   identifiers separated by dots, and those identifiers will be
   case-folded unless double-quoted.  Values of
   any <replaceable>options</replaceable> must be SQL identifiers,
   integers, or variable references.  Of course, you can put nearly
   anything into an SQL identifier by double-quoting it.
   In practice, it is probably less error-prone to use a (single-quoted)
   string literal or a variable reference than to write the connection
   target directly.
  </para>

  <para>
   There are also different ways to specify the user name:

   <itemizedlist>
    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal><replaceable>username</replaceable></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal><replaceable>username</replaceable>/<replaceable>password</replaceable></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal><replaceable>username</replaceable> IDENTIFIED BY <replaceable>password</replaceable></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal><replaceable>username</replaceable> USING <replaceable>password</replaceable></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>
   </itemizedlist>

   As above, the parameters <replaceable>username</replaceable> and
   <replaceable>password</replaceable> can be an SQL identifier, an
   SQL string literal, or a reference to a character variable.
  </para>

  <para>
   If the connection target includes any <replaceable>options</replaceable>,
   those consist of
   <literal><replaceable>keyword</replaceable>=<replaceable>value</replaceable></literal>
   specifications separated by ampersands (<literal>&amp;</literal>).
   The allowed key words are the same ones recognized
   by <application>libpq</application> (see
   <xref linkend="libpq-paramkeywords"/>).  Spaces are ignored before
   any <replaceable>keyword</replaceable> or <replaceable>value</replaceable>,
   though not within or after one.  Note that there is no way to
   write <literal>&amp;</literal> within a <replaceable>value</replaceable>.
  </para>

  <para>
   Notice that when specifying a socket connection
   (with the <literal>unix:</literal> prefix), the host name must be
   exactly <literal>localhost</literal>.  To select a non-default
   socket directory, write the directory's pathname as the value of
   a <varname>host</varname> option in
   the <replaceable>options</replaceable> part of the target.
  </para>

  <para>
   The <replaceable>connection-name</replaceable> is used to handle
   multiple connections in one program.  It can be omitted if a
   program uses only one connection.  The most recently opened
   connection becomes the current connection, which is used by default
   when an SQL statement is to be executed (see later in this
   chapter).
  </para>

  <para>
   Here are some examples of <command>CONNECT</command> statements:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO mydb@sql.mydomain.com;

EXEC SQL CONNECT TO tcp:postgresql://sql.mydomain.com/mydb AS myconnection USER john;

EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
const char *target = "mydb@sql.mydomain.com";
const char *user = "john";
const char *passwd = "secret";
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
 ...
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO :target USER :user USING :passwd;
/* or EXEC SQL CONNECT TO :target USER :user/:passwd; */
</programlisting>
   The last example makes use of the feature referred to above as
   character variable references.  You will see in later sections how C
   variables can be used in SQL statements when you prefix them with a
   colon.
  </para>

  <para>
   Be advised that the format of the connection target is not
   specified in the SQL standard.  So if you want to develop portable
   applications, you might want to use something based on the last
   example above to encapsulate the connection target string
   somewhere.
  </para>

  <para>
   If untrusted users have access to a database that has not adopted a
   <link linkend="ddl-schemas-patterns">secure schema usage pattern</link>,
   begin each session by removing publicly-writable schemas
   from <varname>search_path</varname>.  For example,
   add <literal>options=-c search_path=</literal>
   to <literal><replaceable>options</replaceable></literal>, or
   issue <literal>EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '',
   false);</literal> after connecting.  This consideration is not specific to
   ECPG; it applies to every interface for executing arbitrary SQL commands.
  </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-set-connection">
   <title>Choosing a Connection</title>

  <para>
   SQL statements in embedded SQL programs are by default executed on
   the current connection, that is, the most recently opened one.  If
   an application needs to manage multiple connections, then there are
   three ways to handle this.
  </para>

  <para>
   The first option is to explicitly choose a connection for each SQL
   statement, for example:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL AT <replaceable>connection-name</replaceable> SELECT ...;
</programlisting>
   This option is particularly suitable if the application needs to
   use several connections in mixed order.
  </para>

  <para>
   If your application uses multiple threads of execution, they cannot share a
   connection concurrently. You must either explicitly control access to the connection
   (using mutexes) or use a connection for each thread.
  </para>

  <para>
   The second option is to execute a statement to switch the current
   connection.  That statement is:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL SET CONNECTION <replaceable>connection-name</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
   This option is particularly convenient if many statements are to be
   executed on the same connection.
  </para>

  <para>
   Here is an example program managing multiple database connections:
<programlisting><![CDATA[
#include <stdio.h>

EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char dbname[1024];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

int
main()
{
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb1 AS con1 USER testuser;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb2 AS con2 USER testuser;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb3 AS con3 USER testuser;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    /* This query would be executed in the last opened database "testdb3". */
    EXEC SQL SELECT current_database() INTO :dbname;
    printf("current=%s (should be testdb3)\n", dbname);

    /* Using "AT" to run a query in "testdb2" */
    EXEC SQL AT con2 SELECT current_database() INTO :dbname;
    printf("current=%s (should be testdb2)\n", dbname);

    /* Switch the current connection to "testdb1". */
    EXEC SQL SET CONNECTION con1;

    EXEC SQL SELECT current_database() INTO :dbname;
    printf("current=%s (should be testdb1)\n", dbname);

    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
    return 0;
}
]]></programlisting>

   This example would produce this output:
<screen>
current=testdb3 (should be testdb3)
current=testdb2 (should be testdb2)
current=testdb1 (should be testdb1)
</screen>
  </para>

  <para>
  The third option is to declare an SQL identifier linked to
  the connection, for example:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL AT <replaceable>connection-name</replaceable> DECLARE <replaceable>statement-name</replaceable> STATEMENT;
EXEC SQL PREPARE <replaceable>statement-name</replaceable> FROM :<replaceable>dyn-string</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
   Once you link an SQL identifier to a connection, you execute dynamic SQL
   without an AT clause. Note that this option behaves like preprocessor
   directives, therefore the link is enabled only in the file.
  </para>
  <para>
   Here is an example program using this option:
<programlisting><![CDATA[
#include <stdio.h>

EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
char dbname[128];
char *dyn_sql = "SELECT current_database()";
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

int main(){
  EXEC SQL CONNECT TO postgres AS con1;
  EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con2;
  EXEC SQL AT con1 DECLARE stmt STATEMENT;
  EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt FROM :dyn_sql;
  EXEC SQL EXECUTE stmt INTO :dbname;
  printf("%s\n", dbname);

  EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
  return 0;
}
]]></programlisting>

   This example would produce this output, even if the default connection is testdb:
<screen>
postgres
</screen>
  </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-disconnect">
   <title>Closing a Connection</title>

  <para>
   To close a connection, use the following statement:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DISCONNECT <optional><replaceable>connection</replaceable></optional>;
</programlisting>
   The <replaceable>connection</replaceable> can be specified
   in the following ways:

   <itemizedlist>
    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal><replaceable>connection-name</replaceable></literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal>CURRENT</literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      <literal>ALL</literal>
     </simpara>
    </listitem>
   </itemizedlist>

   If no connection name is specified, the current connection is
   closed.
  </para>

  <para>
   It is good style that an application always explicitly disconnect
   from every connection it opened.
  </para>
  </sect2>

 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-commands">
  <title>Running SQL Commands</title>

  <para>
   Any SQL command can be run from within an embedded SQL application.
   Below are some examples of how to do that.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-executing">
   <title>Executing SQL Statements</title>

  <para>
   Creating a table:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL CREATE TABLE foo (number integer, ascii char(16));
EXEC SQL CREATE UNIQUE INDEX num1 ON foo(number);
EXEC SQL COMMIT;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   Inserting rows:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL INSERT INTO foo (number, ascii) VALUES (9999, 'doodad');
EXEC SQL COMMIT;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   Deleting rows:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DELETE FROM foo WHERE number = 9999;
EXEC SQL COMMIT;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   Updates:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL UPDATE foo
    SET ascii = 'foobar'
    WHERE number = 9999;
EXEC SQL COMMIT;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   <literal>SELECT</literal> statements that return a single result
   row can also be executed using
   <literal>EXEC SQL</literal> directly.  To handle result sets with
   multiple rows, an application has to use a cursor;
   see <xref linkend="ecpg-cursors"/> below.  (As a special case, an
   application can fetch multiple rows at once into an array host
   variable; see <xref linkend="ecpg-variables-arrays"/>.)
  </para>

  <para>
   Single-row select:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL SELECT foo INTO :FooBar FROM table1 WHERE ascii = 'doodad';
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   Also, a configuration parameter can be retrieved with the
   <literal>SHOW</literal> command:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL SHOW search_path INTO :var;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   The tokens of the form
   <literal>:<replaceable>something</replaceable></literal> are
   <firstterm>host variables</firstterm>, that is, they refer to
   variables in the C program.  They are explained in <xref
   linkend="ecpg-variables"/>.
  </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-cursors">
   <title>Using Cursors</title>

  <para>
   To retrieve a result set holding multiple rows, an application has
   to declare a cursor and fetch each row from the cursor.  The steps
   to use a cursor are the following: declare a cursor, open it, fetch
   a row from the cursor, repeat, and finally close it.
  </para>

  <para>
   Select using cursors:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DECLARE foo_bar CURSOR FOR
    SELECT number, ascii FROM foo
    ORDER BY ascii;
EXEC SQL OPEN foo_bar;
EXEC SQL FETCH foo_bar INTO :FooBar, DooDad;
...
EXEC SQL CLOSE foo_bar;
EXEC SQL COMMIT;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   For more details about declaring a cursor, see <xref
   linkend="ecpg-sql-declare"/>; for more details about fetching rows from a
   cursor, see <xref linkend="sql-fetch"/>.
  </para>

   <note>
    <para>
     The ECPG <command>DECLARE</command> command does not actually
     cause a statement to be sent to the PostgreSQL backend.  The
     cursor is opened in the backend (using the
     backend's <command>DECLARE</command> command) at the point when
     the <command>OPEN</command> command is executed.
    </para>
   </note>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-transactions">
   <title>Managing Transactions</title>

  <para>
   In the default mode, statements are committed only when
   <command>EXEC SQL COMMIT</command> is issued. The embedded SQL
   interface also supports autocommit of transactions (similar to
   <application>psql</application>'s default behavior) via the <option>-t</option>
   command-line option to <command>ecpg</command> (see <xref
   linkend="app-ecpg"/>) or via the <literal>EXEC SQL SET AUTOCOMMIT TO
   ON</literal> statement. In autocommit mode, each command is
   automatically committed unless it is inside an explicit transaction
   block. This mode can be explicitly turned off using <literal>EXEC
   SQL SET AUTOCOMMIT TO OFF</literal>.
  </para>

   <para>
    The following transaction management commands are available:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-transactions-exec-sql-commit">
      <term><literal>EXEC SQL COMMIT</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Commit an in-progress transaction.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-transactions-exec-sql-rollback">
      <term><literal>EXEC SQL ROLLBACK</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Roll back an in-progress transaction.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-transactions-exec-sql-prepare-transaction">
      <term><literal>EXEC SQL PREPARE TRANSACTION </literal><replaceable class="parameter">transaction_id</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Prepare the current transaction for two-phase commit.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-transactions-exec-sql-commit-prepared">
      <term><literal>EXEC SQL COMMIT PREPARED </literal><replaceable class="parameter">transaction_id</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Commit a transaction that is in prepared state.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-transactions-exec-sql-rollback-prepared">
      <term><literal>EXEC SQL ROLLBACK PREPARED </literal><replaceable class="parameter">transaction_id</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Roll back a transaction that is in prepared state.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-transactions-exec-sql-autocommit-on">
      <term><literal>EXEC SQL SET AUTOCOMMIT TO ON</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Enable autocommit mode.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-transactions-exec-sql-autocommit-off">
      <term><literal>EXEC SQL SET AUTOCOMMIT TO OFF</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Disable autocommit mode.  This is the default.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-prepared">
   <title>Prepared Statements</title>

   <para>
    When the values to be passed to an SQL statement are not known at
    compile time, or the same statement is going to be used many
    times, then prepared statements can be useful.
   </para>

   <para>
    The statement is prepared using the
    command <literal>PREPARE</literal>.  For the values that are not
    known yet, use the
    placeholder <quote><literal>?</literal></quote>:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM "SELECT oid, datname FROM pg_database WHERE oid = ?";
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    If a statement returns a single row, the application can
    call <literal>EXECUTE</literal> after
    <literal>PREPARE</literal> to execute the statement, supplying the
    actual values for the placeholders with a <literal>USING</literal>
    clause:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL EXECUTE stmt1 INTO :dboid, :dbname USING 1;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    If a statement returns multiple rows, the application can use a
    cursor declared based on the prepared statement.  To bind input
    parameters, the cursor must be opened with
    a <literal>USING</literal> clause:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM "SELECT oid,datname FROM pg_database WHERE oid &gt; ?";
EXEC SQL DECLARE foo_bar CURSOR FOR stmt1;

/* when end of result set reached, break out of while loop */
EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

EXEC SQL OPEN foo_bar USING 100;
...
while (1)
{
    EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM foo_bar INTO :dboid, :dbname;
    ...
}
EXEC SQL CLOSE foo_bar;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    When you don't need the prepared statement anymore, you should
    deallocate it:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEALLOCATE PREPARE <replaceable>name</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    For more details about <literal>PREPARE</literal>,
    see <xref linkend="ecpg-sql-prepare"/>. Also
    see <xref linkend="ecpg-dynamic"/> for more details about using
    placeholders and input parameters.
   </para>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-variables">
  <title>Using Host Variables</title>

  <para>
   In <xref linkend="ecpg-commands"/> you saw how you can execute SQL
   statements from an embedded SQL program.  Some of those statements
   only used fixed values and did not provide a way to insert
   user-supplied values into statements or have the program process
   the values returned by the query.  Those kinds of statements are
   not really useful in real applications.  This section explains in
   detail how you can pass data between your C program and the
   embedded SQL statements using a simple mechanism called
   <firstterm>host variables</firstterm>. In an embedded SQL program we
   consider the SQL statements to be <firstterm>guests</firstterm> in the C
   program code which is the <firstterm>host language</firstterm>. Therefore
   the variables of the C program are called <firstterm>host
   variables</firstterm>.
  </para>

  <para>
   Another way to exchange values between PostgreSQL backends and ECPG
   applications is the use of SQL descriptors, described
   in <xref linkend="ecpg-descriptors"/>.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-variables-overview">
   <title>Overview</title>

   <para>
    Passing data between the C program and the SQL statements is
    particularly simple in embedded SQL.  Instead of having the
    program paste the data into the statement, which entails various
    complications, such as properly quoting the value, you can simply
    write the name of a C variable into the SQL statement, prefixed by
    a colon.  For example:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL INSERT INTO sometable VALUES (:v1, 'foo', :v2);
</programlisting>
    This statement refers to two C variables named
    <varname>v1</varname> and <varname>v2</varname> and also uses a
    regular SQL string literal, to illustrate that you are not
    restricted to use one kind of data or the other.
   </para>

   <para>
    This style of inserting C variables in SQL statements works
    anywhere a value expression is expected in an SQL statement.
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-declare-sections">
   <title>Declare Sections</title>

   <para>
    To pass data from the program to the database, for example as
    parameters in a query, or to pass data from the database back to
    the program, the C variables that are intended to contain this
    data need to be declared in specially marked sections, so the
    embedded SQL preprocessor is made aware of them.
   </para>

   <para>
    This section starts with:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
</programlisting>
    and ends with:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
</programlisting>
    Between those lines, there must be normal C variable declarations,
    such as:
<programlisting>
int   x = 4;
char  foo[16], bar[16];
</programlisting>
    As you can see, you can optionally assign an initial value to the variable.
    The variable's scope is determined by the location of its declaring
    section within the program.
    You can also declare variables with the following syntax which implicitly
    creates a declare section:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL int i = 4;
</programlisting>
    You can have as many declare sections in a program as you like.
   </para>

   <para>
    The declarations are also echoed to the output file as normal C
    variables, so there's no need to declare them again.  Variables
    that are not intended to be used in SQL commands can be declared
    normally outside these special sections.
   </para>

   <para>
    The definition of a structure or union also must be listed inside
    a <literal>DECLARE</literal> section. Otherwise the preprocessor cannot
    handle these types since it does not know the definition.
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-retrieving">
   <title>Retrieving Query Results</title>

   <para>
    Now you should be able to pass data generated by your program into
    an SQL command.  But how do you retrieve the results of a query?
    For that purpose, embedded SQL provides special variants of the
    usual commands <command>SELECT</command> and
    <command>FETCH</command>.  These commands have a special
    <literal>INTO</literal> clause that specifies which host variables
    the retrieved values are to be stored in.
    <command>SELECT</command> is used for a query that returns only
    single row, and <command>FETCH</command> is used for a query that
    returns multiple rows, using a cursor.
   </para>

   <para>
    Here is an example:
<programlisting>
/*
 * assume this table:
 * CREATE TABLE test1 (a int, b varchar(50));
 */

EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int v1;
VARCHAR v2;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

 ...

EXEC SQL SELECT a, b INTO :v1, :v2 FROM test;
</programlisting>
    So the <literal>INTO</literal> clause appears between the select
    list and the <literal>FROM</literal> clause.  The number of
    elements in the select list and the list after
    <literal>INTO</literal> (also called the target list) must be
    equal.
   </para>

   <para>
    Here is an example using the command <command>FETCH</command>:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int v1;
VARCHAR v2;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

 ...

EXEC SQL DECLARE foo CURSOR FOR SELECT a, b FROM test;

 ...

do
{
    ...
    EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM foo INTO :v1, :v2;
    ...
} while (...);
</programlisting>
    Here the <literal>INTO</literal> clause appears after all the
    normal clauses.
   </para>

  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-variables-type-mapping">
   <title>Type Mapping</title>

   <para>
    When ECPG applications exchange values between the PostgreSQL
    server and the C application, such as when retrieving query
    results from the server or executing SQL statements with input
    parameters, the values need to be converted between PostgreSQL
    data types and host language variable types (C language data
    types, concretely).  One of the main points of ECPG is that it
    takes care of this automatically in most cases.
   </para>

   <para>
    In this respect, there are two kinds of data types: Some simple
    PostgreSQL data types, such as <type>integer</type>
    and <type>text</type>, can be read and written by the application
    directly.  Other PostgreSQL data types, such
    as <type>timestamp</type> and <type>numeric</type> can only be
    accessed through special library functions; see
    <xref linkend="ecpg-special-types"/>.
   </para>

   <para>
    <xref linkend="ecpg-datatype-hostvars-table"/> shows which PostgreSQL
    data types correspond to which C data types.  When you wish to
    send or receive a value of a given PostgreSQL data type, you
    should declare a C variable of the corresponding C data type in
    the declare section.
   </para>

   <table id="ecpg-datatype-hostvars-table">
    <title>Mapping Between PostgreSQL Data Types and C Variable Types</title>
    <tgroup cols="2">
     <thead>
      <row>
       <entry>PostgreSQL data type</entry>
       <entry>Host variable type</entry>
      </row>
     </thead>

     <tbody>
      <row>
       <entry><type>smallint</type></entry>
       <entry><type>short</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>integer</type></entry>
       <entry><type>int</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>bigint</type></entry>
       <entry><type>long long int</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>decimal</type></entry>
       <entry><type>decimal</type><footnote id="ecpg-datatype-table-fn"><para>This type can only be accessed through special library functions; see <xref linkend="ecpg-special-types"/>.</para></footnote></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>numeric</type></entry>
       <entry><type>numeric</type><footnoteref linkend="ecpg-datatype-table-fn"/></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>real</type></entry>
       <entry><type>float</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>double precision</type></entry>
       <entry><type>double</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>smallserial</type></entry>
       <entry><type>short</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>serial</type></entry>
       <entry><type>int</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>bigserial</type></entry>
       <entry><type>long long int</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>oid</type></entry>
       <entry><type>unsigned int</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>character(<replaceable>n</replaceable>)</type>, <type>varchar(<replaceable>n</replaceable>)</type>, <type>text</type></entry>
       <entry><type>char[<replaceable>n</replaceable>+1]</type>, <type>VARCHAR[<replaceable>n</replaceable>+1]</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>name</type></entry>
       <entry><type>char[NAMEDATALEN]</type></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>timestamp</type></entry>
       <entry><type>timestamp</type><footnoteref linkend="ecpg-datatype-table-fn"/></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>interval</type></entry>
       <entry><type>interval</type><footnoteref linkend="ecpg-datatype-table-fn"/></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>date</type></entry>
       <entry><type>date</type><footnoteref linkend="ecpg-datatype-table-fn"/></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>boolean</type></entry>
       <entry><type>bool</type><footnote><para>declared in <filename>ecpglib.h</filename> if not native</para></footnote></entry>
      </row>

      <row>
       <entry><type>bytea</type></entry>
       <entry><type>char *</type>, <type>bytea[<replaceable>n</replaceable>]</type></entry>
      </row>
     </tbody>
    </tgroup>
   </table>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-char">
    <title>Handling Character Strings</title>

    <para>
     To handle SQL character string data types, such
     as <type>varchar</type> and <type>text</type>, there are two
     possible ways to declare the host variables.
    </para>

    <para>
     One way is using <type>char[]</type>, an array
     of <type>char</type>, which is the most common way to handle
     character data in C.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char str[50];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
</programlisting>
     Note that you have to take care of the length yourself.  If you
     use this host variable as the target variable of a query which
     returns a string with more than 49 characters, a buffer overflow
     occurs.
    </para>

    <para>
     The other way is using the <type>VARCHAR</type> type, which is a
     special type provided by ECPG.  The definition on an array of
     type <type>VARCHAR</type> is converted into a
     named <type>struct</type> for every variable. A declaration like:
<programlisting>
VARCHAR var[180];
</programlisting>
     is converted into:
<programlisting>
struct varchar_var { int len; char arr[180]; } var;
</programlisting>
     The member <structfield>arr</structfield> hosts the string
     including a terminating zero byte.  Thus, to store a string in
     a <type>VARCHAR</type> host variable, the host variable has to be
     declared with the length including the zero byte terminator.  The
     member <structfield>len</structfield> holds the length of the
     string stored in the <structfield>arr</structfield> without the
     terminating zero byte.  When a host variable is used as input for
     a query, if <literal>strlen(arr)</literal>
     and <structfield>len</structfield> are different, the shorter one
     is used.
    </para>

    <para>
     <type>VARCHAR</type> can be written in upper or lower case, but
     not in mixed case.
    </para>

    <para>
     <type>char</type> and <type>VARCHAR</type> host variables can
     also hold values of other SQL types, which will be stored in
     their string forms.
    </para>
   </sect3>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-special-types">
    <title>Accessing Special Data Types</title>

    <para>
     ECPG contains some special types that help you to interact easily
     with some special data types from the PostgreSQL server. In
     particular, it has implemented support for the
     <type>numeric</type>, <type>decimal</type>, <type>date</type>, <type>timestamp</type>,
     and <type>interval</type> types.  These data types cannot usefully be
     mapped to primitive host variable types (such
     as <type>int</type>, <type>long long int</type>,
     or <type>char[]</type>), because they have a complex internal
     structure.  Applications deal with these types by declaring host
     variables in special types and accessing them using functions in
     the pgtypes library.  The pgtypes library, described in detail
     in <xref linkend="ecpg-pgtypes"/> contains basic functions to deal
     with those types, such that you do not need to send a query to
     the SQL server just for adding an interval to a time stamp for
     example.
    </para>

    <para>
     The follow subsections describe these special data types. For
     more details about pgtypes library functions,
     see <xref linkend="ecpg-pgtypes"/>.
    </para>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-special-types-timestamp-date">
     <title>timestamp, date</title>

     <para>
      Here is a pattern for handling <type>timestamp</type> variables
      in the ECPG host application.
     </para>

     <para>
      First, the program has to include the header file for the
      <type>timestamp</type> type:
<programlisting>
#include &lt;pgtypes_timestamp.h>
</programlisting>
     </para>

     <para>
      Next, declare a host variable as type <type>timestamp</type> in
      the declare section:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
timestamp ts;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
</programlisting>
     </para>

     <para>
      And after reading a value into the host variable, process it
      using pgtypes library functions. In following example, the
      <type>timestamp</type> value is converted into text (ASCII) form
      with the <function>PGTYPEStimestamp_to_asc()</function>
      function:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL SELECT now()::timestamp INTO :ts;

printf("ts = %s\n", PGTYPEStimestamp_to_asc(ts));
</programlisting>
      This example will show some result like following:
<screen>
ts = 2010-06-27 18:03:56.949343
</screen>
     </para>

     <para>
      In addition, the DATE type can be handled in the same way. The
      program has to include <filename>pgtypes_date.h</filename>, declare a host variable
      as the date type and convert a DATE value into a text form using
      <function>PGTYPESdate_to_asc()</function> function. For more details about the
      pgtypes library functions, see <xref linkend="ecpg-pgtypes"/>.
     </para>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-type-interval">
     <title>interval</title>

     <para>
      The handling of the <type>interval</type> type is also similar
      to the <type>timestamp</type> and <type>date</type> types.  It
      is required, however, to allocate memory for
      an <type>interval</type> type value explicitly.  In other words,
      the memory space for the variable has to be allocated in the
      heap memory, not in the stack memory.
     </para>

     <para>
      Here is an example program:
<programlisting>
#include &lt;stdio.h>
#include &lt;stdlib.h>
#include &lt;pgtypes_interval.h>

int
main(void)
{
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    interval *in;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    in = PGTYPESinterval_new();
    EXEC SQL SELECT '1 min'::interval INTO :in;
    printf("interval = %s\n", PGTYPESinterval_to_asc(in));
    PGTYPESinterval_free(in);

    EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
    return 0;
}
</programlisting>
     </para>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-type-numeric-decimal">
     <title>numeric, decimal</title>

     <para>
      The handling of the <type>numeric</type>
      and <type>decimal</type> types is similar to the
      <type>interval</type> type: It requires defining a pointer,
      allocating some memory space on the heap, and accessing the
      variable using the pgtypes library functions.  For more details
      about the pgtypes library functions,
      see <xref linkend="ecpg-pgtypes"/>.
     </para>

     <para>
      No functions are provided specifically for
      the <type>decimal</type> type.  An application has to convert it
      to a <type>numeric</type> variable using a pgtypes library
      function to do further processing.
     </para>

     <para>
      Here is an example program handling <type>numeric</type>
      and <type>decimal</type> type variables.
<programlisting>
#include &lt;stdio.h>
#include &lt;stdlib.h>
#include &lt;pgtypes_numeric.h>

EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR STOP;

int
main(void)
{
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    numeric *num;
    numeric *num2;
    decimal *dec;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    num = PGTYPESnumeric_new();
    dec = PGTYPESdecimal_new();

    EXEC SQL SELECT 12.345::numeric(4,2), 23.456::decimal(4,2) INTO :num, :dec;

    printf("numeric = %s\n", PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc(num, 0));
    printf("numeric = %s\n", PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc(num, 1));
    printf("numeric = %s\n", PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc(num, 2));

    /* Convert decimal to numeric to show a decimal value. */
    num2 = PGTYPESnumeric_new();
    PGTYPESnumeric_from_decimal(dec, num2);

    printf("decimal = %s\n", PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc(num2, 0));
    printf("decimal = %s\n", PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc(num2, 1));
    printf("decimal = %s\n", PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc(num2, 2));

    PGTYPESnumeric_free(num2);
    PGTYPESdecimal_free(dec);
    PGTYPESnumeric_free(num);

    EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
    return 0;
}
</programlisting>
     </para>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-special-types-bytea">
     <title>bytea</title>

     <para>
      The handling of the <type>bytea</type> type is similar to
      that of <type>VARCHAR</type>. The definition on an array of type
      <type>bytea</type> is converted into a named struct for every
      variable. A declaration like:
<programlisting>
bytea var[180];
</programlisting>
     is converted into:
<programlisting>
struct bytea_var { int len; char arr[180]; } var;
</programlisting>
      The member <structfield>arr</structfield> hosts binary format
      data. It can also handle <literal>'\0'</literal> as part of
      data, unlike <type>VARCHAR</type>.
      The data is converted from/to hex format and sent/received by
      ecpglib.
     </para>

     <note>
      <para>
       <type>bytea</type> variable can be used only when
       <xref linkend="guc-bytea-output"/> is set to <literal>hex</literal>.
      </para>
     </note>
    </sect4>
   </sect3>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-variables-nonprimitive-c">
    <title>Host Variables with Nonprimitive Types</title>

    <para>
     As a host variable you can also use arrays, typedefs, structs, and
     pointers.
    </para>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-variables-arrays">
     <title>Arrays</title>

     <para>
      There are two use cases for arrays as host variables.  The first
      is a way to store some text string in <type>char[]</type>
      or <type>VARCHAR[]</type>, as
      explained in <xref linkend="ecpg-char"/>.  The second use case is to
      retrieve multiple rows from a query result without using a
      cursor.  Without an array, to process a query result consisting
      of multiple rows, it is required to use a cursor and
      the <command>FETCH</command> command.  But with array host
      variables, multiple rows can be received at once.  The length of
      the array has to be defined to be able to accommodate all rows,
      otherwise a buffer overflow will likely occur.
     </para>

     <para>
      Following example scans the <literal>pg_database</literal>
      system table and shows all OIDs and names of the available
      databases:
<programlisting>
int
main(void)
{
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    int dbid[8];
    char dbname[8][16];
    int i;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    memset(dbname, 0, sizeof(char)* 16 * 8);
    memset(dbid, 0, sizeof(int) * 8);

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    /* Retrieve multiple rows into arrays at once. */
    EXEC SQL SELECT oid,datname INTO :dbid, :dbname FROM pg_database;

    for (i = 0; i &lt; 8; i++)
        printf("oid=%d, dbname=%s\n", dbid[i], dbname[i]);

    EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
    return 0;
}
</programlisting>

    This example shows following result. (The exact values depend on
    local circumstances.)
<screen>
oid=1, dbname=template1
oid=11510, dbname=template0
oid=11511, dbname=postgres
oid=313780, dbname=testdb
oid=0, dbname=
oid=0, dbname=
oid=0, dbname=
</screen>
     </para>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-variables-struct">
     <title>Structures</title>

     <para>
      A structure whose member names match the column names of a query
      result, can be used to retrieve multiple columns at once.  The
      structure enables handling multiple column values in a single
      host variable.
     </para>

     <para>
      The following example retrieves OIDs, names, and sizes of the
      available databases from the <literal>pg_database</literal>
      system table and using
      the <function>pg_database_size()</function> function.  In this
      example, a structure variable <varname>dbinfo_t</varname> with
      members whose names match each column in
      the <literal>SELECT</literal> result is used to retrieve one
      result row without putting multiple host variables in
      the <literal>FETCH</literal> statement.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    typedef struct
    {
       int oid;
       char datname[65];
       long long int size;
    } dbinfo_t;

    dbinfo_t dbval;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    memset(&amp;dbval, 0, sizeof(dbinfo_t));

    EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT oid, datname, pg_database_size(oid) AS size FROM pg_database;
    EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

    /* when end of result set reached, break out of while loop */
    EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

    while (1)
    {
        /* Fetch multiple columns into one structure. */
        EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :dbval;

        /* Print members of the structure. */
        printf("oid=%d, datname=%s, size=%lld\n", dbval.oid, dbval.datname, dbval.size);
    }

    EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
</programlisting>
     </para>

     <para>
      This example shows following result. (The exact values depend on
      local circumstances.)
<screen>
oid=1, datname=template1, size=4324580
oid=11510, datname=template0, size=4243460
oid=11511, datname=postgres, size=4324580
oid=313780, datname=testdb, size=8183012
</screen>
     </para>

     <para>
      Structure host variables <quote>absorb</quote> as many columns
      as the structure as fields.  Additional columns can be assigned
      to other host variables. For example, the above program could
      also be restructured like this, with the <varname>size</varname>
      variable outside the structure:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    typedef struct
    {
       int oid;
       char datname[65];
    } dbinfo_t;

    dbinfo_t dbval;
    long long int size;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    memset(&amp;dbval, 0, sizeof(dbinfo_t));

    EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT oid, datname, pg_database_size(oid) AS size FROM pg_database;
    EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

    /* when end of result set reached, break out of while loop */
    EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

    while (1)
    {
        /* Fetch multiple columns into one structure. */
        EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :dbval, :size;

        /* Print members of the structure. */
        printf("oid=%d, datname=%s, size=%lld\n", dbval.oid, dbval.datname, size);
    }

    EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
</programlisting>
     </para>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-variables-nonprimitive-c-typedefs">
     <title>Typedefs</title>
     <indexterm>
      <primary>typedef</primary>
      <secondary>in ECPG</secondary>
     </indexterm>

     <para>
      Use the <literal>typedef</literal> keyword to map new types to already
      existing types.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    typedef char mychartype[40];
    typedef long serial_t;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
</programlisting>
      Note that you could also use:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL TYPE serial_t IS long;
</programlisting>
      This declaration does not need to be part of a declare section;
      that is, you can also write typedefs as normal C statements.
     </para>

     <para>
      Any word you declare as a <literal>typedef</literal> cannot be used as
      an SQL keyword in <literal>EXEC SQL</literal> commands later in the same
      program. For example, this won't work:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    typedef int start;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
...
EXEC SQL START TRANSACTION;
</programlisting>
      ECPG will report a syntax error for <literal>START
      TRANSACTION</literal>, because it no longer
      recognizes <literal>START</literal> as an SQL keyword,
      only as a typedef.
      (If you have such a conflict, and renaming the typedef
      seems impractical, you could write the SQL command
      using <link linkend="ecpg-dynamic">dynamic SQL</link>.)
     </para>

     <note>
      <para>
       In <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> releases before v16, use
       of SQL keywords as typedef names was likely to result in syntax
       errors associated with use of the typedef itself, rather than use
       of the name as an SQL keyword.  The new behavior is less likely to
       cause problems when an existing ECPG application is recompiled in
       a new <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> release with new
       keywords.
      </para>
     </note>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-variables-nonprimitive-c-pointers">
     <title>Pointers</title>

     <para>
      You can declare pointers to the most common types. Note however
      that you cannot use pointers as target variables of queries
      without auto-allocation. See <xref linkend="ecpg-descriptors"/>
      for more information on auto-allocation.
     </para>

     <para>
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    int   *intp;
    char **charp;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
</programlisting>
     </para>
    </sect4>
   </sect3>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-variables-nonprimitive-sql">
   <title>Handling Nonprimitive SQL Data Types</title>

   <para>
    This section contains information on how to handle nonscalar and
    user-defined SQL-level data types in ECPG applications.  Note that
    this is distinct from the handling of host variables of
    nonprimitive types, described in the previous section.
   </para>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-variables-nonprimitive-sql-arrays">
    <title>Arrays</title>

    <para>
     Multi-dimensional SQL-level arrays are not directly supported in ECPG.
     One-dimensional SQL-level arrays can be mapped into C array host
     variables and vice-versa.  However, when creating a statement ecpg does
     not know the types of the columns, so that it cannot check if a C array
     is input into a corresponding SQL-level array.  When processing the
     output of an SQL statement, ecpg has the necessary information and thus
     checks if both are arrays.
    </para>

    <para>
     If a query accesses <emphasis>elements</emphasis> of an array
     separately, then this avoids the use of arrays in ECPG.  Then, a
     host variable with a type that can be mapped to the element type
     should be used.  For example, if a column type is array of
     <type>integer</type>, a host variable of type <type>int</type>
     can be used.  Also if the element type is <type>varchar</type>
     or <type>text</type>, a host variable of type <type>char[]</type>
     or <type>VARCHAR[]</type> can be used.
    </para>

    <para>
     Here is an example.  Assume the following table:
<programlisting>
CREATE TABLE t3 (
    ii integer[]
);

testdb=&gt; SELECT * FROM t3;
     ii
-------------
 {1,2,3,4,5}
(1 row)
</programlisting>

     The following example program retrieves the 4th element of the
     array and stores it into a host variable of
     type <type>int</type>:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int ii;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT ii[4] FROM t3;
EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

while (1)
{
    EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :ii ;
    printf("ii=%d\n", ii);
}

EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
</programlisting>

     This example shows the following result:
<screen>
ii=4
</screen>
    </para>

    <para>
     To map multiple array elements to the multiple elements in an
     array type host variables each element of array column and each
     element of the host variable array have to be managed separately,
     for example:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int ii_a[8];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT ii[1], ii[2], ii[3], ii[4] FROM t3;
EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

while (1)
{
    EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :ii_a[0], :ii_a[1], :ii_a[2], :ii_a[3];
    ...
}
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Note again that
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int ii_a[8];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT ii FROM t3;
EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

while (1)
{
    /* WRONG */
    EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :ii_a;
    ...
}
</programlisting>
     would not work correctly in this case, because you cannot map an
     array type column to an array host variable directly.
    </para>

    <para>
     Another workaround is to store arrays in their external string
     representation in host variables of type <type>char[]</type>
     or <type>VARCHAR[]</type>.  For more details about this
     representation, see <xref linkend="arrays-input"/>.  Note that
     this means that the array cannot be accessed naturally as an
     array in the host program (without further processing that parses
     the text representation).
    </para>
   </sect3>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-variables-nonprimitive-sql-composite">
    <title>Composite Types</title>

    <para>
     Composite types are not directly supported in ECPG, but an easy workaround is possible.
  The
     available workarounds are similar to the ones described for
     arrays above: Either access each attribute separately or use the
     external string representation.
    </para>

    <para>
     For the following examples, assume the following type and table:
<programlisting>
CREATE TYPE comp_t AS (intval integer, textval varchar(32));
CREATE TABLE t4 (compval comp_t);
INSERT INTO t4 VALUES ( (256, 'PostgreSQL') );
</programlisting>

     The most obvious solution is to access each attribute separately.
     The following program retrieves data from the example table by
     selecting each attribute of the type <type>comp_t</type>
     separately:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int intval;
varchar textval[33];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

/* Put each element of the composite type column in the SELECT list. */
EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT (compval).intval, (compval).textval FROM t4;
EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

while (1)
{
    /* Fetch each element of the composite type column into host variables. */
    EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :intval, :textval;

    printf("intval=%d, textval=%s\n", intval, textval.arr);
}

EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     To enhance this example, the host variables to store values in
     the <command>FETCH</command> command can be gathered into one
     structure.  For more details about the host variable in the
     structure form, see <xref linkend="ecpg-variables-struct"/>.
     To switch to the structure, the example can be modified as below.
     The two host variables, <varname>intval</varname>
     and <varname>textval</varname>, become members of
     the <structname>comp_t</structname> structure, and the structure
     is specified on the <command>FETCH</command> command.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
typedef struct
{
    int intval;
    varchar textval[33];
} comp_t;

comp_t compval;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

/* Put each element of the composite type column in the SELECT list. */
EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT (compval).intval, (compval).textval FROM t4;
EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

while (1)
{
    /* Put all values in the SELECT list into one structure. */
    EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :compval;

    printf("intval=%d, textval=%s\n", compval.intval, compval.textval.arr);
}

EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
</programlisting>

     Although a structure is used in the <command>FETCH</command>
     command, the attribute names in the <command>SELECT</command>
     clause are specified one by one.  This can be enhanced by using
     a <literal>*</literal> to ask for all attributes of the composite
     type value.
<programlisting>
...
EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT (compval).* FROM t4;
EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

while (1)
{
    /* Put all values in the SELECT list into one structure. */
    EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :compval;

    printf("intval=%d, textval=%s\n", compval.intval, compval.textval.arr);
}
...
</programlisting>
     This way, composite types can be mapped into structures almost
     seamlessly, even though ECPG does not understand the composite
     type itself.
    </para>

    <para>
     Finally, it is also possible to store composite type values in
     their external string representation in host variables of
     type <type>char[]</type> or <type>VARCHAR[]</type>.  But that
     way, it is not easily possible to access the fields of the value
     from the host program.
    </para>
   </sect3>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-variables-nonprimitive-sql-user-defined-base-types">
    <title>User-Defined Base Types</title>

    <para>
     New user-defined base types are not directly supported by ECPG.
     You can use the external string representation and host variables
     of type <type>char[]</type> or <type>VARCHAR[]</type>, and this
     solution is indeed appropriate and sufficient for many types.
    </para>

    <para>
     Here is an example using the data type <type>complex</type> from
     the example in <xref linkend="xtypes"/>.  The external string
     representation of that type is <literal>(%f,%f)</literal>,
     which is defined in the
     functions <function>complex_in()</function>
     and <function>complex_out()</function>
     in <xref linkend="xtypes"/>.  The following example inserts the
     complex type values <literal>(1,1)</literal>
     and <literal>(3,3)</literal> into the
     columns <structfield>a</structfield> and <structfield>b</structfield>, and select
     them from the table after that.

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    varchar a[64];
    varchar b[64];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL INSERT INTO test_complex VALUES ('(1,1)', '(3,3)');

    EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT a, b FROM test_complex;
    EXEC SQL OPEN cur1;

    EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

    while (1)
    {
        EXEC SQL FETCH FROM cur1 INTO :a, :b;
        printf("a=%s, b=%s\n", a.arr, b.arr);
    }

    EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
</programlisting>

     This example shows following result:
<screen>
a=(1,1), b=(3,3)
</screen>
   </para>

    <para>
     Another workaround is avoiding the direct use of the user-defined
     types in ECPG and instead create a function or cast that converts
     between the user-defined type and a primitive type that ECPG can
     handle.  Note, however, that type casts, especially implicit
     ones, should be introduced into the type system very carefully.
    </para>

    <para>
     For example,
<programlisting>
CREATE FUNCTION create_complex(r double, i double) RETURNS complex
LANGUAGE SQL
IMMUTABLE
AS $$ SELECT $1 * complex '(1,0')' + $2 * complex '(0,1)' $$;
</programlisting>
    After this definition, the following
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
double a, b, c, d;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

a = 1;
b = 2;
c = 3;
d = 4;

EXEC SQL INSERT INTO test_complex VALUES (create_complex(:a, :b), create_complex(:c, :d));
</programlisting>
    has the same effect as
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL INSERT INTO test_complex VALUES ('(1,2)', '(3,4)');
</programlisting>
    </para>
   </sect3>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-indicators">
   <title>Indicators</title>

   <para>
    The examples above do not handle null values.  In fact, the
    retrieval examples will raise an error if they fetch a null value
    from the database.  To be able to pass null values to the database
    or retrieve null values from the database, you need to append a
    second host variable specification to each host variable that
    contains data.  This second host variable is called the
    <firstterm>indicator</firstterm> and contains a flag that tells
    whether the datum is null, in which case the value of the real
    host variable is ignored.  Here is an example that handles the
    retrieval of null values correctly:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
VARCHAR val;
int val_ind;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION:

 ...

EXEC SQL SELECT b INTO :val :val_ind FROM test1;
</programlisting>
    The indicator variable <varname>val_ind</varname> will be zero if
    the value was not null, and it will be negative if the value was
    null.  (See <xref linkend="ecpg-oracle-compat"/> to enable
    Oracle-specific behavior.)
   </para>

   <para>
    The indicator has another function: if the indicator value is
    positive, it means that the value is not null, but it was
    truncated when it was stored in the host variable.
   </para>

   <para>
    If the argument <literal>-r no_indicator</literal> is passed to
    the preprocessor <command>ecpg</command>, it works in
    <quote>no-indicator</quote> mode. In no-indicator mode, if no
    indicator variable is specified, null values are signaled (on
    input and output) for character string types as empty string and
    for integer types as the lowest possible value for type (for
    example, <symbol>INT_MIN</symbol> for <type>int</type>).
   </para>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-dynamic">
  <title>Dynamic SQL</title>

  <para>
   In many cases, the particular SQL statements that an application
   has to execute are known at the time the application is written.
   In some cases, however, the SQL statements are composed at run time
   or provided by an external source.  In these cases you cannot embed
   the SQL statements directly into the C source code, but there is a
   facility that allows you to call arbitrary SQL statements that you
   provide in a string variable.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-dynamic-without-result">
   <title>Executing Statements without a Result Set</title>

   <para>
    The simplest way to execute an arbitrary SQL statement is to use
    the command <command>EXECUTE IMMEDIATE</command>.  For example:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
const char *stmt = "CREATE TABLE test1 (...);";
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL EXECUTE IMMEDIATE :stmt;
</programlisting>
    <command>EXECUTE IMMEDIATE</command> can be used for SQL
    statements that do not return a result set (e.g.,
    DDL, <command>INSERT</command>, <command>UPDATE</command>,
    <command>DELETE</command>).  You cannot execute statements that
    retrieve data (e.g., <command>SELECT</command>) this way.  The
    next section describes how to do that.
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-dynamic-input">
   <title>Executing a Statement with Input Parameters</title>

   <para>
    A more powerful way to execute arbitrary SQL statements is to
    prepare them once and execute the prepared statement as often as
    you like.  It is also possible to prepare a generalized version of
    a statement and then execute specific versions of it by
    substituting parameters.  When preparing the statement, write
    question marks where you want to substitute parameters later.  For
    example:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
const char *stmt = "INSERT INTO test1 VALUES(?, ?);";
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL PREPARE mystmt FROM :stmt;
 ...
EXEC SQL EXECUTE mystmt USING 42, 'foobar';
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    When you don't need the prepared statement anymore, you should
    deallocate it:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEALLOCATE PREPARE <replaceable>name</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-dynamic-with-result">
   <title>Executing a Statement with a Result Set</title>

   <para>
    To execute an SQL statement with a single result row,
    <command>EXECUTE</command> can be used.  To save the result, add
    an <literal>INTO</literal> clause.
<programlisting><![CDATA[
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
const char *stmt = "SELECT a, b, c FROM test1 WHERE a > ?";
int v1, v2;
VARCHAR v3[50];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL PREPARE mystmt FROM :stmt;
 ...
EXEC SQL EXECUTE mystmt INTO :v1, :v2, :v3 USING 37;
]]>
</programlisting>
    An <command>EXECUTE</command> command can have an
    <literal>INTO</literal> clause, a <literal>USING</literal> clause,
    both, or neither.
   </para>

   <para>
    If a query is expected to return more than one result row, a
    cursor should be used, as in the following example.
    (See <xref linkend="ecpg-cursors"/> for more details about the
    cursor.)
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
char dbaname[128];
char datname[128];
char *stmt = "SELECT u.usename AS dbaname, d.datname "
             "  FROM pg_database d, pg_user u "
             "  WHERE d.datdba = u.usesysid";
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con1 USER testuser;
EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM :stmt;

EXEC SQL DECLARE cursor1 CURSOR FOR stmt1;
EXEC SQL OPEN cursor1;

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

while (1)
{
    EXEC SQL FETCH cursor1 INTO :dbaname,:datname;
    printf("dbaname=%s, datname=%s\n", dbaname, datname);
}

EXEC SQL CLOSE cursor1;

EXEC SQL COMMIT;
EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
</programlisting>
   </para>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-pgtypes">
  <title>pgtypes Library</title>

  <para>
   The pgtypes library maps <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> database
   types to C equivalents that can be used in C programs. It also offers
   functions to do basic calculations with those types within C, i.e., without
   the help of the <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server. See the
   following example:
<programlisting><![CDATA[
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
   date date1;
   timestamp ts1, tsout;
   interval iv1;
   char *out;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

PGTYPESdate_today(&date1);
EXEC SQL SELECT started, duration INTO :ts1, :iv1 FROM datetbl WHERE d=:date1;
PGTYPEStimestamp_add_interval(&ts1, &iv1, &tsout);
out = PGTYPEStimestamp_to_asc(&tsout);
printf("Started + duration: %s\n", out);
PGTYPESchar_free(out);
]]>
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-cstrings">
   <title>Character Strings</title>
   <para>
   Some functions such as <function>PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc</function> return
   a pointer to a freshly allocated character string. These results should be
   freed with <function>PGTYPESchar_free</function> instead of
   <function>free</function>. (This is important only on Windows, where
   memory allocation and release sometimes need to be done by the same
   library.)
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric">
   <title>The numeric Type</title>
   <para>
    The numeric type offers to do calculations with arbitrary precision. See
    <xref linkend="datatype-numeric"/> for the equivalent type in the
    <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server. Because of the arbitrary precision this
    variable needs to be able to expand and shrink dynamically. That's why you
    can only create numeric variables on the heap, by means of the
    <function>PGTYPESnumeric_new</function> and <function>PGTYPESnumeric_free</function>
    functions. The decimal type, which is similar but limited in precision,
    can be created on the stack as well as on the heap.
   </para>
   <para>
   The following functions can be used to work with the numeric type:
   <variablelist>
    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-new">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_new</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
      Request a pointer to a newly allocated numeric variable.
<synopsis>
numeric *PGTYPESnumeric_new(void);
</synopsis>
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-free">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_free</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
      Free a numeric type, release all of its memory.
<synopsis>
void PGTYPESnumeric_free(numeric *var);
</synopsis>
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-from-asc">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_from_asc</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Parse a numeric type from its string notation.
<synopsis>
numeric *PGTYPESnumeric_from_asc(char *str, char **endptr);
</synopsis>
       Valid formats are for example:
        <literal>-2</literal>,
        <literal>.794</literal>,
        <literal>+3.44</literal>,
        <literal>592.49E07</literal> or
        <literal>-32.84e-4</literal>.
       If the value could be parsed successfully, a valid pointer is returned,
       else the NULL pointer. At the moment ECPG always parses the complete
       string and so it currently does not support to store the address of the
       first invalid character in <literal>*endptr</literal>. You can safely
       set <literal>endptr</literal> to NULL.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-to-asc">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Returns a pointer to a string allocated by <function>malloc</function> that contains the string
       representation of the numeric type <literal>num</literal>.
<synopsis>
char *PGTYPESnumeric_to_asc(numeric *num, int dscale);
</synopsis>
       The numeric value will be printed with <literal>dscale</literal> decimal
       digits, with rounding applied if necessary.
       The result must be freed with <function>PGTYPESchar_free()</function>.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-add">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_add</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Add two numeric variables into a third one.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_add(numeric *var1, numeric *var2, numeric *result);
</synopsis>
       The function adds the variables <literal>var1</literal> and
       <literal>var2</literal> into the result variable
       <literal>result</literal>.
       The function returns 0 on success and -1 in case of error.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-sub">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_sub</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Subtract two numeric variables and return the result in a third one.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_sub(numeric *var1, numeric *var2, numeric *result);
</synopsis>
       The function subtracts the variable <literal>var2</literal> from
       the variable <literal>var1</literal>. The result of the operation is
       stored in the variable <literal>result</literal>.
       The function returns 0 on success and -1 in case of error.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-mul">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_mul</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Multiply two numeric variables and return the result in a third one.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_mul(numeric *var1, numeric *var2, numeric *result);
</synopsis>
       The function multiplies the variables <literal>var1</literal> and
       <literal>var2</literal>. The result of the operation is stored in the
       variable <literal>result</literal>.
       The function returns 0 on success and -1 in case of error.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-div">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_div</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Divide two numeric variables and return the result in a third one.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_div(numeric *var1, numeric *var2, numeric *result);
</synopsis>
       The function divides the variables <literal>var1</literal> by
       <literal>var2</literal>. The result of the operation is stored in the
       variable <literal>result</literal>.
       The function returns 0 on success and -1 in case of error.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-cmp">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_cmp</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Compare two numeric variables.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_cmp(numeric *var1, numeric *var2)
</synopsis>
       This function compares two numeric variables. In case of error,
       <literal>INT_MAX</literal> is returned. On success, the function
       returns one of three possible results:
       <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
         <para>
          1, if <literal>var1</literal> is bigger than <literal>var2</literal>
         </para>
        </listitem>
        <listitem>
         <para>
          -1, if <literal>var1</literal> is smaller than <literal>var2</literal>
         </para>
        </listitem>
        <listitem>
         <para>
          0, if <literal>var1</literal> and <literal>var2</literal> are equal
         </para>
        </listitem>
       </itemizedlist>
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-from-int">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_from_int</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert an int variable to a numeric variable.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_from_int(signed int int_val, numeric *var);
</synopsis>
       This function accepts a variable of type signed int and stores it
       in the numeric variable <literal>var</literal>. Upon success, 0 is returned and
       -1 in case of a failure.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-from-long">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_from_long</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert a long int variable to a numeric variable.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_from_long(signed long int long_val, numeric *var);
</synopsis>
       This function accepts a variable of type signed long int and stores it
       in the numeric variable <literal>var</literal>. Upon success, 0 is returned and
       -1 in case of a failure.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-copy">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_copy</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Copy over one numeric variable into another one.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_copy(numeric *src, numeric *dst);
</synopsis>
       This function copies over the value of the variable that
       <literal>src</literal> points to into the variable that <literal>dst</literal>
       points to. It returns 0 on success and -1 if an error occurs.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-from-double">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_from_double</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert a variable of type double to a numeric.
<synopsis>
int  PGTYPESnumeric_from_double(double d, numeric *dst);
</synopsis>
       This function accepts a variable of type double and stores the result
       in the variable that <literal>dst</literal> points to. It returns 0 on success
       and -1 if an error occurs.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-to-double">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_to_double</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert a variable of type numeric to double.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_to_double(numeric *nv, double *dp)
</synopsis>
       The function converts the numeric value from the variable that
       <literal>nv</literal> points to into the double variable that <literal>dp</literal> points
       to. It returns 0 on success and -1 if an error occurs, including
       overflow. On overflow, the global variable <literal>errno</literal> will be set
       to <literal>PGTYPES_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal> additionally.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-to-int">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_to_int</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert a variable of type numeric to int.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_to_int(numeric *nv, int *ip);
</synopsis>
       The function converts the numeric value from the variable that
       <literal>nv</literal> points to into the integer variable that <literal>ip</literal>
       points to. It returns 0 on success and -1 if an error occurs, including
       overflow. On overflow, the global variable <literal>errno</literal> will be set
       to <literal>PGTYPES_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal> additionally.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-to-long">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_to_long</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert a variable of type numeric to long.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_to_long(numeric *nv, long *lp);
</synopsis>
       The function converts the numeric value from the variable that
       <literal>nv</literal> points to into the long integer variable that
       <literal>lp</literal> points to. It returns 0 on success and -1 if an error
       occurs, including overflow and underflow. On overflow, the global variable
       <literal>errno</literal> will be set to <literal>PGTYPES_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal>
       and on underflow <literal>errno</literal> will be set to
       <literal>PGTYPES_NUM_UNDERFLOW</literal>.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-to-decimal">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_to_decimal</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert a variable of type numeric to decimal.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_to_decimal(numeric *src, decimal *dst);
</synopsis>
       The function converts the numeric value from the variable that
       <literal>src</literal> points to into the decimal variable that
       <literal>dst</literal> points to. It returns 0 on success and -1 if an error
       occurs, including overflow. On overflow, the global variable
       <literal>errno</literal> will be set to <literal>PGTYPES_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal>
       additionally.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-numeric-from-decimal">
     <term><function>PGTYPESnumeric_from_decimal</function></term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Convert a variable of type decimal to numeric.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESnumeric_from_decimal(decimal *src, numeric *dst);
</synopsis>
       The function converts the decimal value from the variable that
       <literal>src</literal> points to into the numeric variable that
       <literal>dst</literal> points to. It returns 0 on success and -1 if an error
       occurs. Since the decimal type is implemented as a limited version of
       the numeric type, overflow cannot occur with this conversion.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>
   </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-date">
   <title>The date Type</title>
   <para>
    The date type in C enables your programs to deal with data of the SQL type
    date. See <xref linkend="datatype-datetime"/> for the equivalent type in the
    <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server.
   </para>
   <para>
    The following functions can be used to work with the date type:
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatefromtimestamp">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_from_timestamp</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Extract the date part from a timestamp.
<synopsis>
date PGTYPESdate_from_timestamp(timestamp dt);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a timestamp as its only argument and returns the
        extracted date part from this timestamp.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatefromasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_from_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
       Parse a date from its textual representation.
<synopsis>
date PGTYPESdate_from_asc(char *str, char **endptr);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a C char* string <literal>str</literal> and a pointer to
        a C char* string <literal>endptr</literal>. At the moment ECPG always parses
        the complete string and so it currently does not support to store the
        address of the first invalid character in <literal>*endptr</literal>.
        You can safely set <literal>endptr</literal> to NULL.
       </para>
       <para>
        Note that the function always assumes MDY-formatted dates and there is
        currently no variable to change that within ECPG.
       </para>
       <para>
        <xref linkend="ecpg-pgtypesdate-from-asc-table"/> shows the allowed input formats.
       </para>
        <table id="ecpg-pgtypesdate-from-asc-table">
         <title>Valid Input Formats for <function>PGTYPESdate_from_asc</function></title>
         <tgroup cols="2">
          <thead>
           <row>
            <entry>Input</entry>
            <entry>Result</entry>
           </row>
          </thead>
          <tbody>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>1999-01-08</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>1/8/1999</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>1/18/1999</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 18, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>01/02/03</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>February 1, 2003</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>1999-Jan-08</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>Jan-08-1999</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>08-Jan-1999</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>99-Jan-08</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>08-Jan-99</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>08-Jan-06</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 2006</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>Jan-08-99</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>19990108</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>ISO 8601; January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>990108</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>ISO 8601; January 8, 1999</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>1999.008</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>year and day of year</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>J2451187</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>Julian day</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>January 8, 99 BC</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>year 99 before the Common Era</literal></entry>
           </row>
          </tbody>
         </tgroup>
        </table>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatetoasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_to_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Return the textual representation of a date variable.
<synopsis>
char *PGTYPESdate_to_asc(date dDate);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the date <literal>dDate</literal> as its only parameter.
        It will output the date in the form <literal>1999-01-18</literal>, i.e., in the
        <literal>YYYY-MM-DD</literal> format.
        The result must be freed with <function>PGTYPESchar_free()</function>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatejulmdy">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_julmdy</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Extract the values for the day, the month and the year from a variable
        of type date.
<synopsis>
void PGTYPESdate_julmdy(date d, int *mdy);
</synopsis>
       <!-- almost same description as for rjulmdy() -->
        The function receives the date <literal>d</literal> and a pointer to an array
        of 3 integer values <literal>mdy</literal>. The variable name indicates
        the sequential order: <literal>mdy[0]</literal> will be set to contain the
        number of the month, <literal>mdy[1]</literal> will be set to the value of the
        day and <literal>mdy[2]</literal> will contain the year.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatemdyjul">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_mdyjul</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Create a date value from an array of 3 integers that specify the
        day, the month and the year of the date.
<synopsis>
void PGTYPESdate_mdyjul(int *mdy, date *jdate);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the array of the 3 integers (<literal>mdy</literal>) as
        its first argument and as its second argument a pointer to a variable
        of type date that should hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatedayofweek">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_dayofweek</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Return a number representing the day of the week for a date value.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESdate_dayofweek(date d);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the date variable <literal>d</literal> as its only
        argument and returns an integer that indicates the day of the week for
        this date.
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           0 - Sunday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           1 - Monday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           2 - Tuesday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           3 - Wednesday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           4 - Thursday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           5 - Friday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           6 - Saturday
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatetoday">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_today</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Get the current date.
<synopsis>
void PGTYPESdate_today(date *d);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to a date variable (<literal>d</literal>)
        that it sets to the current date.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatefmtasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_fmt_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a variable of type date to its textual representation using a
        format mask.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESdate_fmt_asc(date dDate, char *fmtstring, char *outbuf);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the date to convert (<literal>dDate</literal>), the
        format mask (<literal>fmtstring</literal>) and the string that will hold the
        textual representation of the date (<literal>outbuf</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if an error occurred.
       </para>
       <para>
        The following literals are the field specifiers you can use:
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>dd</literal> - The number of the day of the month.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>mm</literal> - The number of the month of the year.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>yy</literal> - The number of the year as a two digit number.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>yyyy</literal> - The number of the year as a four digit number.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>ddd</literal> - The name of the day (abbreviated).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>mmm</literal> - The name of the month (abbreviated).
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
        All other characters are copied 1:1 to the output string.
       </para>
       <para>
        <xref linkend="ecpg-pgtypesdate-fmt-asc-example-table"/> indicates a few possible formats. This will give
        you an idea of how to use this function. All output lines are based on
        the same date: November 23, 1959.
       </para>
        <table id="ecpg-pgtypesdate-fmt-asc-example-table">
         <title>Valid Input Formats for <function>PGTYPESdate_fmt_asc</function></title>
         <tgroup cols="2">
          <thead>
           <row>
            <entry>Format</entry>
            <entry>Result</entry>
           </row>
          </thead>
          <tbody>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmddyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>112359</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>ddmmyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>231159</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yymmdd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>591123</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yy/mm/dd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>59/11/23</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yy mm dd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>59 11 23</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yy.mm.dd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>59.11.23</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>.mm.yyyy.dd.</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>.11.1959.23.</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmm. dd, yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>Nov. 23, 1959</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmm dd yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>Nov 23 1959</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yyyy dd mm</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1959 23 11</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>ddd, mmm. dd, yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>Mon, Nov. 23, 1959</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>(ddd) mmm. dd, yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>(Mon) Nov. 23, 1959</literal></entry>
           </row>
          </tbody>
         </tgroup>
        </table>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesdatedefmtasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdate_defmt_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Use a format mask to convert a C <type>char*</type> string to a value of type
        date.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESdate_defmt_asc(date *d, char *fmt, char *str);
</synopsis>
        <!-- same description as rdefmtdate -->
        The function receives a pointer to the date value that should hold the
        result of the operation (<literal>d</literal>), the format mask to use for
        parsing the date (<literal>fmt</literal>) and the C char* string containing
        the textual representation of the date (<literal>str</literal>). The textual
        representation is expected to match the format mask. However you do not
        need to have a 1:1 mapping of the string to the format mask. The
        function only analyzes the sequential order and looks for the literals
        <literal>yy</literal> or <literal>yyyy</literal> that indicate the
        position of the year, <literal>mm</literal> to indicate the position of
        the month and <literal>dd</literal> to indicate the position of the
        day.
       </para>
       <para>
        <xref linkend="ecpg-rdefmtdate-example-table"/> indicates a few possible formats. This will give
        you an idea of how to use this function.
       </para>
        <table id="ecpg-rdefmtdate-example-table">
         <title>Valid Input Formats for <function>rdefmtdate</function></title>
         <tgroup cols="3">
          <thead>
           <row>
            <entry>Format</entry>
            <entry>String</entry>
            <entry>Result</entry>
           </row>
          </thead>
          <tbody>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>ddmmyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>21-2-54</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1954-02-21</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>ddmmyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>2-12-54</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1954-12-02</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>ddmmyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>20111954</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1954-11-20</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>ddmmyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>130464</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1964-04-13</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmm.dd.yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>MAR-12-1967</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1967-03-12</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yy/mm/dd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1954, February 3rd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1954-02-03</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmm.dd.yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>041269</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1969-04-12</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yy/mm/dd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>In the year 2525, in the month of July, mankind will be alive on the 28th day</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>2525-07-28</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>dd-mm-yy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>I said on the 28th of July in the year 2525</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>2525-07-28</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmm.dd.yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>9/14/58</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1958-09-14</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>yy/mm/dd</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>47/03/29</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1947-03-29</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmm.dd.yyyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>oct 28 1975</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1975-10-28</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>mmddyy</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>Nov 14th, 1985</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1985-11-14</literal></entry>
           </row>
          </tbody>
         </tgroup>
        </table>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-timestamp">
   <title>The timestamp Type</title>
   <para>
    The timestamp type in C enables your programs to deal with data of the SQL
    type timestamp. See <xref linkend="datatype-datetime"/> for the equivalent
    type in the <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server.
   </para>
   <para>
    The following functions can be used to work with the timestamp type:
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestampfromasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_from_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Parse a timestamp from its textual representation into a timestamp
        variable.
<synopsis>
timestamp PGTYPEStimestamp_from_asc(char *str, char **endptr);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the string to parse (<literal>str</literal>) and a
        pointer to a C char* (<literal>endptr</literal>).
        At the moment ECPG always parses
        the complete string and so it currently does not support to store the
        address of the first invalid character in <literal>*endptr</literal>.
        You can safely set <literal>endptr</literal> to NULL.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns the parsed timestamp on success. On error,
        <literal>PGTYPESInvalidTimestamp</literal> is returned and <varname>errno</varname> is
        set to <literal>PGTYPES_TS_BAD_TIMESTAMP</literal>. See <xref linkend="pgtypesinvalidtimestamp"/> for important notes on this value.
       </para>
       <para>
        In general, the input string can contain any combination of an allowed
        date specification, a whitespace character and an allowed time
        specification. Note that time zones are not supported by ECPG. It can
        parse them but does not apply any calculation as the
        <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server does for example. Timezone
        specifiers are silently discarded.
       </para>
       <para>
        <xref linkend="ecpg-pgtypestimestamp-from-asc-example-table"/> contains a few examples for input strings.
       </para>
        <table id="ecpg-pgtypestimestamp-from-asc-example-table">
         <title>Valid Input Formats for <function>PGTYPEStimestamp_from_asc</function></title>
         <tgroup cols="2">
          <thead>
           <row>
            <entry>Input</entry>
            <entry>Result</entry>
           </row>
          </thead>
          <tbody>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>1999-01-08 04:05:06</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1999-01-08 04:05:06</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>January 8 04:05:06 1999 PST</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1999-01-08 04:05:06</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>1999-Jan-08 04:05:06.789-8</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1999-01-08 04:05:06.789 (time zone specifier ignored)</literal></entry>
           </row>
           <row>
            <entry><literal>J2451187 04:05-08:00</literal></entry>
            <entry><literal>1999-01-08 04:05:00 (time zone specifier ignored)</literal></entry>
           </row>
          </tbody>
         </tgroup>
        </table>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestamptoasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_to_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Converts a date to a C char* string.
<synopsis>
char *PGTYPEStimestamp_to_asc(timestamp tstamp);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the timestamp <literal>tstamp</literal> as
        its only argument and returns an allocated string that contains the
        textual representation of the timestamp.
        The result must be freed with <function>PGTYPESchar_free()</function>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestampcurrent">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_current</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Retrieve the current timestamp.
<synopsis>
void PGTYPEStimestamp_current(timestamp *ts);
</synopsis>
        The function retrieves the current timestamp and saves it into the
        timestamp variable that <literal>ts</literal> points to.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestampfmtasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_fmt_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a timestamp variable to a C char* using a format mask.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPEStimestamp_fmt_asc(timestamp *ts, char *output, int str_len, char *fmtstr);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the timestamp to convert as its
        first argument (<literal>ts</literal>), a pointer to the output buffer
        (<literal>output</literal>), the maximal length that has been allocated for
        the output buffer (<literal>str_len</literal>) and the format mask to
        use for the conversion (<literal>fmtstr</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
       <para>
        You can use the following format specifiers for the format mask. The
        format specifiers are the same ones that are used in the
        <function>strftime</function> function in <productname>libc</productname>. Any
        non-format specifier will be copied into the output buffer.
        <!-- This is from the FreeBSD man page:
             http://www.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=strftime&apropos=0&sektion=3&manpath=FreeBSD+7.0-current&format=html
        -->
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%A</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           the full weekday name.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%a</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           the abbreviated weekday name.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%B</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           the full month name.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%b</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           the abbreviated month name.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%C</literal> - is replaced by (year / 100) as decimal
           number; single digits are preceded by a zero.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%c</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           time and date.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%D</literal> - is equivalent to
           <literal>%m/%d/%y</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%d</literal> - is replaced by the day of the month as a
           decimal number (01&ndash;31).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%E*</literal> <literal>%O*</literal> -  POSIX locale
           extensions. The sequences
           <literal>%Ec</literal>
           <literal>%EC</literal>
           <literal>%Ex</literal>
           <literal>%EX</literal>
           <literal>%Ey</literal>
           <literal>%EY</literal>
           <literal>%Od</literal>
           <literal>%Oe</literal>
           <literal>%OH</literal>
           <literal>%OI</literal>
           <literal>%Om</literal>
           <literal>%OM</literal>
           <literal>%OS</literal>
           <literal>%Ou</literal>
           <literal>%OU</literal>
           <literal>%OV</literal>
           <literal>%Ow</literal>
           <literal>%OW</literal>
           <literal>%Oy</literal>
           are supposed to provide alternative representations.
          </para>
          <para>
           Additionally <literal>%OB</literal> implemented to represent
           alternative months names (used standalone, without day mentioned).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%e</literal> - is replaced by the day of month as a decimal
           number (1&ndash;31); single digits are preceded by a blank.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%F</literal> - is equivalent to <literal>%Y-%m-%d</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%G</literal> - is replaced by a year as a decimal number
           with century. This year is the one that contains the greater part of
           the week (Monday as the first day of the week).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%g</literal> - is replaced by the same year as in
           <literal>%G</literal>, but as a decimal number without century
           (00&ndash;99).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%H</literal> - is replaced by the hour (24-hour clock) as a
           decimal number (00&ndash;23).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%h</literal> - the same as <literal>%b</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%I</literal> - is replaced by the hour (12-hour clock) as a
           decimal number (01&ndash;12).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%j</literal> - is replaced by the day of the year as a
           decimal number (001&ndash;366).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%k</literal> - is replaced by the hour (24-hour clock) as a
           decimal number (0&ndash;23); single digits are preceded by a blank.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%l</literal> - is replaced by the hour (12-hour clock) as a
           decimal number (1&ndash;12); single digits are preceded by a blank.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%M</literal> - is replaced by the minute as a decimal
           number (00&ndash;59).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%m</literal> - is replaced by the month as a decimal number
           (01&ndash;12).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
          <literal>%n</literal> - is replaced by a newline.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%O*</literal> - the same as <literal>%E*</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%p</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           either <quote>ante meridiem</quote> or <quote>post meridiem</quote> as appropriate.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%R</literal> - is equivalent to <literal>%H:%M</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%r</literal> - is equivalent to <literal>%I:%M:%S
           %p</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%S</literal> - is replaced by the second as a decimal
           number (00&ndash;60).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%s</literal> - is replaced by the number of seconds since
           the Epoch, UTC.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%T</literal> - is equivalent to <literal>%H:%M:%S</literal>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%t</literal> - is replaced by a tab.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%U</literal> - is replaced by the week number of the year
           (Sunday as the first day of the week) as a decimal number (00&ndash;53).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%u</literal> - is replaced by the weekday (Monday as the
           first day of the week) as a decimal number (1&ndash;7).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%V</literal> - is replaced by the week number of the year
           (Monday as the first day of the week) as a decimal number (01&ndash;53).
           If the week containing January 1 has four or more days in the new
           year, then it is week 1; otherwise it is the last week of the
           previous year, and the next week is week 1.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%v</literal> - is equivalent to
           <literal>%e-%b-%Y</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%W</literal> - is replaced by the week number of the year
           (Monday as the first day of the week) as a decimal number (00&ndash;53).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%w</literal> - is replaced by the weekday (Sunday as the
           first day of the week) as a decimal number (0&ndash;6).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%X</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           the time.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%x</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           the date.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%Y</literal> - is replaced by the year with century as a
           decimal number.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%y</literal> - is replaced by the year without century as a
           decimal number (00&ndash;99).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%Z</literal> - is replaced by the time zone name.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%z</literal> - is replaced by the time zone offset from
           UTC; a leading plus sign stands for east of UTC, a minus sign for
           west of UTC, hours and minutes follow with two digits each and no
           delimiter between them (common form for <ulink url="https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc822">RFC 822</ulink> date headers).
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%+</literal> - is replaced by national representation of
           the date and time.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%-*</literal> - GNU libc extension. Do not do any padding
           when performing numerical outputs.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           $_* - GNU libc extension.    Explicitly specify space for padding.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%0*</literal> - GNU libc extension. Explicitly specify zero
           for padding.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>%%</literal> - is replaced by <literal>%</literal>.
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestampsub">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_sub</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Subtract one timestamp from another one and save the result in a
        variable of type interval.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPEStimestamp_sub(timestamp *ts1, timestamp *ts2, interval *iv);
</synopsis>
        The function will subtract the timestamp variable that <literal>ts2</literal>
        points to from the timestamp variable that <literal>ts1</literal> points to
        and will store the result in the interval variable that <literal>iv</literal>
        points to.
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestampdefmtasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_defmt_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Parse a timestamp value from its textual representation using a
        formatting mask.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPEStimestamp_defmt_asc(char *str, char *fmt, timestamp *d);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the textual representation of a timestamp in the
        variable <literal>str</literal> as well as the formatting mask to use in the
        variable <literal>fmt</literal>. The result will be stored in the variable
        that <literal>d</literal> points to.
       </para>
       <para>
        If the formatting mask <literal>fmt</literal> is NULL, the function will fall
        back to the default formatting mask which is <literal>%Y-%m-%d
        %H:%M:%S</literal>.
       </para>
       <para>
        This is the reverse function to <xref
        linkend="pgtypestimestampfmtasc"/>.  See the documentation there in
        order to find out about the possible formatting mask entries.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestampaddinterval">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_add_interval</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Add an interval variable to a timestamp variable.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPEStimestamp_add_interval(timestamp *tin, interval *span, timestamp *tout);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to a timestamp variable <literal>tin</literal>
        and a pointer to an interval variable <literal>span</literal>. It adds the
        interval to the timestamp and saves the resulting timestamp in the
        variable that <literal>tout</literal> points to.
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypestimestampsubinterval">
      <term><function>PGTYPEStimestamp_sub_interval</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Subtract an interval variable from a timestamp variable.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPEStimestamp_sub_interval(timestamp *tin, interval *span, timestamp *tout);
</synopsis>
        The function subtracts the interval variable that <literal>span</literal>
        points to from the timestamp variable that <literal>tin</literal> points to
        and saves the result into the variable that <literal>tout</literal> points
        to.
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-interval">
   <title>The interval Type</title>
   <para>
    The interval type in C enables your programs to deal with data of the SQL
    type interval. See <xref linkend="datatype-datetime"/> for the equivalent
    type in the <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server.
   </para>
   <para>
    The following functions can be used to work with the interval type:
    <variablelist>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesintervalnew">
      <term><function>PGTYPESinterval_new</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Return a pointer to a newly allocated interval variable.
<synopsis>
interval *PGTYPESinterval_new(void);
</synopsis>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesintervalfree">
      <term><function>PGTYPESinterval_free</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Release the memory of a previously allocated interval variable.
<synopsis>
void PGTYPESinterval_free(interval *intvl);
</synopsis>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesintervalfromasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPESinterval_from_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Parse an interval from its textual representation.
<synopsis>
interval *PGTYPESinterval_from_asc(char *str, char **endptr);
</synopsis>
        The function parses the input string <literal>str</literal> and returns a
        pointer to an allocated interval variable.
        At the moment ECPG always parses
        the complete string and so it currently does not support to store the
        address of the first invalid character in <literal>*endptr</literal>.
        You can safely set <literal>endptr</literal> to NULL.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesintervaltoasc">
      <term><function>PGTYPESinterval_to_asc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a variable of type interval to its textual representation.
<synopsis>
char *PGTYPESinterval_to_asc(interval *span);
</synopsis>
        The function converts the interval variable that <literal>span</literal>
        points to into a C char*. The output looks like this example:
        <literal>@ 1 day 12 hours 59 mins 10 secs</literal>.
        The result must be freed with <function>PGTYPESchar_free()</function>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="pgtypesintervalcopy">
      <term><function>PGTYPESinterval_copy</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Copy a variable of type interval.
<synopsis>
int PGTYPESinterval_copy(interval *intvlsrc, interval *intvldest);
</synopsis>
        The function copies the interval variable that <literal>intvlsrc</literal>
        points to into the variable that <literal>intvldest</literal> points to. Note
        that you need to allocate the memory for the destination variable
        before.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-decimal">
   <title>The decimal Type</title>
   <para>
     The decimal type is similar to the numeric type. However it is limited to
     a maximum precision of 30 significant digits. In contrast to the numeric
     type which can be created on the heap only, the decimal type can be
     created either on the stack or on the heap (by means of the functions
     <function>PGTYPESdecimal_new</function> and
     <function>PGTYPESdecimal_free</function>).
     There are a lot of other functions that deal with the decimal type in the
     <productname>Informix</productname> compatibility mode described in <xref
     linkend="ecpg-informix-compat"/>.
   </para>
   <para>
    The following functions can be used to work with the decimal type and are
    not only contained in the <literal>libcompat</literal> library.
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-decimal-new">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdecimal_new</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
       Request a pointer to a newly allocated decimal variable.
<synopsis>
decimal *PGTYPESdecimal_new(void);
</synopsis>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-decimal-free">
      <term><function>PGTYPESdecimal_free</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
       Free a decimal type, release all of its memory.
<synopsis>
void PGTYPESdecimal_free(decimal *var);
</synopsis>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

   <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno">
    <title>errno Values of pgtypeslib</title>
   <para>
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-num-bad-numeric">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_NUM_BAD_NUMERIC</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An argument should contain a numeric variable (or point to a numeric
        variable) but in fact its in-memory representation was invalid.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-num-overflow">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An overflow occurred. Since the numeric type can deal with almost
        arbitrary precision, converting a numeric variable into other types
        might cause overflow.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-num-underflow">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_NUM_UNDERFLOW</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An underflow occurred. Since the numeric type can deal with almost
        arbitrary precision, converting a numeric variable into other types
        might cause underflow.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-num-divide-zero">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_NUM_DIVIDE_ZERO</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A division by zero has been attempted.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-date-bad-date">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_DATE_BAD_DATE</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An invalid date string was passed to
        the <function>PGTYPESdate_from_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-date-err-eargs">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_DATE_ERR_EARGS</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Invalid arguments were passed to the
        <function>PGTYPESdate_defmt_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-date-err-enoshortdate">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_DATE_ERR_ENOSHORTDATE</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An invalid token in the input string was found by the
        <function>PGTYPESdate_defmt_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-intvl-bad-interval">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_INTVL_BAD_INTERVAL</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An invalid interval string was passed to the
        <function>PGTYPESinterval_from_asc</function> function, or an
        invalid interval value was passed to the
        <function>PGTYPESinterval_to_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-date-err-enotdmy">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_DATE_ERR_ENOTDMY</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        There was a mismatch in the day/month/year assignment in the
        <function>PGTYPESdate_defmt_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-date-bad-day">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_DATE_BAD_DAY</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An invalid day of the month value was found by
        the <function>PGTYPESdate_defmt_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-date-bad-month">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_DATE_BAD_MONTH</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An invalid month value was found by
        the <function>PGTYPESdate_defmt_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-ts-bad-timestamp">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_TS_BAD_TIMESTAMP</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An invalid timestamp string pass passed to
        the <function>PGTYPEStimestamp_from_asc</function> function,
        or an invalid timestamp value was passed to
        the <function>PGTYPEStimestamp_to_asc</function> function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-pgtypes-errno-pgtypes-ts-err-einftime">
      <term><literal>PGTYPES_TS_ERR_EINFTIME</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An infinite timestamp value was encountered in a context that
        cannot handle it.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

   <sect2 id="ecpg-pgtypes-constants">
    <title>Special Constants of pgtypeslib</title>
   <para>
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="pgtypesinvalidtimestamp">
      <term><literal>PGTYPESInvalidTimestamp</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A value of type timestamp representing an invalid time stamp. This is
        returned by the function <function>PGTYPEStimestamp_from_asc</function> on
        parse error.
        Note that due to the internal representation of the <type>timestamp</type> data type,
        <literal>PGTYPESInvalidTimestamp</literal> is also a valid timestamp at
        the same time. It is set to <literal>1899-12-31 23:59:59</literal>. In order
        to detect errors, make sure that your application does not only test
        for <literal>PGTYPESInvalidTimestamp</literal> but also for
        <literal>errno != 0</literal> after each call to
        <function>PGTYPEStimestamp_from_asc</function>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-descriptors">
  <title>Using Descriptor Areas</title>

  <para>
   An SQL descriptor area is a more sophisticated method for processing
   the result of a <command>SELECT</command>, <command>FETCH</command> or
   a <command>DESCRIBE</command> statement. An SQL descriptor area groups
   the data of one row of data together with metadata items into one
   data structure.  The metadata is particularly useful when executing
   dynamic SQL statements, where the nature of the result columns might
   not be known ahead of time. PostgreSQL provides two ways to use
   Descriptor Areas: the named SQL Descriptor Areas and the C-structure
   SQLDAs.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-named-descriptors">
   <title>Named SQL Descriptor Areas</title>

   <para>
    A named SQL descriptor area consists of a header, which contains
    information concerning the entire descriptor, and one or more item
    descriptor areas, which basically each describe one column in the
    result row.
   </para>

   <para>
    Before you can use an SQL descriptor area, you need to allocate one:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR <replaceable>identifier</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
    The identifier serves as the <quote>variable name</quote> of the
    descriptor area.  <!-- The scope of the allocated descriptor is WHAT?. -->
    When you don't need the descriptor anymore, you should deallocate
    it:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR <replaceable>identifier</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    To use a descriptor area, specify it as the storage target in an
    <literal>INTO</literal> clause, instead of listing host variables:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM mycursor INTO SQL DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
</programlisting>
    If the result set is empty, the Descriptor Area will still contain
    the metadata from the query, i.e., the field names.
   </para>

   <para>
    For not yet executed prepared queries, the <command>DESCRIBE</command>
    statement can be used to get the metadata of the result set:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
char *sql_stmt = "SELECT * FROM table1";
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM :sql_stmt;
EXEC SQL DESCRIBE stmt1 INTO SQL DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    Before PostgreSQL 9.0, the <literal>SQL</literal> keyword was optional,
    so using <literal>DESCRIPTOR</literal> and <literal>SQL DESCRIPTOR</literal>
    produced named SQL Descriptor Areas. Now it is mandatory, omitting
    the <literal>SQL</literal> keyword produces SQLDA Descriptor Areas,
    see <xref linkend="ecpg-sqlda-descriptors"/>.
   </para>

   <para>
    In <command>DESCRIBE</command> and <command>FETCH</command> statements,
    the <literal>INTO</literal> and <literal>USING</literal> keywords can be
    used to similarly: they produce the result set and the metadata in a
    Descriptor Area.
   </para>

   <para>
    Now how do you get the data out of the descriptor area?  You can
    think of the descriptor area as a structure with named fields.  To
    retrieve the value of a field from the header and store it into a
    host variable, use the following command:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR <replaceable>name</replaceable> :<replaceable>hostvar</replaceable> = <replaceable>field</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
    Currently, there is only one header field defined:
    <replaceable>COUNT</replaceable>, which tells how many item
    descriptor areas exist (that is, how many columns are contained in
    the result).  The host variable needs to be of an integer type.  To
    get a field from the item descriptor area, use the following
    command:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR <replaceable>name</replaceable> VALUE <replaceable>num</replaceable> :<replaceable>hostvar</replaceable> = <replaceable>field</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
    <replaceable>num</replaceable> can be a literal integer or a host
    variable containing an integer. Possible fields are:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-cardinality">
      <term><literal>CARDINALITY</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        number of rows in the result set
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-data">
      <term><literal>DATA</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        actual data item (therefore, the data type of this field
        depends on the query)
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-datetime-interval-code">
      <term><literal>DATETIME_INTERVAL_CODE</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        When <literal>TYPE</literal> is <literal>9</literal>,
        <literal>DATETIME_INTERVAL_CODE</literal> will have a value of
        <literal>1</literal> for <literal>DATE</literal>,
        <literal>2</literal> for <literal>TIME</literal>,
        <literal>3</literal> for <literal>TIMESTAMP</literal>,
        <literal>4</literal> for <literal>TIME WITH TIME ZONE</literal>, or
        <literal>5</literal> for <literal>TIMESTAMP WITH TIME ZONE</literal>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-datetime-interval-precision">
      <term><literal>DATETIME_INTERVAL_PRECISION</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        not implemented
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-indicator">
      <term><literal>INDICATOR</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        the indicator (indicating a null value or a value truncation)
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-key-member">
      <term><literal>KEY_MEMBER</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        not implemented
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-length">
      <term><literal>LENGTH</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        length of the datum in characters
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-name">
      <term><literal>NAME</literal> (string)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        name of the column
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-nullable">
      <term><literal>NULLABLE</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        not implemented
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-octet-length">
      <term><literal>OCTET_LENGTH</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        length of the character representation of the datum in bytes
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-precision">
      <term><literal>PRECISION</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        precision (for type <type>numeric</type>)
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-returned-length">
      <term><literal>RETURNED_LENGTH</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        length of the datum in characters
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-returned-octet-length">
      <term><literal>RETURNED_OCTET_LENGTH</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        length of the character representation of the datum in bytes
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-scale">
      <term><literal>SCALE</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        scale (for type <type>numeric</type>)
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-named-descriptors-type">
      <term><literal>TYPE</literal> (integer)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        numeric code of the data type of the column
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>

   <para>
    In <command>EXECUTE</command>, <command>DECLARE</command> and <command>OPEN</command>
    statements, the effect of the <literal>INTO</literal> and <literal>USING</literal>
    keywords are different. A Descriptor Area can also be manually built to
    provide the input parameters for a query or a cursor and
    <literal>USING SQL DESCRIPTOR <replaceable>name</replaceable></literal>
    is the way to pass the input parameters into a parameterized query. The statement
    to build a named SQL Descriptor Area is below:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL SET DESCRIPTOR <replaceable>name</replaceable> VALUE <replaceable>num</replaceable> <replaceable>field</replaceable> = :<replaceable>hostvar</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    PostgreSQL supports retrieving more that one record in one <command>FETCH</command>
    statement and storing the data in host variables in this case assumes that the
    variable is an array. E.g.:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int id[5];
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL FETCH 5 FROM mycursor INTO SQL DESCRIPTOR mydesc;

EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR mydesc VALUE 1 :id = DATA;
</programlisting>

   </para>

  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-sqlda-descriptors">
   <title>SQLDA Descriptor Areas</title>

   <para>
    An SQLDA Descriptor Area is a C language structure which can be also used
    to get the result set and the metadata of a query. One structure stores one
    record from the result set.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL include sqlda.h;
sqlda_t         *mysqlda;

EXEC SQL FETCH 3 FROM mycursor INTO DESCRIPTOR mysqlda;
</programlisting>
    Note that the <literal>SQL</literal> keyword is omitted. The paragraphs about
    the use cases of the <literal>INTO</literal> and <literal>USING</literal>
    keywords in <xref linkend="ecpg-named-descriptors"/> also apply here with an addition.
    In a <command>DESCRIBE</command> statement the <literal>DESCRIPTOR</literal>
    keyword can be completely omitted if the <literal>INTO</literal> keyword is used:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DESCRIBE prepared_statement INTO mysqlda;
</programlisting>
   </para>

    <procedure>
     <para>
      The general flow of a program that uses SQLDA is:
     </para>
     <step><simpara>Prepare a query, and declare a cursor for it.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Declare an SQLDA for the result rows.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Declare an SQLDA for the input parameters, and initialize them (memory allocation, parameter settings).</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Open a cursor with the input SQLDA.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Fetch rows from the cursor, and store them into an output SQLDA.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Read values from the output SQLDA into the host variables (with conversion if necessary).</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Close the cursor.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Free the memory area allocated for the input SQLDA.</simpara></step>
    </procedure>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-sqlda-descriptors-sqlda">
    <title>SQLDA Data Structure</title>

    <para>
     SQLDA uses three data structure
     types: <type>sqlda_t</type>, <type>sqlvar_t</type>,
     and <type>struct sqlname</type>.
    </para>

    <tip>
     <para>
      PostgreSQL's SQLDA has a similar data structure to the one in
      IBM DB2 Universal Database, so some technical information on
      DB2's SQLDA could help understanding PostgreSQL's one better.
     </para>
    </tip>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlda">
     <title>sqlda_t Structure</title>

     <para>
      The structure type <type>sqlda_t</type> is the type of the
      actual SQLDA.  It holds one record.  And two or
      more <type>sqlda_t</type> structures can be connected in a
      linked list with the pointer in
      the <structfield>desc_next</structfield> field, thus
      representing an ordered collection of rows.  So, when two or
      more rows are fetched, the application can read them by
      following the <structfield>desc_next</structfield> pointer in
      each <type>sqlda_t</type> node.
     </para>

     <para>
      The definition of <type>sqlda_t</type> is:
<programlisting>
struct sqlda_struct
{
    char            sqldaid[8];
    long            sqldabc;
    short           sqln;
    short           sqld;
    struct sqlda_struct *desc_next;
    struct sqlvar_struct sqlvar[1];
};

typedef struct sqlda_struct sqlda_t;
</programlisting>

      The meaning of the fields is:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlda-sqldaid">
      <term><literal>sqldaid</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        It contains the literal string <literal>"SQLDA  "</literal>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlda-sqldabc">
      <term><literal>sqldabc</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        It contains the size of the allocated space in bytes.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlda-sqln">
      <term><literal>sqln</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        It contains the number of input parameters for a parameterized query in
        case it's passed into <command>OPEN</command>, <command>DECLARE</command> or
        <command>EXECUTE</command> statements using the <literal>USING</literal>
        keyword. In case it's used as output of <command>SELECT</command>,
        <command>EXECUTE</command> or <command>FETCH</command> statements,
        its value is the same as <literal>sqld</literal>
        statement
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlda-sqld">
      <term><literal>sqld</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        It contains the number of fields in a result set.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlda-desc-next">
      <term><literal>desc_next</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        If the query returns more than one record, multiple linked
        SQLDA structures are returned, and <literal>desc_next</literal> holds
        a pointer to the next entry in the list.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlda-sqlvar">
      <term><literal>sqlvar</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        This is the array of the columns in the result set.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
     </para>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlvar">
     <title>sqlvar_t Structure</title>

     <para>
      The structure type <type>sqlvar_t</type> holds a column value
      and metadata such as type and length. The definition of the type
      is:

<programlisting>
struct sqlvar_struct
{
    short          sqltype;
    short          sqllen;
    char          *sqldata;
    short         *sqlind;
    struct sqlname sqlname;
};

typedef struct sqlvar_struct sqlvar_t;
</programlisting>

      The meaning of the fields is:

        <variablelist>
         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlvar-sqltype">
         <term><literal>sqltype</literal></term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            Contains the type identifier of the field. For values,
            see <literal>enum ECPGttype</literal> in <literal>ecpgtype.h</literal>.
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlvar-sqllen">
         <term><literal>sqllen</literal></term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            Contains the binary length of the field. e.g., 4 bytes for <type>ECPGt_int</type>.
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlvar-sqldata">
         <term><literal>sqldata</literal></term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            Points to the data.  The format of the data is described
            in <xref linkend="ecpg-variables-type-mapping"/>.
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlvar-sqlind">
         <term><literal>sqlind</literal></term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            Points to the null indicator.  0 means not null, -1 means
            null.
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlvar-sqlname">
         <term><literal>sqlname</literal></term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            The name of the field.
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
        </variablelist>
     </para>
    </sect4>

    <sect4 id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlname">
     <title>struct sqlname Structure</title>

     <para>
      A <type>struct sqlname</type> structure holds a column name.  It
      is used as a member of the <type>sqlvar_t</type> structure.  The
      definition of the structure is:
<programlisting>
#define NAMEDATALEN 64

struct sqlname
{
        short           length;
        char            data[NAMEDATALEN];
};
</programlisting>
      The meaning of the fields is:
            <variablelist>
             <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlname-length">
              <term><literal>length</literal></term>
               <listitem>
                <para>
                 Contains the length of the field name.
                </para>
               </listitem>
              </varlistentry>
             <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlda-sqlname-data">
              <term><literal>data</literal></term>
               <listitem>
                <para>
                 Contains the actual field name.
                </para>
               </listitem>
              </varlistentry>
            </variablelist>
     </para>
    </sect4>
   </sect3>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-sqlda-output">
    <title>Retrieving a Result Set Using an SQLDA</title>

    <procedure>
     <para>
      The general steps to retrieve a query result set through an
      SQLDA are:
     </para>
     <step><simpara>Declare an <type>sqlda_t</type> structure to receive the result set.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Execute <command>FETCH</command>/<command>EXECUTE</command>/<command>DESCRIBE</command> commands to process a query specifying the declared SQLDA.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Check the number of records in the result set by looking at <structfield>sqln</structfield>, a member of the <type>sqlda_t</type> structure.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Get the values of each column from <literal>sqlvar[0]</literal>, <literal>sqlvar[1]</literal>, etc., members of the <type>sqlda_t</type> structure.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Go to next row (<type>sqlda_t</type> structure) by following the <structfield>desc_next</structfield> pointer, a member of the <type>sqlda_t</type> structure.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Repeat above as you need.</simpara></step>
    </procedure>

    <para>
     Here is an example retrieving a result set through an SQLDA.
    </para>

    <para>
     First, declare a <type>sqlda_t</type> structure to receive the result set.
<programlisting>
sqlda_t *sqlda1;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Next, specify the SQLDA in a command.  This is
     a <command>FETCH</command> command example.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM cur1 INTO DESCRIPTOR sqlda1;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Run a loop following the linked list to retrieve the rows.
<programlisting>
sqlda_t *cur_sqlda;

for (cur_sqlda = sqlda1;
     cur_sqlda != NULL;
     cur_sqlda = cur_sqlda->desc_next)
{
    ...
}
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Inside the loop, run another loop to retrieve each column data
     (<type>sqlvar_t</type> structure) of the row.
<programlisting>
for (i = 0; i &lt; cur_sqlda->sqld; i++)
{
    sqlvar_t v = cur_sqlda->sqlvar[i];
    char *sqldata = v.sqldata;
    short sqllen  = v.sqllen;
    ...
}
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     To get a column value, check the <structfield>sqltype</structfield> value,
     a member of the <type>sqlvar_t</type> structure.  Then, switch
     to an appropriate way, depending on the column type, to copy
     data from the <structfield>sqlvar</structfield> field to a host variable.
<programlisting>
char var_buf[1024];

switch (v.sqltype)
{
    case ECPGt_char:
        memset(&amp;var_buf, 0, sizeof(var_buf));
        memcpy(&amp;var_buf, sqldata, (sizeof(var_buf) &lt;= sqllen ? sizeof(var_buf) - 1 : sqllen));
        break;

    case ECPGt_int: /* integer */
        memcpy(&amp;intval, sqldata, sqllen);
        snprintf(var_buf, sizeof(var_buf), "%d", intval);
        break;

    ...
}
</programlisting>
    </para>
   </sect3>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-sqlda-input">
    <title>Passing Query Parameters Using an SQLDA</title>

    <procedure>
     <para>
      The general steps to use an SQLDA to pass input
      parameters to a prepared query are:
     </para>
     <step><simpara>Create a prepared query (prepared statement)</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Declare an sqlda_t structure as an input SQLDA.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Allocate memory area (as sqlda_t structure) for the input SQLDA.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Set (copy) input values in the allocated memory.</simpara></step>
     <step><simpara>Open a cursor with specifying the input SQLDA.</simpara></step>
    </procedure>

    <para>
     Here is an example.
    </para>

    <para>
     First, create a prepared statement.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
char query[1024] = "SELECT d.oid, * FROM pg_database d, pg_stat_database s WHERE d.oid = s.datid AND (d.datname = ? OR d.oid = ?)";
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM :query;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Next, allocate memory for an SQLDA, and set the number of input
     parameters in <structfield>sqln</structfield>, a member variable of
     the <type>sqlda_t</type> structure.  When two or more input
     parameters are required for the prepared query, the application
     has to allocate additional memory space which is calculated by
     (nr. of params - 1) * sizeof(sqlvar_t).  The example shown here
     allocates memory space for two input parameters.
<programlisting>
sqlda_t *sqlda2;

sqlda2 = (sqlda_t *) malloc(sizeof(sqlda_t) + sizeof(sqlvar_t));
memset(sqlda2, 0, sizeof(sqlda_t) + sizeof(sqlvar_t));

sqlda2->sqln = 2; /* number of input variables */
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     After memory allocation, store the parameter values into the
     <literal>sqlvar[]</literal> array.  (This is same array used for
     retrieving column values when the SQLDA is receiving a result
     set.)  In this example, the input parameters
     are <literal>"postgres"</literal>, having a string type,
     and <literal>1</literal>, having an integer type.
<programlisting>
sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqltype = ECPGt_char;
sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqldata = "postgres";
sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqllen  = 8;

int intval = 1;
sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqltype = ECPGt_int;
sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqldata = (char *) &amp;intval;
sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqllen  = sizeof(intval);
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     By opening a cursor and specifying the SQLDA that was set up
     beforehand, the input parameters are passed to the prepared
     statement.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL OPEN cur1 USING DESCRIPTOR sqlda2;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Finally, after using input SQLDAs, the allocated memory space
     must be freed explicitly, unlike SQLDAs used for receiving query
     results.
<programlisting>
free(sqlda2);
</programlisting>
    </para>
   </sect3>

   <sect3 id="ecpg-sqlda-example">
    <title>A Sample Application Using SQLDA</title>

    <para>
     Here is an example program, which describes how to fetch access
     statistics of the databases, specified by the input parameters,
     from the system catalogs.
    </para>

    <para>
     This application joins two system tables, pg_database and
     pg_stat_database on the database OID, and also fetches and shows
     the database statistics which are retrieved by two input
     parameters (a database <literal>postgres</literal>, and OID <literal>1</literal>).
    </para>

    <para>
     First, declare an SQLDA for input and an SQLDA for output.
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL include sqlda.h;

sqlda_t *sqlda1; /* an output descriptor */
sqlda_t *sqlda2; /* an input descriptor  */
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Next, connect to the database, prepare a statement, and declare a
     cursor for the prepared statement.
<programlisting>
int
main(void)
{
    EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char query[1024] = "SELECT d.oid,* FROM pg_database d, pg_stat_database s WHERE d.oid=s.datid AND ( d.datname=? OR d.oid=? )";
    EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con1 USER testuser;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM :query;
    EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR stmt1;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Next, put some values in the input SQLDA for the input
     parameters.  Allocate memory for the input SQLDA, and set the
     number of input parameters to <literal>sqln</literal>.  Store
     type, value, and value length into <literal>sqltype</literal>,
     <literal>sqldata</literal>, and <literal>sqllen</literal> in the
     <literal>sqlvar</literal> structure.

<programlisting>
    /* Create SQLDA structure for input parameters. */
    sqlda2 = (sqlda_t *) malloc(sizeof(sqlda_t) + sizeof(sqlvar_t));
    memset(sqlda2, 0, sizeof(sqlda_t) + sizeof(sqlvar_t));
    sqlda2->sqln = 2; /* number of input variables */

    sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqltype = ECPGt_char;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqldata = "postgres";
    sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqllen  = 8;

    intval = 1;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqltype = ECPGt_int;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqldata = (char *)&amp;intval;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqllen  = sizeof(intval);
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     After setting up the input SQLDA, open a cursor with the input
     SQLDA.

<programlisting>
    /* Open a cursor with input parameters. */
    EXEC SQL OPEN cur1 USING DESCRIPTOR sqlda2;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Fetch rows into the output SQLDA from the opened cursor.
     (Generally, you have to call <command>FETCH</command> repeatedly
     in the loop, to fetch all rows in the result set.)
<programlisting>
    while (1)
    {
        sqlda_t *cur_sqlda;

        /* Assign descriptor to the cursor  */
        EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM cur1 INTO DESCRIPTOR sqlda1;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Next, retrieve the fetched records from the SQLDA, by following
     the linked list of the <type>sqlda_t</type> structure.
<programlisting>
    for (cur_sqlda = sqlda1 ;
         cur_sqlda != NULL ;
         cur_sqlda = cur_sqlda->desc_next)
    {
        ...
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Read each columns in the first record.  The number of columns is
     stored in <structfield>sqld</structfield>, the actual data of the first
     column is stored in <literal>sqlvar[0]</literal>, both members of
     the <type>sqlda_t</type> structure.

<programlisting>
        /* Print every column in a row. */
        for (i = 0; i &lt; sqlda1-&gt;sqld; i++)
        {
            sqlvar_t v = sqlda1->sqlvar[i];
            char *sqldata = v.sqldata;
            short sqllen  = v.sqllen;

            strncpy(name_buf, v.sqlname.data, v.sqlname.length);
            name_buf[v.sqlname.length] = '\0';
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Now, the column data is stored in the variable <varname>v</varname>.
     Copy every datum into host variables, looking
     at <literal>v.sqltype</literal> for the type of the column.
<programlisting>
            switch (v.sqltype) {
                int intval;
                double doubleval;
                unsigned long long int longlongval;

                case ECPGt_char:
                    memset(&amp;var_buf, 0, sizeof(var_buf));
                    memcpy(&amp;var_buf, sqldata, (sizeof(var_buf) &lt;= sqllen ? sizeof(var_buf)-1 : sqllen));
                    break;

                case ECPGt_int: /* integer */
                    memcpy(&amp;intval, sqldata, sqllen);
                    snprintf(var_buf, sizeof(var_buf), "%d", intval);
                    break;

                ...

                default:
                    ...
            }

            printf("%s = %s (type: %d)\n", name_buf, var_buf, v.sqltype);
        }
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Close the cursor after processing all of records, and disconnect
     from the database.
<programlisting>
    EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
    EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     The whole program is shown
     in <xref linkend="ecpg-sqlda-example-example"/>.
    </para>

    <example id="ecpg-sqlda-example-example">
     <title>Example SQLDA Program</title>
<programlisting>
#include &lt;stdlib.h>
#include &lt;string.h>
#include &lt;stdlib.h>
#include &lt;stdio.h>
#include &lt;unistd.h>

EXEC SQL include sqlda.h;

sqlda_t *sqlda1; /* descriptor for output */
sqlda_t *sqlda2; /* descriptor for input */

EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR STOP;

int
main(void)
{
    EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char query[1024] = "SELECT d.oid,* FROM pg_database d, pg_stat_database s WHERE d.oid=s.datid AND ( d.datname=? OR d.oid=? )";

    int intval;
    unsigned long long int longlongval;
    EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO uptimedb AS con1 USER uptime;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM :query;
    EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR stmt1;

    /* Create an SQLDA structure for an input parameter */
    sqlda2 = (sqlda_t *)malloc(sizeof(sqlda_t) + sizeof(sqlvar_t));
    memset(sqlda2, 0, sizeof(sqlda_t) + sizeof(sqlvar_t));
    sqlda2->sqln = 2; /* a number of input variables */

    sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqltype = ECPGt_char;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqldata = "postgres";
    sqlda2->sqlvar[0].sqllen  = 8;

    intval = 1;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqltype = ECPGt_int;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqldata = (char *) &amp;intval;
    sqlda2->sqlvar[1].sqllen  = sizeof(intval);

    /* Open a cursor with input parameters. */
    EXEC SQL OPEN cur1 USING DESCRIPTOR sqlda2;

    while (1)
    {
        sqlda_t *cur_sqlda;

        /* Assign descriptor to the cursor  */
        EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM cur1 INTO DESCRIPTOR sqlda1;

        for (cur_sqlda = sqlda1 ;
             cur_sqlda != NULL ;
             cur_sqlda = cur_sqlda->desc_next)
        {
            int i;
            char name_buf[1024];
            char var_buf[1024];

            /* Print every column in a row. */
            for (i=0 ; i&lt;cur_sqlda->sqld ; i++)
            {
                sqlvar_t v = cur_sqlda->sqlvar[i];
                char *sqldata = v.sqldata;
                short sqllen  = v.sqllen;

                strncpy(name_buf, v.sqlname.data, v.sqlname.length);
                name_buf[v.sqlname.length] = '\0';

                switch (v.sqltype)
                {
                    case ECPGt_char:
                        memset(&amp;var_buf, 0, sizeof(var_buf));
                        memcpy(&amp;var_buf, sqldata, (sizeof(var_buf)&lt;=sqllen ? sizeof(var_buf)-1 : sqllen) );
                        break;

                    case ECPGt_int: /* integer */
                        memcpy(&amp;intval, sqldata, sqllen);
                        snprintf(var_buf, sizeof(var_buf), "%d", intval);
                        break;

                    case ECPGt_long_long: /* bigint */
                        memcpy(&amp;longlongval, sqldata, sqllen);
                        snprintf(var_buf, sizeof(var_buf), "%lld", longlongval);
                        break;

                    default:
                    {
                        int i;
                        memset(var_buf, 0, sizeof(var_buf));
                        for (i = 0; i &lt; sqllen; i++)
                        {
                            char tmpbuf[16];
                            snprintf(tmpbuf, sizeof(tmpbuf), "%02x ", (unsigned char) sqldata[i]);
                            strncat(var_buf, tmpbuf, sizeof(var_buf));
                        }
                    }
                        break;
                }

                printf("%s = %s (type: %d)\n", name_buf, var_buf, v.sqltype);
            }

            printf("\n");
        }
    }

    EXEC SQL CLOSE cur1;
    EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;

    return 0;
}
</programlisting>

     <para>
      The output of this example should look something like the
      following (some numbers will vary).
     </para>

<screen>
oid = 1 (type: 1)
datname = template1 (type: 1)
datdba = 10 (type: 1)
encoding = 0 (type: 5)
datistemplate = t (type: 1)
datallowconn = t (type: 1)
dathasloginevt = f (type: 1)
datconnlimit = -1 (type: 5)
datfrozenxid = 379 (type: 1)
dattablespace = 1663 (type: 1)
datconfig =  (type: 1)
datacl = {=c/uptime,uptime=CTc/uptime} (type: 1)
datid = 1 (type: 1)
datname = template1 (type: 1)
numbackends = 0 (type: 5)
xact_commit = 113606 (type: 9)
xact_rollback = 0 (type: 9)
blks_read = 130 (type: 9)
blks_hit = 7341714 (type: 9)
tup_returned = 38262679 (type: 9)
tup_fetched = 1836281 (type: 9)
tup_inserted = 0 (type: 9)
tup_updated = 0 (type: 9)
tup_deleted = 0 (type: 9)

oid = 11511 (type: 1)
datname = postgres (type: 1)
datdba = 10 (type: 1)
encoding = 0 (type: 5)
datistemplate = f (type: 1)
datallowconn = t (type: 1)
dathasloginevt = f (type: 1)
datconnlimit = -1 (type: 5)
datfrozenxid = 379 (type: 1)
dattablespace = 1663 (type: 1)
datconfig =  (type: 1)
datacl =  (type: 1)
datid = 11511 (type: 1)
datname = postgres (type: 1)
numbackends = 0 (type: 5)
xact_commit = 221069 (type: 9)
xact_rollback = 18 (type: 9)
blks_read = 1176 (type: 9)
blks_hit = 13943750 (type: 9)
tup_returned = 77410091 (type: 9)
tup_fetched = 3253694 (type: 9)
tup_inserted = 0 (type: 9)
tup_updated = 0 (type: 9)
tup_deleted = 0 (type: 9)
</screen>
    </example>
   </sect3>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-errors">
  <title>Error Handling</title>

  <para>
   This section describes how you can handle exceptional conditions
   and warnings in an embedded SQL program.  There are two
   nonexclusive facilities for this.

   <itemizedlist>
    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      Callbacks can be configured to handle warning and error
      conditions using the <literal>WHENEVER</literal> command.
     </simpara>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <simpara>
      Detailed information about the error or warning can be obtained
      from the <varname>sqlca</varname> variable.
     </simpara>
    </listitem>
   </itemizedlist>
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-whenever">
   <title>Setting Callbacks</title>

   <para>
    One simple method to catch errors and warnings is to set a
    specific action to be executed whenever a particular condition
    occurs.  In general:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL WHENEVER <replaceable>condition</replaceable> <replaceable>action</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    <replaceable>condition</replaceable> can be one of the following:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-sqlerror">
      <term><literal>SQLERROR</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The specified action is called whenever an error occurs during
        the execution of an SQL statement.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-sqlwarning">
      <term><literal>SQLWARNING</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The specified action is called whenever a warning occurs
        during the execution of an SQL statement.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-not-found">
      <term><literal>NOT FOUND</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The specified action is called whenever an SQL statement
        retrieves or affects zero rows.  (This condition is not an
        error, but you might be interested in handling it specially.)
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>

   <para>
    <replaceable>action</replaceable> can be one of the following:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-continue">
      <term><literal>CONTINUE</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        This effectively means that the condition is ignored.  This is
        the default.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-goto">
      <term><literal>GOTO <replaceable>label</replaceable></literal></term>
      <term><literal>GO TO <replaceable>label</replaceable></literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Jump to the specified label (using a C <literal>goto</literal>
        statement).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-sqlprint">
      <term><literal>SQLPRINT</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Print a message to standard error.  This is useful for simple
        programs or during prototyping.  The details of the message
        cannot be configured.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-stop">
      <term><literal>STOP</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Call <literal>exit(1)</literal>, which will terminate the
        program.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-do-break">
      <term><literal>DO BREAK</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Execute the C statement <literal>break</literal>.  This should
        only be used in loops or <literal>switch</literal> statements.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-do-continue">
      <term><literal>DO CONTINUE</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Execute the C statement <literal>continue</literal>.  This should
        only be used in loops statements.  if executed, will cause the flow
        of control to return to the top of the loop.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-whenever-call">
      <term><literal>CALL <replaceable>name</replaceable> (<replaceable>args</replaceable>)</literal></term>
      <term><literal>DO <replaceable>name</replaceable> (<replaceable>args</replaceable>)</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Call the specified C functions with the specified arguments.  (This
        use is different from the meaning of <literal>CALL</literal>
        and <literal>DO</literal> in the normal PostgreSQL grammar.)
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>

    The SQL standard only provides for the actions
    <literal>CONTINUE</literal> and <literal>GOTO</literal> (and
    <literal>GO TO</literal>).
   </para>

   <para>
    Here is an example that you might want to use in a simple program.
    It prints a simple message when a warning occurs and aborts the
    program when an error happens:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLWARNING SQLPRINT;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR STOP;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    The statement <literal>EXEC SQL WHENEVER</literal> is a directive
    of the SQL preprocessor, not a C statement.  The error or warning
    actions that it sets apply to all embedded SQL statements that
    appear below the point where the handler is set, unless a
    different action was set for the same condition between the first
    <literal>EXEC SQL WHENEVER</literal> and the SQL statement causing
    the condition, regardless of the flow of control in the C program.
    So neither of the two following C program excerpts will have the
    desired effect:
<programlisting>
/*
 * WRONG
 */
int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    ...
    if (verbose) {
        EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLWARNING SQLPRINT;
    }
    ...
    EXEC SQL SELECT ...;
    ...
}
</programlisting>

<programlisting>
/*
 * WRONG
 */
int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    ...
    set_error_handler();
    ...
    EXEC SQL SELECT ...;
    ...
}

static void set_error_handler(void)
{
    EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR STOP;
}
</programlisting>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-sqlca">
   <title>sqlca</title>

   <para>
    For more powerful error handling, the embedded SQL interface
    provides a global variable with the name <varname>sqlca</varname>
    (SQL communication area)
    that has the following structure:
<programlisting>
struct
{
    char sqlcaid[8];
    long sqlabc;
    long sqlcode;
    struct
    {
        int sqlerrml;
        char sqlerrmc[SQLERRMC_LEN];
    } sqlerrm;
    char sqlerrp[8];
    long sqlerrd[6];
    char sqlwarn[8];
    char sqlstate[5];
} sqlca;
</programlisting>
    (In a multithreaded program, every thread automatically gets its
    own copy of <varname>sqlca</varname>.  This works similarly to the
    handling of the standard C global variable
    <varname>errno</varname>.)
   </para>

   <para>
    <varname>sqlca</varname> covers both warnings and errors.  If
    multiple warnings or errors occur during the execution of a
    statement, then <varname>sqlca</varname> will only contain
    information about the last one.
   </para>

   <para>
    If no error occurred in the last <acronym>SQL</acronym> statement,
    <literal>sqlca.sqlcode</literal> will be 0 and
    <literal>sqlca.sqlstate</literal> will be
    <literal>"00000"</literal>.  If a warning or error occurred, then
    <literal>sqlca.sqlcode</literal> will be negative and
    <literal>sqlca.sqlstate</literal> will be different from
    <literal>"00000"</literal>.  A positive
    <literal>sqlca.sqlcode</literal> indicates a harmless condition,
    such as that the last query returned zero rows.
    <literal>sqlcode</literal> and <literal>sqlstate</literal> are two
    different error code schemes; details appear below.
   </para>

   <para>
    If the last SQL statement was successful, then
    <literal>sqlca.sqlerrd[1]</literal> contains the OID of the
    processed row, if applicable, and
    <literal>sqlca.sqlerrd[2]</literal> contains the number of
    processed or returned rows, if applicable to the command.
   </para>

   <para>
    In case of an error or warning,
    <literal>sqlca.sqlerrm.sqlerrmc</literal> will contain a string
    that describes the error.  The field
    <literal>sqlca.sqlerrm.sqlerrml</literal> contains the length of
    the error message that is stored in
    <literal>sqlca.sqlerrm.sqlerrmc</literal> (the result of
    <function>strlen()</function>, not really interesting for a C
    programmer).  Note that some messages are too long to fit in the
    fixed-size <literal>sqlerrmc</literal> array; they will be truncated.
   </para>

   <para>
    In case of a warning, <literal>sqlca.sqlwarn[2]</literal> is set
    to <literal>W</literal>.  (In all other cases, it is set to
    something different from <literal>W</literal>.)  If
    <literal>sqlca.sqlwarn[1]</literal> is set to
    <literal>W</literal>, then a value was truncated when it was
    stored in a host variable.  <literal>sqlca.sqlwarn[0]</literal> is
    set to <literal>W</literal> if any of the other elements are set
    to indicate a warning.
   </para>

   <para>
    The fields <structfield>sqlcaid</structfield>,
    <structfield>sqlabc</structfield>,
    <structfield>sqlerrp</structfield>, and the remaining elements of
    <structfield>sqlerrd</structfield> and
    <structfield>sqlwarn</structfield> currently contain no useful
    information.
   </para>

   <para>
    The structure <varname>sqlca</varname> is not defined in the SQL
    standard, but is implemented in several other SQL database
    systems.  The definitions are similar at the core, but if you want
    to write portable applications, then you should investigate the
    different implementations carefully.
   </para>

   <para>
    Here is one example that combines the use of <literal>WHENEVER</literal>
    and <varname>sqlca</varname>, printing out the contents
    of <varname>sqlca</varname> when an error occurs.  This is perhaps
    useful for debugging or prototyping applications, before
    installing a more <quote>user-friendly</quote> error handler.

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR CALL print_sqlca();

void
print_sqlca()
{
    fprintf(stderr, "==== sqlca ====\n");
    fprintf(stderr, "sqlcode: %ld\n", sqlca.sqlcode);
    fprintf(stderr, "sqlerrm.sqlerrml: %d\n", sqlca.sqlerrm.sqlerrml);
    fprintf(stderr, "sqlerrm.sqlerrmc: %s\n", sqlca.sqlerrm.sqlerrmc);
    fprintf(stderr, "sqlerrd: %ld %ld %ld %ld %ld %ld\n", sqlca.sqlerrd[0],sqlca.sqlerrd[1],sqlca.sqlerrd[2],
                                                          sqlca.sqlerrd[3],sqlca.sqlerrd[4],sqlca.sqlerrd[5]);
    fprintf(stderr, "sqlwarn: %d %d %d %d %d %d %d %d\n", sqlca.sqlwarn[0], sqlca.sqlwarn[1], sqlca.sqlwarn[2],
                                                          sqlca.sqlwarn[3], sqlca.sqlwarn[4], sqlca.sqlwarn[5],
                                                          sqlca.sqlwarn[6], sqlca.sqlwarn[7]);
    fprintf(stderr, "sqlstate: %5s\n", sqlca.sqlstate);
    fprintf(stderr, "===============\n");
}
</programlisting>

    The result could look as follows (here an error due to a
    misspelled table name):

<screen>
==== sqlca ====
sqlcode: -400
sqlerrm.sqlerrml: 49
sqlerrm.sqlerrmc: relation "pg_databasep" does not exist on line 38
sqlerrd: 0 0 0 0 0 0
sqlwarn: 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
sqlstate: 42P01
===============
</screen>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode">
   <title><literal>SQLSTATE</literal> vs. <literal>SQLCODE</literal></title>

   <para>
    The fields <literal>sqlca.sqlstate</literal> and
    <literal>sqlca.sqlcode</literal> are two different schemes that
    provide error codes.  Both are derived from the SQL standard, but
    <literal>SQLCODE</literal> has been marked deprecated in the SQL-92
    edition of the standard and has been dropped in later editions.
    Therefore, new applications are strongly encouraged to use
    <literal>SQLSTATE</literal>.
   </para>

   <para>
    <literal>SQLSTATE</literal> is a five-character array.  The five
    characters contain digits or upper-case letters that represent
    codes of various error and warning conditions.
    <literal>SQLSTATE</literal> has a hierarchical scheme: the first
    two characters indicate the general class of the condition, the
    last three characters indicate a subclass of the general
    condition.  A successful state is indicated by the code
    <literal>00000</literal>.  The <literal>SQLSTATE</literal> codes are for
    the most part defined in the SQL standard.  The
    <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server natively supports
    <literal>SQLSTATE</literal> error codes; therefore a high degree
    of consistency can be achieved by using this error code scheme
    throughout all applications.  For further information see
    <xref linkend="errcodes-appendix"/>.
   </para>

   <para>
    <literal>SQLCODE</literal>, the deprecated error code scheme, is a
    simple integer.  A value of 0 indicates success, a positive value
    indicates success with additional information, a negative value
    indicates an error.  The SQL standard only defines the positive
    value +100, which indicates that the last command returned or
    affected zero rows, and no specific negative values.  Therefore,
    this scheme can only achieve poor portability and does not have a
    hierarchical code assignment.  Historically, the embedded SQL
    processor for <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> has assigned
    some specific <literal>SQLCODE</literal> values for its use, which
    are listed below with their numeric value and their symbolic name.
    Remember that these are not portable to other SQL implementations.
    To simplify the porting of applications to the
    <literal>SQLSTATE</literal> scheme, the corresponding
    <literal>SQLSTATE</literal> is also listed.  There is, however, no
    one-to-one or one-to-many mapping between the two schemes (indeed
    it is many-to-many), so you should consult the global
    <literal>SQLSTATE</literal> listing in <xref linkend="errcodes-appendix"/>
    in each case.
   </para>

   <para>
    These are the assigned <literal>SQLCODE</literal> values:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-no-error">
      <term>0 (<symbol>ECPG_NO_ERROR</symbol>)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Indicates no error. (SQLSTATE 00000)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-not-found">
     <term>100 (<symbol>ECPG_NOT_FOUND</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       This is a harmless condition indicating that the last command
       retrieved or processed zero rows, or that you are at the end of
       the cursor.  (SQLSTATE 02000)
      </para>

      <para>
       When processing a cursor in a loop, you could use this code as
       a way to detect when to abort the loop, like this:
<programlisting>
while (1)
{
    EXEC SQL FETCH ... ;
    if (sqlca.sqlcode == ECPG_NOT_FOUND)
        break;
}
</programlisting>
       But <literal>WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK</literal> effectively
       does this internally, so there is usually no advantage in
       writing this out explicitly.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-out-of-memory">
      <term>-12 (<symbol>ECPG_OUT_OF_MEMORY</symbol>)</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Indicates that your virtual memory is exhausted.  The numeric
        value is defined as <literal>-ENOMEM</literal>.  (SQLSTATE
        YE001)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-unsupported">
     <term>-200 (<symbol>ECPG_UNSUPPORTED</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Indicates the preprocessor has generated something that the
       library does not know about.  Perhaps you are running
       incompatible versions of the preprocessor and the
       library. (SQLSTATE YE002)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-too-many-arguments">
     <term>-201 (<symbol>ECPG_TOO_MANY_ARGUMENTS</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       This means that the command specified more host variables than
       the command expected.  (SQLSTATE 07001 or 07002)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-too-few-arguments">
     <term>-202 (<symbol>ECPG_TOO_FEW_ARGUMENTS</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       This means that the command specified fewer host variables than
       the command expected.  (SQLSTATE 07001 or 07002)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-too-many-matches">
     <term>-203 (<symbol>ECPG_TOO_MANY_MATCHES</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       This means a query has returned multiple rows but the statement
       was only prepared to store one result row (for example, because
       the specified variables are not arrays).  (SQLSTATE 21000)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-int-format">
     <term>-204 (<symbol>ECPG_INT_FORMAT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The host variable is of type <type>int</type> and the datum in
       the database is of a different type and contains a value that
       cannot be interpreted as an <type>int</type>.  The library uses
       <function>strtol()</function> for this conversion.  (SQLSTATE
       42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-uint-format">
     <term>-205 (<symbol>ECPG_UINT_FORMAT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The host variable is of type <type>unsigned int</type> and the
       datum in the database is of a different type and contains a
       value that cannot be interpreted as an <type>unsigned
       int</type>.  The library uses <function>strtoul()</function>
       for this conversion.  (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-float-format">
     <term>-206 (<symbol>ECPG_FLOAT_FORMAT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The host variable is of type <type>float</type> and the datum
       in the database is of another type and contains a value that
       cannot be interpreted as a <type>float</type>.  The library
       uses <function>strtod()</function> for this conversion.
       (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-numeric-format">
     <term>-207 (<symbol>ECPG_NUMERIC_FORMAT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The host variable is of type <type>numeric</type> and the datum
       in the database is of another type and contains a value that
       cannot be interpreted as a <type>numeric</type> value.
       (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-interval-format">
     <term>-208 (<symbol>ECPG_INTERVAL_FORMAT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The host variable is of type <type>interval</type> and the datum
       in the database is of another type and contains a value that
       cannot be interpreted as an <type>interval</type> value.
       (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-date-format">
     <term>-209 (<symbol>ECPG_DATE_FORMAT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The host variable is of type <type>date</type> and the datum in
       the database is of another type and contains a value that
       cannot be interpreted as a <type>date</type> value.
       (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-timestamp-format">
     <term>-210 (<symbol>ECPG_TIMESTAMP_FORMAT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The host variable is of type <type>timestamp</type> and the
       datum in the database is of another type and contains a value
       that cannot be interpreted as a <type>timestamp</type> value.
       (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-convert-bool">
     <term>-211 (<symbol>ECPG_CONVERT_BOOL</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       This means the host variable is of type <type>bool</type> and
       the datum in the database is neither <literal>'t'</literal> nor
       <literal>'f'</literal>.  (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-empty">
     <term>-212 (<symbol>ECPG_EMPTY</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The statement sent to the <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>
       server was empty.  (This cannot normally happen in an embedded
       SQL program, so it might point to an internal error.)  (SQLSTATE
       YE002)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-missing-indicator">
     <term>-213 (<symbol>ECPG_MISSING_INDICATOR</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       A null value was returned and no null indicator variable was
       supplied.  (SQLSTATE 22002)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-no-array">
     <term>-214 (<symbol>ECPG_NO_ARRAY</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       An ordinary variable was used in a place that requires an
       array.  (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-data-not-array">
     <term>-215 (<symbol>ECPG_DATA_NOT_ARRAY</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The database returned an ordinary variable in a place that
       requires array value.  (SQLSTATE 42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-array-insert">
     <term>-216 (<symbol>ECPG_ARRAY_INSERT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The value could not be inserted into the array.  (SQLSTATE
       42804)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-no-conn">
     <term>-220 (<symbol>ECPG_NO_CONN</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The program tried to access a connection that does not exist.
       (SQLSTATE 08003)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-not-conn">
     <term>-221 (<symbol>ECPG_NOT_CONN</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The program tried to access a connection that does exist but is
       not open.  (This is an internal error.)  (SQLSTATE YE002)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-invalid-stmt">
     <term>-230 (<symbol>ECPG_INVALID_STMT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The statement you are trying to use has not been prepared.
       (SQLSTATE 26000)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-informix-duplicate-key">
     <term>-239 (<symbol>ECPG_INFORMIX_DUPLICATE_KEY</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Duplicate key error, violation of unique constraint (Informix
       compatibility mode).  (SQLSTATE 23505)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-unknown-descriptor">
     <term>-240 (<symbol>ECPG_UNKNOWN_DESCRIPTOR</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The descriptor specified was not found.  The statement you are
       trying to use has not been prepared.  (SQLSTATE 33000)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-invalid-descriptor-index">
     <term>-241 (<symbol>ECPG_INVALID_DESCRIPTOR_INDEX</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The descriptor index specified was out of range.  (SQLSTATE
       07009)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-unknown-descriptor-item">
     <term>-242 (<symbol>ECPG_UNKNOWN_DESCRIPTOR_ITEM</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       An invalid descriptor item was requested.  (This is an internal
       error.)  (SQLSTATE YE002)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-var-not-numeric">
     <term>-243 (<symbol>ECPG_VAR_NOT_NUMERIC</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       During the execution of a dynamic statement, the database
       returned a numeric value and the host variable was not numeric.
       (SQLSTATE 07006)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-var-not-char">
     <term>-244 (<symbol>ECPG_VAR_NOT_CHAR</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       During the execution of a dynamic statement, the database
       returned a non-numeric value and the host variable was numeric.
       (SQLSTATE 07006)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-informix-subselect-not-one">
     <term>-284 (<symbol>ECPG_INFORMIX_SUBSELECT_NOT_ONE</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       A result of the subquery is not single row (Informix
       compatibility mode).  (SQLSTATE 21000)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-pgsql">
     <term>-400 (<symbol>ECPG_PGSQL</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Some error caused by the <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>
       server.  The message contains the error message from the
       <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-trans">
     <term>-401 (<symbol>ECPG_TRANS</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server signaled that
       we cannot start, commit, or rollback the transaction.
       (SQLSTATE 08007)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-connect">
     <term>-402 (<symbol>ECPG_CONNECT</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The connection attempt to the database did not succeed.
       (SQLSTATE 08001)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-duplicate-key">
     <term>-403 (<symbol>ECPG_DUPLICATE_KEY</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Duplicate key error, violation of unique constraint.  (SQLSTATE
       23505)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-subselect-not-one">
     <term>-404 (<symbol>ECPG_SUBSELECT_NOT_ONE</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       A result for the subquery is not single row. (SQLSTATE 21000)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <!-- currently not used by the code -->
<!--
    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-warning-unrecognized">
     <term>-600 (<symbol>ECPG_WARNING_UNRECOGNIZED</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       An unrecognized warning was received from the server.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-warning-query-ignored">
     <term>-601 (<symbol>ECPG_WARNING_QUERY_IGNORED</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Current transaction is aborted.  Queries are ignored until the
       end of the transaction block.
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>
-->

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-warning-unknown-portal">
     <term>-602 (<symbol>ECPG_WARNING_UNKNOWN_PORTAL</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       An invalid cursor name was specified. (SQLSTATE 34000)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-warning-in-transaction">
     <term>-603 (<symbol>ECPG_WARNING_IN_TRANSACTION</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       Transaction is in progress. (SQLSTATE 25001)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-warning-no-transaction">
     <term>-604 (<symbol>ECPG_WARNING_NO_TRANSACTION</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       There is no active (in-progress) transaction. (SQLSTATE 25P01)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-sqlstate-sqlcode-ecpg-warning-portal-exists">
     <term>-605 (<symbol>ECPG_WARNING_PORTAL_EXISTS</symbol>)</term>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       An existing cursor name was specified. (SQLSTATE 42P03)
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

   </variablelist>
  </para>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-preproc">
  <title>Preprocessor Directives</title>

  <para>
   Several preprocessor directives are available that modify how
   the <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor parses and processes a
   file.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-include">
   <title>Including Files</title>

   <para>
    To include an external file into your embedded SQL program, use:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL INCLUDE <replaceable>filename</replaceable>;
EXEC SQL INCLUDE &lt;<replaceable>filename</replaceable>&gt;;
EXEC SQL INCLUDE "<replaceable>filename</replaceable>";
</programlisting>
    The embedded SQL preprocessor will look for a file named
    <literal><replaceable>filename</replaceable>.h</literal>,
    preprocess it, and include it in the resulting C output.  Thus,
    embedded SQL statements in the included file are handled correctly.
   </para>

   <para>
    The <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor will search a file at
    several directories in following order:

    <itemizedlist>
     <listitem><simpara>current directory</simpara></listitem>
     <listitem><simpara><filename>/usr/local/include</filename></simpara></listitem>
     <listitem><simpara>PostgreSQL include directory, defined at build time (e.g., <filename>/usr/local/pgsql/include</filename>)</simpara></listitem>
     <listitem><simpara><filename>/usr/include</filename></simpara></listitem>
    </itemizedlist>

    But when <literal>EXEC SQL INCLUDE
    "<replaceable>filename</replaceable>"</literal> is used, only the
    current directory is searched.
   </para>

   <para>
    In each directory, the preprocessor will first look for the file
    name as given, and if not found will append <literal>.h</literal>
    to the file name and try again (unless the specified file name
    already has that suffix).
   </para>

   <para>
    Note that <command>EXEC SQL INCLUDE</command> is <emphasis>not</emphasis> the same as:
<programlisting>
#include &lt;<replaceable>filename</replaceable>.h&gt;
</programlisting>
    because this file would not be subject to SQL command preprocessing.
    Naturally, you can continue to use the C
    <literal>#include</literal> directive to include other header
    files.
   </para>

   <note>
    <para>
     The include file name is case-sensitive, even though the rest of
     the <literal>EXEC SQL INCLUDE</literal> command follows the normal
     SQL case-sensitivity rules.
    </para>
   </note>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-define">
   <title>The define and undef Directives</title>
   <para>
    Similar to the directive <literal>#define</literal> that is known from C,
    embedded SQL has a similar concept:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEFINE <replaceable>name</replaceable>;
EXEC SQL DEFINE <replaceable>name</replaceable> <replaceable>value</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
    So you can define a name:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEFINE HAVE_FEATURE;
</programlisting>
    And you can also define constants:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEFINE MYNUMBER 12;
EXEC SQL DEFINE MYSTRING 'abc';
</programlisting>
    Use <literal>undef</literal> to remove a previous definition:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL UNDEF MYNUMBER;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    Of course you can continue to use the C versions <literal>#define</literal>
    and <literal>#undef</literal> in your embedded SQL program. The difference
    is where your defined values get evaluated. If you use <literal>EXEC SQL
    DEFINE</literal> then the <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor evaluates the defines and substitutes
    the values. For example if you write:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEFINE MYNUMBER 12;
...
EXEC SQL UPDATE Tbl SET col = MYNUMBER;
</programlisting>
    then <command>ecpg</command> will already do the substitution and your C compiler will never
    see any name or identifier <literal>MYNUMBER</literal>. Note that you cannot use
    <literal>#define</literal> for a constant that you are going to use in an
    embedded SQL query because in this case the embedded SQL precompiler is not
    able to see this declaration.
   </para>

   <para>
    If multiple input files are named on the <command>ecpg</command>
    preprocessor's command line, the effects of <literal>EXEC SQL
    DEFINE</literal> and <literal>EXEC SQL UNDEF</literal> do not carry
    across files: each file starts with only the symbols defined
    by <option>-D</option> switches on the command line.
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-ifdef">
   <title>ifdef, ifndef, elif, else, and endif Directives</title>
   <para>
   You can use the following directives to compile code sections conditionally:

   <variablelist>
    <varlistentry id="ecpg-ifdef-ifdef">
     <term><literal>EXEC SQL ifdef <replaceable>name</replaceable>;</literal></term>
     <listitem>
     <para>
      Checks a <replaceable>name</replaceable> and processes subsequent lines if
      <replaceable>name</replaceable> has been defined via <literal>EXEC SQL define
      <replaceable>name</replaceable></literal>.
     </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-ifdef-ifndef">
     <term><literal>EXEC SQL ifndef <replaceable>name</replaceable>;</literal></term>
     <listitem>
     <para>
      Checks a <replaceable>name</replaceable> and processes subsequent lines if
      <replaceable>name</replaceable> has <emphasis>not</emphasis> been defined via
      <literal>EXEC SQL define <replaceable>name</replaceable></literal>.
     </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-ifdef-elif">
     <term><literal>EXEC SQL elif <replaceable>name</replaceable>;</literal></term>
     <listitem>
     <para>
      Begins an optional alternative section after an
      <literal>EXEC SQL ifdef <replaceable>name</replaceable></literal> or
      <literal>EXEC SQL ifndef <replaceable>name</replaceable></literal>
      directive.  Any number of <literal>elif</literal> sections can appear.
      Lines following an <literal>elif</literal> will be processed
      if <replaceable>name</replaceable> has been
      defined <emphasis>and</emphasis> no previous section of the same
      <literal>ifdef</literal>/<literal>ifndef</literal>...<literal>endif</literal>
      construct has been processed.
     </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-ifdef-else">
     <term><literal>EXEC SQL else;</literal></term>
     <listitem>
     <para>
      Begins an optional, final alternative section after an
      <literal>EXEC SQL ifdef <replaceable>name</replaceable></literal> or
      <literal>EXEC SQL ifndef <replaceable>name</replaceable></literal>
      directive.  Subsequent lines will be processed if no previous section
      of the same
      <literal>ifdef</literal>/<literal>ifndef</literal>...<literal>endif</literal>
      construct has been processed.
     </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>

    <varlistentry id="ecpg-ifdef-endif">
     <term><literal>EXEC SQL endif;</literal></term>
     <listitem>
     <para>
      Ends an
      <literal>ifdef</literal>/<literal>ifndef</literal>...<literal>endif</literal>
      construct.  Subsequent lines are processed normally.
     </para>
     </listitem>
    </varlistentry>
   </variablelist>
   </para>

   <para>
    <literal>ifdef</literal>/<literal>ifndef</literal>...<literal>endif</literal>
    constructs can be nested, up to 127 levels deep.
   </para>

   <para>
    This example will compile exactly one of the three <literal>SET
    TIMEZONE</literal> commands:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL ifdef TZVAR;
EXEC SQL SET TIMEZONE TO TZVAR;
EXEC SQL elif TZNAME;
EXEC SQL SET TIMEZONE TO TZNAME;
EXEC SQL else;
EXEC SQL SET TIMEZONE TO 'GMT';
EXEC SQL endif;
</programlisting>
   </para>

  </sect2>
 </sect1>

  <sect1 id="ecpg-process">
  <title>Processing Embedded SQL Programs</title>

  <para>
   Now that you have an idea how to form embedded SQL C programs, you
   probably want to know how to compile them.  Before compiling you
   run the file through the embedded <acronym>SQL</acronym>
   <acronym>C</acronym> preprocessor, which converts the
   <acronym>SQL</acronym> statements you used to special function
   calls.  After compiling, you must link with a special library that
   contains the needed functions. These functions fetch information
   from the arguments, perform the <acronym>SQL</acronym> command using
   the <application>libpq</application> interface, and put the result
   in the arguments specified for output.
  </para>

  <para>
   The preprocessor program is called <filename>ecpg</filename> and is
   included in a normal <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> installation.
   Embedded SQL programs are typically named with an extension
   <filename>.pgc</filename>.  If you have a program file called
   <filename>prog1.pgc</filename>, you can preprocess it by simply
   calling:
<programlisting>
ecpg prog1.pgc
</programlisting>
   This will create a file called <filename>prog1.c</filename>.  If
   your input files do not follow the suggested naming pattern, you
   can specify the output file explicitly using the
   <option>-o</option> option.
  </para>

  <para>
   The preprocessed file can be compiled normally, for example:
<programlisting>
cc -c prog1.c
</programlisting>
   The generated C source files include header files from the
   <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> installation, so if you installed
   <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> in a location that is not searched by
   default, you have to add an option such as
   <literal>-I/usr/local/pgsql/include</literal> to the compilation
   command line.
  </para>

  <para>
   To link an embedded SQL program, you need to include the
   <filename>libecpg</filename> library, like so:
<programlisting>
cc -o myprog prog1.o prog2.o ... -lecpg
</programlisting>
   Again, you might have to add an option like
   <literal>-L/usr/local/pgsql/lib</literal> to that command line.
  </para>

  <para>
   You can
   use <command>pg_config</command><indexterm><primary>pg_config</primary><secondary sortas="ecpg">with
   ecpg</secondary></indexterm>
   or <command>pkg-config</command><indexterm><primary>pkg-config</primary><secondary sortas="ecpg">with
   ecpg</secondary></indexterm> with package name <literal>libecpg</literal> to
   get the paths for your installation.
  </para>

  <para>
   If you manage the build process of a larger project using
   <application>make</application>, it might be convenient to include
   the following implicit rule to your makefiles:
<programlisting>
ECPG = ecpg

%.c: %.pgc
        $(ECPG) $&lt;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <para>
   The complete syntax of the <command>ecpg</command> command is
   detailed in <xref linkend="app-ecpg"/>.
  </para>

  <para>
   The <application>ecpg</application> library is thread-safe by
   default.  However, you might need to use some threading
   command-line options to compile your client code.
  </para>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-library">
  <title>Library Functions</title>

  <para>
   The <filename>libecpg</filename> library primarily contains
   <quote>hidden</quote> functions that are used to implement the
   functionality expressed by the embedded SQL commands.  But there
   are some functions that can usefully be called directly.  Note that
   this makes your code unportable.
  </para>

  <itemizedlist>
   <listitem>
    <para>
     <function>ECPGdebug(int <replaceable>on</replaceable>, FILE
     *<replaceable>stream</replaceable>)</function> turns on debug
     logging if called with the first argument non-zero. Debug logging
     is done on <replaceable>stream</replaceable>.  The log contains
     all <acronym>SQL</acronym> statements with all the input
     variables inserted, and the results from the
     <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> server. This can be very
     useful when searching for errors in your <acronym>SQL</acronym>
     statements.
    </para>
    <note>
    <para>
    On Windows, if the <application>ecpg</application> libraries and an application are
    compiled with different flags, this function call will crash the
    application because the internal representation of the
    <literal>FILE</literal> pointers differ.  Specifically,
    multithreaded/single-threaded, release/debug, and static/dynamic
    flags should be the same for the library and all applications using
    that library.
    </para>
    </note>
   </listitem>

   <listitem>
     <para>
       <function>ECPGget_PGconn(const char *<replaceable>connection_name</replaceable>)
       </function> returns the library database connection handle identified by the given name.
       If <replaceable>connection_name</replaceable> is set to <literal>NULL</literal>, the current
       connection handle is returned. If no connection handle can be identified, the function returns
       <literal>NULL</literal>. The returned connection handle can be used to call any other functions
       from <application>libpq</application>, if necessary.
     </para>
     <note>
     <para>
       It is a bad idea to manipulate database connection handles made from <application>ecpg</application> directly
       with <application>libpq</application> routines.
     </para>
     </note>
   </listitem>

   <listitem>
     <para>
       <function>ECPGtransactionStatus(const char *<replaceable>connection_name</replaceable>)</function>
       returns the current transaction status of the given connection identified by <replaceable>connection_name</replaceable>.
       See <xref linkend="libpq-status"/> and libpq's <xref linkend="libpq-PQtransactionStatus"/> for details about the returned status codes.
     </para>
   </listitem>

   <listitem>
    <para>
     <function>ECPGstatus(int <replaceable>lineno</replaceable>,
     const char* <replaceable>connection_name</replaceable>)</function>
     returns true if you are connected to a database and false if not.
     <replaceable>connection_name</replaceable> can be <literal>NULL</literal>
     if a single connection is being used.
    </para>
   </listitem>
  </itemizedlist>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-lo">
  <title>Large Objects</title>

  <para>
   Large objects are not directly supported by ECPG, but ECPG
   application can manipulate large objects through the libpq large
   object functions, obtaining the necessary <type>PGconn</type>
   object by calling the <function>ECPGget_PGconn()</function>
   function.  (However, use of
   the <function>ECPGget_PGconn()</function> function and touching
   <type>PGconn</type> objects directly should be done very carefully
   and ideally not mixed with other ECPG database access calls.)
  </para>

  <para>
   For more details about the <function>ECPGget_PGconn()</function>, see
   <xref linkend="ecpg-library"/>.  For information about the large
   object function interface, see <xref linkend="largeobjects"/>.
  </para>

  <para>
   Large object functions have to be called in a transaction block, so
   when autocommit is off, <command>BEGIN</command> commands have to
   be issued explicitly.
  </para>

  <para>
   <xref linkend="ecpg-lo-example"/> shows an example program that
   illustrates how to create, write, and read a large object in an
   ECPG application.
  </para>

  <example id="ecpg-lo-example">
   <title>ECPG Program Accessing Large Objects</title>
<programlisting><![CDATA[
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <libpq-fe.h>
#include <libpq/libpq-fs.h>

EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR STOP;

int
main(void)
{
    PGconn     *conn;
    Oid         loid;
    int         fd;
    char        buf[256];
    int         buflen = 256;
    char        buf2[256];
    int         rc;

    memset(buf, 1, buflen);

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con1;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    conn = ECPGget_PGconn("con1");
    printf("conn = %p\n", conn);

    /* create */
    loid = lo_create(conn, 0);
    if (loid &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_create() failed: %s", PQerrorMessage(conn));

    printf("loid = %d\n", loid);

    /* write test */
    fd = lo_open(conn, loid, INV_READ|INV_WRITE);
    if (fd &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_open() failed: %s", PQerrorMessage(conn));

    printf("fd = %d\n", fd);

    rc = lo_write(conn, fd, buf, buflen);
    if (rc &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_write() failed\n");

    rc = lo_close(conn, fd);
    if (rc &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_close() failed: %s", PQerrorMessage(conn));

    /* read test */
    fd = lo_open(conn, loid, INV_READ);
    if (fd &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_open() failed: %s", PQerrorMessage(conn));

    printf("fd = %d\n", fd);

    rc = lo_read(conn, fd, buf2, buflen);
    if (rc &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_read() failed\n");

    rc = lo_close(conn, fd);
    if (rc &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_close() failed: %s", PQerrorMessage(conn));

    /* check */
    rc = memcmp(buf, buf2, buflen);
    printf("memcmp() = %d\n", rc);

    /* cleanup */
    rc = lo_unlink(conn, loid);
    if (rc &lt; 0)
        printf("lo_unlink() failed: %s", PQerrorMessage(conn));

    EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
    return 0;
}
]]></programlisting>
  </example>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-cpp">
  <title><acronym>C++</acronym> Applications</title>

  <para>
   ECPG has some limited support for C++ applications.  This section
   describes some caveats.
  </para>

  <para>
   The <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor takes an input file
   written in C (or something like C) and embedded SQL commands,
   converts the embedded SQL commands into C language chunks, and
   finally generates a <filename>.c</filename> file.  The header file
   declarations of the library functions used by the C language chunks
   that <command>ecpg</command> generates are wrapped
   in <literal>extern "C" { ... }</literal> blocks when used under
   C++, so they should work seamlessly in C++.
  </para>

  <para>
   In general, however, the <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor only
   understands C; it does not handle the special syntax and reserved
   words of the C++ language.  So, some embedded SQL code written in
   C++ application code that uses complicated features specific to C++
   might fail to be preprocessed correctly or might not work as
   expected.
  </para>

  <para>
   A safe way to use the embedded SQL code in a C++ application is
   hiding the ECPG calls in a C module, which the C++ application code
   calls into to access the database, and linking that together with
   the rest of the C++ code.  See <xref linkend="ecpg-cpp-and-c"/>
   about that.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-cpp-scope">
   <title>Scope for Host Variables</title>

   <para>
    The <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor understands the scope of
    variables in C.  In the C language, this is rather simple because
    the scopes of variables is based on their code blocks.  In C++,
    however, the class member variables are referenced in a different
    code block from the declared position, so
    the <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor will not understand the
    scope of the class member variables.
   </para>

   <para>
    For example, in the following case, the <command>ecpg</command>
    preprocessor cannot find any declaration for the
    variable <literal>dbname</literal> in the <literal>test</literal>
    method, so an error will occur.

<programlisting>
class TestCpp
{
    EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char dbname[1024];
    EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

  public:
    TestCpp();
    void test();
    ~TestCpp();
};

TestCpp::TestCpp()
{
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb1;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
}

void Test::test()
{
    EXEC SQL SELECT current_database() INTO :dbname;
    printf("current_database = %s\n", dbname);
}

TestCpp::~TestCpp()
{
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
}
</programlisting>

    This code will result in an error like this:
<screen>
<userinput>ecpg test_cpp.pgc</userinput>
test_cpp.pgc:28: ERROR: variable "dbname" is not declared
</screen>
   </para>

   <para>
    To avoid this scope issue, the <literal>test</literal> method
    could be modified to use a local variable as intermediate storage.
    But this approach is only a poor workaround, because it uglifies
    the code and reduces performance.

<programlisting>
void TestCpp::test()
{
    EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char tmp[1024];
    EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL SELECT current_database() INTO :tmp;
    strlcpy(dbname, tmp, sizeof(tmp));

    printf("current_database = %s\n", dbname);
}
</programlisting>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-cpp-and-c">
   <title>C++ Application Development with External C Module</title>

   <para>
    If you understand these technical limitations of
    the <command>ecpg</command> preprocessor in C++, you might come to
    the conclusion that linking C objects and C++ objects at the link
    stage to enable C++ applications to use ECPG features could be
    better than writing some embedded SQL commands in C++ code
    directly.  This section describes a way to separate some embedded
    SQL commands from C++ application code with a simple example.  In
    this example, the application is implemented in C++, while C and
    ECPG is used to connect to the PostgreSQL server.
   </para>

   <para>
    Three kinds of files have to be created: a C file
    (<filename>*.pgc</filename>), a header file, and a C++ file:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-cpp-and-c-test-mod-pgc">
      <term><filename>test_mod.pgc</filename></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A sub-routine module to execute SQL commands embedded in C.
        It is going to be converted
        into <filename>test_mod.c</filename> by the preprocessor.

<programlisting>
#include "test_mod.h"
#include &lt;stdio.h&gt;

void
db_connect()
{
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb1;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
}

void
db_test()
{
    EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char dbname[1024];
    EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL SELECT current_database() INTO :dbname;
    printf("current_database = %s\n", dbname);
}

void
db_disconnect()
{
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;
}
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-cpp-and-c-test-mod-h">
      <term><filename>test_mod.h</filename></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A header file with declarations of the functions in the C
        module (<filename>test_mod.pgc</filename>).  It is included by
        <filename>test_cpp.cpp</filename>.  This file has to have an
        <literal>extern "C"</literal> block around the declarations,
        because it will be linked from the C++ module.

<programlisting>
#ifdef __cplusplus
extern "C" {
#endif

void db_connect();
void db_test();
void db_disconnect();

#ifdef __cplusplus
}
#endif
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-cpp-and-c-test-cpp-cpp">
      <term><filename>test_cpp.cpp</filename></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The main code for the application, including
        the <function>main</function> routine, and in this example a
        C++ class.

<programlisting>
#include "test_mod.h"

class TestCpp
{
  public:
    TestCpp();
    void test();
    ~TestCpp();
};

TestCpp::TestCpp()
{
    db_connect();
}

void
TestCpp::test()
{
    db_test();
}

TestCpp::~TestCpp()
{
    db_disconnect();
}

int
main(void)
{
    TestCpp *t = new TestCpp();

    t->test();
    return 0;
}
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>

   <para>
    To build the application, proceed as follows.  Convert
    <filename>test_mod.pgc</filename> into <filename>test_mod.c</filename> by
    running <command>ecpg</command>, and generate
    <filename>test_mod.o</filename> by compiling
    <filename>test_mod.c</filename> with the C compiler:
<programlisting>
ecpg -o test_mod.c test_mod.pgc
cc -c test_mod.c -o test_mod.o
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    Next, generate <filename>test_cpp.o</filename> by compiling
    <filename>test_cpp.cpp</filename> with the C++ compiler:
<programlisting>
c++ -c test_cpp.cpp -o test_cpp.o
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    Finally, link these object files, <filename>test_cpp.o</filename>
    and <filename>test_mod.o</filename>, into one executable, using the C++
    compiler driver:
<programlisting>
c++ test_cpp.o test_mod.o -lecpg -o test_cpp
</programlisting>
   </para>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-sql-commands">
  <title>Embedded SQL Commands</title>

  <para>
   This section describes all SQL commands that are specific to
   embedded SQL.  Also refer to the SQL commands listed
   in <xref linkend="sql-commands"/>, which can also be used in
   embedded SQL, unless stated otherwise.
  </para>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-allocate-descriptor">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR</refname>
    <refpurpose>allocate an SQL descriptor area</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">name</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR</command> allocates a new named SQL
     descriptor area, which can be used to exchange data between the
     PostgreSQL server and the host program.
    </para>

    <para>
     Descriptor areas should be freed after use using
     the <command>DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR</command> command.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-allocate-descriptor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A name of SQL descriptor, case sensitive.  This can be an SQL
        identifier or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR</command> is specified in the SQL
     standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-deallocate-descriptor"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-connect">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>CONNECT</refname>
    <refpurpose>establish a database connection</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
CONNECT TO <replaceable>connection_target</replaceable> [ AS <replaceable>connection_name</replaceable> ] [ USER <replaceable>connection_user</replaceable> ]
CONNECT TO DEFAULT
CONNECT <replaceable>connection_user</replaceable>
DATABASE <replaceable>connection_target</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     The <command>CONNECT</command> command establishes a connection
     between the client and the PostgreSQL server.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-target">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">connection_target</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        <replaceable class="parameter">connection_target</replaceable>
        specifies the target server of the connection on one of
        several forms.

        <variablelist>
         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-target-database-name">
          <term>[ <replaceable>database_name</replaceable> ] [ <literal>@</literal><replaceable>host</replaceable> ] [ <literal>:</literal><replaceable>port</replaceable> ]</term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            Connect over TCP/IP
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-target-unix-domain-sockets">
          <term><literal>unix:postgresql://</literal><replaceable>host</replaceable> [ <literal>:</literal><replaceable>port</replaceable> ] <literal>/</literal> [ <replaceable>database_name</replaceable> ] [ <literal>?</literal><replaceable>connection_option</replaceable> ]</term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            Connect over Unix-domain sockets
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-target-tcp-ip">
          <term><literal>tcp:postgresql://</literal><replaceable>host</replaceable> [ <literal>:</literal><replaceable>port</replaceable> ] <literal>/</literal> [ <replaceable>database_name</replaceable> ] [ <literal>?</literal><replaceable>connection_option</replaceable> ]</term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            Connect over TCP/IP
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-target-constant">
          <term>SQL string constant</term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            containing a value in one of the above forms
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

         <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-target-host-variable">
          <term>host variable</term>
          <listitem>
           <para>
            host variable of type <type>char[]</type>
            or <type>VARCHAR[]</type> containing a value in one of the
            above forms
           </para>
          </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
        </variablelist>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">connection_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An optional identifier for the connection, so that it can be
        referred to in other commands.  This can be an SQL identifier
        or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-connection-user">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">connection_user</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The user name for the database connection.
       </para>

       <para>
        This parameter can also specify user name and password, using one the forms
        <literal><replaceable>user_name</replaceable>/<replaceable>password</replaceable></literal>,
        <literal><replaceable>user_name</replaceable> IDENTIFIED BY <replaceable>password</replaceable></literal>, or
        <literal><replaceable>user_name</replaceable> USING <replaceable>password</replaceable></literal>.
       </para>

       <para>
        User name and password can be SQL identifiers, string
        constants, or host variables.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-connect-default">
      <term><literal>DEFAULT</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Use all default connection parameters, as defined by libpq.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

    <para>
     Here a several variants for specifying connection parameters:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO "connectdb" AS main;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO "connectdb" AS second;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO "unix:postgresql://200.46.204.71/connectdb" AS main USER connectuser;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO "unix:postgresql://localhost/connectdb" AS main USER connectuser;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO 'connectdb' AS main;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO 'unix:postgresql://localhost/connectdb' AS main USER :user;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO :db AS :id;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO :db USER connectuser USING :pw;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO @localhost AS main USER connectdb;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO REGRESSDB1 AS main;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO AS main USER connectdb;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO connectdb AS :id;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO connectdb AS main USER connectuser/connectdb;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO connectdb AS main;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO connectdb@localhost AS main;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO tcp:postgresql://localhost/ USER connectdb;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO tcp:postgresql://localhost/connectdb USER connectuser IDENTIFIED BY connectpw;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO tcp:postgresql://localhost:20/connectdb USER connectuser IDENTIFIED BY connectpw;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO unix:postgresql://localhost/ AS main USER connectdb;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO unix:postgresql://localhost/connectdb AS main USER connectuser;
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO unix:postgresql://localhost/connectdb USER connectuser IDENTIFIED BY "connectpw";
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO unix:postgresql://localhost/connectdb USER connectuser USING "connectpw";
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO unix:postgresql://localhost/connectdb?connect_timeout=14 USER connectuser;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Here is an example program that illustrates the use of host
     variables to specify connection parameters:
<programlisting>
int
main(void)
{
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char *dbname     = "testdb";    /* database name */
    char *user       = "testuser";  /* connection user name */
    char *connection = "tcp:postgresql://localhost:5432/testdb";
                                    /* connection string */
    char ver[256];                  /* buffer to store the version string */
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    ECPGdebug(1, stderr);

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO :dbname USER :user;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL SELECT version() INTO :ver;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT;

    printf("version: %s\n", ver);

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO :connection USER :user;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL SELECT version() INTO :ver;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT;

    printf("version: %s\n", ver);

    return 0;
}
</programlisting>
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>CONNECT</command> is specified in the SQL standard, but
     the format of the connection parameters is
     implementation-specific.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-disconnect"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-set-connection"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-deallocate-descriptor">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR</refname>
    <refpurpose>deallocate an SQL descriptor area</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">name</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR</command> deallocates a named SQL
     descriptor area.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-deallocate-descriptor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name of the descriptor which is going to be deallocated.
        It is case sensitive.  This can be an SQL identifier or a host
        variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR</command> is specified in the SQL
     standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-allocate-descriptor"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-declare">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>DECLARE</refname>
    <refpurpose>define a cursor</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
DECLARE <replaceable class="parameter">cursor_name</replaceable> [ BINARY ] [ ASENSITIVE | INSENSITIVE ] [ [ NO ] SCROLL ] CURSOR [ { WITH | WITHOUT } HOLD ] FOR <replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable>
DECLARE <replaceable class="parameter">cursor_name</replaceable> [ BINARY ] [ ASENSITIVE | INSENSITIVE ] [ [ NO ] SCROLL ] CURSOR [ { WITH | WITHOUT } HOLD ] FOR <replaceable class="parameter">query</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>DECLARE</command> declares a cursor for iterating over
     the result set of a prepared statement.  This command has
     slightly different semantics from the direct SQL
     command <command>DECLARE</command>: Whereas the latter executes a
     query and prepares the result set for retrieval, this embedded
     SQL command merely declares a name as a <quote>loop
     variable</quote> for iterating over the result set of a query;
     the actual execution happens when the cursor is opened with
     the <command>OPEN</command> command.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>
    <variablelist>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-declare-cursor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">cursor_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A cursor name, case sensitive.  This can be an SQL identifier
        or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-declare-prepared-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name of a prepared query, either as an SQL identifier or a
        host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-declare-query">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">query</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A <xref linkend="sql-select"/> or
        <xref linkend="sql-values"/> command which will provide the
        rows to be returned by the cursor.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>

    <para>
     For the meaning of the cursor options,
     see <xref linkend="sql-declare"/>.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

    <para>
     Examples declaring a cursor for a query:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL DECLARE C CURSOR FOR SELECT * FROM My_Table;
EXEC SQL DECLARE C CURSOR FOR SELECT Item1 FROM T;
EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR SELECT version();
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     An example declaring a cursor for a prepared statement:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 AS SELECT version();
EXEC SQL DECLARE cur1 CURSOR FOR stmt1;
</programlisting>
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>DECLARE</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-open"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="sql-close"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="sql-declare"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-declare-statement">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>DECLARE STATEMENT</refname>
    <refpurpose>declare SQL statement identifier</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
EXEC SQL [ AT <replaceable class="parameter">connection_name</replaceable> ] DECLARE <replaceable class="parameter">statement_name</replaceable> STATEMENT
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>DECLARE STATEMENT</command> declares an SQL statement identifier.
     SQL statement identifier can be associated with the connection.
     When the identifier is used by dynamic SQL statements, the statements
     are executed using the associated connection.
     The namespace of the declaration is the precompile unit, and multiple
     declarations to the same SQL statement identifier are not allowed.
     Note that if the precompiler runs in Informix compatibility mode and
     some SQL statement is declared, "database" cannot be used as a cursor
     name.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-declare-statement-connection-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">connection_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A database connection name established by the <command>CONNECT</command> command.
       </para>
       <para>
        AT clause can be omitted, but such statement has no meaning.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-declare-statement-statement-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">statement_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name of an SQL statement identifier, either as an SQL identifier or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Notes</title>
    <para>
     This association is valid only if the declaration is physically placed on top of a dynamic statement.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL CONNECT TO postgres AS con1;
EXEC SQL AT con1 DECLARE sql_stmt STATEMENT;
EXEC SQL DECLARE cursor_name CURSOR FOR sql_stmt;
EXEC SQL PREPARE sql_stmt FROM :dyn_string;
EXEC SQL OPEN cursor_name;
EXEC SQL FETCH cursor_name INTO :column1;
EXEC SQL CLOSE cursor_name;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>DECLARE STATEMENT</command> is an extension of the SQL standard,
     but can be used in famous DBMSs.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-connect"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-declare"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-open"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-describe">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>DESCRIBE</refname>
    <refpurpose>obtain information about a prepared statement or result set</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
DESCRIBE [ OUTPUT ] <replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable> USING [ SQL ] DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable>
DESCRIBE [ OUTPUT ] <replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable> INTO [ SQL ] DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable>
DESCRIBE [ OUTPUT ] <replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable> INTO <replaceable class="parameter">sqlda_name</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>DESCRIBE</command> retrieves metadata information about
     the result columns contained in a prepared statement, without
     actually fetching a row.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-describe-prepared-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name of a prepared statement.  This can be an SQL
        identifier or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-describe-descriptor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A descriptor name. It is case sensitive.  It can be an SQL
        identifier or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-describe-sqlda-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">sqlda_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name of an SQLDA variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
EXEC SQL PREPARE stmt1 FROM :sql_stmt;
EXEC SQL DESCRIBE stmt1 INTO SQL DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR mydesc VALUE 1 :charvar = NAME;
EXEC SQL DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>DESCRIBE</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-allocate-descriptor"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-disconnect">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>DISCONNECT</refname>
    <refpurpose>terminate a database connection</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
DISCONNECT <replaceable class="parameter">connection_name</replaceable>
DISCONNECT [ CURRENT ]
DISCONNECT ALL
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>DISCONNECT</command> closes a connection (or all
     connections) to the database.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-disconnect-connection-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">connection_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A database connection name established by
        the <command>CONNECT</command> command.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-disconnect-current">
      <term><literal>CURRENT</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Close the <quote>current</quote> connection, which is either
        the most recently opened connection, or the connection set by
        the <command>SET CONNECTION</command> command.  This is also
        the default if no argument is given to
        the <command>DISCONNECT</command> command.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-disconnect-all">
      <term><literal>ALL</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Close all open connections.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
int
main(void)
{
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con1 USER testuser;
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con2 USER testuser;
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con3 USER testuser;

    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT CURRENT;  /* close con3          */
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;      /* close con2 and con1 */

    return 0;
}
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>DISCONNECT</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-connect"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-set-connection"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-execute-immediate">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>EXECUTE IMMEDIATE</refname>
    <refpurpose>dynamically prepare and execute a statement</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
EXECUTE IMMEDIATE <replaceable class="parameter">string</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>EXECUTE IMMEDIATE</command> immediately prepares and
     executes a dynamically specified SQL statement, without
     retrieving result rows.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-execute-immediate-string">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">string</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A literal string or a host variable containing the SQL
        statement to be executed.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Notes</title>

    <para>
     In typical usage, the <replaceable>string</replaceable> is a host
     variable reference to a string containing a dynamically-constructed
     SQL statement.  The case of a literal string is not very useful;
     you might as well just write the SQL statement directly, without
     the extra typing of <command>EXECUTE IMMEDIATE</command>.
    </para>

    <para>
     If you do use a literal string, keep in mind that any double quotes
     you might wish to include in the SQL statement must be written as
     octal escapes (<literal>\042</literal>) not the usual C
     idiom <literal>\"</literal>.  This is because the string is inside
     an <literal>EXEC SQL</literal> section, so the ECPG lexer parses it
     according to SQL rules not C rules.  Any embedded backslashes will
     later be handled according to C rules; but <literal>\"</literal>
     causes an immediate syntax error because it is seen as ending the
     literal.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

    <para>
     Here is an example that executes an <command>INSERT</command>
     statement using <command>EXECUTE IMMEDIATE</command> and a host
     variable named <varname>command</varname>:
<programlisting>
sprintf(command, "INSERT INTO test (name, amount, letter) VALUES ('db: ''r1''', 1, 'f')");
EXEC SQL EXECUTE IMMEDIATE :command;
</programlisting>
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>EXECUTE IMMEDIATE</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>GET DESCRIPTOR</refname>
    <refpurpose>get information from an SQL descriptor area</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
GET DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable> <replaceable class="parameter">:cvariable</replaceable> = <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_header_item</replaceable>
GET DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable> VALUE <replaceable class="parameter">column_number</replaceable> <replaceable class="parameter">:cvariable</replaceable> = <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_item</replaceable> [, ... ]
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>GET DESCRIPTOR</command> retrieves information about a
     query result set from an SQL descriptor area and stores it into
     host variables.  A descriptor area is typically populated
     using <command>FETCH</command> or <command>SELECT</command>
     before using this command to transfer the information into host
     language variables.
    </para>

    <para>
     This command has two forms: The first form retrieves
     descriptor <quote>header</quote> item, which applies to the result
     set in its entirety.  One example is the row count.  The second
     form, which requires the column number as additional parameter,
     retrieves information about a particular column.  Examples are
     the column name and the actual column value.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor-descriptor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A descriptor name.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor-descriptor-header-item">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_header_item</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A token identifying which header information item to retrieve.
        Only <literal>COUNT</literal>, to get the number of columns in the
        result set, is currently supported.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor-column-number">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">column_number</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The number of the column about which information is to be
        retrieved.  The count starts at 1.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor-descriptor-item">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_item</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A token identifying which item of information about a column
        to retrieve.  See <xref linkend="ecpg-named-descriptors"/> for
        a list of supported items.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor-cvariable">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">cvariable</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A host variable that will receive the data retrieved from the
        descriptor area.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

    <para>
     An example to retrieve the number of columns in a result set:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR d :d_count = COUNT;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     An example to retrieve a data length in the first column:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR d VALUE 1 :d_returned_octet_length = RETURNED_OCTET_LENGTH;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     An example to retrieve the data body of the second column as a
     string:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR d VALUE 2 :d_data = DATA;
</programlisting>
    </para>

    <para>
     Here is an example for a whole procedure of
     executing <literal>SELECT current_database();</literal> and showing the number of
     columns, the column data length, and the column data:
<programlisting>
int
main(void)
{
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    int  d_count;
    char d_data[1024];
    int  d_returned_octet_length;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con1 USER testuser;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR d;

    /* Declare, open a cursor, and assign a descriptor to the cursor  */
    EXEC SQL DECLARE cur CURSOR FOR SELECT current_database();
    EXEC SQL OPEN cur;
    EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM cur INTO SQL DESCRIPTOR d;

    /* Get a number of total columns */
    EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR d :d_count = COUNT;
    printf("d_count                 = %d\n", d_count);

    /* Get length of a returned column */
    EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR d VALUE 1 :d_returned_octet_length = RETURNED_OCTET_LENGTH;
    printf("d_returned_octet_length = %d\n", d_returned_octet_length);

    /* Fetch the returned column as a string */
    EXEC SQL GET DESCRIPTOR d VALUE 1 :d_data = DATA;
    printf("d_data                  = %s\n", d_data);

    /* Closing */
    EXEC SQL CLOSE cur;
    EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    EXEC SQL DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR d;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;

    return 0;
}
</programlisting>
     When the example is executed, the result will look like this:
<screen>
d_count                 = 1
d_returned_octet_length = 6
d_data                  = testdb
</screen>
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>GET DESCRIPTOR</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-allocate-descriptor"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-open">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>OPEN</refname>
    <refpurpose>open a dynamic cursor</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
OPEN <replaceable class="parameter">cursor_name</replaceable>
OPEN <replaceable class="parameter">cursor_name</replaceable> USING <replaceable class="parameter">value</replaceable> [, ... ]
OPEN <replaceable class="parameter">cursor_name</replaceable> USING SQL DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>OPEN</command> opens a cursor and optionally binds
     actual values to the placeholders in the cursor's declaration.
     The cursor must previously have been declared with
     the <command>DECLARE</command> command.  The execution
     of <command>OPEN</command> causes the query to start executing on
     the server.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-open-cursor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">cursor_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name of the cursor to be opened.  This can be an SQL
        identifier or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-open-value">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">value</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A value to be bound to a placeholder in the cursor.  This can
        be an SQL constant, a host variable, or a host variable with
        indicator.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-open-descriptor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name of a descriptor containing values to be bound to the
        placeholders in the cursor.  This can be an SQL identifier or
        a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL OPEN a;
EXEC SQL OPEN d USING 1, 'test';
EXEC SQL OPEN c1 USING SQL DESCRIPTOR mydesc;
EXEC SQL OPEN :curname1;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>OPEN</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-declare"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="sql-close"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-prepare">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>PREPARE</refname>
    <refpurpose>prepare a statement for execution</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
PREPARE <replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable> FROM <replaceable class="parameter">string</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>PREPARE</command> prepares a statement dynamically
     specified as a string for execution.  This is different from the
     direct SQL statement <xref linkend="sql-prepare"/>, which can also
     be used in embedded programs.  The <xref linkend="sql-execute"/>
     command is used to execute either kind of prepared statement.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-prepare-prepared-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">prepared_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An identifier for the prepared query.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-prepare-string">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">string</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A literal string or a host variable containing a preparable
        SQL statement, one of SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE.
        Use question marks (<literal>?</literal>) for parameter values
        to be supplied at execution.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Notes</title>

    <para>
     In typical usage, the <replaceable>string</replaceable> is a host
     variable reference to a string containing a dynamically-constructed
     SQL statement.  The case of a literal string is not very useful;
     you might as well just write a direct SQL <command>PREPARE</command>
     statement.
    </para>

    <para>
     If you do use a literal string, keep in mind that any double quotes
     you might wish to include in the SQL statement must be written as
     octal escapes (<literal>\042</literal>) not the usual C
     idiom <literal>\"</literal>.  This is because the string is inside
     an <literal>EXEC SQL</literal> section, so the ECPG lexer parses it
     according to SQL rules not C rules.  Any embedded backslashes will
     later be handled according to C rules; but <literal>\"</literal>
     causes an immediate syntax error because it is seen as ending the
     literal.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>
<programlisting>
char *stmt = "SELECT * FROM test1 WHERE a = ? AND b = ?";

EXEC SQL ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR outdesc;
EXEC SQL PREPARE foo FROM :stmt;

EXEC SQL EXECUTE foo USING SQL DESCRIPTOR indesc INTO SQL DESCRIPTOR outdesc;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>PREPARE</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="sql-execute"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-set-autocommit">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>SET AUTOCOMMIT</refname>
    <refpurpose>set the autocommit behavior of the current session</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
SET AUTOCOMMIT { = | TO } { ON | OFF }
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>SET AUTOCOMMIT</command> sets the autocommit behavior of
     the current database session.  By default, embedded SQL programs
     are <emphasis>not</emphasis> in autocommit mode,
     so <command>COMMIT</command> needs to be issued explicitly when
     desired.  This command can change the session to autocommit mode,
     where each individual statement is committed implicitly.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>SET AUTOCOMMIT</command> is an extension of PostgreSQL ECPG.
    </para>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-set-connection">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>SET CONNECTION</refname>
    <refpurpose>select a database connection</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
SET CONNECTION [ TO | = ] <replaceable class="parameter">connection_name</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>SET CONNECTION</command> sets the <quote>current</quote>
     database connection, which is the one that all commands use
     unless overridden.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-set-connection-connection-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">connection_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A database connection name established by
        the <command>CONNECT</command> command.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-set-connection-current">
      <term><literal>CURRENT</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Set the connection to the current connection (thus, nothing happens).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL SET CONNECTION TO con2;
EXEC SQL SET CONNECTION = con1;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>SET CONNECTION</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-connect"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-disconnect"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>SET DESCRIPTOR</refname>
    <refpurpose>set information in an SQL descriptor area</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
SET DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable> <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_header_item</replaceable> = <replaceable>value</replaceable>
SET DESCRIPTOR <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable> VALUE <replaceable class="parameter">number</replaceable> <replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_item</replaceable> = <replaceable>value</replaceable> [, ...]
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     <command>SET DESCRIPTOR</command> populates an SQL descriptor
     area with values.  The descriptor area is then typically used to
     bind parameters in a prepared query execution.
    </para>

    <para>
     This command has two forms: The first form applies to the
     descriptor <quote>header</quote>, which is independent of a
     particular datum.  The second form assigns values to particular
     datums, identified by number.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor-descriptor-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A descriptor name.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor-descriptor-header-item">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_header_item</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A token identifying which header information item to set.
        Only <literal>COUNT</literal>, to set the number of descriptor
        items, is currently supported.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor-number">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">number</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The number of the descriptor item to set.  The count starts at
        1.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor-descriptor-item">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">descriptor_item</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A token identifying which item of information to set in the
        descriptor.  See <xref linkend="ecpg-named-descriptors"/> for a
        list of supported items.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-set-descriptor-value">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">value</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A value to store into the descriptor item.  This can be an SQL
        constant or a host variable.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL SET DESCRIPTOR indesc COUNT = 1;
EXEC SQL SET DESCRIPTOR indesc VALUE 1 DATA = 2;
EXEC SQL SET DESCRIPTOR indesc VALUE 1 DATA = :val1;
EXEC SQL SET DESCRIPTOR indesc VALUE 2 INDICATOR = :val1, DATA = 'some string';
EXEC SQL SET DESCRIPTOR indesc VALUE 2 INDICATOR = :val2null, DATA = :val2;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>SET DESCRIPTOR</command> is specified in the SQL standard.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>See Also</title>

    <simplelist type="inline">
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-allocate-descriptor"/></member>
     <member><xref linkend="ecpg-sql-get-descriptor"/></member>
    </simplelist>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-type">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>TYPE</refname>
    <refpurpose>define a new data type</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
TYPE <replaceable class="parameter">type_name</replaceable> IS <replaceable class="parameter">ctype</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     The <command>TYPE</command> command defines a new C type.  It is
     equivalent to putting a <literal>typedef</literal> into a declare
     section.
    </para>

    <para>
     This command is only recognized when <command>ecpg</command> is
     run with the <option>-c</option> option.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-type-type-name">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">type_name</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The name for the new type.  It must be a valid C type name.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-type-ctype">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">ctype</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A C type specification.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL TYPE customer IS
    struct
    {
        varchar name[50];
        int     phone;
    };

EXEC SQL TYPE cust_ind IS
    struct ind
    {
        short   name_ind;
        short   phone_ind;
    };

EXEC SQL TYPE c IS char reference;
EXEC SQL TYPE ind IS union { int integer; short smallint; };
EXEC SQL TYPE intarray IS int[AMOUNT];
EXEC SQL TYPE str IS varchar[BUFFERSIZ];
EXEC SQL TYPE string IS char[11];
</programlisting>

    <para>
     Here is an example program that uses <command>EXEC SQL
     TYPE</command>:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR SQLPRINT;

EXEC SQL TYPE tt IS
    struct
    {
        varchar v[256];
        int     i;
    };

EXEC SQL TYPE tt_ind IS
    struct ind {
        short   v_ind;
        short   i_ind;
    };

int
main(void)
{
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    tt t;
    tt_ind t_ind;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con1;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    EXEC SQL SELECT current_database(), 256 INTO :t:t_ind LIMIT 1;

    printf("t.v = %s\n", t.v.arr);
    printf("t.i = %d\n", t.i);

    printf("t_ind.v_ind = %d\n", t_ind.v_ind);
    printf("t_ind.i_ind = %d\n", t_ind.i_ind);

    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT con1;

    return 0;
}
</programlisting>

     The output from this program looks like this:
<screen>
t.v = testdb
t.i = 256
t_ind.v_ind = 0
t_ind.i_ind = 0
</screen>
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     The <command>TYPE</command> command is a PostgreSQL extension.
    </para>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-var">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>VAR</refname>
    <refpurpose>define a variable</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
VAR <replaceable>varname</replaceable> IS <replaceable>ctype</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     The <command>VAR</command> command assigns a new C data type
     to a host variable.  The host variable must be previously
     declared in a declare section.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-var-varname">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">varname</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A C variable name.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-sql-var-ctype">
      <term><replaceable class="parameter">ctype</replaceable></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        A C type specification.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
Exec sql begin declare section;
short a;
exec sql end declare section;
EXEC SQL VAR a IS int;
</programlisting>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     The <command>VAR</command> command is a PostgreSQL extension.
    </para>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>

  <refentry id="ecpg-sql-whenever">
   <refnamediv>
    <refname>WHENEVER</refname>
    <refpurpose>specify the action to be taken when an SQL statement causes a specific class condition to be raised</refpurpose>
   </refnamediv>

   <refsynopsisdiv>
<synopsis>
WHENEVER { NOT FOUND | SQLERROR | SQLWARNING } <replaceable class="parameter">action</replaceable>
</synopsis>
   </refsynopsisdiv>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Description</title>

    <para>
     Define a behavior which is called on the special cases (Rows not
     found, SQL warnings or errors) in the result of SQL execution.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Parameters</title>

    <para>
     See <xref linkend="ecpg-whenever"/> for a description of the
     parameters.
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Examples</title>

<programlisting>
EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND CONTINUE;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO CONTINUE;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLWARNING SQLPRINT;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLWARNING DO warn();
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR sqlprint;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR CALL print2();
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR DO handle_error("select");
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR DO sqlnotice(NULL, NONO);
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR DO sqlprint();
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR GOTO error_label;
EXEC SQL WHENEVER SQLERROR STOP;
</programlisting>

    <para>
     A typical application is the use of <literal>WHENEVER NOT FOUND
     BREAK</literal> to handle looping through result sets:
<programlisting>
int
main(void)
{
    EXEC SQL CONNECT TO testdb AS con1;
    EXEC SQL SELECT pg_catalog.set_config('search_path', '', false); EXEC SQL COMMIT;
    EXEC SQL ALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR d;
    EXEC SQL DECLARE cur CURSOR FOR SELECT current_database(), 'hoge', 256;
    EXEC SQL OPEN cur;

    /* when end of result set reached, break out of while loop */
    EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO BREAK;

    while (1)
    {
        EXEC SQL FETCH NEXT FROM cur INTO SQL DESCRIPTOR d;
        ...
    }

    EXEC SQL CLOSE cur;
    EXEC SQL COMMIT;

    EXEC SQL DEALLOCATE DESCRIPTOR d;
    EXEC SQL DISCONNECT ALL;

    return 0;
}
</programlisting>
    </para>
   </refsect1>

   <refsect1>
    <title>Compatibility</title>

    <para>
     <command>WHENEVER</command> is specified in the SQL standard, but
     most of the actions are PostgreSQL extensions.
    </para>
   </refsect1>
  </refentry>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-informix-compat">
  <title><productname>Informix</productname> Compatibility Mode</title>
  <para>
   <command>ecpg</command> can be run in a so-called <firstterm>Informix compatibility mode</firstterm>. If
   this mode is active, it tries to behave as if it were the <productname>Informix</productname>
   precompiler for <productname>Informix</productname> E/SQL. Generally spoken this will allow you to use
   the dollar sign instead of the <literal>EXEC SQL</literal> primitive to introduce
   embedded SQL commands:
<programlisting>
$int j = 3;
$CONNECT TO :dbname;
$CREATE TABLE test(i INT PRIMARY KEY, j INT);
$INSERT INTO test(i, j) VALUES (7, :j);
$COMMIT;
</programlisting>
  </para>

  <note>
   <para>
    There must not be any white space between the <literal>$</literal>
    and a following preprocessor directive, that is,
    <literal>include</literal>, <literal>define</literal>, <literal>ifdef</literal>,
    etc.  Otherwise, the preprocessor will parse the token as a host
    variable.
   </para>
  </note>

  <para>
   There are two compatibility modes: <literal>INFORMIX</literal>, <literal>INFORMIX_SE</literal>
  </para>
  <para>
   When linking programs that use this compatibility mode, remember to link
   against <literal>libcompat</literal> that is shipped with ECPG.
  </para>
  <para>
   Besides the previously explained syntactic sugar, the <productname>Informix</productname> compatibility
   mode ports some functions for input, output and transformation of data as
   well as embedded SQL statements known from E/SQL to ECPG.
  </para>
  <para>
   <productname>Informix</productname> compatibility mode is closely connected to the pgtypeslib library
   of ECPG. pgtypeslib maps SQL data types to data types within the C host
   program and most of the additional functions of the <productname>Informix</productname> compatibility
   mode allow you to operate on those C host program types. Note however that
   the extent of the compatibility is limited. It does not try to copy <productname>Informix</productname>
   behavior; it allows you to do more or less the same operations and gives
   you functions that have the same name and the same basic behavior but it is
   no drop-in replacement if you are using <productname>Informix</productname> at the moment. Moreover,
   some of the data types are different. For example,
   <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>'s datetime and interval types do not
   know about ranges like for example <literal>YEAR TO MINUTE</literal> so you won't
   find support in ECPG for that either.
  </para>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-informix-types">
   <title>Additional Types</title>
   <para>
    The Informix-special "string" pseudo-type for storing right-trimmed character string data is now
    supported in Informix-mode without using <literal>typedef</literal>. In fact, in Informix-mode,
    ECPG refuses to process source files that contain <literal>typedef sometype string;</literal>
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
string userid; /* this variable will contain trimmed data */
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

EXEC SQL FETCH MYCUR INTO :userid;
</programlisting>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-informix-statements">
   <title>Additional/Missing Embedded SQL Statements</title>
   <para>
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-statements-close-database">
      <term><literal>CLOSE DATABASE</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        This statement closes the current connection. In fact, this is a
        synonym for ECPG's <literal>DISCONNECT CURRENT</literal>:
<programlisting>
$CLOSE DATABASE;                /* close the current connection */
EXEC SQL CLOSE DATABASE;
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-statements-free-cursor-name">
      <term><literal>FREE cursor_name</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Due to differences in how ECPG works compared to Informix's ESQL/C (namely, which steps
        are purely grammar transformations and which steps rely on the underlying run-time library)
        there is no <literal>FREE cursor_name</literal> statement in ECPG. This is because in ECPG,
        <literal>DECLARE CURSOR</literal> doesn't translate to a function call into
        the run-time library that uses to the cursor name. This means that there's no run-time
        bookkeeping of SQL cursors in the ECPG run-time library, only in the PostgreSQL server.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-statements-free-statement-name">
      <term><literal>FREE statement_name</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        <literal>FREE statement_name</literal> is a synonym for <literal>DEALLOCATE PREPARE statement_name</literal>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-informix-sqlda">
   <title>Informix-compatible SQLDA Descriptor Areas</title>
   <para>
    Informix-compatible mode supports a different structure than the one described in
    <xref linkend="ecpg-sqlda-descriptors"/>. See below:
<programlisting>
struct sqlvar_compat
{
    short   sqltype;
    int     sqllen;
    char   *sqldata;
    short  *sqlind;
    char   *sqlname;
    char   *sqlformat;
    short   sqlitype;
    short   sqlilen;
    char   *sqlidata;
    int     sqlxid;
    char   *sqltypename;
    short   sqltypelen;
    short   sqlownerlen;
    short   sqlsourcetype;
    char   *sqlownername;
    int     sqlsourceid;
    char   *sqlilongdata;
    int     sqlflags;
    void   *sqlreserved;
};

struct sqlda_compat
{
    short  sqld;
    struct sqlvar_compat *sqlvar;
    char   desc_name[19];
    short  desc_occ;
    struct sqlda_compat *desc_next;
    void  *reserved;
};

typedef struct sqlvar_compat    sqlvar_t;
typedef struct sqlda_compat     sqlda_t;
</programlisting>
   </para>

   <para>
    The global properties are:
    <variablelist>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqld">
     <term><literal>sqld</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        The number of fields in the <literal>SQLDA</literal> descriptor.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlvar">
     <term><literal>sqlvar</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Pointer to the per-field properties.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-desc-name">
     <term><literal>desc_name</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Unused, filled with zero-bytes.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-desc-occ">
     <term><literal>desc_occ</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Size of the allocated structure.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-desc-next">
     <term><literal>desc_next</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Pointer to the next SQLDA structure if the result set contains more than one record.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-reserved">
     <term><literal>reserved</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Unused pointer, contains NULL. Kept for Informix-compatibility.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

    </variablelist>

    The per-field properties are below, they are stored in the <literal>sqlvar</literal> array:

    <variablelist>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqltype">
     <term><literal>sqltype</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Type of the field. Constants are in <literal>sqltypes.h</literal>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqllen">
     <term><literal>sqllen</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Length of the field data.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqldata">
     <term><literal>sqldata</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Pointer to the field data. The pointer is of <literal>char *</literal> type,
        the data pointed by it is in a binary format. Example:
<programlisting>
int intval;

switch (sqldata->sqlvar[i].sqltype)
{
    case SQLINTEGER:
        intval = *(int *)sqldata->sqlvar[i].sqldata;
        break;
  ...
}
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlind">
     <term><literal>sqlind</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Pointer to the NULL indicator. If returned by DESCRIBE or FETCH then it's always a valid pointer.
        If used as input for <literal>EXECUTE ... USING sqlda;</literal> then NULL-pointer value means
        that the value for this field is non-NULL. Otherwise a valid pointer and <literal>sqlitype</literal>
        has to be properly set. Example:
<programlisting>
if (*(int2 *)sqldata->sqlvar[i].sqlind != 0)
    printf("value is NULL\n");
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlname">
     <term><literal>sqlname</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Name of the field. 0-terminated string.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlformat">
     <term><literal>sqlformat</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Reserved in Informix, value of <xref linkend="libpq-PQfformat"/> for the field.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlitype">
     <term><literal>sqlitype</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Type of the NULL indicator data. It's always SQLSMINT when returning data from the server.
        When the <literal>SQLDA</literal> is used for a parameterized query, the data is treated
        according to the set type.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlilen">
     <term><literal>sqlilen</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Length of the NULL indicator data.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlxid">
     <term><literal>sqlxid</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Extended type of the field, result of <xref linkend="libpq-PQftype"/>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqltypename">
     <term><literal>sqltypename</literal></term>
     <term><literal>sqltypelen</literal></term>
     <term><literal>sqlownerlen</literal></term>
     <term><literal>sqlsourcetype</literal></term>
     <term><literal>sqlownername</literal></term>
     <term><literal>sqlsourceid</literal></term>
     <term><literal>sqlflags</literal></term>
     <term><literal>sqlreserved</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Unused.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-sqlda-sqlilongdata">
     <term><literal>sqlilongdata</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        It equals to <literal>sqldata</literal> if <literal>sqllen</literal> is larger than 32kB.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

    </variablelist>

    Example:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL INCLUDE sqlda.h;

    sqlda_t        *sqlda; /* This doesn't need to be under embedded DECLARE SECTION */

    EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
    char *prep_stmt = "select * from table1";
    int i;
    EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;

    ...

    EXEC SQL PREPARE mystmt FROM :prep_stmt;

    EXEC SQL DESCRIBE mystmt INTO sqlda;

    printf("# of fields: %d\n", sqlda-&gt;sqld);
    for (i = 0; i &lt; sqlda-&gt;sqld; i++)
      printf("field %d: \"%s\"\n", sqlda-&gt;sqlvar[i]-&gt;sqlname);

    EXEC SQL DECLARE mycursor CURSOR FOR mystmt;
    EXEC SQL OPEN mycursor;
    EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND GOTO out;

    while (1)
    {
      EXEC SQL FETCH mycursor USING sqlda;
    }

    EXEC SQL CLOSE mycursor;

    free(sqlda); /* The main structure is all to be free(),
                  * sqlda and sqlda-&gt;sqlvar is in one allocated area */
</programlisting>
    For more information, see the <literal>sqlda.h</literal> header and the
    <literal>src/interfaces/ecpg/test/compat_informix/sqlda.pgc</literal> regression test.
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-informix-functions">
   <title>Additional Functions</title>
   <para>
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-decadd">
      <term><function>decadd</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Add two decimal type values.
<synopsis>
int decadd(decimal *arg1, decimal *arg2, decimal *sum);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the first operand of type decimal
        (<literal>arg1</literal>), a pointer to the second operand of type decimal
        (<literal>arg2</literal>) and a pointer to a value of type decimal that will
        contain the sum (<literal>sum</literal>). On success, the function returns 0.
        <symbol>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</symbol> is returned in case of overflow and
        <symbol>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_UNDERFLOW</symbol> in case of underflow. -1 is returned for
        other failures and <varname>errno</varname> is set to the respective <varname>errno</varname> number of the
        pgtypeslib.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-deccmp">
      <term><function>deccmp</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Compare two variables of type decimal.
<synopsis>
int deccmp(decimal *arg1, decimal *arg2);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the first decimal value
        (<literal>arg1</literal>), a pointer to the second decimal value
        (<literal>arg2</literal>) and returns an integer value that indicates which is
        the bigger value.
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           1, if the value that <literal>arg1</literal> points to is bigger than the
           value that <literal>var2</literal> points to
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           -1, if the value that <literal>arg1</literal> points to is smaller than the
           value that <literal>arg2</literal> points to </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           0, if the value that <literal>arg1</literal> points to and the value that
           <literal>arg2</literal> points to are equal
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-deccopy">
      <term><function>deccopy</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Copy a decimal value.
<synopsis>
void deccopy(decimal *src, decimal *target);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the decimal value that should be
        copied as the first argument (<literal>src</literal>) and a pointer to the
        target structure of type decimal (<literal>target</literal>) as the second
        argument.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-deccvasc">
      <term><function>deccvasc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a value from its ASCII representation into a decimal type.
<synopsis>
int deccvasc(char *cp, int len, decimal *np);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to string that contains the string
        representation of the number to be converted (<literal>cp</literal>) as well
        as its length <literal>len</literal>. <literal>np</literal> is a pointer to the
        decimal value that saves the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        Valid formats are for example:
         <literal>-2</literal>,
         <literal>.794</literal>,
         <literal>+3.44</literal>,
         <literal>592.49E07</literal> or
         <literal>-32.84e-4</literal>.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns 0 on success. If overflow or underflow occurred,
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal> or
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_UNDERFLOW</literal> is returned. If the ASCII
        representation could not be parsed,
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_NUMERIC</literal> is returned or
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_EXPONENT</literal> if this problem occurred while
        parsing the exponent.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-deccvdbl">
      <term><function>deccvdbl</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a value of type double to a value of type decimal.
<synopsis>
int deccvdbl(double dbl, decimal *np);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the variable of type double that should be
        converted as its first argument (<literal>dbl</literal>). As the second
        argument (<literal>np</literal>), the function receives a pointer to the
        decimal variable that should hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns 0 on success and a negative value if the
        conversion failed.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-deccvint">
      <term><function>deccvint</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a value of type int to a value of type decimal.
<synopsis>
int deccvint(int in, decimal *np);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the variable of type int that should be
        converted as its first argument (<literal>in</literal>). As the second
        argument (<literal>np</literal>), the function receives a pointer to the
        decimal variable that should hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns 0 on success and a negative value if the
        conversion failed.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-deccvlong">
      <term><function>deccvlong</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a value of type long to a value of type decimal.
<synopsis>
int deccvlong(long lng, decimal *np);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the variable of type long that should be
        converted as its first argument (<literal>lng</literal>). As the second
        argument (<literal>np</literal>), the function receives a pointer to the
        decimal variable that should hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns 0 on success and a negative value if the
        conversion failed.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-decdiv">
      <term><function>decdiv</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Divide two variables of type decimal.
<synopsis>
int decdiv(decimal *n1, decimal *n2, decimal *result);
</synopsis>
        The function receives pointers to the variables that are the first
        (<literal>n1</literal>) and the second (<literal>n2</literal>) operands and
        calculates <literal>n1</literal>/<literal>n2</literal>. <literal>result</literal> is a
        pointer to the variable that should hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if the division fails.
        If overflow or underflow occurred, the function returns
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal> or
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_UNDERFLOW</literal> respectively. If an attempt to
        divide by zero is observed, the function returns
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_DIVIDE_ZERO</literal>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-decmul">
      <term><function>decmul</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Multiply two decimal values.
<synopsis>
int decmul(decimal *n1, decimal *n2, decimal *result);
</synopsis>
        The function receives pointers to the variables that are the first
        (<literal>n1</literal>) and the second (<literal>n2</literal>) operands and
        calculates <literal>n1</literal>*<literal>n2</literal>. <literal>result</literal> is a
        pointer to the variable that should hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if the multiplication
        fails. If overflow or underflow occurred, the function returns
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal> or
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_UNDERFLOW</literal> respectively.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-decsub">
      <term><function>decsub</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Subtract one decimal value from another.
<synopsis>
int decsub(decimal *n1, decimal *n2, decimal *result);
</synopsis>
        The function receives pointers to the variables that are the first
        (<literal>n1</literal>) and the second (<literal>n2</literal>) operands and
        calculates <literal>n1</literal>-<literal>n2</literal>. <literal>result</literal> is a
        pointer to the variable that should hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if the subtraction
        fails. If overflow or underflow occurred, the function returns
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal> or
        <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_UNDERFLOW</literal> respectively.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dectoasc">
      <term><function>dectoasc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a variable of type decimal to its ASCII representation in a C
        char* string.
<synopsis>
int dectoasc(decimal *np, char *cp, int len, int right)
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to a variable of type decimal
        (<literal>np</literal>) that it converts to its textual representation.
        <literal>cp</literal> is the buffer that should hold the result of the
        operation. The parameter <literal>right</literal> specifies, how many digits
        right of the decimal point should be included in the output. The result
        will be rounded to this number of decimal digits. Setting
        <literal>right</literal> to -1 indicates that all available decimal digits
        should be included in the output. If the length of the output buffer,
        which is indicated by <literal>len</literal> is not sufficient to hold the
        textual representation including the trailing zero byte, only a
        single <literal>*</literal> character is stored in the result and -1 is
        returned.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns either -1 if the buffer <literal>cp</literal> was too
        small or <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_OUT_OF_MEMORY</literal> if memory was
        exhausted.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dectodbl">
      <term><function>dectodbl</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a variable of type decimal to a double.
<synopsis>
int dectodbl(decimal *np, double *dblp);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the decimal value to convert
        (<literal>np</literal>) and a pointer to the double variable that
        should hold the result of the operation (<literal>dblp</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if the conversion
        failed.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dectoint">
      <term><function>dectoint</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a variable of type decimal to an integer.
<synopsis>
int dectoint(decimal *np, int *ip);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the decimal value to convert
        (<literal>np</literal>) and a pointer to the integer variable that
        should hold the result of the operation (<literal>ip</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if the conversion
        failed. If an overflow occurred, <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal>
        is returned.
       </para>
       <para>
        Note that the ECPG implementation differs from the <productname>Informix</productname>
        implementation. <productname>Informix</productname> limits an integer to the range from -32767 to
        32767, while the limits in the ECPG implementation depend on the
        architecture (<literal>INT_MIN .. INT_MAX</literal>).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dectolong">
      <term><function>dectolong</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a variable of type decimal to a long integer.
<synopsis>
int dectolong(decimal *np, long *lngp);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the decimal value to convert
        (<literal>np</literal>) and a pointer to the long variable that
        should hold the result of the operation (<literal>lngp</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if the conversion
        failed. If an overflow occurred, <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal>
        is returned.
       </para>
       <para>
        Note that the ECPG implementation differs from the <productname>Informix</productname>
        implementation. <productname>Informix</productname> limits a long integer to the range from
        -2,147,483,647 to 2,147,483,647, while the limits in the ECPG
        implementation depend on the architecture (<literal>-LONG_MAX ..
        LONG_MAX</literal>).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rdatestr">
      <term><function>rdatestr</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Converts a date to a C char* string.
<synopsis>
int rdatestr(date d, char *str);
</synopsis>
        The function receives two arguments, the first one is the date to
        convert (<literal>d</literal>) and the second one is a pointer to the target
        string. The output format is always <literal>yyyy-mm-dd</literal>, so you need
        to allocate at least 11 bytes (including the zero-byte terminator) for the
        string.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns 0 on success and a negative value in case of
        error.
       </para>
       <para>
        Note that ECPG's implementation differs from the <productname>Informix</productname>
        implementation. In <productname>Informix</productname> the format can be influenced by setting
        environment variables. In ECPG however, you cannot change the output
        format.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rstrdate">
      <term><function>rstrdate</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Parse the textual representation of a date.
<synopsis>
int rstrdate(char *str, date *d);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the textual representation of the date to convert
        (<literal>str</literal>) and a pointer to a variable of type date
        (<literal>d</literal>). This function does not allow you to specify a format
        mask. It uses the default format mask of <productname>Informix</productname> which is
        <literal>mm/dd/yyyy</literal>. Internally, this function is implemented by
        means of <function>rdefmtdate</function>. Therefore, <function>rstrdate</function> is
        not faster and if you have the choice you should opt for
        <function>rdefmtdate</function> which allows you to specify the format mask
        explicitly.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns the same values as <function>rdefmtdate</function>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rtoday">
      <term><function>rtoday</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Get the current date.
<synopsis>
void rtoday(date *d);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to a date variable (<literal>d</literal>)
        that it sets to the current date.
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally this function uses the <xref linkend="pgtypesdatetoday"/>
        function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rjulmdy">
      <term><function>rjulmdy</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Extract the values for the day, the month and the year from a variable
        of type date.
<synopsis>
int rjulmdy(date d, short mdy[3]);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the date <literal>d</literal> and a pointer to an array
        of 3 short integer values <literal>mdy</literal>. The variable name indicates
        the sequential order: <literal>mdy[0]</literal> will be set to contain the
        number of the month, <literal>mdy[1]</literal> will be set to the value of the
        day and <literal>mdy[2]</literal> will contain the year.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function always returns 0 at the moment.
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally the function uses the <xref linkend="pgtypesdatejulmdy"/>
        function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rdefmtdate">
      <term><function>rdefmtdate</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Use a format mask to convert a character string to a value of type
        date.
<synopsis>
int rdefmtdate(date *d, char *fmt, char *str);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the date value that should hold the
        result of the operation (<literal>d</literal>), the format mask to use for
        parsing the date (<literal>fmt</literal>) and the C char* string containing
        the textual representation of the date (<literal>str</literal>). The textual
        representation is expected to match the format mask. However you do not
        need to have a 1:1 mapping of the string to the format mask. The
        function only analyzes the sequential order and looks for the literals
        <literal>yy</literal> or <literal>yyyy</literal> that indicate the
        position of the year, <literal>mm</literal> to indicate the position of
        the month and <literal>dd</literal> to indicate the position of the
        day.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns the following values:
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           0 - The function terminated successfully.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_ENOSHORTDATE</literal> - The date does not contain
           delimiters between day, month and year. In this case the input
           string must be exactly 6 or 8 bytes long but isn't.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_ENOTDMY</literal> - The format string did not
           correctly indicate the sequential order of year, month and day.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_DAY</literal> - The input string does not
           contain a valid day.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_MONTH</literal> - The input string does not
           contain a valid month.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_YEAR</literal> - The input string does not
           contain a valid year.
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally this function is implemented to use the <xref
        linkend="pgtypesdatedefmtasc"/> function. See the reference there for a
        table of example input.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rfmtdate">
      <term><function>rfmtdate</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a variable of type date to its textual representation using a
        format mask.
<synopsis>
int rfmtdate(date d, char *fmt, char *str);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the date to convert (<literal>d</literal>), the format
        mask (<literal>fmt</literal>) and the string that will hold the textual
        representation of the date (<literal>str</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        On success, 0 is returned and a negative value if an error occurred.
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally this function uses the <xref linkend="pgtypesdatefmtasc"/>
        function, see the reference there for examples.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rmdyjul">
      <term><function>rmdyjul</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Create a date value from an array of 3 short integers that specify the
        day, the month and the year of the date.
<synopsis>
int rmdyjul(short mdy[3], date *d);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the array of the 3 short integers
        (<literal>mdy</literal>) and a pointer to a variable of type date that should
        hold the result of the operation.
       </para>
       <para>
        Currently the function returns always 0.
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally the function is implemented to use the function <xref
        linkend="pgtypesdatemdyjul"/>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rdayofweek">
      <term><function>rdayofweek</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Return a number representing the day of the week for a date value.
<synopsis>
int rdayofweek(date d);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the date variable <literal>d</literal> as its only
        argument and returns an integer that indicates the day of the week for
        this date.
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           0 - Sunday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           1 - Monday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           2 - Tuesday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           3 - Wednesday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           4 - Thursday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           5 - Friday
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           6 - Saturday
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally the function is implemented to use the function <xref
        linkend="pgtypesdatedayofweek"/>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dtcurrent">
      <term><function>dtcurrent</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Retrieve the current timestamp.
<synopsis>
void dtcurrent(timestamp *ts);
</synopsis>
        The function retrieves the current timestamp and saves it into the
        timestamp variable that <literal>ts</literal> points to.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dtcvasc">
      <term><function>dtcvasc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Parses a timestamp from its textual representation
        into a timestamp variable.
<synopsis>
int dtcvasc(char *str, timestamp *ts);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the string to parse (<literal>str</literal>) and a
        pointer to the timestamp variable that should hold the result of the
        operation (<literal>ts</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns 0 on success and a negative value in case of
        error.
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally this function uses the <xref
        linkend="pgtypestimestampfromasc"/> function. See the reference there
        for a table with example inputs.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dtcvfmtasc">
      <term><function>dtcvfmtasc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Parses a timestamp from its textual representation
        using a format mask into a timestamp variable.
<synopsis>
dtcvfmtasc(char *inbuf, char *fmtstr, timestamp *dtvalue)
</synopsis>
        The function receives the string to parse (<literal>inbuf</literal>), the
        format mask to use (<literal>fmtstr</literal>) and a pointer to the timestamp
        variable that should hold the result of the operation
        (<literal>dtvalue</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        This function is implemented by means of the <xref
        linkend="pgtypestimestampdefmtasc"/> function. See the documentation
        there for a list of format specifiers that can be used.
       </para>
       <para>
        The function returns 0 on success and a negative value in case of
        error.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dtsub">
      <term><function>dtsub</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Subtract one timestamp from another and return a variable of type
        interval.
<synopsis>
int dtsub(timestamp *ts1, timestamp *ts2, interval *iv);
</synopsis>
        The function will subtract the timestamp variable that <literal>ts2</literal>
        points to from the timestamp variable that <literal>ts1</literal> points to
        and will store the result in the interval variable that <literal>iv</literal>
        points to.
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dttoasc">
      <term><function>dttoasc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a timestamp variable to a C char* string.
<synopsis>
int dttoasc(timestamp *ts, char *output);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the timestamp variable to convert
        (<literal>ts</literal>) and the string that should hold the result of the
        operation (<literal>output</literal>). It converts <literal>ts</literal> to its
        textual representation according to the SQL standard, which is
        be <literal>YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS</literal>.
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-dttofmtasc">
      <term><function>dttofmtasc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a timestamp variable to a C char* using a format mask.
<synopsis>
int dttofmtasc(timestamp *ts, char *output, int str_len, char *fmtstr);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the timestamp to convert as its
        first argument (<literal>ts</literal>), a pointer to the output buffer
        (<literal>output</literal>), the maximal length that has been allocated for
        the output buffer (<literal>str_len</literal>) and the format mask to
        use for the conversion (<literal>fmtstr</literal>).
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
       <para>
        Internally, this function uses the <xref
        linkend="pgtypestimestampfmtasc"/> function. See the reference there for
        information on what format mask specifiers can be used.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-intoasc">
      <term><function>intoasc</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert an interval variable to a C char* string.
<synopsis>
int intoasc(interval *i, char *str);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the interval variable to convert
        (<literal>i</literal>) and the string that should hold the result of the
        operation (<literal>str</literal>). It converts <literal>i</literal> to its
        textual representation according to the SQL standard, which is
        be <literal>YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS</literal>.
       </para>
       <para>
        Upon success, the function returns 0 and a negative value if an
        error occurred.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rfmtlong">
      <term><function>rfmtlong</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a long integer value to its textual representation using a
        format mask.
<synopsis>
int rfmtlong(long lng_val, char *fmt, char *outbuf);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the long value <literal>lng_val</literal>, the format
        mask <literal>fmt</literal> and a pointer to the output buffer
        <literal>outbuf</literal>. It converts the long value according to the format
        mask to its textual representation.
       </para>
       <para>
        The format mask can be composed of the following format specifying
        characters:
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>*</literal> (asterisk) - if this position would be blank
           otherwise, fill it with an asterisk.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>&amp;</literal> (ampersand) - if this position would be
           blank otherwise, fill it with a zero.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>#</literal> - turn leading zeroes into blanks.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>&lt;</literal> - left-justify the number in the string.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>,</literal> (comma) - group numbers of four or more digits
           into groups of three digits separated by a comma.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>.</literal> (period) - this character separates the
           whole-number part of the number from the fractional part.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>-</literal> (minus) - the minus sign appears if the number
           is a negative value.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>+</literal> (plus) - the plus sign appears if the number is
           a positive value.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>(</literal> - this replaces the minus sign in front of the
           negative number. The minus sign will not appear.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>)</literal> - this character replaces the minus and is
           printed behind the negative value.
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>$</literal> - the currency symbol.
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rupshift">
      <term><function>rupshift</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Convert a string to upper case.
<synopsis>
void rupshift(char *str);
</synopsis>
        The function receives a pointer to the string and transforms every
        lower case character to upper case.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-byleng">
      <term><function>byleng</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Return the number of characters in a string without counting trailing
        blanks.
<synopsis>
int byleng(char *str, int len);
</synopsis>
        The function expects a fixed-length string as its first argument
        (<literal>str</literal>) and its length as its second argument
        (<literal>len</literal>). It returns the number of significant characters,
        that is the length of the string without trailing blanks.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-ldchar">
      <term><function>ldchar</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Copy a fixed-length string into a null-terminated string.
<synopsis>
void ldchar(char *src, int len, char *dest);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the fixed-length string to copy
        (<literal>src</literal>), its length (<literal>len</literal>) and a pointer to the
        destination memory (<literal>dest</literal>). Note that you need to reserve at
        least <literal>len+1</literal> bytes for the string that <literal>dest</literal>
        points to. The function copies at most <literal>len</literal> bytes to the new
        location (less if the source string has trailing blanks) and adds the
        null-terminator.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rgetmsg">
      <term><function>rgetmsg</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
<synopsis>
int rgetmsg(int msgnum, char *s, int maxsize);
</synopsis>
        This function exists but is not implemented at the moment!
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rtypalign">
      <term><function>rtypalign</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
<synopsis>
int rtypalign(int offset, int type);
</synopsis>
        This function exists but is not implemented at the moment!
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rtypmsize">
      <term><function>rtypmsize</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
<synopsis>
int rtypmsize(int type, int len);
</synopsis>
        This function exists but is not implemented at the moment!
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-rtypwidth">
      <term><function>rtypwidth</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
<synopsis>
int rtypwidth(int sqltype, int sqllen);
</synopsis>
        This function exists but is not implemented at the moment!
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="rsetnull">
      <term><function>rsetnull</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Set a variable to NULL.
<synopsis>
int rsetnull(int t, char *ptr);
</synopsis>
        The function receives an integer that indicates the type of the
        variable and a pointer to the variable itself that is cast to a C
        char* pointer.
       </para>
       <para>
        The following types exist:
        <itemizedlist>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CCHARTYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>char</type> or <type>char*</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CSHORTTYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>short int</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CINTTYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>int</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CBOOLTYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>boolean</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CFLOATTYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>float</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CLONGTYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>long</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CDOUBLETYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>double</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CDECIMALTYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>decimal</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CDATETYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>date</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
         <listitem>
          <para>
           <literal>CDTIMETYPE</literal> - For a variable of type <type>timestamp</type>
          </para>
         </listitem>
        </itemizedlist>
       </para>

       <para>
        Here is an example of a call to this function:
<programlisting><![CDATA[
$char c[] = "abc       ";
$short s = 17;
$int i = -74874;

rsetnull(CCHARTYPE, (char *) c);
rsetnull(CSHORTTYPE, (char *) &s);
rsetnull(CINTTYPE, (char *) &i);
]]>
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-functions-risnull">
      <term><function>risnull</function></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Test if a variable is NULL.
<synopsis>
int risnull(int t, char *ptr);
</synopsis>
        The function receives the type of the variable to test (<literal>t</literal>)
        as well a pointer to this variable (<literal>ptr</literal>). Note that the
        latter needs to be cast to a char*. See the function <xref
        linkend="rsetnull"/> for a list of possible variable types.
       </para>
       <para>
        Here is an example of how to use this function:
<programlisting><![CDATA[
$char c[] = "abc       ";
$short s = 17;
$int i = -74874;

risnull(CCHARTYPE, (char *) c);
risnull(CSHORTTYPE, (char *) &s);
risnull(CINTTYPE, (char *) &i);
]]>
</programlisting>
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>

  <sect2 id="ecpg-informix-constants">
   <title>Additional Constants</title>
   <para>
    Note that all constants here describe errors and all of them are defined
    to represent negative values. In the descriptions of the different
    constants you can also find the value that the constants represent in the
    current implementation. However you should not rely on this number. You can
    however rely on the fact all of them are defined to represent negative
    values.
    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-num-overflow">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_OVERFLOW</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if an overflow occurred in a
        calculation. Internally it is defined as -1200 (the <productname>Informix</productname>
        definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-num-underflow">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_NUM_UNDERFLOW</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if an underflow occurred in a calculation.
        Internally it is defined as -1201 (the <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-divide-zero">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_DIVIDE_ZERO</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if an attempt to divide by zero is
        observed. Internally it is defined as -1202 (the <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-bad-year">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_YEAR</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a bad value for a year was found while
        parsing a date. Internally it is defined as -1204 (the <productname>Informix</productname>
        definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-bad-month">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_MONTH</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a bad value for a month was found while
        parsing a date. Internally it is defined as -1205 (the <productname>Informix</productname>
        definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-bad-day">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_DAY</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a bad value for a day was found while
        parsing a date. Internally it is defined as -1206 (the <productname>Informix</productname>
        definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-enoshortdate">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_ENOSHORTDATE</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a parsing routine needs a short date
        representation but did not get the date string in the right length.
        Internally it is defined as -1209 (the <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-date-convert">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_DATE_CONVERT</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if an error occurred during date
        formatting.  Internally it is defined as -1210 (the
        <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-out-of-memory">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_OUT_OF_MEMORY</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if memory was exhausted during
        their operation.  Internally it is defined as -1211 (the
        <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-enotdmy">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_ENOTDMY</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a parsing routine was supposed to get a
        format mask (like <literal>mmddyy</literal>) but not all fields were listed
        correctly. Internally it is defined as -1212 (the <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-bad-numeric">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_NUMERIC</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value either if a parsing routine cannot parse
        the textual representation for a numeric value because it contains
        errors or if a routine cannot complete a calculation involving numeric
        variables because at least one of the numeric variables is invalid.
        Internally it is defined as -1213 (the <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-bad-exponent">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_EXPONENT</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a parsing routine cannot parse
        an exponent.  Internally it is defined as -1216 (the
        <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-bad-date">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_BAD_DATE</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a parsing routine cannot parse
        a date.  Internally it is defined as -1218 (the
        <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-informix-constants-ecpg-informix-extra-chars">
      <term><literal>ECPG_INFORMIX_EXTRA_CHARS</literal></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Functions return this value if a parsing routine is passed extra
        characters it cannot parse.  Internally it is defined as -1264 (the
        <productname>Informix</productname> definition).
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>
  </sect2>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-oracle-compat">
  <title><productname>Oracle</productname> Compatibility Mode</title>
  <para>
   <command>ecpg</command> can be run in a so-called <firstterm>Oracle
   compatibility mode</firstterm>. If this mode is active, it tries to
   behave as if it were Oracle <productname>Pro*C</productname>.
  </para>

  <para>
   Specifically, this mode changes <command>ecpg</command> in three ways:

   <itemizedlist>
    <listitem>
     <para>
      Pad character arrays receiving character string types with
      trailing spaces to the specified length
     </para>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <para>
      Zero byte terminate these character arrays, and set the indicator
      variable if truncation occurs
     </para>
    </listitem>

    <listitem>
     <para>
      Set the null indicator to <literal>-1</literal> when character
      arrays receive empty character string types
     </para>
    </listitem>
   </itemizedlist>
  </para>
 </sect1>

 <sect1 id="ecpg-develop">
  <title>Internals</title>

  <para>
   This section explains how <application>ECPG</application> works
   internally. This information can occasionally be useful to help
   users understand how to use <application>ECPG</application>.
  </para>

   <para>
    The first four lines written by <command>ecpg</command> to the
    output are fixed lines.  Two are comments and two are include
    lines necessary to interface to the library.  Then the
    preprocessor reads through the file and writes output.  Normally
    it just echoes everything to the output.
   </para>

   <para>
    When it sees an <command>EXEC SQL</command> statement, it
    intervenes and changes it. The command starts with <command>EXEC
    SQL</command> and ends with <command>;</command>. Everything in
    between is treated as an <acronym>SQL</acronym> statement and
    parsed for variable substitution.
   </para>

   <para>
    Variable substitution occurs when a symbol starts with a colon
    (<literal>:</literal>). The variable with that name is looked up
    among the variables that were previously declared within a
    <literal>EXEC SQL DECLARE</literal> section.
   </para>

   <para>
    The most important function in the library is
    <function>ECPGdo</function>, which takes care of executing most
    commands. It takes a variable number of arguments. This can easily
    add up to 50 or so arguments, and we hope this will not be a
    problem on any platform.
   </para>

   <para>
    The arguments are:

    <variablelist>
     <varlistentry id="ecpg-develop-line-number">
      <term>A line number</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        This is the line number of the original line; used in error
        messages only.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-develop-string">
      <term>A string</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        This is the <acronym>SQL</acronym> command that is to be issued.
        It is modified by the input variables, i.e., the variables that
        where not known at compile time but are to be entered in the
        command. Where the variables should go the string contains
        <literal>?</literal>.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-develop-input-variables">
      <term>Input variables</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Every input variable causes ten arguments to be created.  (See below.)
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-develop-ecpgt-eoit">
      <term><parameter>ECPGt_EOIT</parameter></term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        An <type>enum</type> telling that there are no more input
        variables.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

     <varlistentry id="ecpg-develop-output-variables">
      <term>Output variables</term>
      <listitem>
       <para>
        Every output variable causes ten arguments to be created.
        (See below.)  These variables are filled by the function.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry id="ecpg-develop-ecpgt-eort">
       <term><parameter>ECPGt_EORT</parameter></term>
       <listitem>
       <para>
        An <type>enum</type> telling that there are no more variables.
       </para>
      </listitem>
     </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
   </para>

   <para>
    For every variable that is part of the <acronym>SQL</acronym>
    command, the function gets ten arguments:

    <orderedlist>
     <listitem>
      <para>
       The type as a special symbol.
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       A pointer to the value or a pointer to the pointer.
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       The size of the variable if it is a <type>char</type> or <type>varchar</type>.
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       The number of elements in the array (for array fetches).
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       The offset to the next element in the array (for array fetches).
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       The type of the indicator variable as a special symbol.
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       A pointer to the indicator variable.
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       0
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       The number of elements in the indicator array (for array fetches).
      </para>
     </listitem>

     <listitem>
      <para>
       The offset to the next element in the indicator array (for
       array fetches).
      </para>
     </listitem>
    </orderedlist>
   </para>

   <para>
    Note that not all SQL commands are treated in this way.  For
    instance, an open cursor statement like:
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL OPEN <replaceable>cursor</replaceable>;
</programlisting>
    is not copied to the output. Instead, the cursor's
    <command>DECLARE</command> command is used at the position of the <command>OPEN</command> command
    because it indeed opens the cursor.
   </para>

   <para>
    Here is a complete example describing the output of the
    preprocessor of a file <filename>foo.pgc</filename> (details might
    change with each particular version of the preprocessor):
<programlisting>
EXEC SQL BEGIN DECLARE SECTION;
int index;
int result;
EXEC SQL END DECLARE SECTION;
...
EXEC SQL SELECT res INTO :result FROM mytable WHERE index = :index;
</programlisting>
    is translated into:
<programlisting><![CDATA[
/* Processed by ecpg (2.6.0) */
/* These two include files are added by the preprocessor */
#include <ecpgtype.h>;
#include <ecpglib.h>;

/* exec sql begin declare section */

#line 1 "foo.pgc"

 int index;
 int result;
/* exec sql end declare section */
...
ECPGdo(__LINE__, NULL, "SELECT res FROM mytable WHERE index = ?     ",
        ECPGt_int,&(index),1L,1L,sizeof(int),
        ECPGt_NO_INDICATOR, NULL , 0L, 0L, 0L, ECPGt_EOIT,
        ECPGt_int,&(result),1L,1L,sizeof(int),
        ECPGt_NO_INDICATOR, NULL , 0L, 0L, 0L, ECPGt_EORT);
#line 147 "foo.pgc"
]]>
</programlisting>
    (The indentation here is added for readability and not
    something the preprocessor does.)
   </para>
 </sect1>
</chapter>