What you should know about constraints in PostgreSQL 18
summary
PostgreSQL 18 adds concrete changes to constraints: temporal keys (primary/unique/foreign keys over range periods, implemented via btree_gist/EXCLUDE-style logic and rejecting overlapping ranges), NOT NULL as a first-class constraint (named, deferrable, storable in pg_constraint and usable with NOT VALID), and NOT ENFORCED constraints (creates informational constraints without triggers until flipped, with per-partition validation support). The talk demos pg_constraint queries, explains constraint triggers and domains, notes empty ranges aren’t supported, and previews Postgres 19’s split/update/delete-for-portion behavior.
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chapters (6)
- 0:00Introduction to constraints
- 1:11PostgreSQL constraint catalog
- 13:58Temporal keys in PostgreSQL 18
- 27:02Not enforced constraints
- 31:35Not null as a proper constraint
- 36:33What's coming in PostgreSQL 19
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