check_function_bodies

check_function_bodies is the PostgreSQL setting that controls whether PostgreSQL checks routine bodies during CREATE FUNCTION and CREATE PROCEDURE.

Note

Fact — official short description: “Check routine bodies during CREATE FUNCTION and CREATE PROCEDURE.”

Identity

Type , Valuebool: Upstream pg_settings type
Context , Valueuser: Settable by an ordinary user
Unit , Value—: Raw unit
Range , Value—: Raw limits in the last observed version
Enum values , Value—: — for non-enum types
Category , ValueClient Connection Defaults / Statement Behavior: Upstream classification
Latest boot value , Valueon: on

Lifecycle

Fact	Value
First observed	PG9.0 (research boundary)
Present in	PG9.0–19 Beta 3
Removed in	No
Introduction commit	Not asserted: predates the PG9.0 research boundary
Commit date	—
Discussion	—

Default history

Measured PG9.0–19 Beta 3 boot defaults
Versions	Raw `boot_val`	Unit	Human value
PG9.0–19 Beta 3	`on`	—	on

How it works

check_function_bodies checks routine bodies during CREATE FUNCTION and CREATE PROCEDURE. Turning it off suppresses creation-time validation, which is useful for dump restores and forward references but defers errors until execution.

check_function_bodies is a USER-context setting. An authorized role can change it for a session, while ALTER ROLE or ALTER DATABASE can establish a default for future sessions.

It supplies a default only when SQL omits an explicit choice, so schema migrations, object-level options, privileges, and later ALTER operations can override or outlive it.

Tuning advice

Tip

Advice. These are workload-specific starting points and must be validated with measurements.

Workload	Guidance
OLTP	Keep check_function_bodies on for ordinary migrations so invalid routine bodies fail early. Disable it only inside a controlled dump restore or forward-reference sequence and restore it immediately.
OLAP	Analytical routines need the same creation-time validation; bulk deployment is not a reason to hide syntax or dependency errors.
Small nodes	Leave it on. Validation cost occurs at routine creation and is preferable to discovering a broken function during production execution.

Pigsty

Values use the fixed 8-vCPU, 32-GiB, 100-GiB SSD fixture and render the current Pigsty templates for PG19 Beta 3; this does not assert current Pigsty support for that historical or beta release.

Template	Effective value	Versus upstream boot	Source expression
OLTP	Unmodified	—	—
OLAP	Unmodified	—	—
CRIT	Unmodified	—	—
TINY	Unmodified	—	—

Caution

Advice — pending human review. Fact from the current Pigsty template projection: OLTP: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified; OLAP: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified; CRIT: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified; TINY: PG9.0–19 Beta 3 unmodified. No Pigsty-specific rationale is inferred from an absent override.

Common pitfalls

Changing check_function_bodies in one session and assuming role defaults, database defaults, or other pooled sessions changed with it.
Expecting a changed default to rewrite existing objects or override explicit DDL clauses.
Ignoring tablespace privileges, installed access methods or compression support, and restore portability.
Changing check_function_bodies globally without a rollback plan and a client or operational compatibility test.

default_table_access_method · default_tablespace · temp_tablespaces · default_toast_compression · maintenance_work_mem