row_security

row_security is the PostgreSQL setting that controls whether PostgreSQL enables row security.

Note

Fact — official short description: “Enables row security.”

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	PG9.5
Present in	PG9.5–19 Beta 3
Removed in	No
Introduction commit	`491c029dbc42` — Row-Level Security Policies (RLS)
Commit date	2014-09-19
Discussion	—

Default history

Measured PG9.0–19 Beta 3 boot defaults
Versions	Raw `boot_val`	Unit	Human value
PG9.5–19 Beta 3	`on`	—	on

How it works

row_security enables row security. When enabled, row security will be applied to all users. Off does not bypass policies for ordinary roles: it raises an error where a policy would apply, which lets tools such as pg_dump avoid silently incomplete results.

row_security 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.

Because session state can survive in pooled connections, role defaults, SET privilege, RESET behavior, and application checkout hooks are part of the control’s effective boundary.

Tuning advice

Tip

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

Workload	Guidance
OLTP	Treat row_security as a correctness or security control, not a throughput knob. Grant SET authority narrowly and establish it from trusted role or application policy.
OLAP	Use a dedicated analytical role if row_security must differ, and verify that exports, triggers, policies, and name resolution still preserve data correctness.
Small nodes	Keep row_security at its safe default unless a documented repair or compatibility workflow requires otherwise; record and automatically restore temporary changes.

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: PG9.5–19 Beta 3 unmodified; OLAP: PG9.5–19 Beta 3 unmodified; CRIT: PG9.5–19 Beta 3 unmodified; TINY: PG9.5–19 Beta 3 unmodified. No Pigsty-specific rationale is inferred from an absent override.

Common pitfalls

Changing row_security in one session and assuming role defaults, database defaults, or other pooled sessions changed with it.
Granting broad SET rights to a control that can change correctness, policy enforcement, or name resolution.
Failing to reset a security-sensitive session value before a pooled connection is reused by another request.
Setting off expecting a bypass, although ordinary roles receive an error when a policy would apply.

search_path · session_replication_role · event_triggers · restrict_nonsystem_relation_kind · createrole_self_grant