ALTER_ROUTINE(7pg15)

🎀 NAME 🎀

okay so bestie, welcome to the ALTER_ROUTINE(7) page — manual name folded in right at the top, as promised — and the whole point is literally: ALTER_ROUTINE changes the definition of a routine. that's the vibe. 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

here's the exact shape of it, no cap:

ALTER ROUTINE name [ ( [ [ argmode ] [ argname ] argtype [, ...] ] ) ]
    action [ ... ] [ RESTRICT ]
ALTER ROUTINE name [ ( [ [ argmode ] [ argname ] argtype [, ...] ] ) ]
    RENAME TO new_name
ALTER ROUTINE name [ ( [ [ argmode ] [ argname ] argtype [, ...] ] ) ]
    OWNER TO { new_owner | CURRENT_ROLE | CURRENT_USER | SESSION_USER }
ALTER ROUTINE name [ ( [ [ argmode ] [ argname ] argtype [, ...] ] ) ]
    SET SCHEMA new_schema
ALTER ROUTINE name [ ( [ [ argmode ] [ argname ] argtype [, ...] ] ) ]
    [ NO ] DEPENDS ON EXTENSION extension_name

where action is one of:

    IMMUTABLE | STABLE | VOLATILE
    [ NOT ] LEAKPROOF
    [ EXTERNAL ] SECURITY INVOKER | [ EXTERNAL ] SECURITY DEFINER
    PARALLEL { UNSAFE | RESTRICTED | SAFE }
    COST execution_cost
    ROWS result_rows
    SET configuration_parameter { TO | = } { value | DEFAULT }
    SET configuration_parameter FROM CURRENT
    RESET configuration_parameter
    RESET ALL

and the action menu is giving very much “pick your fighter,” bestie:

• IMMUTABLE | STABLE | VOLATILE — the volatility trio, exactly as written 🫶
• [ NOT ] LEAKPROOF — yes, the NOT is optional and it is invited
• [ EXTERNAL ] SECURITY INVOKER | [ EXTERNAL ] SECURITY DEFINER — both security options, both with optional EXTERNAL
• PARALLEL { UNSAFE | RESTRICTED | SAFE } — the parallel picker
• COST execution_cost — the cost slot
• ROWS result_rows — the rows slot
• SET configuration_parameter { TO | = } { value | DEFAULT } — set a config parameter to a value or DEFAULT
• SET configuration_parameter FROM CURRENT — set it FROM CURRENT
• RESET configuration_parameter — reset one config parameter
• RESET ALL — reset all of them, periodt

💫 DESCRIPTION 💫

ALTER ROUTINE changes the definition of a routine, and a routine can be an aggregate function, a normal function, or a procedure — all three are welcome in this group chat. 🌈

for the description of the parameters, more examples, and further details, go look under ALTER AGGREGATE (ALTER_AGGREGATE(7)), ALTER FUNCTION (ALTER_FUNCTION(7)), and ALTER PROCEDURE (ALTER_PROCEDURE(7)). they're the sister pages and they have the lore. ✨

🌸 EXAMPLES 🌸

say you wanna rename the routine foo for type integer to foobar — here's the move:

ALTER ROUTINE foo(integer) RENAME TO foobar;

this command will work independent of whether foo is an aggregate, function, or procedure. iconic, honestly — it does not need foo to pick a lane first. 💖

🦋 COMPATIBILITY 🦋

this statement is partially compatible with the ALTER ROUTINE statement in the SQL standard. for more details, peek under ALTER FUNCTION (ALTER_FUNCTION(7)) and ALTER PROCEDURE (ALTER_PROCEDURE(7)).

and the part where routine names can refer to aggregate functions? that's a PostgreSQL extension. slay, but also noted. 👑

🎀 SEE ALSO 🎀

• ALTER AGGREGATE (ALTER_AGGREGATE(7)) — aggregate-function business lives here
• ALTER FUNCTION (ALTER_FUNCTION(7)) — normal-function business lives here
• ALTER PROCEDURE (ALTER_PROCEDURE(7)) — procedure business lives here
• DROP ROUTINE (DROP_ROUTINE(7)) — the dropping page, different vibe

also, bestie, note that there is no CREATE ROUTINE command. not me looking for it either. 🙈

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this page was brought to you by PostgreSQL 15.19, dated 2026 — slay, and happy altering 💖