Arjen Nienhuis <a.g.nienhuis@xxxxxxxxx> writes: > If I create a DEFERRED ON DELETE CASCADE constraint, it doesn't really work > as I expected. I expected it to defer the deletion to the end of the > transaction, but it dosn't. Yeah, this is per SQL spec as far as we can tell. Constraint checks can be deferred till end of transaction, but "referential actions" are not deferrable. They always happen during the triggering statement. For instance SQL99 describes the result of a cascade deletion as being that the referencing row is "marked for deletion" immediately, and then 15) All rows that are marked for deletion are effectively deleted at the end of the SQL-statement, prior to the checking of any integrity constraints. (see 11.8 <referential constraint definition> general rules) regards, tom lane -- Sent via pgsql-general mailing list (pgsql-general@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx) To make changes to your subscription: http://www.postgresql.org/mailpref/pgsql-general