Thread: Searching for paper about pg's optimizer cost model

Hello,

does anybody know a paper (or any document but the code itself) containing a
description of the current cost model used by the query optimizer/planner.
I'm about to write a master thesis in this area that aims for more exact
estimates. Best would be some mathematical formulas with a rationale, but
anything else would help, too.

Regards,
Daniel Bausch
TU-Darmstadt (Germany)

Daniel Bausch <DanielBausch@gmx.de> writes:
> does anybody know a paper (or any document but the code itself) containing a
> description of the current cost model used by the query optimizer/planner.

If you look on the project website you can find slides from various
conference presentations that give overviews of the planner.  But if you
want details you'll have to read the code.  It's at least moderately
well commented, though.  Most of the skeletons in this particular
closet are in costsize.c and selfuncs.c.

            regards, tom lane