Change column order in postgis 2.0

Rearranging Columns in PostGIS 2.0: A Human’s Guide

So, you’re working with PostGIS 2.0, the spatial extension for PostgreSQL, and you need to shuffle the order of your columns around. Easy peasy, right? Well, not exactly. Unlike some databases where you can just drag and drop columns to rearrange them, PostGIS (and PostgreSQL itself) doesn’t offer a simple “reorder columns” button. Let’s dive into why that is, and more importantly, what you can do about it.

Why the Fuss About Column Order Anyway?

You might be wondering, “Why does column order even matter?” Good question! At its heart, PostgreSQL, and therefore PostGIS, sticks to the relational database model. Think of it like this: the database cares more about what data you’re asking for (the column name) than where it’s physically located in the table. It’s all about relationships and indexing, which makes finding the data super-fast, regardless of column order. So, the physical arrangement of columns? Not a big deal to the database.

No “Magic” Reorder Command? Here’s Why

The lack of a direct “ALTER COLUMN POSITION” command isn’t an accident. It’s a deliberate design choice. Adding such a feature would make the database engine way more complicated without really improving how it works. Sure, some databases offer this as a special add-on, but it’s not a standard thing in the SQL world.

Okay, So How Do I Change the Order?

Alright, enough with the “whys.” Let’s get practical. Even though there’s no one-click solution, you’ve got a few tricks up your sleeve to get those columns in the order you want.