52.86. pg_shadow

The view pg_shadow exists for backwards compatibility: it emulates a catalog that existed in PostgreSQL before version 8.1. It shows properties of all roles that are marked as rolcanlogin in pg_authid.

The name stems from the fact that this table should not be readable by the public since it contains passwords. pg_user is a publicly readable view on pg_shadow that blanks out the password field.

Table 52.87. pg_shadow Columns

NameTypeReferencesDescription
usenamenamepg_authid.rolnameUser name
usesysidoidpg_authid.oidID of this user
usecreatedbbool User can create databases
usesuperbool User is a superuser
usereplbool  User can initiate streaming replication and put the system in and out of backup mode.
usebypassrlsbool  User bypasses every row level security policy, see Section 5.7 for more information.
passwdtext Password (possibly encrypted); null if none. See pg_authid for details of how encrypted passwords are stored.
valuntilabstime Password expiry time (only used for password authentication)
useconfigtext[] Session defaults for run-time configuration variables