2023-08 Backend fixes

[dmos62]

These are candidate tasks for backend fixes during cycle 2 starting in 2023-08.

Below issue list is ordered and categorized according to perceived priority.

Sorting and categorization is done with following presumptions in mind,

• unblocking frontend is most important, because frontend's highest-priority work depends on backend work,
• bugs are higher priority than improvements,
• user-reported bugs are higher priority than other bugs,
• user-requested improvements are higher-priority than other improvements.

Therefore, the idea is, given below categorized list, to do higher tasks in higher categories first, if possible.

What frontends needs to be unblocked

Beta Give feedback

1. Comments for columns, backend impl. centerofci/mathesar#3186
   pr-status: review work: backend +2
   
2. API to create or update records in bulk #2844
   ready restricted: maintainers type: enhancement work: backend +4
   

User-reported bugs

Beta Give feedback

1. Links do not work after adding check constraint to a table centerofci/mathesar#3109
   restricted: maintainers type: bug user reported work: backend +4
   
2. Database locale does not seem to be respected centerofci/mathesar#3112
   needs: implementation specs type: bug user reported work: backend +4

Supabase research is part of this cycle's work and is deemed less important than above tasks. Analogous frontend effort also has it on their task list, so whoever gets to it first, gets to do it.

Supabase research

Beta Give feedback

1. Appear on Supabase's integration website #3141
   non-code task ready restricted: maintainers type: enhancement +4

Other bugs

Beta Give feedback

1. 500 when adding unique constraint on point column centerofci/mathesar#3067
   affects: ux ready type: bug work: backend +4
2. StatementError when using the Record Selector to search by a partially-entered UUID centerofci/mathesar#2724
   ready restricted: maintainers type: bug work: backend +4
3. Able to order on an unorderable field centerofci/mathesar#3066
   affects: ux ready type: bug work: backend work: frontend +5
   

User-requested improvements

Beta Give feedback

1. Log SQL errors when altering fields centerofci/mathesar#3111
   ready type: enhancement user reported work: backend +4
2. Support for column descriptions/comments centerofci/mathesar#3069
   ready type: enhancement user reported work: backend work: frontend +5
   
3. Upgrade to newer version of psycopg2 centerofci/mathesar#3148
   affects: technical debt ready type: enhancement user reported work: backend +5
   

Other improvements

Beta Give feedback

1. Improve support for unknown types centerofci/mathesar#3095
   0 of 5
   ready type: meta work: backend +3
2. Implement paste into cells centerofci/mathesar#3143
   0 of 2
   ready type: meta work: backend work: frontend +4
3. Column endpoint is slow when columns are many #3135
   affects: ux ready restricted: maintainers type: enhancement work: backend +5
4. Allow whitelisted dynamic defaults centerofci/mathesar#3128
   affects: ux ready type: enhancement user reported work: backend work: frontend +6
5. Reenable test parallelization via pytest-xdist #2843
   affects: dx affects: technical debt needs: unblocking type: enhancement work: backend +5
6. Make it possible to compose order transforms and query parameter ordering centerofci/mathesar#2304
   ready type: enhancement work: backend +3
7. API to move columns to existing linked table should accept a constraint id instead of a table id centerofci/mathesar#1632
   ready type: enhancement work: backend +3

Time estimate

I expect to get to Other bugs category, but not get through it during this cycle. The queue is significantly longer, because that will be useful when backend fixes will be picked up next cycle.

[seancolsen]

I'm closing this because I don't think we're planning to do any more of this work for v0.1.4 and the remaining work is still tracked in other tickets.