List PostgreSQL Extension Objects with pg_describe_object

Tue, 10 Nov 2026 00:00:00 +0000

List PostgreSQL Extension Objects with pg_describe_object

You ran CREATE EXTENSION fuzzystrmatch, and before you move, dump or drop it you need to know what it put in the database. In psql, \dx+ fuzzystrmatch lists every object that belongs to the extension. That command runs one query against pg_depend. The query returns one row per member object, and pg_describe_object turns each one into a readable label.

Purpose and Overview

Extensions group database objects so that you can manage them as one unit. When it runs, CREATE EXTENSION records the identity of every object it creates, so that DROP EXTENSION can remove them later. That record lives in pg_depend, the catalog that stores dependency relationships between database objects. Each member object gets a row that points at the extension's row in pg_extension, with deptype set to 'e'.

Extensions on Postgres Scripts

List PostgreSQL Extension Objects with pg_describe_object

List PostgreSQL Extension Objects with pg_describe_object

Purpose and Overview