PostgreSQL raises windowing_error (42P20) when a window function’s OVER clause or frame definition is syntactically valid but semantically impossible to execute.
PostgreSQL Error 42P20 – windowing_error – means the database could not execute the specified window frame or OVER clause. Check for invalid frame clauses, disallowed RANGE offsets, mismatched ORDER BY columns, or mixing window and GROUP BY logic. Correct the window definition to resolve the error.
PostgreSQL Error 42P20
PostgreSQL throws SQLSTATE 42P20 when the planner detects an impossible or illegal window frame or ORDER BY specification inside an OVER clause. The statement passes basic parsing, but deeper validation finds an inconsistency that prevents execution.
The error often appears in analytic SQL that combines window frames, RANGE mode, or ORDER BY columns not present in the partition. Fixing the window definition lets the query run normally.
Invalid frame units trigger 42P20. Using RANGE for non-orderable data types, negative offsets, or a frame that reverses start and end produces the error.
Mismatching ORDER BY columns also fails. PostgreSQL requires ORDER BY columns to belong to the PARTITION BY set. Omitting them results in windowing_error.
Mixing GROUP BY aggregates with window functions in the same SELECT without proper subqueries can cause semantic conflicts that PostgreSQL flags as windowing_error.
First isolate the column set in PARTITION BY and ORDER BY. Ensure every ORDER BY column is present in the partition or that RANGE mode matches a numeric or temporal column.
If you need aggregates and window functions together, wrap the aggregate in a subquery and apply the window function in the outer query. This separation removes semantic clashes.
Scenario: RANGE BETWEEN INTERVAL clauses on TEXT columns. Solution: change to ROWS or cast to timestamp.
Scenario: ORDER BY created_at in a window with PARTITION BY user_id, but created_at is missing in the partition. Solution: add created_at to PARTITION BY or switch to ROWS frame without ORDER BY.
Always validate that ORDER BY columns are present in PARTITION BY. Keep frame units consistent with column data types.
Separate heavy aggregates and window logic with subqueries. Use Galaxy’s AI linting to surface invalid window frames before execution.
42P10 invalid_column_reference arises when a column in the window clause is missing from SELECT or GROUP BY. Add the column or move logic to a subquery.
42P22 ambiguous_column errors happen when two tables supply the same column name in a window ORDER BY clause. Qualify all columns with table aliases.
RANGE frames require numeric, date, or timestamp columns. Text or Boolean columns raise 42P20.
Frames like BETWEEN 1 FOLLOWING AND 1 PRECEDING are invalid and trigger windowing_error.
PostgreSQL enforces that ORDER BY columns exist in the partition set.
Violations cause 42P20.
Using SUM() and SUM() OVER() in the same SELECT without subqueries can confuse the planner and raise the error.
.
The basic syntax parses, but PostgreSQL detects an impossible window definition during planning. Adjusting the frame or partition resolves it.
No. The check prevents undefined behavior. You must supply a valid frame.
RANGE needs an ordered numeric or temporal type. Text lacks a meaningful distance concept, so PostgreSQL blocks it.
Galaxy’s AI copilot validates window frames in real time and flags mismatched ORDER BY and PARTITION BY columns before the query reaches PostgreSQL.
.avif)
.avif){kind=logo}
