There was a project done over Postgresql 9.1.1 - it is a preference aware query optimizer. It consists of modified parser(which provides the users with an option for additional parser syntax) and modified optimizer(early prunning, additional cost metric). It is generating optimized plan.
My task now is to migrate only the modified optimizer and develop it further on 10.4. This means that I will have to input directly a parser tree to the optimizer module and output the new tree generated by the optimizer.
How can I efficiently approach such a simulator? I mean, I will need only to provide specific trees to the optimizer module and return results, not to develop a whole new version of postgresql dbms. In general, when I was developing over the whole postgresql it was fine as I can create a db in the regular dbms and then just compile the modified files and start it again over the already created database. Now I am really not sure what should be the right and smart approach.
Can you share any advice/information/links/articles, please?