Re: Postgres and --config-file option

I'm fine with leaving these alone.  If we did change this I'd want to change both, not just --NAME.

I would rather just do this:

diff --git a/src/backend/utils/misc/guc.c b/src/backend/utils/misc/guc.c
index 3fb6803998..f827086489 100644
--- a/src/backend/utils/misc/guc.c
+++ b/src/backend/utils/misc/guc.c
@@ -1828,8 +1828,8 @@ SelectConfigFiles(const char *userDoption, const char *progname)
        else
        {
                write_stderr("%s does not know where to find the server configuration file.\n"
-                                        "You must specify the --config-file or -D invocation "
-                                        "option or set the PGDATA environment variable.\n",
+                                        "You must specify either the config_file run-time parameter or "
+                                        "provide the database directory\n",
                                         progname);
                return false;
        }

Both "run-time parameter" and "database directory" are words present in the help and the user can find the correct argument if that is the option they want to use.  The removal of the mention of the PGDATA environment variable doesn't seem to be a great loss here.  This error message doesn't seem to be the correct place to teach the user about all of their options so long as they choose to read the documentation they learn about them there; and we need not prescribe the specific means by which they supply either of those pieces of information - which is the norm.  If someone simply runs "postgres" at the command line this message and --help gives them sufficient information to proceed.

David J.