FAQ note about PG11 stored procedures

roji · roji · commit b3ca24f63ff6 · 2018-09-23T14:07:05.000+01:00
diff --git a/doc/faq.md b/doc/faq.md
@@ -1,5 +1,11 @@
 # FAQ
 
+### <a name="stored_procedures">How can I call a PostgreSQL 11 stored procedure? I tried doing so with CommandType.StoredProcedure and got an error...</a>
+
+PostgreSQL 11 stored procedures can be called, but unfortunately not with `CommandType.StoredProcedure`. PostgreSQL has supported stored *functions* for a long while, and since these have acted as replacements for non-existing procedures, Npgsql's `CommandType.StoredProcedure` has been implemented to invoke them; this means that `CommandType.StoredProcedure` translates into `SELECT * FROM my_stored_function()`. The new stored procedures introduce a special invocation syntax - `CALL my_stored_procedure()` - which is incompatible with the existing stored function syntax.
+
+On the brighter side, it's very easy to invoke stored procedures (or functions) yourself - you don't really need `CommandType.StoredProcedure`. Simply create a regular command and set `CommandText` to `CALL my_stored_procedure(@p1, @p2)`, handling parameters like you would any other statement. In fact, with Npgsql and PostgreSQL, `CommandType.StoredProcedure` doesn't really have any added value over constructing the command yourself.
+
 ### <a name="unknown_type">I get an exception "The field field1 has a type currently unknown to Npgsql (OID XXXXX). You can retrieve it as a string by marking it as unknown".</a>
 
 Npgsql has to implement support for each PostgreSQL type, and it seems you've stumbled upon an unsupported type.
