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pgvet is distributed as a single binary that you can install using Go’s package manager.

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Prerequisites

pgvet requires:
  • Go 1.25.0 or later: Check your version with go version
  • CGO support: Required for compiling the embedded PostgreSQL parser (enabled by default in standard Go installations)
If you need to install or update Go, visit go.dev/doc/install.

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Install via go install

Run the following command to install the latest version of pgvet: 
go install github.com/mnafees/pgvet@latest
This installs the pgvet binary to your $GOPATH/bin directory (typically ~/go/bin).
The first build takes approximately 3 minutes due to CGO compilation of the embedded PostgreSQL parser. Subsequent builds and updates are much faster.

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Verify installation

Confirm that pgvet is installed correctly: 
pgvet --help
You should see output similar to: 
Usage: pgvet [flags] <file-or-dir>...

A static analysis tool for PostgreSQL SQL files.

Flags:
  -exclude string
        Comma-separated list of rules to exclude
  -format string
        Output format: text or json (default "text")
  -rules string
        Comma-separated list of rules to run (default: all)

Default rules:
  select-star              SELECT * in outermost query is fragile — list columns explicitly
  limit-without-order      LIMIT without ORDER BY produces non-deterministic results (exempts LIMIT 1)
  not-in-subquery          NOT IN (SELECT ...) is broken when the subquery can return NULLs — use NOT EXISTS instead
  ...
If you get a “command not found” error, make sure $GOPATH/bin is in your PATH. Add this to your shell profile:
export PATH="$PATH:$(go env GOPATH)/bin"

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Installation via go.mod (for projects)

If you want to pin a specific version of pgvet for your project, you can install it as a tool dependency:
  1. Create or update your tools.go file:
tools.go
//go:build tools

package tools

import _ "github.com/mnafees/pgvet"
  1. Run:
go mod tidy
go install github.com/mnafees/pgvet
This approach ensures that everyone on your team uses the same version of pgvet.

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Docker

If you prefer to run pgvet in a container, you can build a Docker image:
Dockerfile
FROM golang:1.25-alpine AS builder
RUN apk add --no-cache gcc musl-dev
RUN go install github.com/mnafees/pgvet@latest

FROM alpine:latest
COPY --from=builder /go/bin/pgvet /usr/local/bin/pgvet
ENTRYPOINT ["pgvet"]
Build and run: 
docker build -t pgvet .
docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/src pgvet /src/queries.sql
The Docker build also takes ~3 minutes due to CGO compilation. Consider using a pre-built image or caching the builder stage.

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Updating pgvet

To update to the latest version, run the install command again: 
go install github.com/mnafees/pgvet@latest
Updates are much faster than the initial install since Go caches the compiled dependencies.

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Next steps

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