pg 1.1.4 → 1.2.3

data/ext/pg.h

@@ -78,6 +78,8 @@ typedef long suseconds_t;
 #define RARRAY_AREF(a, i) (RARRAY_PTR(a)[i])
 #endif
 
+#define PG_ENC_IDX_BITS 28
+
 /* The data behind each PG::Connection object */
 typedef struct {
 	PGconn *pgconn;
@@ -94,15 +96,14 @@ typedef struct {
 	VALUE type_map_for_results;
 	/* IO object internally used for the trace stream */
 	VALUE trace_stream;
-	/* Cached Encoding object */
-	VALUE external_encoding;
 	/* Kind of PG::Coder object for casting ruby values to COPY rows */
 	VALUE encoder_for_put_copy_data;
 	/* Kind of PG::Coder object for casting COPY rows to ruby values */
 	VALUE decoder_for_get_copy_data;
-
-	/* enable/disable guessing size of PGresult's allocated memory */
-	int guess_result_memsize;
+	/* Ruby encoding index of the client/internal encoding */
+	int enc_idx : PG_ENC_IDX_BITS;
+	/* flags controlling Symbol/String field names */
+	unsigned int flags : 2;
 
 #if defined(_WIN32)
 	/* File descriptor to be used for rb_w32_unwrap_io_handle() */
@@ -128,10 +129,16 @@ typedef struct {
 	 */
 	t_typemap *p_typemap;
 
+	/* Ruby encoding index of the client/internal encoding */
+	int enc_idx : PG_ENC_IDX_BITS;
+
 	/* 0 = PGresult is cleared by PG::Result#clear or by the GC
 	 * 1 = PGresult is cleared internally by libpq
 	 */
-	int autoclear;
+	unsigned int autoclear : 1;
+
+	/* flags controlling Symbol/String field names */
+	unsigned int flags : 2;
 
 	/* Number of fields in fnames[] .
 	 * Set to -1 if fnames[] is not yet initialized.
@@ -147,7 +154,7 @@ typedef struct {
 	/* Hash with fnames[] to field number mapping. */
 	VALUE field_map;
 
-	/* List of field names as frozen String objects.
+	/* List of field names as frozen String or Symbol objects.
 	 * Only valid if nfields != -1
 	 */
 	VALUE fnames[0];
@@ -163,6 +170,10 @@ typedef VALUE (* t_pg_typecast_result)(t_typemap *, VALUE, int, int);
 typedef t_pg_coder *(* t_pg_typecast_query_param)(t_typemap *, VALUE, int);
 typedef VALUE (* t_pg_typecast_copy_get)( t_typemap *, VALUE, int, int, int );
 
+#define PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_MASK 0x03
+#define PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_SYMBOL 0x01
+#define PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_STATIC_SYMBOL 0x02
+
 #define PG_CODER_TIMESTAMP_DB_UTC 0x0
 #define PG_CODER_TIMESTAMP_DB_LOCAL 0x1
 #define PG_CODER_TIMESTAMP_APP_UTC 0x0
@@ -275,6 +286,7 @@ void init_pg_type_map_by_oid                           _(( void ));
 void init_pg_type_map_in_ruby                          _(( void ));
 void init_pg_coder                                     _(( void ));
 void init_pg_copycoder                                 _(( void ));
+void init_pg_recordcoder                               _(( void ));
 void init_pg_text_encoder                              _(( void ));
 void init_pg_text_decoder                              _(( void ));
 void init_pg_binary_encoder                            _(( void ));
@@ -292,6 +304,7 @@ VALUE pg_obj_to_i                                      _(( VALUE ));
 VALUE pg_tmbc_allocate                                 _(( void ));
 void pg_coder_init_encoder                             _(( VALUE ));
 void pg_coder_init_decoder                             _(( VALUE ));
+void pg_coder_mark                                     _(( t_pg_coder * ));
 char *pg_rb_str_ensure_capa                            _(( VALUE, long, char *, char ** ));
 
 #define PG_RB_STR_ENSURE_CAPA( str, expand_len, curr_ptr, end_ptr ) \
@@ -305,11 +318,6 @@ char *pg_rb_str_ensure_capa                            _(( VALUE, long, char *,
 		(curr_ptr) = (end_ptr) = RSTRING_PTR(str) \
 	)
 
-#define PG_RB_TAINTED_STR_NEW( str, curr_ptr, end_ptr ) ( \
-		(str) = rb_tainted_str_new( NULL, 0 ), \
-		(curr_ptr) = (end_ptr) = RSTRING_PTR(str) \
-	)
-
 VALUE pg_typemap_fit_to_result                         _(( VALUE, VALUE ));
 VALUE pg_typemap_fit_to_query                          _(( VALUE, VALUE ));
 int pg_typemap_fit_to_copy_get                         _(( VALUE ));
@@ -333,12 +341,7 @@ VALUE pg_tuple_new                                     _(( VALUE, int ));
 static inline t_pg_result *
 pgresult_get_this( VALUE self )
 {
-	t_pg_result *this = RTYPEDDATA_DATA(self);
-
-	if( this == NULL )
-		rb_raise(rb_ePGerror, "result has been cleared");
-
-	return this;
+	return RTYPEDDATA_DATA(self);
 }
 
 

data/ext/pg_binary_decoder.c

@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
 
 #include "ruby/version.h"
 #include "pg.h"
-#include "util.h"
+#include "pg_util.h"
 #ifdef HAVE_INTTYPES_H
 #include <inttypes.h>
 #endif
@@ -17,8 +17,8 @@ VALUE rb_mPG_BinaryDecoder;
 /*
  * Document-class: PG::BinaryDecoder::Boolean < PG::SimpleDecoder
  *
- * This is a decoder class for conversion of PostgreSQL binary bool type
- * to Ruby true or false objects.
+ * This is a decoder class for conversion of PostgreSQL binary +bool+ type
+ * to Ruby +true+ or +false+ objects.
  *
  */
 static VALUE
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ pg_bin_dec_boolean(t_pg_coder *conv, const char *val, int len, int tuple, int fi
 /*
  * Document-class: PG::BinaryDecoder::Integer < PG::SimpleDecoder
  *
- * This is a decoder class for conversion of PostgreSQL binary int2, int4 and int8 types
+ * This is a decoder class for conversion of PostgreSQL binary +int2+, +int4+ and +int8+ types
  * to Ruby Integer objects.
  *
  */
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ pg_bin_dec_integer(t_pg_coder *conv, const char *val, int len, int tuple, int fi
 /*
  * Document-class: PG::BinaryDecoder::Float < PG::SimpleDecoder
  *
- * This is a decoder class for conversion of PostgreSQL binary float4 and float8 types
+ * This is a decoder class for conversion of PostgreSQL binary +float4+ and +float8+ types
  * to Ruby Float objects.
  *
  */
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ pg_bin_dec_float(t_pg_coder *conv, const char *val, int len, int tuple, int fiel
  * Document-class: PG::BinaryDecoder::Bytea < PG::SimpleDecoder
  *
  * This decoder class delivers the data received from the server as binary String object.
- * It is therefore suitable for conversion of PostgreSQL bytea data as well as any other
+ * It is therefore suitable for conversion of PostgreSQL +bytea+ data as well as any other
  * data in binary format.
  *
  */
@@ -95,7 +95,7 @@ VALUE
 pg_bin_dec_bytea(t_pg_coder *conv, const char *val, int len, int tuple, int field, int enc_idx)
 {
 	VALUE ret;
-	ret = rb_tainted_str_new( val, len );
+	ret = rb_str_new( val, len );
 	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( ret, rb_ascii8bit_encindex() );
 	return ret;
 }
@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ pg_bin_dec_bytea(t_pg_coder *conv, const char *val, int len, int tuple, int fiel
 /*
  * Document-class: PG::BinaryDecoder::ToBase64 < PG::CompositeDecoder
  *
- * This is a decoder class for conversion of binary (bytea) to base64 data.
+ * This is a decoder class for conversion of binary +bytea+ to base64 data.
  *
  */
 static VALUE
@@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ pg_bin_dec_to_base64(t_pg_coder *conv, const char *val, int len, int tuple, int
 	t_pg_coder_dec_func dec_func = pg_coder_dec_func(this->elem, this->comp.format);
 	int encoded_len = BASE64_ENCODED_SIZE(len);
 	/* create a buffer of the encoded length */
-	VALUE out_value = rb_tainted_str_new(NULL, encoded_len);
+	VALUE out_value = rb_str_new(NULL, encoded_len);
 
 	base64_encode( RSTRING_PTR(out_value), val, len );
 

data/ext/pg_binary_encoder.c

@@ -1,11 +1,11 @@
 /*
  * pg_column_map.c - PG::ColumnMap class extension
- * $Id: pg_binary_encoder.c,v e61a06f1f5ed 2015/12/25 21:14:21 lars $
+ * $Id$
  *
  */
 
 #include "pg.h"
-#include "util.h"
+#include "pg_util.h"
 #ifdef HAVE_INTTYPES_H
 #include <inttypes.h>
 #endif
@@ -25,11 +25,12 @@ static int
 pg_bin_enc_boolean(t_pg_coder *conv, VALUE value, char *out, VALUE *intermediate, int enc_idx)
 {
 	char mybool;
-	switch(value){
-		case Qtrue : mybool = 1; break;
-		case Qfalse : mybool = 0; break;
-		default :
-			rb_raise( rb_eTypeError, "wrong data for binary boolean converter" );
+    if (value == Qtrue) {
+      mybool = 1;
+    } else if (value == Qfalse) {
+      mybool = 0;
+    } else {
+      rb_raise( rb_eTypeError, "wrong data for binary boolean converter" );
 	}
 	if(out) *out = mybool;
 	return 1;
@@ -38,7 +39,7 @@ pg_bin_enc_boolean(t_pg_coder *conv, VALUE value, char *out, VALUE *intermediate
 /*
  * Document-class: PG::BinaryEncoder::Int2 < PG::SimpleEncoder
  *
- * This is the encoder class for the PostgreSQL int2 type.
+ * This is the encoder class for the PostgreSQL +int2+ (alias +smallint+) type.
  *
  * Non-Number values are expected to have method +to_i+ defined.
  *
@@ -55,9 +56,9 @@ pg_bin_enc_int2(t_pg_coder *conv, VALUE value, char *out, VALUE *intermediate, i
 }
 
 /*
- * Document-class: PG::BinaryEncoder::Int2 < PG::SimpleEncoder
+ * Document-class: PG::BinaryEncoder::Int4 < PG::SimpleEncoder
  *
- * This is the encoder class for the PostgreSQL int4 type.
+ * This is the encoder class for the PostgreSQL +int4+ (alias +integer+) type.
  *
  * Non-Number values are expected to have method +to_i+ defined.
  *
@@ -74,9 +75,9 @@ pg_bin_enc_int4(t_pg_coder *conv, VALUE value, char *out, VALUE *intermediate, i
 }
 
 /*
- * Document-class: PG::BinaryEncoder::Int2 < PG::SimpleEncoder
+ * Document-class: PG::BinaryEncoder::Int8 < PG::SimpleEncoder
  *
- * This is the encoder class for the PostgreSQL int8 type.
+ * This is the encoder class for the PostgreSQL +int8+ (alias +bigint+) type.
  *
  * Non-Number values are expected to have method +to_i+ defined.
  *

data/ext/pg_coder.c

@@ -61,11 +61,23 @@ pg_coder_init_decoder( VALUE self )
 	rb_iv_set( self, "@name", Qnil );
 }
 
+void
+pg_coder_mark(t_pg_coder *this)
+{
+	rb_gc_mark(this->coder_obj);
+}
+
+static void
+pg_composite_coder_mark(t_pg_composite_coder *this)
+{
+	pg_coder_mark(&this->comp);
+}
+
 static VALUE
 pg_simple_encoder_allocate( VALUE klass )
 {
 	t_pg_coder *this;
-	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_coder, NULL, -1, this );
+	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_coder, pg_coder_mark, -1, this );
 	pg_coder_init_encoder( self );
 	return self;
 }
@@ -74,7 +86,7 @@ static VALUE
 pg_composite_encoder_allocate( VALUE klass )
 {
 	t_pg_composite_coder *this;
-	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_composite_coder, NULL, -1, this );
+	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_composite_coder, pg_composite_coder_mark, -1, this );
 	pg_coder_init_encoder( self );
 	this->elem = NULL;
 	this->needs_quotation = 1;
@@ -87,7 +99,7 @@ static VALUE
 pg_simple_decoder_allocate( VALUE klass )
 {
 	t_pg_coder *this;
-	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_coder, NULL, -1, this );
+	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_coder, pg_coder_mark, -1, this );
 	pg_coder_init_decoder( self );
 	return self;
 }
@@ -96,7 +108,7 @@ static VALUE
 pg_composite_decoder_allocate( VALUE klass )
 {
 	t_pg_composite_coder *this;
-	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_composite_coder, NULL, -1, this );
+	VALUE self = Data_Make_Struct( klass, t_pg_composite_coder, pg_composite_coder_mark, -1, this );
 	pg_coder_init_decoder( self );
 	this->elem = NULL;
 	this->needs_quotation = 1;
@@ -145,7 +157,6 @@ pg_coder_encode(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 	if( len == -1 ){
 		/* The intermediate value is a String that can be used directly. */
-		OBJ_INFECT(intermediate, value);
 		return intermediate;
 	}
 
@@ -157,7 +168,6 @@ pg_coder_encode(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 			rb_obj_classname( self ), len, len2 );
 	}
 	rb_str_set_len( res, len2 );
-	OBJ_INFECT(res, value);
 
 	RB_GC_GUARD(intermediate);
 
@@ -204,7 +214,6 @@ pg_coder_decode(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	}
 
 	res = this->dec_func(this, val, RSTRING_LEN(argv[0]), tuple, field, ENCODING_GET(argv[0]));
-	OBJ_INFECT(res, argv[0]);
 
 	return res;
 }
@@ -400,6 +409,11 @@ pg_define_coder( const char *name, void *func, VALUE base_klass, VALUE nsp )
 	if( nsp==rb_mPG_BinaryEncoder || nsp==rb_mPG_BinaryDecoder )
 		rb_include_module( coder_klass, rb_mPG_BinaryFormatting );
 
+	if( nsp==rb_mPG_BinaryEncoder || nsp==rb_mPG_TextEncoder )
+		rb_define_method( coder_klass, "encode", pg_coder_encode, -1 );
+	if( nsp==rb_mPG_BinaryDecoder || nsp==rb_mPG_TextDecoder )
+		rb_define_method( coder_klass, "decode", pg_coder_decode, -1 );
+
 	rb_define_const( coder_klass, "CFUNC", cfunc_obj );
 
 	RB_GC_GUARD(cfunc_obj);
@@ -512,8 +526,6 @@ init_pg_coder()
 	 * This accessor is only used in PG::Coder#inspect .
 	 */
 	rb_define_attr(   rb_cPG_Coder, "name", 1, 1 );
-	rb_define_method( rb_cPG_Coder, "encode", pg_coder_encode, -1 );
-	rb_define_method( rb_cPG_Coder, "decode", pg_coder_decode, -1 );
 
 	/* Document-class: PG::SimpleCoder < PG::Coder */
 	rb_cPG_SimpleCoder = rb_define_class_under( rb_mPG, "SimpleCoder", rb_cPG_Coder );

data/ext/pg_connection.c

@@ -13,13 +13,14 @@
 VALUE rb_cPGconn;
 static ID s_id_encode;
 static VALUE sym_type, sym_format, sym_value;
+static VALUE sym_symbol, sym_string, sym_static_symbol;
 
 static PQnoticeReceiver default_notice_receiver = NULL;
 static PQnoticeProcessor default_notice_processor = NULL;
 
 static VALUE pgconn_finish( VALUE );
 static VALUE pgconn_set_default_encoding( VALUE self );
-void pgconn_set_internal_encoding_index( VALUE );
+static void pgconn_set_internal_encoding_index( VALUE );
 
 /*
  * Global functions
@@ -152,7 +153,6 @@ pgconn_gc_mark( t_pg_connection *this )
 	rb_gc_mark( this->type_map_for_queries );
 	rb_gc_mark( this->type_map_for_results );
 	rb_gc_mark( this->trace_stream );
-	rb_gc_mark( this->external_encoding );
 	rb_gc_mark( this->encoder_for_put_copy_data );
 	rb_gc_mark( this->decoder_for_get_copy_data );
 }
@@ -200,8 +200,6 @@ pgconn_s_allocate( VALUE klass )
 	this->encoder_for_put_copy_data = Qnil;
 	this->decoder_for_get_copy_data = Qnil;
 	this->trace_stream = Qnil;
-	this->external_encoding = Qnil;
-	this->guess_result_memsize = 1;
 
 	return self;
 }
@@ -218,32 +216,27 @@ pgconn_s_allocate( VALUE klass )
  *
  * Create a connection to the specified server.
  *
+ * +connection_hash+ must be a ruby Hash with connection parameters.
+ * See the {list of valid parameters}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-connect.html#LIBPQ-PARAMKEYWORDS] in the PostgreSQL documentation.
+ *
+ * There are two accepted formats for +connection_string+: plain <code>keyword = value</code> strings and URIs.
+ * See the documentation of {connection strings}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-connect.html#LIBPQ-CONNSTRING].
+ *
+ * The positional parameter form has the same functionality except that the missing parameters will always take on default values. The parameters are:
  * [+host+]
  *   server hostname
- * [+hostaddr+]
- *   server address (avoids hostname lookup, overrides +host+)
  * [+port+]
  *   server port number
+ * [+options+]
+ *   backend options
+ * [+tty+]
+ *   (ignored in newer versions of PostgreSQL)
  * [+dbname+]
  *   connecting database name
  * [+user+]
  *   login user name
  * [+password+]
  *   login password
- * [+connect_timeout+]
- *   maximum time to wait for connection to succeed
- * [+options+]
- *   backend options
- * [+tty+]
- *   (ignored in newer versions of PostgreSQL)
- * [+sslmode+]
- *   (disable|allow|prefer|require)
- * [+krbsrvname+]
- *   kerberos service name
- * [+gsslib+]
- *   GSS library to use for GSSAPI authentication
- * [+service+]
- *   service name to use for additional parameters
  *
  * Examples:
  *
@@ -259,7 +252,7 @@ pgconn_s_allocate( VALUE klass )
  *   # As an Array
  *   PG::Connection.new( nil, 5432, nil, nil, 'test', nil, nil )
  *
- * If the Ruby default internal encoding is set (i.e., Encoding.default_internal != nil), the
+ * If the Ruby default internal encoding is set (i.e., <code>Encoding.default_internal != nil</code>), the
  * connection will have its +client_encoding+ set accordingly.
  *
  * Raises a PG::Error if the connection fails.
@@ -298,14 +291,16 @@ pgconn_init(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
  *    PG::Connection.connect_start(connection_string)     -> conn
  *    PG::Connection.connect_start(host, port, options, tty, dbname, login, password) ->  conn
  *
- * This is an asynchronous version of PG::Connection.connect().
+ * This is an asynchronous version of PG::Connection.new.
  *
  * Use #connect_poll to poll the status of the connection.
  *
  * NOTE: this does *not* set the connection's +client_encoding+ for you if
- * Encoding.default_internal is set. To set it after the connection is established,
+ * +Encoding.default_internal+ is set. To set it after the connection is established,
  * call #internal_encoding=. You can also set it automatically by setting
- * ENV['PGCLIENTENCODING'], or include the 'options' connection parameter.
+ * <code>ENV['PGCLIENTENCODING']</code>, or include the 'options' connection parameter.
+ *
+ * See also the 'sample' directory of this gem and the corresponding {libpq functions}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-connect.html#LIBPQ-PQCONNECTSTARTPARAMS].
  *
  */
 static VALUE
@@ -348,6 +343,8 @@ pgconn_s_connect_start( int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE klass )
  *
  * Check server status.
  *
+ * See PG::Connection.new for a description of the parameters.
+ *
  * Returns one of:
  * [+PQPING_OK+]
  *   server is accepting connections
@@ -357,8 +354,6 @@ pgconn_s_connect_start( int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE klass )
  *   could not establish connection
  * [+PQPING_NO_ATTEMPT+]
  *   connection not attempted (bad params)
- *
- * Available since PostgreSQL-9.1
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_s_ping( int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE klass )
@@ -429,7 +424,8 @@ pgconn_s_conndefaults(VALUE self)
  * Return value is the encrypted password.
  * The caller can assume the string doesn't contain any special characters that would require escaping.
  *
- * Available since PostgreSQL-10
+ * Available since PostgreSQL-10.
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-misc.html#LIBPQ-PQENCRYPTPASSWORDCONN].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_encrypt_password(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
@@ -448,10 +444,6 @@ pgconn_encrypt_password(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	if ( encrypted ) {
 		rval = rb_str_new2( encrypted );
 		PQfreemem( encrypted );
-
-		OBJ_INFECT( rval, password );
-		OBJ_INFECT( rval, username );
-		OBJ_INFECT( rval, algorithm );
 	} else {
 		rb_raise(rb_ePGerror, "%s", PQerrorMessage(conn));
 	}
@@ -484,9 +476,6 @@ pgconn_s_encrypt_password(VALUE self, VALUE password, VALUE username)
 	rval = rb_str_new2( encrypted );
 	PQfreemem( encrypted );
 
-	OBJ_INFECT( rval, password );
-	OBJ_INFECT( rval, username );
-
 	return rval;
 }
 
@@ -632,7 +621,7 @@ pgconn_db(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *db = PQdb(pg_get_pgconn(self));
 	if (!db) return Qnil;
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(db);
+	return rb_str_new2(db);
 }
 
 /*
@@ -646,7 +635,7 @@ pgconn_user(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *user = PQuser(pg_get_pgconn(self));
 	if (!user) return Qnil;
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(user);
+	return rb_str_new2(user);
 }
 
 /*
@@ -660,7 +649,7 @@ pgconn_pass(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *user = PQpass(pg_get_pgconn(self));
 	if (!user) return Qnil;
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(user);
+	return rb_str_new2(user);
 }
 
 /*
@@ -674,7 +663,7 @@ pgconn_host(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *host = PQhost(pg_get_pgconn(self));
 	if (!host) return Qnil;
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(host);
+	return rb_str_new2(host);
 }
 
 /*
@@ -701,7 +690,7 @@ pgconn_tty(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *tty = PQtty(pg_get_pgconn(self));
 	if (!tty) return Qnil;
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(tty);
+	return rb_str_new2(tty);
 }
 
 /*
@@ -715,7 +704,7 @@ pgconn_options(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *options = PQoptions(pg_get_pgconn(self));
 	if (!options) return Qnil;
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(options);
+	return rb_str_new2(options);
 }
 
 
@@ -796,7 +785,7 @@ pgconn_parameter_status(VALUE self, VALUE param_name)
 	if(ret == NULL)
 		return Qnil;
 	else
-		return rb_tainted_str_new2(ret);
+		return rb_str_new2(ret);
 }
 
 /*
@@ -841,7 +830,7 @@ pgconn_error_message(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *error = PQerrorMessage(pg_get_pgconn(self));
 	if (!error) return Qnil;
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(error);
+	return rb_str_new2(error);
 }
 
 /*
@@ -865,6 +854,8 @@ static VALUE
 pgconn_socket(VALUE self)
 {
 	int sd;
+	pg_deprecated(4, ("conn.socket is deprecated and should be replaced by conn.socket_io"));
+
 	if( (sd = PQsocket(pg_get_pgconn(self))) < 0)
 		rb_raise(rb_eConnectionBad, "PQsocket() can't get socket descriptor");
 	return INT2NUM(sd);
@@ -961,32 +952,23 @@ static VALUE pgconn_exec_params( int, VALUE *, VALUE );
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.exec(sql) -> PG::Result
- *    conn.exec(sql) {|pg_result| block }
- *
- * Sends SQL query request specified by _sql_ to PostgreSQL.
- * On success, it returns a PG::Result instance with all result rows and columns.
- * On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
+ *    conn.sync_exec(sql) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.sync_exec(sql) {|pg_result| block }
  *
- * For backward compatibility, if you pass more than one parameter to this method,
- * it will call #exec_params for you. New code should explicitly use #exec_params if
- * argument placeholders are used.
+ * This function has the same behavior as #async_exec, but is implemented using the synchronous command processing API of libpq.
+ * It's not recommended to use explicit sync or async variants but #exec instead, unless you have a good reason to do so.
  *
- * If the optional code block is given, it will be passed <i>result</i> as an argument,
- * and the PG::Result object will  automatically be cleared when the block terminates.
- * In this instance, <code>conn.exec</code> returns the value of the block.
+ * Both #sync_exec and #async_exec release the GVL while waiting for server response, so that concurrent threads will get executed.
+ * However #async_exec has two advantages:
  *
- * #sync_exec is implemented on the synchronous command processing API of libpq, whereas
- * #async_exec is implemented on the asynchronous API.
- * #sync_exec is somewhat faster that #async_exec, but blocks any signals to be processed until
- * the query is finished. This is most notably visible by a delayed reaction to Control+C.
- * Both methods ensure that other threads can process while waiting for the server to
- * complete the request.
+ * 1. #async_exec can be aborted by signals (like Ctrl-C), while #exec blocks signal processing until the query is answered.
+ * 2. Ruby VM gets notified about IO blocked operations.
+ *    It can therefore schedule things like garbage collection, while queries are running like in this proposal: https://bugs.ruby-lang.org/issues/14723
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_exec(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	PGresult *result = NULL;
 	VALUE rb_pgresult;
 
@@ -994,7 +976,7 @@ pgconn_exec(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	if ( argc == 1 || (argc >= 2 && argc <= 4 && NIL_P(argv[1]) )) {
 		VALUE query_str = argv[0];
 
-		result = gvl_PQexec(conn, pg_cstr_enc(query_str, ENCODING_GET(self)));
+		result = gvl_PQexec(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(query_str, this->enc_idx));
 		rb_pgresult = pg_new_result(result, self);
 		pg_result_check(rb_pgresult);
 		if (rb_block_given_p()) {
@@ -1256,57 +1238,23 @@ pgconn_query_assign_typemap( VALUE self, struct query_params_data *paramsData )
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.exec_params(sql, params[, result_format[, type_map]] ) -> PG::Result
- *    conn.exec_params(sql, params[, result_format[, type_map]] ) {|pg_result| block }
- *
- * Sends SQL query request specified by +sql+ to PostgreSQL using placeholders
- * for parameters.
- *
- * Returns a PG::Result instance on success. On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
- *
- * +params+ is an array of the bind parameters for the SQL query.
- * Each element of the +params+ array may be either:
- *   a hash of the form:
- *     {:value  => String (value of bind parameter)
- *      :type   => Integer (oid of type of bind parameter)
- *      :format => Integer (0 for text, 1 for binary)
- *     }
- *   or, it may be a String. If it is a string, that is equivalent to the hash:
- *     { :value => <string value>, :type => 0, :format => 0 }
- *
- * PostgreSQL bind parameters are represented as $1, $1, $2, etc.,
- * inside the SQL query. The 0th element of the +params+ array is bound
- * to $1, the 1st element is bound to $2, etc. +nil+ is treated as +NULL+.
- *
- * If the types are not specified, they will be inferred by PostgreSQL.
- * Instead of specifying type oids, it's recommended to simply add
- * explicit casts in the query to ensure that the right type is used.
- *
- * For example: "SELECT $1::int"
- *
- * The optional +result_format+ should be 0 for text results, 1
- * for binary.
+ *    conn.sync_exec_params(sql, params[, result_format[, type_map]] ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.sync_exec_params(sql, params[, result_format[, type_map]] ) {|pg_result| block }
  *
- * type_map can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
- * This will type cast the params from various Ruby types before transmission
- * based on the encoders defined by the type map. When a type encoder is used
- * the format and oid of a given bind parameter are retrieved from the encoder
- * instead out of the hash form described above.
- *
- * If the optional code block is given, it will be passed <i>result</i> as an argument,
- * and the PG::Result object will  automatically be cleared when the block terminates.
- * In this instance, <code>conn.exec</code> returns the value of the block.
+ * This function has the same behavior as #async_exec_params, but is implemented using the synchronous command processing API of libpq.
+ * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * It's not recommended to use explicit sync or async variants but #exec_params instead, unless you have a good reason to do so.
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_exec_params( int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self )
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	PGresult *result = NULL;
 	VALUE rb_pgresult;
 	VALUE command, in_res_fmt;
 	int nParams;
 	int resultFormat;
-	struct query_params_data paramsData = { ENCODING_GET(self) };
+	struct query_params_data paramsData = { this->enc_idx };
 
 	/* For compatibility we accept 1 to 4 parameters */
 	rb_scan_args(argc, argv, "13", &command, &paramsData.params, &in_res_fmt, &paramsData.typemap);
@@ -1325,7 +1273,7 @@ pgconn_exec_params( int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self )
 	resultFormat = NIL_P(in_res_fmt) ? 0 : NUM2INT(in_res_fmt);
 	nParams = alloc_query_params( &paramsData );
 
-	result = gvl_PQexecParams(conn, pg_cstr_enc(command, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams, paramsData.types,
+	result = gvl_PQexecParams(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(command, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams, paramsData.types,
 		(const char * const *)paramsData.values, paramsData.lengths, paramsData.formats, resultFormat);
 
 	free_query_params( &paramsData );
@@ -1342,28 +1290,16 @@ pgconn_exec_params( int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self )
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.prepare(stmt_name, sql [, param_types ] ) -> PG::Result
- *
- * Prepares statement _sql_ with name _name_ to be executed later.
- * Returns a PG::Result instance on success.
- * On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
- *
- * +param_types+ is an optional parameter to specify the Oids of the
- * types of the parameters.
- *
- * If the types are not specified, they will be inferred by PostgreSQL.
- * Instead of specifying type oids, it's recommended to simply add
- * explicit casts in the query to ensure that the right type is used.
- *
- * For example: "SELECT $1::int"
+ *    conn.sync_prepare(stmt_name, sql [, param_types ] ) -> PG::Result
  *
- * PostgreSQL bind parameters are represented as $1, $1, $2, etc.,
- * inside the SQL query.
+ * This function has the same behavior as #async_prepare, but is implemented using the synchronous command processing API of libpq.
+ * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * It's not recommended to use explicit sync or async variants but #prepare instead, unless you have a good reason to do so.
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	PGresult *result = NULL;
 	VALUE rb_pgresult;
 	VALUE name, command, in_paramtypes;
@@ -1373,7 +1309,7 @@ pgconn_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	Oid *paramTypes = NULL;
 	const char *name_cstr;
 	const char *command_cstr;
-	int enc_idx = ENCODING_GET(self);
+	int enc_idx = this->enc_idx;
 
 	rb_scan_args(argc, argv, "21", &name, &command, &in_paramtypes);
 	name_cstr = pg_cstr_enc(name, enc_idx);
@@ -1391,7 +1327,7 @@ pgconn_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 				paramTypes[i] = NUM2UINT(param);
 		}
 	}
-	result = gvl_PQprepare(conn, name_cstr, command_cstr, nParams, paramTypes);
+	result = gvl_PQprepare(this->pgconn, name_cstr, command_cstr, nParams, paramTypes);
 
 	xfree(paramTypes);
 
@@ -1402,49 +1338,23 @@ pgconn_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) -> PG::Result
- *    conn.exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) {|pg_result| block }
- *
- * Execute prepared named statement specified by _statement_name_.
- * Returns a PG::Result instance on success.
- * On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
- *
- * +params+ is an array of the optional bind parameters for the
- * SQL query. Each element of the +params+ array may be either:
- *   a hash of the form:
- *     {:value  => String (value of bind parameter)
- *      :format => Integer (0 for text, 1 for binary)
- *     }
- *   or, it may be a String. If it is a string, that is equivalent to the hash:
- *     { :value => <string value>, :format => 0 }
+ *    conn.sync_exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.sync_exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) {|pg_result| block }
  *
- * PostgreSQL bind parameters are represented as $1, $1, $2, etc.,
- * inside the SQL query. The 0th element of the +params+ array is bound
- * to $1, the 1st element is bound to $2, etc. +nil+ is treated as +NULL+.
- *
- * The optional +result_format+ should be 0 for text results, 1
- * for binary.
- *
- * type_map can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
- * This will type cast the params from various Ruby types before transmission
- * based on the encoders defined by the type map. When a type encoder is used
- * the format and oid of a given bind parameter are retrieved from the encoder
- * instead out of the hash form described above.
- *
- * If the optional code block is given, it will be passed <i>result</i> as an argument,
- * and the PG::Result object will  automatically be cleared when the block terminates.
- * In this instance, <code>conn.exec_prepared</code> returns the value of the block.
+ * This function has the same behavior as #async_exec_prepared, but is implemented using the synchronous command processing API of libpq.
+ * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * It's not recommended to use explicit sync or async variants but #exec_prepared instead, unless you have a good reason to do so.
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_exec_prepared(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	PGresult *result = NULL;
 	VALUE rb_pgresult;
 	VALUE name, in_res_fmt;
 	int nParams;
 	int resultFormat;
-	struct query_params_data paramsData = { ENCODING_GET(self) };
+	struct query_params_data paramsData = { this->enc_idx };
 
 	rb_scan_args(argc, argv, "13", &name, &paramsData.params, &in_res_fmt, &paramsData.typemap);
 	paramsData.with_types = 0;
@@ -1457,7 +1367,7 @@ pgconn_exec_prepared(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	resultFormat = NIL_P(in_res_fmt) ? 0 : NUM2INT(in_res_fmt);
 	nParams = alloc_query_params( &paramsData );
 
-	result = gvl_PQexecPrepared(conn, pg_cstr_enc(name, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams,
+	result = gvl_PQexecPrepared(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(name, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams,
 		(const char * const *)paramsData.values, paramsData.lengths, paramsData.formats,
 		resultFormat);
 
@@ -1474,25 +1384,26 @@ pgconn_exec_prepared(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.describe_prepared( statement_name ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.sync_describe_prepared( statement_name ) -> PG::Result
  *
- * Retrieve information about the prepared statement
- * _statement_name_.
+ * This function has the same behavior as #async_describe_prepared, but is implemented using the synchronous command processing API of libpq.
+ * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * It's not recommended to use explicit sync or async variants but #describe_prepared instead, unless you have a good reason to do so.
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_describe_prepared(VALUE self, VALUE stmt_name)
 {
 	PGresult *result;
 	VALUE rb_pgresult;
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	const char *stmt;
 	if(NIL_P(stmt_name)) {
 		stmt = NULL;
 	}
 	else {
-		stmt = pg_cstr_enc(stmt_name, ENCODING_GET(self));
+		stmt = pg_cstr_enc(stmt_name, this->enc_idx);
 	}
-	result = gvl_PQdescribePrepared(conn, stmt);
+	result = gvl_PQdescribePrepared(this->pgconn, stmt);
 	rb_pgresult = pg_new_result(result, self);
 	pg_result_check(rb_pgresult);
 	return rb_pgresult;
@@ -1501,9 +1412,11 @@ pgconn_describe_prepared(VALUE self, VALUE stmt_name)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.describe_portal( portal_name ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.sync_describe_portal( portal_name ) -> PG::Result
  *
- * Retrieve information about the portal _portal_name_.
+ * This function has the same behavior as #async_describe_portal, but is implemented using the synchronous command processing API of libpq.
+ * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * It's not recommended to use explicit sync or async variants but #describe_portal instead, unless you have a good reason to do so.
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_describe_portal(self, stmt_name)
@@ -1511,15 +1424,15 @@ pgconn_describe_portal(self, stmt_name)
 {
 	PGresult *result;
 	VALUE rb_pgresult;
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	const char *stmt;
 	if(NIL_P(stmt_name)) {
 		stmt = NULL;
 	}
 	else {
-		stmt = pg_cstr_enc(stmt_name, ENCODING_GET(self));
+		stmt = pg_cstr_enc(stmt_name, this->enc_idx);
 	}
-	result = gvl_PQdescribePortal(conn, stmt);
+	result = gvl_PQdescribePortal(this->pgconn, stmt);
 	rb_pgresult = pg_new_result(result, self);
 	pg_result_check(rb_pgresult);
 	return rb_pgresult;
@@ -1566,13 +1479,15 @@ pgconn_make_empty_pgresult(VALUE self, VALUE status)
  * Consider using exec_params, which avoids the need for passing values
  * inside of SQL commands.
  *
- * Encoding of escaped string will be equal to client encoding of connection.
+ * Character encoding of escaped string will be equal to client encoding of connection.
  *
  * NOTE: This class version of this method can only be used safely in client
  * programs that use a single PostgreSQL connection at a time (in this case it can
  * find out what it needs to know "behind the scenes"). It might give the wrong
  * results if used in programs that use multiple database connections; use the
  * same method on the connection object in such cases.
+ *
+ * See also convenience functions #escape_literal and #escape_identifier which also add proper quotes around the string.
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_s_escape(VALUE self, VALUE string)
@@ -1584,7 +1499,7 @@ pgconn_s_escape(VALUE self, VALUE string)
 	int singleton = !rb_obj_is_kind_of(self, rb_cPGconn);
 
 	StringValueCStr(string);
-	enc_idx = ENCODING_GET( singleton ? string : self );
+	enc_idx = singleton ? ENCODING_GET(string) : pg_get_connection(self)->enc_idx;
 	if( ENCODING_GET(string) != enc_idx ){
 		string = rb_str_export_to_enc(string, rb_enc_from_index(enc_idx));
 	}
@@ -1601,7 +1516,6 @@ pgconn_s_escape(VALUE self, VALUE string)
 		size = PQescapeString(RSTRING_PTR(result), RSTRING_PTR(string), RSTRING_LEN(string));
 	}
 	rb_str_set_len(result, size);
-	OBJ_INFECT(result, string);
 
 	return result;
 }
@@ -1647,7 +1561,6 @@ pgconn_s_escape_bytea(VALUE self, VALUE str)
 	}
 
 	ret = rb_str_new((char*)to, to_len - 1);
-	OBJ_INFECT(ret, str);
 	PQfreemem(to);
 	return ret;
 }
@@ -1677,7 +1590,6 @@ pgconn_s_unescape_bytea(VALUE self, VALUE str)
 	to = PQunescapeBytea(from, &to_len);
 
 	ret = rb_str_new((char*)to, to_len);
-	OBJ_INFECT(ret, str);
 	PQfreemem(to);
 	return ret;
 }
@@ -1688,33 +1600,32 @@ pgconn_s_unescape_bytea(VALUE self, VALUE str)
  *
  * Escape an arbitrary String +str+ as a literal.
  *
- * Available since PostgreSQL-9.0
+ * See also PG::TextEncoder::QuotedLiteral for a type cast integrated version of this function.
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_escape_literal(VALUE self, VALUE string)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	char *escaped = NULL;
 	VALUE error;
 	VALUE result = Qnil;
-	int enc_idx = ENCODING_GET(self);
+	int enc_idx = this->enc_idx;
 
 	StringValueCStr(string);
 	if( ENCODING_GET(string) != enc_idx ){
 		string = rb_str_export_to_enc(string, rb_enc_from_index(enc_idx));
 	}
 
-	escaped = PQescapeLiteral(conn, RSTRING_PTR(string), RSTRING_LEN(string));
+	escaped = PQescapeLiteral(this->pgconn, RSTRING_PTR(string), RSTRING_LEN(string));
 	if (escaped == NULL)
 	{
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_ePGerror, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_ePGerror, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 		return Qnil;
 	}
 	result = rb_str_new2(escaped);
 	PQfreemem(escaped);
-	OBJ_INFECT(result, string);
 	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK(result, enc_idx);
 
 	return result;
@@ -1729,34 +1640,31 @@ pgconn_escape_literal(VALUE self, VALUE string)
  * This method does the same as #quote_ident with a String argument,
  * but it doesn't support an Array argument and it makes use of libpq
  * to process the string.
- *
- * Available since PostgreSQL-9.0
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_escape_identifier(VALUE self, VALUE string)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	char *escaped = NULL;
 	VALUE error;
 	VALUE result = Qnil;
-	int enc_idx = ENCODING_GET(self);
+	int enc_idx = this->enc_idx;
 
 	StringValueCStr(string);
 	if( ENCODING_GET(string) != enc_idx ){
 		string = rb_str_export_to_enc(string, rb_enc_from_index(enc_idx));
 	}
 
-	escaped = PQescapeIdentifier(conn, RSTRING_PTR(string), RSTRING_LEN(string));
+	escaped = PQescapeIdentifier(this->pgconn, RSTRING_PTR(string), RSTRING_LEN(string));
 	if (escaped == NULL)
 	{
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_ePGerror, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_ePGerror, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 		return Qnil;
 	}
 	result = rb_str_new2(escaped);
 	PQfreemem(escaped);
-	OBJ_INFECT(result, string);
 	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK(result, enc_idx);
 
 	return result;
@@ -1797,8 +1705,6 @@ pgconn_escape_identifier(VALUE self, VALUE string)
  *       # do something with the received row
  *     end
  *   end
- *
- * Available since PostgreSQL-9.2
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_set_single_row_mode(VALUE self)
@@ -1834,13 +1740,13 @@ static VALUE pgconn_send_query_params(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self);
 static VALUE
 pgconn_send_query(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	VALUE error;
 
 	/* If called with no or nil parameters, use PQexec for compatibility */
 	if ( argc == 1 || (argc >= 2 && argc <= 4 && NIL_P(argv[1]) )) {
-		if(gvl_PQsendQuery(conn, pg_cstr_enc(argv[0], ENCODING_GET(self))) == 0) {
-			error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+		if(gvl_PQsendQuery(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(argv[0], this->enc_idx)) == 0) {
+			error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 			rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 			rb_exc_raise(error);
 		}
@@ -1886,7 +1792,7 @@ pgconn_send_query(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
  * The optional +result_format+ should be 0 for text results, 1
  * for binary.
  *
- * type_map can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
+ * +type_map+ can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
  * This will type cast the params from various Ruby types before transmission
  * based on the encoders defined by the type map. When a type encoder is used
  * the format and oid of a given bind parameter are retrieved from the encoder
@@ -1896,13 +1802,13 @@ pgconn_send_query(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 static VALUE
 pgconn_send_query_params(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	int result;
 	VALUE command, in_res_fmt;
 	VALUE error;
 	int nParams;
 	int resultFormat;
-	struct query_params_data paramsData = { ENCODING_GET(self) };
+	struct query_params_data paramsData = { this->enc_idx };
 
 	rb_scan_args(argc, argv, "22", &command, &paramsData.params, &in_res_fmt, &paramsData.typemap);
 	paramsData.with_types = 1;
@@ -1911,13 +1817,13 @@ pgconn_send_query_params(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	resultFormat = NIL_P(in_res_fmt) ? 0 : NUM2INT(in_res_fmt);
 	nParams = alloc_query_params( &paramsData );
 
-	result = gvl_PQsendQueryParams(conn, pg_cstr_enc(command, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams, paramsData.types,
+	result = gvl_PQsendQueryParams(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(command, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams, paramsData.types,
 		(const char * const *)paramsData.values, paramsData.lengths, paramsData.formats, resultFormat);
 
 	free_query_params( &paramsData );
 
 	if(result == 0) {
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 	}
@@ -1947,7 +1853,7 @@ pgconn_send_query_params(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 static VALUE
 pgconn_send_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	int result;
 	VALUE name, command, in_paramtypes;
 	VALUE param;
@@ -1957,7 +1863,7 @@ pgconn_send_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	Oid *paramTypes = NULL;
 	const char *name_cstr;
 	const char *command_cstr;
-	int enc_idx = ENCODING_GET(self);
+	int enc_idx = this->enc_idx;
 
 	rb_scan_args(argc, argv, "21", &name, &command, &in_paramtypes);
 	name_cstr = pg_cstr_enc(name, enc_idx);
@@ -1975,12 +1881,12 @@ pgconn_send_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 				paramTypes[i] = NUM2UINT(param);
 		}
 	}
-	result = gvl_PQsendPrepare(conn, name_cstr, command_cstr, nParams, paramTypes);
+	result = gvl_PQsendPrepare(this->pgconn, name_cstr, command_cstr, nParams, paramTypes);
 
 	xfree(paramTypes);
 
 	if(result == 0) {
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 	}
@@ -2012,7 +1918,7 @@ pgconn_send_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
  * The optional +result_format+ should be 0 for text results, 1
  * for binary.
  *
- * type_map can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
+ * +type_map+ can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
  * This will type cast the params from various Ruby types before transmission
  * based on the encoders defined by the type map. When a type encoder is used
  * the format and oid of a given bind parameter are retrieved from the encoder
@@ -2022,13 +1928,13 @@ pgconn_send_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 static VALUE
 pgconn_send_query_prepared(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	int result;
 	VALUE name, in_res_fmt;
 	VALUE error;
 	int nParams;
 	int resultFormat;
-	struct query_params_data paramsData = { ENCODING_GET(self) };
+	struct query_params_data paramsData = { this->enc_idx };
 
 	rb_scan_args(argc, argv, "13", &name, &paramsData.params, &in_res_fmt, &paramsData.typemap);
 	paramsData.with_types = 0;
@@ -2042,14 +1948,14 @@ pgconn_send_query_prepared(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	resultFormat = NIL_P(in_res_fmt) ? 0 : NUM2INT(in_res_fmt);
 	nParams = alloc_query_params( &paramsData );
 
-	result = gvl_PQsendQueryPrepared(conn, pg_cstr_enc(name, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams,
+	result = gvl_PQsendQueryPrepared(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(name, paramsData.enc_idx), nParams,
 		(const char * const *)paramsData.values, paramsData.lengths, paramsData.formats,
 		resultFormat);
 
 	free_query_params( &paramsData );
 
 	if(result == 0) {
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 	}
@@ -2067,10 +1973,10 @@ static VALUE
 pgconn_send_describe_prepared(VALUE self, VALUE stmt_name)
 {
 	VALUE error;
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	/* returns 0 on failure */
-	if(gvl_PQsendDescribePrepared(conn, pg_cstr_enc(stmt_name, ENCODING_GET(self))) == 0) {
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+	if(gvl_PQsendDescribePrepared(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(stmt_name, this->enc_idx)) == 0) {
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 	}
@@ -2089,10 +1995,10 @@ static VALUE
 pgconn_send_describe_portal(VALUE self, VALUE portal)
 {
 	VALUE error;
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	/* returns 0 on failure */
-	if(gvl_PQsendDescribePortal(conn, pg_cstr_enc(portal, ENCODING_GET(self))) == 0) {
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+	if(gvl_PQsendDescribePortal(this->pgconn, pg_cstr_enc(portal, this->enc_idx)) == 0) {
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_eUnableToSend, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 	}
@@ -2293,7 +2199,7 @@ pgconn_cancel(VALUE self)
 static VALUE
 pgconn_notifies(VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn* conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	PGnotify *notification;
 	VALUE hash;
 	VALUE sym_relname, sym_be_pid, sym_extra;
@@ -2303,17 +2209,17 @@ pgconn_notifies(VALUE self)
 	sym_be_pid = ID2SYM(rb_intern("be_pid"));
 	sym_extra = ID2SYM(rb_intern("extra"));
 
-	notification = gvl_PQnotifies(conn);
+	notification = gvl_PQnotifies(this->pgconn);
 	if (notification == NULL) {
 		return Qnil;
 	}
 
 	hash = rb_hash_new();
-	relname = rb_tainted_str_new2(notification->relname);
+	relname = rb_str_new2(notification->relname);
 	be_pid = INT2NUM(notification->be_pid);
-	extra = rb_tainted_str_new2(notification->extra);
-	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( relname, ENCODING_GET(self) );
-	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( extra, ENCODING_GET(self) );
+	extra = rb_str_new2(notification->extra);
+	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( relname, this->enc_idx );
+	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( extra, this->enc_idx );
 
 	rb_hash_aset(hash, sym_relname, relname);
 	rb_hash_aset(hash, sym_be_pid, be_pid);
@@ -2486,7 +2392,7 @@ notify_readable(PGconn *conn)
 static VALUE
 pgconn_wait_for_notify(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn( self );
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 	PGnotify *pnotification;
 	struct timeval timeout;
 	struct timeval *ptimeout = NULL;
@@ -2502,17 +2408,17 @@ pgconn_wait_for_notify(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 		ptimeout = &timeout;
 	}
 
-	pnotification = (PGnotify*) wait_socket_readable( conn, ptimeout, notify_readable);
+	pnotification = (PGnotify*) wait_socket_readable( this->pgconn, ptimeout, notify_readable);
 
 	/* Return nil if the select timed out */
 	if ( !pnotification ) return Qnil;
 
-	relname = rb_tainted_str_new2( pnotification->relname );
-	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( relname, ENCODING_GET(self) );
+	relname = rb_str_new2( pnotification->relname );
+	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( relname, this->enc_idx );
 	be_pid = INT2NUM( pnotification->be_pid );
 	if ( *pnotification->extra ) {
-		extra = rb_tainted_str_new2( pnotification->extra );
-		PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( extra, ENCODING_GET(self) );
+		extra = rb_str_new2( pnotification->extra );
+		PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( extra, this->enc_idx );
 	}
 	PQfreemem( pnotification );
 
@@ -2572,7 +2478,7 @@ pgconn_put_copy_data(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 	if( p_coder ){
 		t_pg_coder_enc_func enc_func;
-		int enc_idx = ENCODING_GET(self);
+		int enc_idx = this->enc_idx;
 
 		enc_func = pg_coder_enc_func( p_coder );
 		len = enc_func( p_coder, value, NULL, &intermediate, enc_idx);
@@ -2622,16 +2528,16 @@ pgconn_put_copy_end(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 	VALUE error;
 	int ret;
 	const char *error_message = NULL;
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 
 	if (rb_scan_args(argc, argv, "01", &str) == 0)
 		error_message = NULL;
 	else
-		error_message = pg_cstr_enc(str, ENCODING_GET(self));
+		error_message = pg_cstr_enc(str, this->enc_idx);
 
-	ret = gvl_PQputCopyEnd(conn, error_message);
+	ret = gvl_PQputCopyEnd(this->pgconn, error_message);
 	if(ret == -1) {
-		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_ePGerror, PQerrorMessage(conn));
+		error = rb_exc_new2(rb_ePGerror, PQerrorMessage(this->pgconn));
 		rb_iv_set(error, "@connection", self);
 		rb_exc_raise(error);
 	}
@@ -2697,9 +2603,9 @@ pgconn_get_copy_data(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self )
 
 	if( p_coder ){
 		t_pg_coder_dec_func dec_func = pg_coder_dec_func( p_coder, p_coder->format );
-		result =  dec_func( p_coder, buffer, ret, 0, 0, ENCODING_GET(self) );
+		result =  dec_func( p_coder, buffer, ret, 0, 0, this->enc_idx );
 	} else {
-		result = rb_tainted_str_new(buffer, ret);
+		result = rb_str_new(buffer, ret);
 	}
 
 	PQfreemem(buffer);
@@ -2712,9 +2618,16 @@ pgconn_get_copy_data(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self )
  *
  * Sets connection's verbosity to _verbosity_ and returns
  * the previous setting. Available settings are:
+ *
  * * PQERRORS_TERSE
  * * PQERRORS_DEFAULT
  * * PQERRORS_VERBOSE
+ * * PQERRORS_SQLSTATE
+ *
+ * Changing the verbosity does not affect the messages available from already-existing PG::Result objects, only subsequently-created ones.
+ * (But see PG::Result#verbose_error_message if you want to print a previous error with a different verbosity.)
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-control.html#LIBPQ-PQSETERRORVERBOSITY].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_set_error_verbosity(VALUE self, VALUE in_verbosity)
@@ -2724,6 +2637,37 @@ pgconn_set_error_verbosity(VALUE self, VALUE in_verbosity)
 	return INT2FIX(PQsetErrorVerbosity(conn, verbosity));
 }
 
+#ifdef HAVE_PQRESULTVERBOSEERRORMESSAGE
+/*
+ * call-seq:
+ *    conn.set_error_context_visibility( context_visibility ) -> Integer
+ *
+ * Sets connection's context display mode to _context_visibility_ and returns
+ * the previous setting. Available settings are:
+ * * PQSHOW_CONTEXT_NEVER
+ * * PQSHOW_CONTEXT_ERRORS
+ * * PQSHOW_CONTEXT_ALWAYS
+ *
+ * This mode controls whether the CONTEXT field is included in messages (unless the verbosity setting is TERSE, in which case CONTEXT is never shown).
+ * The NEVER mode never includes CONTEXT, while ALWAYS always includes it if available.
+ * In ERRORS mode (the default), CONTEXT fields are included only for error messages, not for notices and warnings.
+ *
+ * Changing this mode does not affect the messages available from already-existing PG::Result objects, only subsequently-created ones.
+ * (But see PG::Result#verbose_error_message if you want to print a previous error with a different display mode.)
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-control.html#LIBPQ-PQSETERRORCONTEXTVISIBILITY].
+ *
+ * Available since PostgreSQL-9.6
+ */
+static VALUE
+pgconn_set_error_context_visibility(VALUE self, VALUE in_context_visibility)
+{
+	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
+	PGContextVisibility context_visibility = NUM2INT(in_context_visibility);
+	return INT2FIX(PQsetErrorContextVisibility(conn, context_visibility));
+}
+#endif
+
 /*
  * call-seq:
  *    conn.trace( stream ) -> nil
@@ -2742,7 +2686,7 @@ pgconn_trace(VALUE self, VALUE stream)
 	VALUE new_file;
 	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
 
-	if(rb_respond_to(stream,rb_intern("fileno")) == Qfalse)
+	if(!rb_respond_to(stream,rb_intern("fileno")))
 		rb_raise(rb_eArgError, "stream does not respond to method: fileno");
 
 	fileno = rb_funcall(stream, rb_intern("fileno"), 0);
@@ -2875,8 +2819,8 @@ notice_processor_proxy(void *arg, const char *message)
 	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection( self );
 
 	if (this->notice_receiver != Qnil) {
-		VALUE message_str = rb_tainted_str_new2(message);
-		PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( message_str, ENCODING_GET(self) );
+		VALUE message_str = rb_str_new2(message);
+		PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( message_str, this->enc_idx );
 		rb_funcall(this->notice_receiver, rb_intern("call"), 1, message_str);
 	}
 	return;
@@ -2934,7 +2878,7 @@ static VALUE
 pgconn_get_client_encoding(VALUE self)
 {
 	char *encoding = (char *)pg_encoding_to_char(PQclientEncoding(pg_get_pgconn(self)));
-	return rb_tainted_str_new2(encoding);
+	return rb_str_new2(encoding);
 }
 
 
@@ -3046,14 +2990,12 @@ pgconn_s_quote_ident(VALUE self, VALUE str_or_array)
 	int enc_idx;
 
 	if( rb_obj_is_kind_of(self, rb_cPGconn) ){
-		enc_idx = ENCODING_GET( self );
+		enc_idx = pg_get_connection(self)->enc_idx;
 	}else{
 		enc_idx = RB_TYPE_P(str_or_array, T_STRING) ? ENCODING_GET( str_or_array ) : rb_ascii8bit_encindex();
 	}
 	pg_text_enc_identifier(NULL, str_or_array, NULL, &ret, enc_idx);
 
-	OBJ_INFECT(ret, str_or_array);
-
 	return ret;
 }
 
@@ -3178,19 +3120,30 @@ pgconn_discard_results(VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.async_exec(sql) -> PG::Result
- *    conn.async_exec(sql) {|pg_result| block }
+ *    conn.exec(sql) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.exec(sql) {|pg_result| block }
+ *
+ * Sends SQL query request specified by _sql_ to PostgreSQL.
+ * On success, it returns a PG::Result instance with all result rows and columns.
+ * On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
  *
- * This function has the same behavior as #sync_exec,
- * but is implemented using the asynchronous command
- * processing API of libpq.
+ * For backward compatibility, if you pass more than one parameter to this method,
+ * it will call #exec_params for you. New code should explicitly use #exec_params if
+ * argument placeholders are used.
  *
- * Both #sync_exec and #async_exec release the GVL while waiting for server response, so that concurrent threads will get executed.
- * However #async_exec has two advantages:
+ * If the optional code block is given, it will be passed <i>result</i> as an argument,
+ * and the PG::Result object will  automatically be cleared when the block terminates.
+ * In this instance, <code>conn.exec</code> returns the value of the block.
  *
- * 1. #async_exec can be aborted by signals (like Ctrl-C), while #exec blocks signal processing until the query is answered.
- * 2. Ruby VM gets notified about IO blocked operations.
- *    It can therefore schedule thing like garbage collection, while queries are running like in this proposal: https://bugs.ruby-lang.org/issues/14723
+ * #exec is an alias for #async_exec which is almost identical to #sync_exec .
+ * #sync_exec is implemented on the simpler synchronous command processing API of libpq, whereas
+ * #async_exec is implemented on the asynchronous API and on ruby's IO mechanisms.
+ * Both methods ensure that other threads can process while waiting for the server to
+ * complete the request, but #sync_exec blocks all signals to be processed until the query is finished.
+ * This is most notably visible by a delayed reaction to Control+C.
+ * It's not recommended to use explicit sync or async variants but #exec instead, unless you have a good reason to do so.
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-exec.html#LIBPQ-PQEXEC].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_async_exec(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
@@ -3211,11 +3164,53 @@ pgconn_async_exec(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.async_exec_params(sql, params [, result_format [, type_map ]] ) -> nil
- *    conn.async_exec_params(sql, params [, result_format [, type_map ]] ) {|pg_result| block }
+ *    conn.exec_params(sql, params [, result_format [, type_map ]] ) -> nil
+ *    conn.exec_params(sql, params [, result_format [, type_map ]] ) {|pg_result| block }
  *
- * This function has the same behavior as #sync_exec_params, but is implemented using the asynchronous command processing API of libpq.
- * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * Sends SQL query request specified by +sql+ to PostgreSQL using placeholders
+ * for parameters.
+ *
+ * Returns a PG::Result instance on success. On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
+ *
+ * +params+ is an array of the bind parameters for the SQL query.
+ * Each element of the +params+ array may be either:
+ *   a hash of the form:
+ *     {:value  => String (value of bind parameter)
+ *      :type   => Integer (oid of type of bind parameter)
+ *      :format => Integer (0 for text, 1 for binary)
+ *     }
+ *   or, it may be a String. If it is a string, that is equivalent to the hash:
+ *     { :value => <string value>, :type => 0, :format => 0 }
+ *
+ * PostgreSQL bind parameters are represented as $1, $1, $2, etc.,
+ * inside the SQL query. The 0th element of the +params+ array is bound
+ * to $1, the 1st element is bound to $2, etc. +nil+ is treated as +NULL+.
+ *
+ * If the types are not specified, they will be inferred by PostgreSQL.
+ * Instead of specifying type oids, it's recommended to simply add
+ * explicit casts in the query to ensure that the right type is used.
+ *
+ * For example: "SELECT $1::int"
+ *
+ * The optional +result_format+ should be 0 for text results, 1
+ * for binary.
+ *
+ * +type_map+ can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
+ * This will type cast the params from various Ruby types before transmission
+ * based on the encoders defined by the type map. When a type encoder is used
+ * the format and oid of a given bind parameter are retrieved from the encoder
+ * instead out of the hash form described above.
+ *
+ * If the optional code block is given, it will be passed <i>result</i> as an argument,
+ * and the PG::Result object will  automatically be cleared when the block terminates.
+ * In this instance, <code>conn.exec</code> returns the value of the block.
+ *
+ * The primary advantage of #exec_params over #exec is that parameter values can be separated from the command string, thus avoiding the need for tedious and error-prone quoting and escaping.
+ * Unlike #exec, #exec_params allows at most one SQL command in the given string.
+ * (There can be semicolons in it, but not more than one nonempty command.)
+ * This is a limitation of the underlying protocol, but has some usefulness as an extra defense against SQL-injection attacks.
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-exec.html#LIBPQ-PQEXECPARAMS].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_async_exec_params(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
@@ -3242,10 +3237,25 @@ pgconn_async_exec_params(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.async_prepare(stmt_name, sql [, param_types ] ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.prepare(stmt_name, sql [, param_types ] ) -> PG::Result
  *
- * This function has the same behavior as #sync_prepare, but is implemented using the asynchronous command processing API of libpq.
- * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * Prepares statement _sql_ with name _name_ to be executed later.
+ * Returns a PG::Result instance on success.
+ * On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
+ *
+ * +param_types+ is an optional parameter to specify the Oids of the
+ * types of the parameters.
+ *
+ * If the types are not specified, they will be inferred by PostgreSQL.
+ * Instead of specifying type oids, it's recommended to simply add
+ * explicit casts in the query to ensure that the right type is used.
+ *
+ * For example: "SELECT $1::int"
+ *
+ * PostgreSQL bind parameters are represented as $1, $1, $2, etc.,
+ * inside the SQL query.
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-exec.html#LIBPQ-PQPREPARE].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_async_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
@@ -3266,11 +3276,40 @@ pgconn_async_prepare(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.async_exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) -> PG::Result
- *    conn.async_exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) {|pg_result| block }
+ *    conn.exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.exec_prepared(statement_name [, params, result_format[, type_map]] ) {|pg_result| block }
  *
- * This function has the same behavior as #sync_exec_prepared, but is implemented using the asynchronous command processing API of libpq.
- * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * Execute prepared named statement specified by _statement_name_.
+ * Returns a PG::Result instance on success.
+ * On failure, it raises a PG::Error.
+ *
+ * +params+ is an array of the optional bind parameters for the
+ * SQL query. Each element of the +params+ array may be either:
+ *   a hash of the form:
+ *     {:value  => String (value of bind parameter)
+ *      :format => Integer (0 for text, 1 for binary)
+ *     }
+ *   or, it may be a String. If it is a string, that is equivalent to the hash:
+ *     { :value => <string value>, :format => 0 }
+ *
+ * PostgreSQL bind parameters are represented as $1, $1, $2, etc.,
+ * inside the SQL query. The 0th element of the +params+ array is bound
+ * to $1, the 1st element is bound to $2, etc. +nil+ is treated as +NULL+.
+ *
+ * The optional +result_format+ should be 0 for text results, 1
+ * for binary.
+ *
+ * +type_map+ can be a PG::TypeMap derivation (such as PG::BasicTypeMapForQueries).
+ * This will type cast the params from various Ruby types before transmission
+ * based on the encoders defined by the type map. When a type encoder is used
+ * the format and oid of a given bind parameter are retrieved from the encoder
+ * instead out of the hash form described above.
+ *
+ * If the optional code block is given, it will be passed <i>result</i> as an argument,
+ * and the PG::Result object will  automatically be cleared when the block terminates.
+ * In this instance, <code>conn.exec_prepared</code> returns the value of the block.
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-exec.html#LIBPQ-PQEXECPREPARED].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_async_exec_prepared(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
@@ -3291,10 +3330,11 @@ pgconn_async_exec_prepared(int argc, VALUE *argv, VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.async_describe_portal( portal_name ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.describe_portal( portal_name ) -> PG::Result
  *
- * This function has the same behavior as #sync_describe_portal, but is implemented using the asynchronous command processing API of libpq.
- * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * Retrieve information about the portal _portal_name_.
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-exec.html#LIBPQ-PQDESCRIBEPORTAL].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_async_describe_portal(VALUE self, VALUE portal)
@@ -3315,10 +3355,11 @@ pgconn_async_describe_portal(VALUE self, VALUE portal)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    conn.async_describe_prepared( statement_name ) -> PG::Result
+ *    conn.describe_prepared( statement_name ) -> PG::Result
  *
- * This function has the same behavior as #sync_describe_prepared, but is implemented using the asynchronous command processing API of libpq.
- * See #async_exec for the differences between the two API variants.
+ * Retrieve information about the prepared statement _statement_name_.
+ *
+ * See also corresponding {libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-exec.html#LIBPQ-PQDESCRIBEPREPARED].
  */
 static VALUE
 pgconn_async_describe_prepared(VALUE self, VALUE stmt_name)
@@ -3342,7 +3383,7 @@ pgconn_async_describe_prepared(VALUE self, VALUE stmt_name)
  * call-seq:
  *    conn.ssl_in_use? -> Boolean
  *
- * Returns +true+ if the connection uses SSL, +false+ if not.
+ * Returns +true+ if the connection uses SSL/TLS, +false+ if not.
  *
  * Available since PostgreSQL-9.5
  */
@@ -3376,7 +3417,7 @@ pgconn_ssl_in_use(VALUE self)
  *   If SSL compression is in use, returns the name of the compression algorithm, or "on" if compression is used but the algorithm is not known. If compression is not in use, returns "off".
  *
  *
- * See also #ssl_attribute_names and http://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/interactive/libpq-status.html#LIBPQ-PQSSLATTRIBUTE
+ * See also #ssl_attribute_names and the {corresponding libpq function}[https://www.postgresql.org/docs/current/libpq-status.html#LIBPQ-PQSSLATTRIBUTE].
  *
  * Available since PostgreSQL-9.5
  */
@@ -3604,7 +3645,7 @@ pgconn_loread(VALUE self, VALUE in_lo_desc, VALUE in_len)
 		return Qnil;
 	}
 
-	str = rb_tainted_str_new(buffer, ret);
+	str = rb_str_new(buffer, ret);
 	xfree(buffer);
 
 	return str;
@@ -3708,12 +3749,15 @@ pgconn_lounlink(VALUE self, VALUE in_oid)
 }
 
 
-void
+static void
 pgconn_set_internal_encoding_index( VALUE self )
 {
-	PGconn *conn = pg_get_pgconn(self);
-	rb_encoding *enc = pg_conn_enc_get( conn );
-	PG_ENCODING_SET_NOCHECK( self, rb_enc_to_index(enc));
+	int enc_idx;
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection_safe( self );
+	rb_encoding *enc = pg_conn_enc_get( this->pgconn );
+	enc_idx = rb_enc_to_index(enc);
+	if( enc_idx >= (1<<(PG_ENC_IDX_BITS-1)) ) rb_raise(rb_eArgError, "unsupported encoding index %d", enc_idx);
+	this->enc_idx = enc_idx;
 }
 
 /*
@@ -3756,7 +3800,6 @@ static VALUE pgconn_external_encoding(VALUE self);
 static VALUE
 pgconn_internal_encoding_set(VALUE self, VALUE enc)
 {
-	VALUE enc_inspect;
 	if (NIL_P(enc)) {
 		pgconn_set_client_encoding( self, rb_usascii_str_new_cstr("SQL_ASCII") );
 		return enc;
@@ -3777,11 +3820,6 @@ pgconn_internal_encoding_set(VALUE self, VALUE enc)
 		pgconn_set_internal_encoding_index( self );
 		return enc;
 	}
-
-	enc_inspect = rb_inspect(enc);
-	rb_raise( rb_ePGerror, "unknown encoding: %s", StringValueCStr(enc_inspect) );
-
-	return Qnil;
 }
 
 
@@ -3800,14 +3838,9 @@ pgconn_external_encoding(VALUE self)
 	rb_encoding *enc = NULL;
 	const char *pg_encname = NULL;
 
-	/* Use cached value if found */
-	if ( RTEST(this->external_encoding) ) return this->external_encoding;
-
 	pg_encname = PQparameterStatus( this->pgconn, "server_encoding" );
 	enc = pg_get_pg_encname_as_rb_encoding( pg_encname );
-	this->external_encoding = rb_enc_from_encoding( enc );
-
-	return this->external_encoding;
+	return rb_enc_from_encoding( enc );
 }
 
 
@@ -3825,9 +3858,10 @@ pgconn_set_client_encoding_async1( VALUE args )
 
 
 static VALUE
-pgconn_set_client_encoding_async2( VALUE arg )
+pgconn_set_client_encoding_async2( VALUE arg, VALUE ex )
 {
 	UNUSED(arg);
+	UNUSED(ex);
 	return 1;
 }
 
@@ -4049,16 +4083,54 @@ pgconn_decoder_for_get_copy_data_get(VALUE self)
 
 /*
  * call-seq:
- *    res.guess_result_memsize = enabled
+ *    conn.field_name_type = Symbol
+ *
+ * Set default type of field names of results retrieved by this connection.
+ * It can be set to one of:
+ * * +:string+ to use String based field names
+ * * +:symbol+ to use Symbol based field names
+ *
+ * The default is +:string+ .
+ *
+ * Settings the type of field names affects only future results.
+ *
+ * See further description at PG::Result#field_name_type=
+ *
+ */
+static VALUE
+pgconn_field_name_type_set(VALUE self, VALUE sym)
+{
+	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection( self );
+
+	this->flags &= ~PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_MASK;
+	if( sym == sym_symbol ) this->flags |= PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_SYMBOL;
+	else if ( sym == sym_static_symbol ) this->flags |= PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_STATIC_SYMBOL;
+	else if ( sym == sym_string );
+	else rb_raise(rb_eArgError, "invalid argument %+"PRIsVALUE, sym);
+
+	return sym;
+}
+
+/*
+ * call-seq:
+ *    conn.field_name_type -> Symbol
  *
- * This method is for testing only and will probably be removed in the future.
+ * Get type of field names.
+ *
+ * See description at #field_name_type=
  */
 static VALUE
-pgconn_guess_result_memsize_set(VALUE self, VALUE enable)
+pgconn_field_name_type_get(VALUE self)
 {
 	t_pg_connection *this = pg_get_connection( self );
-	this->guess_result_memsize = RTEST(enable);
-	return enable;
+
+	if( this->flags & PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_SYMBOL ){
+		return sym_symbol;
+	} else if( this->flags & PG_RESULT_FIELD_NAMES_STATIC_SYMBOL ){
+		return sym_static_symbol;
+	} else {
+		return sym_string;
+	}
 }
 
 
@@ -4072,8 +4144,13 @@ init_pg_connection()
 	sym_type = ID2SYM(rb_intern("type"));
 	sym_format = ID2SYM(rb_intern("format"));
 	sym_value = ID2SYM(rb_intern("value"));
+	sym_string = ID2SYM(rb_intern("string"));
+	sym_symbol = ID2SYM(rb_intern("symbol"));
+	sym_static_symbol = ID2SYM(rb_intern("static_symbol"));
 
 	rb_cPGconn = rb_define_class_under( rb_mPG, "Connection", rb_cObject );
+	/* Help rdoc to known the Constants module */
+	/* rb_mPGconstants = rb_define_module_under( rb_mPG, "Constants" ); */
 	rb_include_module(rb_cPGconn, rb_mPGconstants);
 
 	/******     PG::Connection CLASS METHODS     ******/
@@ -4134,6 +4211,22 @@ init_pg_connection()
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "sync_exec_prepared", pgconn_exec_prepared, -1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "sync_describe_prepared", pgconn_describe_prepared, 1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "sync_describe_portal", pgconn_describe_portal, 1);
+
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "exec", pgconn_async_exec, -1);
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "exec_params", pgconn_async_exec_params, -1);
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "prepare", pgconn_async_prepare, -1);
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "exec_prepared", pgconn_async_exec_prepared, -1);
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "describe_prepared", pgconn_async_describe_prepared, 1);
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "describe_portal", pgconn_async_describe_portal, 1);
+
+	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_exec", "exec");
+	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_query", "async_exec");
+	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_exec_params", "exec_params");
+	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_prepare", "prepare");
+	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_exec_prepared", "exec_prepared");
+	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_describe_prepared", "describe_prepared");
+	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_describe_portal", "describe_portal");
+
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "make_empty_pgresult", pgconn_make_empty_pgresult, 1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "escape_string", pgconn_s_escape, 1);
 	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "escape", "escape_string");
@@ -4146,17 +4239,10 @@ init_pg_connection()
 	/******     PG::Connection INSTANCE METHODS: Asynchronous Command Processing     ******/
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "send_query", pgconn_send_query, -1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "send_query_params", pgconn_send_query_params, -1);
-	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "async_exec", pgconn_async_exec, -1);
-	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "async_exec_params", pgconn_async_exec_params, -1);
-	rb_define_alias(rb_cPGconn, "async_query", "async_exec");
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "send_prepare", pgconn_send_prepare, -1);
-	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "async_prepare", pgconn_async_prepare, -1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "send_query_prepared", pgconn_send_query_prepared, -1);
-	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "async_exec_prepared", pgconn_async_exec_prepared, -1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "send_describe_prepared", pgconn_send_describe_prepared, 1);
-	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "async_describe_prepared", pgconn_async_describe_prepared, 1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "send_describe_portal", pgconn_send_describe_portal, 1);
-	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "async_describe_portal", pgconn_async_describe_portal, 1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "get_result", pgconn_get_result, 0);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "consume_input", pgconn_consume_input, 0);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "is_busy", pgconn_is_busy, 0);
@@ -4179,9 +4265,11 @@ init_pg_connection()
 
 	/******     PG::Connection INSTANCE METHODS: Control Functions     ******/
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "set_error_verbosity", pgconn_set_error_verbosity, 1);
+#ifdef HAVE_PQRESULTVERBOSEERRORMESSAGE
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "set_error_context_visibility", pgconn_set_error_context_visibility, 1 );
+#endif
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "trace", pgconn_trace, 1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "untrace", pgconn_untrace, 0);
-	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "guess_result_memsize=", pgconn_guess_result_memsize_set, 1);
 
 	/******     PG::Connection INSTANCE METHODS: Notice Processing     ******/
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "set_notice_receiver", pgconn_set_notice_receiver, 0);
@@ -4248,5 +4336,7 @@ init_pg_connection()
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "encoder_for_put_copy_data", pgconn_encoder_for_put_copy_data_get, 0);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "decoder_for_get_copy_data=", pgconn_decoder_for_get_copy_data_set, 1);
 	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "decoder_for_get_copy_data", pgconn_decoder_for_get_copy_data_get, 0);
-}
 
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "field_name_type=", pgconn_field_name_type_set, 1 );
+	rb_define_method(rb_cPGconn, "field_name_type", pgconn_field_name_type_get, 0 );
+}