PostgreSQL – TO_TIMESTAMP Function

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In PostgreSQL, the TO_TIMESTAMP function is used to convert a string representation of a timestamp into a timestamp data type. It allows you to parse timestamp strings in a specific format and convert them into valid timestamp values that can be stored or used for date and time-related operations.

The basic syntax of the TO_TIMESTAMP function is as follows: 

TO_TIMESTAMP(timestamp_string, format);

where timestamp_string is the string representing the timestamp that you want to convert,

and format is the format pattern that matches the structure of the timestamp_string.

Below is an example of using the TO_TIMESTAMP function to convert a timestamp string into a timestamp: 

SELECT TO_TIMESTAMP('2023-08-06 15:30:45', 'YYYY-MM-DD HH24:MI:SS') AS converted_timestamp;

This query will return 2023-08-06 15:30:45 as a timestamp data type, assuming the timestamp string ‘2023-08-06 15:30:45’ is in the format ‘YYYY-MM-DD HH24:MI:SS’.

The format pattern consists of special placeholders that represent the parts of the timestamp

where YYYY is the Four-digit year.

MM: Two-digit month (01 to 12).

DD: Two-digit day of the month (01 to 31).

HH24: Two-digit hour in 24-hour format (00 to 23).

MI: Two-digit minutes (00 to 59).

SS: Two-digit seconds (00 to 59).

For instance, if the timestamp string is in the format ‘DD-MM-YYYY HH:MI:SS’, you would use the following TO_TIMESTAMP statement: 

SELECT TO_TIMESTAMP('06-08-2023 15:30:45', 'DD-MM-YYYY HH:MI:SS') AS converted_timestamp;

This would correctly convert the timestamp string ’06-08-2023 15:30:45′ to 2023-08-06 15:30:45.

It’s important to ensure that the timestamp_string matches the format specified in the TO_TIMESTAMP function. If the timestamp string and format do not align correctly, PostgreSQL will raise an error.

The TO_TIMESTAMP function is useful when dealing with timestamp values stored as strings or when importing data from external sources with timestamp information in non-standard formats. It allows you to convert these strings into valid timestamps and store them in timestamp columns within your PostgreSQL database.

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