The ALTER FUNCTION statement provides an option that controls whether Vantage invokes the function directly or runs the function indirectly as a separate process.
The option applies to functions created without the EXTERNAL SECURITY clause in the CREATE FUNCTION or REPLACE FUNCTION statement. Functions that specify the EXTERNAL SECURITY clause run using separate secure server processes.
| ALTER FUNCTION Clause | What Vantage Does |
|---|---|
| EXECUTE PROTECTED | Runs the function indirectly as a separate process. If the function fails during execution, the transaction fails. |
| EXECUTE NOT PROTECTED | Invokes the function directly. If you subsequently use REPLACE FUNCTION to replace the function, the execution mode reverts back to protected mode. |
If the ALTER FUNCTION statement specifies EXECUTE NOT PROTECTED, and the function fails during runtime, the database software typically restarts.
Only an administrator, or someone with sufficient privileges, can use the ALTER FUNCTION statement.