PostgreSQL: "ERROR: relation "pg_catalog.pg_user" does not exist (was Re: Moving a PostgreSQL database from one server to another)

[Rodolfo J. Paiz]

Hi, everyone:

It appears that I have a deeper, darker problem at work here. After lots
of help from lots of users (thanks, everyone!), my pg_dump command just
does not work. No way, no how. My PostgreSQL server is also not logging
to /var/log/pgsql so I'm not getting any love there, either.

If I attempt the commands "\dp" or "\du" in psql, I get this:

ERROR:  relation "pg_catalog.pg_user" does not exist

Surely other commands will fail as well. I have also installed
phpPgAdmin (v.3.5.1) to attempt graphical management of the database,
and although I can log in I do not get the next screen... there has
clearly been an error, and it barfs with the same command: the relation
pg_catalog.pg_user does not exist.

Can anyone suggest where or how I might recreate this relation? I'm
about to go join some of the PostgreSQL mailing lists, but it seems odd
that only I would have this problem.

Cheers,

-- 
Rodolfo J. Paiz <rpaiz at simpaticus.com>