Teknokrat,
> I need to to change the type of a table column. The problem is that
> this
> table has a ref integrity constarint set up with another table. Does
>
> anyone know how I can do this easily without breaking any
> constraints.
Easily? No.
In sum: dump your database to file. Backup. Edit the file. Re-create and re-load the database.
-Josh Berkus