Database MigrationsSAFE

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---
name: database-migrations
description: >
  Database migration best practices for schema changes, data migrations, rollbacks,
  and zero-downtime deployments across PostgreSQL, MySQL, and common ORMs (Prisma,
  Drizzle, Django, TypeORM, golang-migrate). Use when planning or implementing
  database schema changes.
metadata:
  origin: ECC
---

# Database Migration Patterns

Safe, reversible database schema changes for production systems.

## When to Activate

- Creating or altering database tables
- Adding/removing columns or indexes
- Running data migrations (backfill, transform)
- Planning zero-downtime schema changes
- Setting up migration tooling for a new project

## Core Principles

1. **Every change is a migration** — never alter production databases manually
2. **Migrations are forward-only in production** — rollbacks use new forward migrations
3. **Schema and data migrations are separate** — never mix DDL and DML in one migration
4. **Test migrations against production-sized data** — a migration that works on 100 rows may lock on 10M
5. **Migrations are immutable once deployed** — never edit a migration that has run in production

## Migration Safety Checklist

Before applying any migration:

- [ ] Migration has both UP and DOWN (or is explicitly marked irreversible)
- [ ] No full table locks on large tables (use concurrent operations)
- [ ] New columns have defaults or are nullable (never add NOT NULL without default)
- [ ] Indexes created concurrently (not inline with CREATE TABLE for existing tables)
- [ ] Data backfill is a separate migration from schema change
- [ ] Tested against a copy of production data
- [ ] Rollback plan documented

## PostgreSQL Patterns

### Adding a Column Safely

```sql
-- GOOD: Nullable column, no lock
ALTER TABLE users ADD COLUMN avatar_url TEXT;

-- GOOD: Column with default (Postgres 11+ is instant, no rewrite)
ALTER TABLE users ADD COLUMN is_active BOOLEAN NOT NULL DEFAULT true;

-- BAD: NOT NULL without default on existing table (requires full rewrite)
ALTER TABLE users ADD COLUMN role TEXT NOT NULL;
-- This locks the table and rewrites every row
```

### Adding an Index Without Downtime

```sql
-- BAD: Blocks writes on large tables
CREATE INDEX idx_users_email ON users (email);

-- GOOD: Non-blocking, allows concurrent writes
CREATE INDEX CONCURRENTLY idx_users_email ON users (email);

-- Note: CONCURRENTLY cannot run inside a transaction block
-- Most migration tools need special handling for this
```

### Renaming a Column (Zero-Downtime)

Never rename directly in production. Use the expand-contract pattern:

```sql
-- Step 1: Add new column (migration 001)
ALTER TABLE users ADD COLUMN display_name TEXT;

-- Step 2: Backfill data (migration 002, data migration)
UPDATE users SET display_name = username WHERE display_name IS NULL;

-- Step 3: Update application code to read/write both columns
-- Deploy application changes

-- Step 4: Stop writing to old column, drop it (migration 003)
ALTER TABLE users DROP COLUMN username;
```

### Removing a Column Safely

```sql
-- Step 1: Remove all application references to the column
-- Step 2: Deploy application without the column reference
-- Step 3: Drop column in next migration
ALTER TABLE orders DROP COLUMN legacy_status;

-- For Django: use SeparateDatabaseAndState to remove from model
-- without generating DROP COLUMN (then drop in next migration)
```

### Large Data Migrations

```sql
-- BAD: Updates all rows in one transaction (locks table)
UPDATE users SET normalized_email = LOWER(email);

-- GOOD: Batch update with progress
DO $$
DECLARE
  batch_size INT := 10000;
  rows_updated INT;
BEGIN
  LOOP
    UPDATE users
    SET normalized_email = LOWER(email)
    WHERE id IN (
      SELECT id FROM users
      WHERE normalized_email IS NULL
      LIMIT batch_size
      FOR UPDATE SKIP LOCKED
    );
    GET DIAGNOSTICS rows_updated = ROW_COUNT;
    RAISE NOTICE 'Updated % rows', rows_updated;
    EXIT WHEN rows_updated = 0;
    COMMIT;
  END LOOP;
END $$;
```

## Prisma (TypeScript/Node.js)

### Workflow

```bash
# Create migration from schema changes
npx prisma migrate dev --name add_user_avatar

# Apply pending migrations in production
npx prisma migrate deploy

# Reset database (dev only)
npx prisma migrate reset

# Generate client after schema changes
npx prisma generate
```

### Schema Example

```prisma
model User {
  id        String   @id @default(cuid())
  email     String   @unique
  name      String?
  avatarUrl String?  @map("avatar_url")
  createdAt DateTime @default(now()) @map("created_at")
  updatedAt DateTime @updatedAt @map("updated_at")
  orders    Order[]

  @@map("users")
  @@index([email])
}
```

### Custom SQL Migration

For operations Prisma cannot express (concurrent indexes, data backfills):

```bash
# Create empty migration, then edit the SQL manually
npx prisma migrate dev --create-only --name add_email_index
```

```sql
-- migrations/20240115_add_email_index/migration.sql
-- Prisma cannot generate CONCURRENTLY, so we write it manually
CREATE INDEX CONCURRENTLY IF NOT EXISTS idx_users_email ON users (email);
```

## Drizzle (TypeScript/Node.js)

### Workflow

```bash
# Generate migration from schema changes
npx drizzle-kit generate

# Apply migrations
npx drizzle-kit migrate

# Push schema directly (dev only, no migration file)
npx drizzle-kit push
```

### Schema Example

```typescript
import { pgTable, text, timestamp, uuid, boolean } from "drizzle-orm/pg-core";

export const users = pgTable("users", {
  id: uuid("id").primaryKey().defaultRandom(),
  email: text("email").notNull().unique(),
  name: text("name"),
  isActive: boolean("is_active").notNull().default(true),
  createdAt: timestamp("created_at").notNull().defaultNow(),
  updatedAt: timestamp("updated_at").notNull().defaultNow(),
});
```

## Django (Python)

### Workflow

```bash
# Generate migration from model changes
python manage.py makemigrations

# Apply migrations
python manage.py migrate

# Show migratio

SAFEgrade B · trust 89/100 Nothing in the source contradicts what it says it does. Grade A is reserved for packages that have also passed the behavioural sandbox.

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