Question 1

How do I rollback a specific migration in dbmate?

Accepted Answer

Dbmate only supports rolling back the most recent migration with the `rollback` command. To target a specific migration, you must manually write and apply down migrations in sequence or use workarounds like modifying migration files, as it lacks built-in version selection.

Question 2

Dbmate vs Goose: which is better for Go projects?

Accepted Answer

Dbmate is language-agnostic and uses plain SQL, ideal for multi-language teams or simple migrations. Goose is Go-specific and may offer better integration with Go tooling and more features like programmatic migrations. Choose dbmate for cross-language consistency, or Goose for pure Go projects needing advanced capabilities.

Question 3

How to set up dbmate with Docker Compose for local development?

Accepted Answer

Use the Docker image `ghcr.io/amacneil/dbmate` with network settings (e.g., `--network=host`) and bind mounts for migration files. Set DATABASE_URL to point to your database service, and use the `wait` command to ensure the database is ready before running migrations, as detailed in the 'Docker' installation section.

Question 4

Can dbmate handle data migrations or only schema changes?

Accepted Answer

Dbmate can run any SQL, so data migrations are possible by including INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE statements in migration files. However, it doesn't provide built-in tools for data validation or transformation, requiring manual SQL management for complex data operations.

Question 5

What should I do if dbmate schema dump fails because pg_dump is missing?

Accepted Answer

Install the required client tools, such as `postgresql-client` for PostgreSQL, `mysql-client` for MySQL, or `sqlite3` for SQLite, on your system. The README notes that on Ubuntu or Debian, you can use apt-get to install these packages, and failures are indicated in the dump output.

Question 6

Is dbmate suitable for large teams with frequent database changes?

Accepted Answer

Yes, but with caution. Timestamp versioning helps prevent conflicts, but migrations can be applied out of order if commits are unsynchronized, as mentioned in the 'Running Migrations' section. It's best for teams with coordinated processes or using the `--strict` flag to enforce order.

dbmate

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