debugging-dbt-errors SKILL.md skillA
debugging-dbt-errors from altimateai/data-engineering-skills is an agent skill: a SKILL.md folder an AI agent loads when a task calls for it.
mdr add altimateai/data-engineering-skills/debugging-dbt-errors@git:20260121.476f750Pins git:20260121.476f750 in mdr.lock. Pin the fingerprint instead.
- Audit grade
- A, 17 of 17 checks passed
- Kind
- SKILL.md skill
- Repository
- altimateai/data-engineering-skills
- Path
skills/dbt/debugging-dbt-errors/SKILL.md- Versions recorded
- 1
- Latest version
- git:20260121.476f750, committed Jan 21, 2026
- Size
- 4,205 bytes
- Repository stars
- 129
- License
- MIT
Debugs and fixes dbt errors systematically. Use when working with dbt errors for: (1) Task mentions "fix", "error", "broken", "failing", "debug", "wrong", or "not working" (2) Compilation Error, Database Error, or test failures occur (3) Model produces incorrect output or unexpected results (4) Need to troubleshoot why a dbt command failed Reads full error, checks upstream first, runs dbt build (not just compile) to verify fix.
Collected from public GitHub. Every version is saved exactly as it was and never changes. Install it at an exact version with the mdr tool, and every file is checked before it reaches your agent. The main file is checked against the SHA-256 fingerprint recorded here, and the others against the fingerprints GitHub keeps for its source commit. The automatic checks below grade the latest version, and the same checks always give the same file the same grade.
What the file says
# dbt Troubleshooting
**Read the full error. Check upstream first. ALWAYS run `dbt build` after fixing.**
## Critical Rules
1. **ALWAYS run `dbt build` after fixing** - compile is NOT enough to verify the fix
2. **If fix fails 3+ times**, stop and reassess your entire approach
3. **Verify data after build** - build passing doesn't mean output is correct
## Workflow
### 1. Get the Full Error
```bash
dbt compile --select <model_name>
# or
dbt build --select <model_name>
```
Read the COMPLETE error message. Note the file, line number, and specific error.
### 2. Inspect Actual Data (For Data Issues)
**Before fixing "wrong output" or "incorrect results", query the actual data:**
```bash
# Preview current output
dbt show --select <model_name> --limit 20
# Check specific values with inline query
dbt show --inline "select * from {{ ref('model_name') }} where <condition>" --limit 10
# Compare with expected - look for patterns
dbt show --inline "select column, count(*) from {{ ref('model_name') }} group by 1 order by 2 desc" --limit 10
```
**Understand what's wrong before attempting to fix it.**
### 3. Read Compiled SQL
```bash
…Read the whole file at its exact version.
How to install
mdr add altimateai/data-engineering-skills/debugging-dbt-errors@sha256:3a32473f71da8784The line at the top of this page pins the label git:20260121.476f750, which is what most people want. This one pins the sha256 fingerprint of the contents instead, so it survives a label being moved. Either way the exact version is written to mdr.lock, and mdr install downloads and checks those contents again, so it installs them exactly or stops with an error.
[](https://markdownregistry.com/a/art_lgo7f56d2vfxfyv4)
2 badge image fetches in 30 days. What the badge shows.
Versions
The registry has recorded 1 version of this file, committed on Jan 21, 2026.
Audit of the latest version
- pass: Frontmatter block present
- pass: Frontmatter declares a name
- pass: Frontmatter declares a description
- pass: Size between 200 bytes and 200 KB (4205 bytes)
- pass: No zero-width or bidi control characters
- pass: No instruction hidden inside an HTML comment
- pass: No link to an exfiltration or paste host
- pass: No credential-shaped string
- pass: No instruction to send local credentials anywhere
- pass: No text hidden with inline styles
- pass: No prompt-injection phrasing
- pass: No curl or wget piped into a shell
- pass: No recursive delete of root, home or parent
- pass: No instruction to read or print local credentials
- pass: No base64 blob over 200 characters
- pass: No link to a raw IP address
- pass: No script tag
Source
altimateai/data-engineering-skills · 129 stars · license MIT · pushed 2026-10-23 · branch main
API
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/artifacts/art_lgo7f56d2vfxfyv4 GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/resolve?ref=altimateai/data-engineering-skills/debugging-dbt-errors GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/blob/3a32473f71da87849f8b9ad71be43bdb55bd45bcc640a4a7e74095a2ee1ad5d2
Your AI assistant does the legwork. You hear about the deals worth your word. Hand yours the standing instructions at modelranch.com and it joins the network that reads files like this one.
Guides: the SKILL.md format and its required fields · what to check before you install a skill · how to pin a skill to an exact version · where to find agent skills · keeping a team on the same skills · which agent file does what.