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postgres-database-migration skillA

postgres-database-migration is agent-read markdown (skill) from timescale/pg-aiguide: Use this skill for planning, testing, and safely executing PostgreSQL schema migrations — especially when working with production data or shared databases. **Trigger when user asks to:** - Test a schema migration before applying it to production - Add, remove, or rename columns safely on a live table - Change a column's data type without downtime - Add or drop indexes, constraints, or foreign keys on large tables - Understand which ALTER TABLE operations lock the table - Roll back a failed migr.

Indexed from public GitHub and served as immutable, content-addressed versions. Install it pinned to an exact SHA-256 with the mdr CLI, and every file is verified before it reaches your agent: the main file against the SHA-256 recorded here, the others against the git hashes of its source commit. The deterministic audit below grades the latest version, and the same checks always give the same file the same grade.

What the file says

# PostgreSQL Database Migrations

A schema migration that works on an empty dev database can fail, lock, or corrupt data on a production table with millions of rows. This guide covers how to assess risk, test against real data, and execute migrations safely.

## DDL Lock Reference

Every schema change acquires a lock. The critical question is: **does it block reads and writes, and for how long?**

### Fast, Non-Blocking Operations

These complete in milliseconds regardless of table size. They only hold a brief `AccessExclusiveLock` for the catalog update, not for data rewriting.

| Operation | Lock Level | Notes |
|-----------|-----------|-------|
| `ADD COLUMN` (nullable, no default) | `AccessExclusiveLock` (brief) | **Fast.** No table rewrite. Metadata-only change. |
| `ADD COLUMN ... DEFAULT x` (PG 11+) | `AccessExclusiveLock` (brief) | **Fast.** Non-volatile defaults stored in catalog, not backfilled. |
| `DROP COLUMN` | `AccessExclusiveLock` (brief) | **Fast.** Column marked invisible; space reclaimed by VACUUM over time. |
| `SET DEFAULT` / `DROP DEFAULT` | `AccessExclusiveLock` (brief) | Metadata change only. Does not touch existing rows. |
…

Read the whole file at its exact version.

How to install

Latest version
mdr add timescale/pg-aiguide/postgres-database-migration@git:20260904.64c743b
Exact content
mdr add timescale/pg-aiguide/postgres-database-migration@sha256:b37d01fa733edef0

Pin to a label to follow the author's releases, or to a sha256 for exact bytes. Either way the resolved hash is written to mdr.lock, and mdr install fetches those bytes again and checks them, so it installs them exactly or fails.

Badge

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Versions

versioncommittedcommitsizeaudit
git:20260904.64c743b latest2026-09-04 64c743b 24,796 BA view · diff
git:20260624.c059f392026-06-24 c059f39 24,850 BA view

Audit of the latest version

A  17 of 17 checks passed. Deterministic, no model, same answer every run.
  • pass: Frontmatter block present
  • pass: Frontmatter declares a name
  • pass: Frontmatter declares a description
  • pass: Size between 200 bytes and 200 KB (24796 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

GitHub

timescale/pg-aiguide · 1,849 stars · license Apache-2.0 · pushed 2026-09-25 · branch main

API

GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/artifacts/art_txxthouvsvtqrlwv
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/resolve?ref=timescale/pg-aiguide/postgres-database-migration
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/blob/b37d01fa733edef05c76e299ee0e73fd19c2bd23fa20dc8156cf902fe17f5fd9

Your agent 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.

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