1.0 KiB
ADR-023: Database Schema Migration Strategy
Date: 2025-12-12
Status: Proposed
Context
The README.md indicates that the database schema is managed by manually running a large schema.sql.txt file. This approach is highly error-prone, makes tracking changes difficult, and is not feasible for updating a live production database without downtime or data loss.
Decision
We will adopt a dedicated database migration tool, such as node-pg-migrate. All future schema changes (e.g., ALTER TABLE, CREATE INDEX) will be written as individual, version-controlled, timestamped migration scripts that can be applied and rolled back automatically.
Consequences
Positive: Provides a safe, repeatable, and reversible way to evolve the database schema. Improves team collaboration on database changes. Reduces the risk of data loss or downtime during deployments. Negative: Requires an initial setup and learning curve for the chosen migration tool. All future schema changes must adhere to the migration workflow.