postgres-database-migration
Zero-downtime Postgres migrations, with the locking behaviour spelled out — which ALTER TABLE takes an AccessExclusiveLock and what to do instead.
Install
$ npx skills add timescale/pg-aiguide --skill postgres-database-migrationBundles references for backfill strategies, validation queries, and a complete worked example.
Best for
A schema change on a live table where the failure mode is a lock that takes production down, not a syntax error.
Not ideal for
Greenfield schemas with no data and no traffic — the whole value here is in the constraints that only exist once a table is live.
About this skill
Use when testing a schema migration before applying it to production; adding, removing or renaming columns safely on a live table; changing a column's data type without downtime; understanding which ALTER TABLE operations lock the table; rolling back a failed migration; or planning a zero-downtime migration strategy. Covers AccessExclusiveLock behaviour, concurrent index creation, and backfill strategies.
Score breakdown
Score breakdown
rubric 1.0Composite 0–100 score derived from 9 verifiable signals. See the rubric →
Related skills
PlanetScale's schema branching and index-aware queries, packaged for agents.
Supabase done right. RLS policies, edge functions, realtime, auth — in idiomatic patterns.
Prisma migrations and queries by the book. Index-aware, migration-safe, type-correct.
