flyway-migrations

name	flyway-migrations
description	Use when creating database migrations, schema changes, seed data, or any SQL that modifies database structure. Covers Flyway naming conventions, versioning, and safe migration patterns.

Flyway Migrations

File Naming Convention

src/main/resources/db/migration/

V{version}__{description}.sql       ← versioned (run once)
R__{description}.sql                ← repeatable (run when checksum changes)
U{version}__{description}.sql       ← undo (requires Flyway Teams)

Examples:
V1__create_users_table.sql
V2__create_orders_table.sql
V2.1__add_order_status_index.sql
V3__add_customer_email_to_orders.sql
R__create_reporting_views.sql

Rules:

• Double underscore __ between version and description
• Underscore _ for spaces in description
• Sequential versions — never go back and fill gaps
• Never modify a migration that has already run in any environment

Example Migrations

-- V1__create_users_table.sql
CREATE TABLE users (
    id          UUID PRIMARY KEY DEFAULT gen_random_uuid(),
    email       VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL UNIQUE,
    password    VARCHAR(255) NOT NULL,
    role        VARCHAR(50)  NOT NULL DEFAULT 'USER',
    created_at  TIMESTAMPTZ  NOT NULL DEFAULT NOW(),
    updated_at  TIMESTAMPTZ  NOT NULL DEFAULT NOW()
);

CREATE INDEX idx_users_email ON users(email);

-- V2__create_orders_table.sql
CREATE TABLE orders (
    id              UUID PRIMARY KEY DEFAULT gen_random_uuid(),
    user_id         UUID NOT NULL REFERENCES users(id),
    status          VARCHAR(50) NOT NULL DEFAULT 'PENDING',
    total_amount    NUMERIC(12, 2) NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
    created_at      TIMESTAMPTZ NOT NULL DEFAULT NOW(),
    updated_at      TIMESTAMPTZ NOT NULL DEFAULT NOW()
);

CREATE INDEX idx_orders_user_id  ON orders(user_id);
CREATE INDEX idx_orders_status   ON orders(status);
CREATE INDEX idx_orders_created  ON orders(created_at DESC);

-- V3__add_shipping_address_to_orders.sql
-- Adding a column — always nullable or with default (safe for existing rows)
ALTER TABLE orders
    ADD COLUMN shipping_address TEXT,
    ADD COLUMN shipped_at TIMESTAMPTZ;

Safe Migration Patterns

-- ✅ Safe: add nullable column
ALTER TABLE orders ADD COLUMN notes TEXT;

-- ✅ Safe: add column with default
ALTER TABLE orders ADD COLUMN priority INT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0;

-- ✅ Safe: add index CONCURRENTLY (no table lock in Postgres)
-- ⚠️ BUT: CONCURRENTLY cannot run inside a transaction, and Flyway wraps every
-- migration in one by default → the migration FAILS. Opt that one script out
-- with a sidecar config file:
--   V4__add_orders_email_index.sql.conf  →  executeInTransaction=false
-- Keep the CONCURRENTLY statement alone in its own migration file.
CREATE INDEX CONCURRENTLY idx_orders_email ON orders(customer_email);

-- ✅ Safe: rename via add + backfill + drop (multi-step)
-- Step 1 (V5): add new column
ALTER TABLE orders ADD COLUMN customer_email VARCHAR(255);
-- Step 2 (V5): backfill
UPDATE orders SET customer_email = (SELECT email FROM users WHERE users.id = orders.user_id);
-- Step 3 (V5): add constraint after data is there
ALTER TABLE orders ALTER COLUMN customer_email SET NOT NULL;
-- Step 4 (later V6, after code is deployed): drop old column
ALTER TABLE orders DROP COLUMN user_id;

-- ❌ Dangerous: rename column directly (breaks running app)
ALTER TABLE orders RENAME COLUMN user_id TO customer_id;

-- ❌ Dangerous: NOT NULL without default on large table (locks table)
ALTER TABLE orders ADD COLUMN priority INT NOT NULL; -- will fail on existing rows

application.yml

spring:
  flyway:
    enabled: true
    locations: classpath:db/migration
    baseline-on-migrate: true   # for existing databases
    validate-on-migrate: true
    out-of-order: false         # enforce sequential execution

Seed Data (test/dev only)

// Use Spring profiles, not Flyway, for seed data
@Component
@Profile("dev")
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class DevDataSeeder implements ApplicationRunner {
    private final UserRepository userRepository;

    @Override
    public void run(ApplicationArguments args) {
        if (userRepository.count() == 0) {
            userRepository.save(User.createAdmin("[e-mail]", "password123"));
        }
    }
}

Team Workflow: Concurrent Migrations

• Multiple developers creating migrations simultaneously will cause version conflicts
• Solution: use a shared tracker (Slack channel, wiki page) or timestamp-based versions (V20260414_1__)
• If two migrations target the same version, one developer must bump theirs
• Run flyway info before committing to check for version gaps or duplicates
• In CI/CD: run flyway validate as a pre-deploy step to catch conflicts early
• Never set out-of-order: true in production — it masks migration ordering bugs

Gotchas

• Agent names files V1_create_users.sql (single underscore) — must be double __
• Agent modifies existing migration files — never edit a migration that has run
• Agent adds NOT NULL column without default — use nullable or provide default
• Agent renames columns directly — use multi-step add/backfill/drop across deploys
• Agent seeds data in Flyway migrations — use @Profile("dev") seeders instead
• Agent uses CREATE INDEX CONCURRENTLY in a normal migration — fails inside Flyway's transaction; needs executeInTransaction=false in a .sql.conf sidecar and its own file
• Agent skips indexes — always index foreign keys and columns used in WHERE/ORDER BY
• Agent creates migration with DROP TABLE or DROP COLUMN as first step — always add new column, deploy code, then drop old in a later migration